Starting to Dress Like a Man (for FTMs)

Long time no see, Strangers! Where have I been? Well, I ran out of girl stuff to write about so I decided to transition to male.

Just kidding, I’m transitioning for different reasons. Because I literally am male. Surprise! I know, I didn’t believe it either.

But that doesn’t mean I still don’t love fashion. And this new adventure in wardrobe has been a new challenge. More-so because information on creating a men’s wardrobe from the ground up as an adult with a feminine body shape is just not something normally covered by men’s fashion videos and blogs. I literally emailed Real Men Real Style for tips and received NO response at all. Guess I’m on my own then. But that doesn’t mean you have to be. Just call me your fairy godfather.

Let me get this first bit out of the way. Don’t dress in nothing but oversized hoodies and jerseys because you don’t know what you’re doing and you’re trying to hide your shape. It’s not attractive and you’re more likely to look like a lesbian, which you are not, if you’re reading this. Probably. Or you can ignore me. But it’s doing you no favors. You just look sloppy. As intimidating as it can be as a first timer, immerse yourself in men’s fashion information in general. I know how overwhelming it can be because as you may know, I grew up reading Esquire instead of Cosmo and it’s still a lot to take in. But don’t worry yourself too much about fussy details. Just look around. See what you like. See what kind of man you want to look like. Experiment.

This brings me to my first big Do. Start cheap. Because you’re still experimenting, there’s likely to be a lot of stuff you try and decide isn’t for you. You don’t want to spend a lot of money in this stage. My first big round of shopping happened at Value Village. Now, this meant it was not only cheap, but for casual-wear I still actually really love pretty much everything I got. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be out a lot of money. And if I change my mind about any of it I can just donate it right back.

Speaking of cheap, another amazing place to go is online, mainly Aliexpress and Wish. Because not only are these places affordable but they’re Asian. Why does this matter? Because you’re probably relatively small for a dude, and Asian clothes run smaller. This means you don’t have to shop in the boys section. I mean you can, but it’s probably going to be a lot of dinosaur tshirts and we’re trying to dress like men here, right? Right.

Now it’s generally assumed that clothing from sites like this are crap. That’s not necessarily wrong – they definitely can be. The key here is to read reviews, especially ones with customer photos. Lots of reviews. Check size charts over and over. Check return policies. Besides, if there’s one thing I’ve learned throughout all of this it’s that men’s clothes are of much better quality than women’s. A lot better. So you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised. And you know what? I’ve only very rarely bought something that didn’t work out. My new wardrobe is amazing.

Now, pants are the devil for us, aren’t they? Goddamn hips IjusthatethemsomuchI’mgoingtositinthisdressingroomandcryfortherestoftheday. Or nah. Because what works is going up one size and/or getting something with stretch. I’m not talking about leggings or sweats or other generally fugly things. I mean real nice dress pants and slim fit jeans. They can have stretch. And it’s wonderful. I fucking love my new $12 pants.

Another thing that’s going to show off your hips is tucking in your shirt. But I mean, don’t you have to? If you’re wearing business or formal-wear that is. If you don’t it looks sloppy. True. BUT the best hack for this is a vest/waistcoat. It covers your middle, makes you look nice and trim, disguises your hips, disguises your chest/binder, and looks dapper AF. It can also be worn as a cheaper alternative to a jacket, because getting a really nice one that fits well is hard. And you’ll end up looking better than your boss. Hell yes my dudes. Get a few of them to go with any shirt/pants combo. Get a few ties too. Ties are nice. If your tie is too long, you can tuck the excess into your shirt, and the vest will cover that up too!

Hell yes

 

If you wear lifts, consider ordering your shoes a size up to make room for them. That’s all I got to say about shoes at the moment.

Mini tip #2, accessorize higher up on your body to draw the eye up and help you look taller. Think hats, ties, and pocket squares. Suspenders for their vertical-ness over belts with their horizontal-ness. Definitely not belts in contrasting colors, that visually cut you in half and therefor make you look shorter. And monochromatic color schemes are good. Epaulets are very good. Shoulder pads… still pretty 80s.

Aaaand last thing I got for now, and I know this is repetition, is to make sure your clothes FIT. You’ve been going baggy to hide your curves but honey no. Just no. A well dressed man wears clothes that fit. It looks put-together, confident, and shows off your new muscles. niiiiiice. Those tips I gave above will help with the curves. If you take nothing else away from this article it’s that your clothes should fit.

That’s all I got for now. Maybe I’ll be back later with shaving tips or something 😛

These Aliexpress Wig Ads are Pretty Funny

Even as adults, we all go through phases. And ever since my mom showed me her massive wig collection from Aliexpress, I’ve been corrupted. Hers weren’t my style at all, but when she told me how cheap they were I went on a shopping spree and still haven’t stopped. But as I sit here at 3am browsing through pages of wigs in all lengths and colors, I’m coming across some ads that are kind of funny, or just strange. Maybe it’s just that something has been lost in translation? Have a look for yourself.

I have no idea what’s going on with that little hat. Was somebody trying to show off their mad photoshop skills?

This Elsa wig is literally a drawing.

Hey I got my kids’ soccer practice right now but we should totally hook up later.

It looks like they’re trying to protect this wig’s identity. I don’t understand.

Speaking of censorship, is this mannequin’s mouth doing something we’re not supposed to see?

I can’t even guess what this mannequin’s neck is doing, but it must be filthy.

These pigtails are tied with dicks. For some reason.

It’s nice to finally see a shopping site acknowledging a man’s right to wear really girly hair.

I think they need to get their eyes checked, or I do. Nevertheless, I bought this one.

If green is now pink, straight is now curly.

Pro tip: Don’t buy your mom a wig labelled for “old women.”

Anyway, I haven’t been gone, I’ve just been silent. If you’ve missed me in the meantime, feel free to check out my new twitter page @TheAvaStrange. Until next time!

Online Shopping, Deadlines, and My First Girdle

Don’t you just hate it when you work really hard writing a post only to find when you go to post it that you’re NOT SIGNED IN?? And you have to write it ALL OVER AGAIN even though it won’t be as good as the first time? Eugh. Anyway…

There’s nothing wrong with waiting to save up to buy something. We all have to do it, and it makes you appreciate the thing more when you finally get it. That’s part of luxurious living, being grateful for everything you have. Unfortunately when it comes to this waiting, sometimes there’s a limit on how long you have and you need more time. Just like with buying things in person, online sometimes things go off the market, get sold out, or a sale that you were depending on ends too soon. I dealt with this a lot lately.

A certain dress I had been wanting since January, the Lizbeth Day Of The Dead dress from Pinup Girl Clothing, finally came back in stock this week. Because of the embroidery it always takes a long time, so opportunities to buy it don’t come along very often. Unfortunately I have also just recently lost my job. BAD timing. And I was assured that even though I start at a new, higher paying job next week, I still couldn’t afford to just charge it.

Something else I had been wanting for a very long time, which is much more affordable, is a girdle. I wanted something that would give me that exaggerated hourglass figure without the stiffness, bulkiness, and severity of a corset. Unfortunately most of them are just more old-fashioned versions of spanx, that hold you in without defined shaping, with all the boning and lacing that you just don’t want showing through a tight dress. The one that I DID really love was the Vargas Girdle by Kiss Me Deadly. It was exactly what I was looking for, and very sexy. I went through my bookmarks to find it, only to find out that it had just recently been discontinued! VERY frustrating. So there I was searching the internet for a site that might still carry it, thinking I very well might have missed my chance, and knowing I would probably miss my chance on the Lizbeth dress. Money sure does suck sometimes.

So thankfully there was one place still selling it, Fairy Goth Mother, which I have been admiring for years but never purchased from before, and which also happens to be the first place I ever saw the girdle. And they were already out of mediums. So I just made it, and now I’ll finally have first hand experience on these intriguing articles of lingerie described in Girdle Zone. Hooray!