Oh Kait.

A friend of mine is trying to androgynize her look. After 2 and a half years of switching in and out of fashionable drag I've compiled quite a list of observations.

This is nearly everything I use to complete the look.

My best advice:

1. Find a menswear style you're into. For you, since I know what you look like, I'd choose a skinny legged lanky indie look. The goal is to look generically trendy. The pictures of the young men above each possess and resemble vasiations on this style.

2. You need to learn to accessorize like a boy and not like a girl. Shoes should have weight instead of being dainty. Don't wear rings as your hands are quite feminine, and you're not emphasising that right now. classic bits of menswear accessories can go a long way. chunky leather watches, short motorcycle boots, and classic leather belts are good. but in a pinch, the perfect hat can really seal the look.

3. The cut of your clothes is important. Buy things that are cut to make you look longer. Your pants should be slim, but not tight, almost like straight legged pants, but slimmer along the thigh, looser around the knee and straight down the shins to the ankles. Shirts should be looser AND longer. You're trying to create a shape that most women do not have with your clothing. men are pretty rectangular and linear, whereas women are curved in places you wouldn't usually consider, but can utterly destroy this look.

4. Speaking of shape, something that really helps this is jackets with a bit of a shoulder pad. Not so much that it looks fake, but enough to make you look more angular. You can usually just purchase men's jackets in small.

5. Believe it or not, but a lot of pulling off this look is your body language. Boys walk differently than girls, they have different hand gestures and subtle mannerisms. I suggest you begin to look carefully for these and try to emulate them, It doesn't take long once you know what you're looking for.

I'll help you a bit on the walk:

First off, boys take longer strides that girls, almost a half step longer, and because of this they spend more time in the air than stepping.
Second, they usually walk with their heels first rather than the ball of their foot first.
This is extremely subtle, but you can feel the difference by walking a bit in flats, then walking for a bit in heavy winter boots. Transfer the way you walk in the boots to the way you walk in every other shoe.
Third, they walk with their shoulders back and leaning back about a centimeter and a half more than you and I are used to because they don't have the weight of breasts to hold them down and fore ward.
Boys also often tend to stand or walk with their feet pointing outwards and their legs apart.

All of these things will become habit if associated with dressing gender neutral, and will most likely dissipate when dressed according to gender.

6. When purchasing clothes keep an eye out for menswear fabrics. Boys don't wear as much jersey and cheep thin cotton as we do ( well, the classy ones don't. ), and their clothes are often thicker and more durable. I particularly enjoy wearing tweeds, herringbones, thick denim and leather and chunky cardigans. I suggest looking for these things at thrift stores.

love,

kayla