How to Look Androgynous

[ziggy_encaoua]

Found this whilst surfing around

Step 1 Decide how far you want to go with your androgynous look. Makeup, for instance, isn't for every man. A woman can enjoy pants suits but still keep her hair long. Since androgyny has details from both genders, you set the limits.
Step2 Grow your hair long if you're a man. Rock musicians from the '70s to the present have made this an attractive alternative for guys. Add a goatee or beard for a laid-back look.
Step3 Look into clothes that flow free like long shirts or rain coats. A cape that flaps in the wind on a cold day makes a strong statement about your personality. Pair them with masculine accessories like boots and a hat to emphasize your androgynous look.
Step4 Use a little eyeliner if you're going to a party or club. Be subtle. You want to emphasize your eye shape, not look like you were attacked the night before.
Step5 Trim your hair if you're a woman. A bob was risqué in the '20s but is considered completely feminine now. Keep your hair long on the top and sides if you like a softer look. Get it chopped short all around if you want to challenge gender conventions.
Step6 Check out the suits in the professional attire section of department stores. Some styles are more masculine than others like plaid patterns, tuxedo jackets and vests. You can feminize a suit with a pin, scarf and shoes.
Step7 Look into adding some male accessories to your outfit to get that androgynous look. Loafers, boots and hats with brims can sharpen a feminine style.

[Sasquatch]

As a 6'4" bearded heavyweight, androgeny just ain't gonna happen!!

Sasq

[SportSkirt]

As a 6'4" bearded heavyweight, androgeny just ain't gonna happen!!

Sasq

unless you go for the Russian Women Shot-Put look!

[Since1982]

Very good SS, or I get a mental picture of a Russian woman that weighs over 300 flabby pounds doing the Hammer toss with one of those Olympic "hammers" which consist of a handle, a metal cord and a heavy round ball on the end and the "girls" spin up to the line and LET GOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! with flab doing the "gravity dance" in all directions.

I'm overweight and probably shouldn't say things like that, but it's a very funny mental picture...

[SportSkirt]

If you don't live life with a smile on your face and see a little humour in things it would be very sad indeed.

[Grok]

Article about androgynous clothing styles. Not in the artistic sense of Fashion Designers. Not an amalgam. Not in a transgender sense. Androgynous...in the sense of everyday clothing that lacks distinctiveness (in terms of gender). Skirting-such as discussed in this forum-I believe will eventually make a contribution. Consider "no skirts" listed for Bottoms. I think that denim skirts, for example will eventually be considered an androgynous style, worn by both men and women. (Jeans are definitely a hint of this). Perhaps the Macabi as well.

[crfriend]

I think that denim skirts, for example will eventually be considered an androgynous style, worn by both men and women. (Jeans are definitely a hint of this). Perhaps the Macabi as well.

Personally, I would posit that the androgynous look is not where most guys would want to go. I know for certain that I wouldn't want to. I'm a bloke and am very happy to be one, thank you very much; I see no reason to alter that presentation no matter what I happen to be wearing on my lower extremity.

To be sure, it takes a very confident and remarkably brave bloke indeed to step out the front door of his abode with both legs "shoved down one pipe" -- a very brave bloke indeed. Why should he need to "check his masculinity at the door" to don a skirt? Should he be "less than a man" if he decides that trousers are not for him? If so, why?

Common thought indicates that guys should naturally shy away from "single tube" garments as those are "for girls only". Whilst that thought pattern remains predominant, this forum is all about bucking "common thought" and, hopefully, enlightening a few minds along the way. I perceive no diminution of my masculinity when I'm wearing a skirt, nor do I perceive any augmentation to it when I'm wearing trousers -- there is no difference, and the sooner that notion gets out into general circulation the better!

I've hammered on this topic a number of times before, and all I can say in defense of it is that if you're going to wait for somebody else to "make it acceptable for a guy to wear a skirt in public" then you're going to have a very long wait indeed. In short, if you want to "talk the talk", then you'll need to "man up" and "walk the walk". If you don't then, as the Texans say, you're "all hat and no cattle".

[Grok]

Actually, I don't know of any men who want to go where the fashion designers want us to go. We are not their natural customers. The designers' artwork is irrelevant and useless, whether it be presentations of MUGs or Androgyny.


On the other hand, I can imagine Free Stylers being an influence-as an unintended byproduct.

[couyalair]

I cannot see free-stylers or any androgynous style having any influence whatsoever on the general public, unless it be, as suggested earlier by Grok, in the form of jeans/denim.
I feel that the only people likely to influence younger men in general would be the adoption in a totally non-feminine way (ie: no make-up, heels, suggestive mannerisms) by heroes of the sporting, film and pop music world. Beckham's sarongs have often been mentioned, just as K West's faux kilt, but they were one-off events, more or less denied subsequently. The only full-timer I could mention is Marc Jacob. Many of his photos look really good (simple kilt, not androgynous at all) and could win general approval, but unfortunately, he also goes overboard with dresses in lace or strawberry pink. Whatever members of this forum may think of that, I am quite certain the general public disapproves completely. And it's not likely to change.

Martin

[JohnH]

I can be dressed in an androgynous sense complete with midi-length hair and light makeup such that I get ma'amed, and then I open my mouth to speak in my Johnny Cash voice the poor person who ma'amed me recognizes me as a dude!

John

[crfriend]

Actually, I don't know of any men who want to go where the fashion designers want us to go. We are not their natural customers. The designers' artwork is irrelevant and useless, whether it be presentations of MUGs or Androgyny.

I've highlighted what I believe to the be core of the argument when it comes to Fashion (capital "F" there for a reason) designers. It's art not necessarily anything that's actually wearable in the real world. Now, art has its place, and to deny that would be to deny one a rich source of joy and inspiration. Imagine a world without Rembrandts, Beethovens, or Wrights -- pretty bland and dismal, no? However, most of what goes down the catwalk isn't really visually appealing (at least to me) and it's certainly not practical (What might Raymond Loewy do with a bloke's skirt?) and so it becomes irrelevant.

On the other hand, I can imagine Free Stylers being an influence-as an unintended byproduct.

This depends on how far the individual free-styler in question decides to push the limit. I've seen free-style done absolutely masterfully, and I've also seen things that are outright travesties. One needs to pay attention to what one is doing lest he make an utter fool of himself in public (e.g. Marc Jacobs in a lace dress showing his underthings off for the world to see). (Not that "the public" really much cares.)

[Grok]

Yes, Couyalair got that right, I was referring to denim. (I should have explained that in my earlier post). It may be a special case for three different reasons: 1. Invisibility 2. Lacking distinctiveness in terms of gender 3. But able to pass as masculine. Invisibility? This has been mentioned a number of times; visual fatigue caused by the prevalence of those drab jeans. Invisibility may be an initial advantage, as the wearer builds self confidence. 2. Lack of distinctiveness. Undistinguished in terms of gender, not particularly one way or the other. Denim skirts look plausible on both genders. 3. But pass for masculine? Due to the jeans connection.

In the past there has been a bit of discussion about what makes a skirt masculine or not. But denim skirts seem to fall into the styles mentioned in the article, styles that seem to lack any such distinctiveness, and look plausible on both men and women.

In the past society demanded a rigid gender binary in terms clothing. But in the meantime...unintentionally...in the background...an indistinct middle ground may be forming. An individual will likely conform to gendered expectations, but be permitted an androgynous alternative in clothing.

[Grok]

Regarding Couyalair's comments, I believe that to market to mainstream men an unbifucated garment will have to be marketed as a Male Unbifurcated Garment (MUG). Beckham and the sarong could be used as an example-Beckham may have been seen as a nonconformist, but one could argue that sarongs are traditional mens wear in a number of cultures. I doubt that there is any chance of commercial success if the words "androgynous" or "unisex" should be applied to a design. Even MUGs-other than kilts-are problematic.

During the remainder of my life time, I expect that only sarongs and denim skirts will become-if not popularized-then at least accepted by the mainstream. Kilts, of course, are already there.

Outliers? A small subculture such as the goths may have their own look, and Free Stylers are very much iconoclasts.

[partlyscot]

I'm not particularly trying to look androgynous, at least, in the sense that I interpret it. To me, an androgynous look is one where one is not sure of the gender of the person in question. I don't want to be seen as anything other than male. Not necessarily masculine, though. I say that because I have issues in the way masculinity is expected to be portrayed in most Western cultures.

[Grok]

It has occurred to me that the article describes a functional androgyny as applied to clothing. The gender of the individuals so clad may be evident from facial features, or general body shape. Quite different from fashionable Androgyny, where the goal seems to blur the gender identity of the actual person.