Men in Women's Shoes

[JohnH]

eventhough the discussion is becoming rather off-topic, one sugegstion: redefine crossderessing as cross-the-aile-dressing. Still the question why such gives us men such a negative connotation whilst women tend to get away with it without a blinck of the eye.

I have a phrase for this situation. I call it "Masculine Anxiety". Men have only themselves to blame.

John

[Fred in Skirts]

I have a phrase for this situation. I call it "Masculine Anxiety". Men have only themselves to blame. John

John you are 100% right we are the only ones to blame because we let others tell us what we should do and wear. Why because we are afraid of whet the guys down at the pub will think. When we get over this we will have made a break through that will be epic in it's effect on the rest of the world.

Fred

[Pdxfashionpioneer]

"epic in its effect on the rest of the world."

That's mouthful Fred. The social history I have read says that men tried to keep women from wearing pants so men's distinctive attire would display their standing as the superior sex. When we men lost that battle the logical thing would have been to decide that if we couldn't beat them we should rejoin them and reembrace the dresses, skirts and lace we had abandoned to the women.

But no! In a pathetic attempt to cling to that illusion of superiority we denied ourselves the pleasure of such clothes and insisted that men should wear pants and only pants. Hence, the source of our feeling that we'll get more grief from men than women for how we dress comes from an instinctive realization that we're subverting the mythical social order.

The reason we don't get much grief from men or women is that we all know that old paradigm has run its course, but just as in the story of the Emperor's New Clothes, everyone is waiting for someone else to state the obvious. By our actions we say it every time we go out in public skirted, "Men and women are equals." This at the heart, I believe, of why women seem to enjoy our acting on our wardrobe choices.

Dave, the PDX Fashion Pioneer

[moonshadow]

That was wonderful Dave. Hit the nail on the head and drove it home with one blow!

[Pdxfashionpioneer]

Thank you Moon.

[JeffB1959]

While I've loved wearing women's shoes for years, I've never liked sandals, heck, you couldn't have paid me to wear them, especially platform sandals. But things have changed considerably as I've come around to enjoy such shoes as I have several pairs in different styles and find them to be great fun. In fact, these days, sandals and slides are pretty much all I'm wearing now that the weather is warm.

[ChrisM]

All this week I have been in an Executive Council Retreat for the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. I have been wearing three-inch stiletto pumps. I did get one question from the hired facilitator, but I simply told him I was an independent thinker. None of my colleagues have cared what I wore on my feet (Except a few women in flats who found that I towered above them when in my heels.)

Chris

[Caultron]

All this week I have been in an Executive Council Retreat for the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. I have been wearing three-inch stiletto pumps. I did get one question from the hired facilitator, but I simply told him I was an independent thinker. None of my colleagues have cared what I wore on my feet (Except a few women in flats who found that I towered above them when in my heels.)

That's an "A" for audacity, for sure. If you can carry off the Navy and the Marines, I'm sure you can carry off just about anything.

What was the rest of your outfit?

[Grok]

That's mouthful Fred. The social history I have read says that men tried to keep women from wearing pants so men's distinctive attire would display their standing as the superior sex. When we men lost that battle the logical thing would have been to decide that if we couldn't beat them we should rejoin them and reembrace the dresses, skirts and lace we had abandoned to the women.

But no! In a pathetic attempt to cling to that illusion of superiority we denied ourselves the pleasure of such clothes and insisted that men should wear pants and only pants. Hence, the source of our feeling that we'll get more grief from men than women for how we dress comes from an instinctive realization that we're subverting the mythical social order.

But aren't skirts a badge of inferiority, because they are associated with the weaker sex?

[Fred in Skirts]

But aren't skirts a badge of inferiority, because they are associated with the weaker sex?

They are only if we want to believe that sh!t. After all they are only pieces of cloth and have no magical powers. I do not believe that the weaker sex even exists at all. Women have proven they are as capable as men. So there isn't any inferiority.

Fred

[Pdxfashionpioneer]

Like Fred said.

[moonshadow]

I agree with Fred as well, but I think Grok was being sarcastic.

[Wonderful Electric]

People frequently notice my shoes and i have gotten the dirtiest looks for wearing feminine shoes like Mary Janes. And I only have plain flat ones in brown leather with a strap across the center. Wearing a skirt (or even a shirt dress) has never gotten me as much attention. There must be something about shoes that triggers people. I personally notice shoes the least since they are on the bottom of people's bodies.

[ChrisM]

What was the rest of your outfit?

With the heels I wore trousers. On the final day, preparatory to flying home, I wore a black knee-length "office style" skirt, but with sandals.

I much prefer skirts when I fly, since sitting and sliding down in the seat will cause trousers to bunch up in the crotch, something skirts are obviously immune to. But since I have my suit coat, which I don't want to crush into the suitcase and thus will wear, I have to choose a skirt that looks OK with the coat...hence the "secretarial" look.

I did catch one fellow taking my picture while waiting at baggage claim.

Oh, and I got pulled aside at immigration, and immediately had 'those' thoughts come to mind! But it turned out there was an error in the computer data (a wrong value for the expiry of my visa) and all was OK. The officer was very polite and obviously didn't care what I was wearing.

[Orange Apple]

The officer was very polite and obviously didn't care what I was wearing.

This is also my experience. I have not flown in a skirt but I always wear a bra and make no effort to hide my chest. The scanner usually flags this and the TSA folks couldn't care less that here's a man wearing a bra, although they obviously know it as soon as they do a pat down. These guys are there to do a job, and the job is not to pass judgement on what clothing you're wearing. (Unless you have a bomb in your shoe.)