More questions for cis guys: why *don't* you wear skirts? They're super practical garments (in some contexts anyway) very comfortable and work really well in the summertime. Like, I know why I don't... I've got so many old fears about being seen as the sissy or the tranny (fuck it: I've been called those slurs enough, I get to use them if I want), and feel like I've taken quite enough beatings for one lifetime already. I kind of assumed that was cis dudes worry too... But is that actually true?
@danielle Cis/hetero man here. About two years ago I had a very similar thought and had a sudden urge to start dressing a little more feminine and to start wearing skirts. I settled on wearing kilts (and learned to sew them myself since they're fucking expensive) and never looked back. They are so goddamn comfortable and I wear them every day. I really want to get more men into it because it just feels so nice and a man in a skirt is
🔥 🔥
@danielle Some reasons I can think of as to why cis men don't wear skirts:
-Most women's clothes have small/nonexistent pockets, which is a crime against women everywhere, and probably a dealbreaker for most guys (it is for me)
-Feeling it's "too bold" of a fashion choice/not normalized enough for their gender
@danielle Also, part of it is the slow motion of men's fashion in general. Most of men's fashion consists of solid earth tones, and is generally pretty damn bland. Even v-neck shirts feel like a recent development, and a quick google search for "v neck shirt men's fashion" has a first page result for a Quora question asking if v-neck shirts are considered gay from as recently as 2016!
@danielle
And honestly, I would totally wear dresses if it was more socially acceptable for men to do so (and if I could find some that I could pull off.) I don't take offense to people thinking I'm gay or trans, especially considering I wear pretty feminine tops on a regular basis, paint my nails, and have been sporting a flower crown lately, but I feel like wearing a dress would very easily give people the wrong impression.
@danielle
I've been excited to hear about men's rompers trending lately, since it seems like it's hopefully not too far off from men's dresses becoming a thing.
Also I'm just realizing how much text I just barfed at you and I am very sorry!
@Pizzazz Heh. It's interesting to hear a line of thought so similar to my own but without the layer of anxiety that comes from actually being trans. It reminds me of when I was presenting a little femme back in the 90s, before I started thinking about gender identity. Apart from the awkward "false advertising" issue it never bothered me that people read me as a gay man... but the closeted gay guys I was hanging around with were a *lot* more worried about how they came across.
@danielle Well, it takes all kinds, I guess! 😄
Honestly, I probably owe a lot to the trans community in my area for laying the foundation that allows me be myself and to wear what I do without really having to worry about people harassing me about it. (Living in a liberal college town probably helps, too.) I can't even imagine what it must have been like for people even as little as ten years ago.