I’ve done this post before or some type of iteration of it. But many of my themes repeat. If you notice my pattern, I don’t always blog to just spout off. Often I have a goal and that goal is to raise awareness and open peoples minds. This would be one of those entries.
If you’re a woman, chances are, you’re a crossdresser. The minute you put on a pair of pants, you walked into classic male territory. Not satisfied with that answer? Well have you ever bought a pair of guys jeans because they fit better or borrowed/stolen your boyfriends [insert article of clothing here]. Then you are a crossdresser.
But that’s not so bad is it? I mean, girls these days can get away with it right? It’s never a big deal. In fact you probably don’t even think about it. It’s probably not even a question.
The problem is society hasn’t been nearly as understanding for guys. While we certainly do have many choices in fashion, we often see repeats of the same thing over and over again. While this is typical in fashion, it’s not as broad a spectrum for men as it is for women.
For example, men in the United States do not wear skirts. At best a man will wear a kilt for certain situations. But even then that tends to be limited to men of Scottish decent doing something Scottish.
However in Europe more and more men are beginning to wear skirts as high fashion houses pump them out. However ask any American male if he’ll wear a skirt and most of tell you “hell no” in a completely disgusted, proud and ignorant voice. Apparently our society seems to have forgotten that men on this planet have worn skirt and dress like garments for thousands of years longer then we’ve worn pants. Even today 2/3rds of the worlds male population wear skirt/dress like garments.
As another example, men are made fun of and snickered at for wearing tights or leggings without anything covering them. Yet women freely walk around in daily society dressed as such. It’s even become popular.
I’ll give you another example. Remember this past summer when I said I was going to buy a bathing suit that looks like this:
(mine is black)
I had to go to ten different stores. Every single store had the same exact thing. Mens bathing suits were all boxer shorts that came down to the knee and were very loose fitting. The only thing that changed between them was the color and print. I finally found what I was looking for at a sporting goods store. But I was shocked that there was absolutely no variety in mens bathing suits in regular shopping malls and discount stores. Meanwhile if you ventured into the womens section, variety galore! One pieces, two pieces, string bikinis, bikinis, boyshorts, little skirts, full tops, bikini tops, the list goes on and on.
MENS CLOTHING SUCKS!
Plain and simple. We need a revolution in male fashion. But the problem is, here in the United States men are so fucking scared of being called ‘gay’ they don’t want to take any chances. Or they’ve been programmed to believe that anything outside of their norm is ‘gay.’ I don’t understand how sexual orientation got associated with mens fashion. A womans sexual orientation is never questioned when she puts on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. Unless she absolutely attempts to go extremely bull dike, she’s good. But with guys its another story.
Personally I started wearing womens panties and leggings. I really don’t give a fuck. I’m not gay. My sexuality has nothing to do with it. I’m not pretending to be a woman either. Just like a woman isn’t pretending to be a man when she buys a pair of guys jeans because they fit better. I just happen to like all the styles, color choices and cut of womens underwear. I can buy a pair of womens spandex boyshorts for $3 in a variety of colors. They’re cheaper then guys spandex boxerbiefs by half the price or better and they contour my ass more than the mens do.
As for the leggings, once again I like all the variety of colors, patterns and styles. In the winter I usually wear longjohns because my legs get cold. But sometimes they get too warm. Especially if I go from being outside to being in the office for a while. The leggings are a great middle ground, because they’re tight to the leg so they trap heat, but they’re also thin enough they don’t get too toasty. Not to mention they don’t get caught on your jeans the way cotton longjohns do, they double as socks and as an added benefit they’re supposed to be better for the circulation in your legs.
Once again, try to find these for guys in any regular store and you’re out of luck. So you got to buy the womens. But that keeps 99.9% of the guys away from even thinking about it. As a result they don’t reap the benefits.
If people give me strange looks when I’m out shopping, it’s their own narrow-mindedness. They accepted one pattern of societal behavior that is just one of billions that could have been accepted. All things can change. But surprisingly most people don’t give me strange looks. Most people have been really cool. Which means progress is being made. Ever so slightly. But mens fashion really needs a revolution.
I love you for this!
:)
I’m far from girly.
I buy mostly men’s t-shirts, hoodies/zip-up jackets, and canvas shoes.
Hell, I have even bought a pack of boxer’s in my size simply because they are comfy to sleep in.
Woman’s clothing is just too tight fitted for me.
(Thanks Xanga for finally letting me comment.)
I wear leggings underneath my trousers too! For warmth!
I have to admit I do find it strange you wear women’s underwear, but as long as you don’t care, what I think doesn’t – and shouldn’t – matter in the slightest.
I agree that there is such little variety for males. I guess it is based on this idea that women like to dress up and wear lots of different things, whereas men just “stick on a pair of jeans and a tee and off they go.” Obviously this is not the case because here you are posting about how wrong you feel it is.
I’m surprised they don’t sell trunks. Here they do sell boxers but they also sell trunks as male swimwear. That’s pretty normal.
And yep, I guess I am a cross-dresser. I have always believed that every woman has a pair of man-jeans. I certainly do. I don’t wear them out a lot, but funnily enough I wore them just yesterday at University. I like them because women’s jeans are made so tight most of the time. Men’s jeans are loose, practical and comfortable.
I prefer speedos. Got used to them on swim teams but now I usually wear them under a baggy shorts swimsuit most of the time, cause I’m a pussy probably. There have been a few times where I showed up somewhere in speedo only and it became a classic moment, so maybe I should do that more, but also I’ve gotten pudgier. Anyway, selection at sporting goods stores has never bothered me because they always have exactly what I want: black.
I used to wear skirts occasionally just for fun, maybe I grew out of it? Or maybe I no longer have any female friends who will lend me clothes. Hmmmmm.
@JESthemess – Absolutely. I have a hard time with decided how I feel about gender specific clothing. Part of me feels like there should be a line drawn between mens and womens clothing. Because men and women do have different bodies. But even then among men and among women there are a whole variety of body types.
On the other hand. These are all just clothes. Pieces of fabric that are cut and sewed differently. At it’s root, the function of clothing is to protect and provide warmth. But beyond that we use it to convey our mood, our social status, our respect or disrespect or any given message, including our gender. If we took gender out of it, we’d still have all those other functions our clothing could provide.
So yay, I’m glad you wear what you want to wear and what you think feels comfortable. Me too.
@OhItWontBeForever – Yes. But I also don’t represent the “average American male.” However there are quiet a few guys like me and more guys becoming style conscious every day. They just have yet to venture outside the comfort zone of male fashion… yet.
Sadly male fashion is often too practical and lazy. I mean that’s really where it comes from. The practicality is useful for work environments. Which is why women stepping into male job roles often take on male clothing or male-inspired clothing. Which is fine. Safety and practicality are a concern when working on a construction site or whatever. That’s also probably why it’s more acceptable for a women today to wear mens clothing, because the womens rights movement brought women into jobs that were previously male only. So women had to adopt the practicality of those clothes for that work environment. While at the same time they never gave up the fun, frilly and sexy stuff they had before, which they also continued to evolve.
But now there has to be a revolution in mens clothing that offers us the fun, frilly, tight and sexy stuff without getting rid of the classic male stuff. Many of us modern males in first world countries don’t need the hardcore practical clothing all the time. We aren’t hunting for our food and many of us are working in office buildings and going to night clubs. So it’s a good point in history to inject some classic female fashion cues into mens fashion.
@anaraug – I’ve never worn skirts as a regular piece of clothing. But I’d be willing to try them. The closest I have is what’s called a “chameleon” that I got at a renaissance festival years and years ago. It can be turned into a variety of clothing items from a tunic to a long skirt. I wore it as a skirt a couple of times around the house. Mostly as something to just throw on. It’s like a camo green color, so it doesn’t exactly go with everything and it’s not designed to fit all that well as any one of it’s single outcomes. So it’s not that I was afraid to wear it out in public as a skirt, but more or less that it just wasn’t a very stylish skirt.
Just this past summer, H&M for their spring collection released a black male skirt here in the USA. I didn’t find out about it until a week ago because I don’t shop at H&M. But I will now. Just because they were the first large chain retailer to try and push the boundaries by introducing something like that to American males.
I don’t know how well it did, but I didn’t see any guys walking around with black skirts on, so apparently not too well. But hopefully that doesn’t deter them from doing it again and from other retailers jumping on the bandwagon. Because even though it’s just one thing, it’s one thing us guys don’t have. Another option.
@OhItWontBeForever – as for the womens underwear thing. That’s not something I would ever expect to catch on with most guys. Or even for most women to understand. Because we’re taught that men are rugged and rough and women are soft and dainty. But I’m a dynamic person. I like to feel rough and rugged one day and soft and dainty the next. I like both, so I refuse to subscribe to just one when all I’ve got is one life. Just like Jesthemess up there likes to sleep in guys boxer shorts. Yet I don’t think that’s strange.
If anything women should embrace men wearing more womens clothing because means we’ve come to a point of true equality. If women can wear mens underwear and it’s not seen as strange, the same should be true in reverse.
I like the bright colors, I like the styles and the fit. I don’t really wear lacy stuff often. Only when I’m in the mood. But there are a lot of womens panties these days that are modeled after guys stuff anyway. Like the boy briefs for women. I like those, even though I’ve never liked tighty whites for guys. But the womens versions fit me better, they ride lower/sexier on the waste and come in color combos. They just seem to work for me.
Then there are the spandex boy shorts that I also like. There really isn’t a ton of difference between these and guys spandex boxer briefs. Except the womens tend to be a tad shorter in the leg, come in more colors and designs than just black and white and can be had for as much as half the price or less.Probably because they don’t come in packages, they are sold single or bound in a bunch of two or three.
Power to the people. Gender freedom for all.
I remember having a conversation a while ago with a coworker about the state of men’s clothing. We were talking about how much easier it is for a man to dress for any sort of situation. Most of the guys at my workplace (we’re “business casual”) just wear dress pants and a button-down shirt – occasionally a tie. Any sort of formal situation requires little thought or effort. Funeral? Wear a suit. Wedding? Suit. Job Interview? Wear a suit. The most amount of thought that might be required is to pick a color and make sure the tie doesn’t clash.
But with women’s clothes, there’s so much variety it’s almost paralyzing. Should I wear a skirt, a dress, a jacket, a sweater, what color, what kind of shoes, what color stockings? Is this outfit too casual? Is it too formal? Is it too sexy or provocative because the shirt is cut too low? Is it appropriate for the environment (and everyone’s opinion on that varies)? Even casual clothes is complex – jeans, skirt, dress, t-shirt, what style of each, what color of each, what accessories or jewelry or shoes to go with it (and purses, too!)
So yeah, I don’t know which one is easier. I will say that the plus side of being a woman is you can wear skirts or dresses (or even capris!) when it’s 90 degrees out, while men have to wear pants all the time (unless they’re not in a professional/formal/work environment and they can wear shorts). I felt really bad for the guys in their long sleeved shirts and pants and ties this past summer.
I’ve purchased a hooded sweatshirt in the men’s section because I couldn’t find any in the women’s section. if you live in tha amazon jungle, those men wear tiny sarong skirts
they are used to seeing that so it is normal
I think mens’ fashion covers up too much. it would be hot if a guy wore a blazer jacket without a shirt underneath but buttoned up to show a peekaboo toned chest.
I wonder if you go to victoria’s secret and picked a few pairs of thongs or whichever panties you like, would they mind that you go into the dressing room to try them on? I think stores stock items that are in demand. in japan, I’ve seen guys wear clothes that would be considered feminine clothing, such as leggings, but they are known for outlandish fashion, so it isn’t as taboo as in the states.
@roxics – I’ve seen guys wearing the utilikilt in public a few times. One guy was wearing one with a suit at a wedding I attended. Very hippie wedding but a wedding nonetheless. Other problem I have with skirts is I carry a lot of gear. I’d need a purse too, and I hear those are annoying.
I dated a guy when I was 19 who wore skirts all the time. My GOD was he hot! I’d love it if more men wore skirts! I find it incredibly attractive, on the right man (just like some women look better in pants, the same is true for some men).
Also have an acquaintance in London who dons women’s clothing on occasion. Again, HOT. I swear to god he looks better than I do!
It is funny because in Arab countries or in the Middle East, they seem more open about this, at least in the sense that you get tight jeans for males, you get the “dress” thing that men wear, etc. Some of it is a part of culture but some of it is also just something new that has changed over time. Then again, they are the polar opposite of America because I doubt you would see a woman there in baggy jeans and/or trench boots.
I want a pair of those!