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"It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 6:01 pm
by partlyscot
Talking to a customer the other day, she had complimented me on my "put-together" outfit. Rust colored dress shirt, diagonal plaid, wool a-line knee length skirt in earth tones, and brown tights. My response was something along the lines of, "I do try to look coordinated, I don't want people to think I put on a skirt by mistake!"

I was trying to be somewhat humorous, (duh!) But I realized that my often painful decision process for dressing in the morning is because I really don't want to look haphazard, and thus give an unnecessary reason for viewing male skirt wearing in a negative light. I rarely gave thought to outfits when I wore pants, and probably was often viewed as a sartorial disaster.

Does this resonate with others?

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 8:07 pm
by Sinned
ps, I have said to MOH that when I wear trousers she gets whatever combinations come out of the drawers first. If the colours clash then tuf. But with a skirt I take pains to make sure that the colours co-ordinate.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 10:18 pm
by kingfish
When I'm breaking the the gender stereotype, I do like to crush it. Coordinating things goes a long way to doing just that.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2019 10:43 pm
by crfriend
partlyscot wrote:I rarely gave thought to outfits when I wore pants, and probably was often viewed as a sartorial disaster.

Does this resonate with others?
That describes me precisely from about 18 years ago. I just could not care less. It was a great relief to my SO when I took up skirts and actually developed some sense. Of course this was before her brain died.
kingfish wrote:When I'm breaking the the gender stereotype, I do like to crush it.
I am the same way in that vein as well. If I'm going to put the effort in, I'm going all in.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Wed May 01, 2019 12:58 am
by JeffB1959
Nobody’s perfect. When it comes to putting together outfits from “the other side of the aisle”, we, as men, are seriously behind the curve, learning things about fashion in our 40’s, 50’s or older that women learned as young girls. That’s why I study hard, experiment and observe what women wear to learn what works and what doesn’t. Just chalk that up to experience.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Wed May 01, 2019 5:37 pm
by melsav
I believe that when you are out in a skirt you have to coordinate otherwise you will be seen as a total amateur when it comes to dress and give more amo to those opposed to men in skirts.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Thu May 02, 2019 1:35 am
by moonshadow
I dress for me. If I dressed for the public's benefit then I'd wear trousers. Some of my outfits may match, others may not, but each day I leave with a skirted outfit on it was to my own personal satisfaction.

My days of hopelessly seeking the public's approval for what I do are just about behind me.

I'm also not on a crusade to bring skirts to men everywhere. I could care less if no other men wear the clothes I wear (most don't share in my style anyway). As long as they don't make it a crime then the rest doesn't matter to me.

I'm not trying to sound arrogant, but I just don't give this a lot of thought.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Thu May 02, 2019 5:27 am
by Fred in Skirts
I have to agree with Moon here. I dress for myself and my own comfort, not for the approval of the unwashed public. If I am color coordinated then it was an accident. I do try to look neat and always wear clean clothes so as not to look like a bum. When I wore pants I was the same way. I just want to be happy in my skirts for as long as I have breath in my body and at my age that may not be as long as I want.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Thu May 02, 2019 6:47 am
by Daryl
partlyscot wrote:Talking to a customer the other day, she had complimented me on my "put-together" outfit. Rust colored dress shirt, diagonal plaid, wool a-line knee length skirt in earth tones, and brown tights. My response was something along the lines of, "I do try to look coordinated, I don't want people to think I put on a skirt by mistake!"

I was trying to be somewhat humorous, (duh!) But I realized that my often painful decision process for dressing in the morning is because I really don't want to look haphazard, and thus give an unnecessary reason for viewing male skirt wearing in a negative light. I rarely gave thought to outfits when I wore pants, and probably was often viewed as a sartorial disaster.

Does this resonate with others?
Yes somewhat. I do view myself as something of an ambassador for male skirt freedom, but this has limits. It doesn't really make my daily choice of garments any harder or slower but it does condition what is in my wardrobe to a certain extent, and is probably why my kilts rarely get worn anymore.

I think that I consider my "outfit" more than I ever did when I only wore pants simply because it seems a shame to waste the opportunity afforded by the expanded range of expression that skirts have provided me. It's fun to look in the mirror and assess how I react to it and imagine others potentially having the same reaction. Jaunty, serious, elegant, soft, flowy, sharp, businesslike, comfy....the list of adjectives could go on and on. With just pants and shirts it was a much smaller list, pretty much limited to sloppy, neat, and businesslike.

Within the past 6 months I've actually started to care about what my legs and footwear look like too. This has me a little worried that I've fallen off the edge of a cliff (and wondering how far away the bottom might be), but it's still all good, actually.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Fri May 03, 2019 4:10 pm
by mishawakaskirt
Fred in Skirts wrote:I have to agree with Moon here. I dress for myself and my own comfort, not for the approval of the unwashed public. If I am color coordinated then it was an accident. I do try to look neat and always wear clean clothes so as not to look like a bum. When I wore pants I was the same way. I just want to be happy in my skirts for as long as I have breath in my body and at my age that may not be as long as I want.

I agree with Moon and Fred.

I want to wear skirts for me and only me.
I don't care for the attention, I long for the day s when kilts and skirts are a non event for all.

I wear them replacing jeans are shorts.

Not for fashion, not for political reasons or sexual reasons. I'm not trying to push the boundaries of feminine fashion.
I find skirts are superior comfort. It drives me crazy that Western men completely pitched skirts.

it's a non event for men to Wear skirts in many other parts of the world.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Sun May 05, 2019 11:42 pm
by dillon
mishawakaskirt wrote:
Fred in Skirts wrote:I have to agree with Moon here. I dress for myself and my own comfort, not for the approval of the unwashed public. If I am color coordinated then it was an accident. I do try to look neat and always wear clean clothes so as not to look like a bum. When I wore pants I was the same way. I just want to be happy in my skirts for as long as I have breath in my body and at my age that may not be as long as I want.

I agree with Moon and Fred.

I want to wear skirts for me and only me.
I don't care for the attention, I long for the day s when kilts and skirts are a non event for all.

I wear them replacing jeans are shorts.

Not for fashion, not for political reasons or sexual reasons. I'm not trying to push the boundaries of feminine fashion.
I find skirts are superior comfort. It drives me crazy that Western men completely pitched skirts.

it's a non event for men to Wear skirts in many other parts of the world.
I agree, and frankly I am not used to attention. I don't know how to handle neutral or favorable comments, being a naturally shy person, and I almost hope for a negative comment so I can get in the face of some hick bigot.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Tue May 07, 2019 10:56 pm
by skirtyscot
I too would love it if men's skirts were normal. I do try to look coordinated when I wear a skirt, probably because I know that people will notice me. Maybe a few people will think that it looks OK, and go on to think "why not?", whereas if my outfit clashes with itself everyone will just go "what a mess, what a weirdo". But I still dress for me!

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 2:16 am
by jjjjohanne
I do worry far more about how pathetic I look when I am dressed in pretty things. I think it is easier to look lame in women's wear.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Fri Jun 07, 2019 7:09 am
by STEVIE
Hi Jjjohanne
You should experiment and find a look that does not generate negative feelings within you.
Regardless of gender clothes should be a pleasure.
Try to relax and enjoy whatever you are wearing.
Steve.

Re: "It wasn't an accident"

Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 9:54 pm
by SkirtRevolution
partlyscot wrote: I rarely gave thought to outfits when I wore pants, and probably was often viewed as a sartorial disaster.

Does this resonate with others?
This totally resonates with me. In pants, I couldnt care less and it shows. But in a skirt or dress I want it to look good.