Asexuals and Fashion Choices

[dandelionfluff]

I have noticed that there has been some discussion about asexuals and our appearances, such as our choices in clothing. I have prepared a poll to gather information about how asexuals feel about their clothing styles and fashion choices. By "fashion," I don't necessarily mean high fashion or things you would see at fashion shows on the runway, I mean everyday clothing choices or your personal style. Feel free to add a little bit about why you chose the particle choices.

[(A)rrogant Avian]

When I was a girl I used to care nothing about fashion because I hated the girl's fashion and I saw it as pretentious, but as I have transitioned I have found that I care a lot more about fashion, but male fashion.

But as an asexual, I think that my clothing choices are influenced ever so slightly, being asexual stops me from wearing anything for the purposes of looking sexy and makes me just dress for more of the weather, if it's cold I wear a lot, if it's hot I wear the lest I can get away with.

[Anthracite_Impreza]

I don't give a crap what I wear as long as I like it and it's comfortable. Nothing is intentionally matched (except if I'm going to car show in which case I wear all the car things), I just grab stuff outta my wardrobe. My clothes are pretty much all neutral or have cars or animals on, and I only wear trackies and trainers except when at work. I think asexuals may be slightly less likely to dress flashily as we aren't out to attract people in "that" way, but I think ultimately I think clothing is either just to keep you covered up or an identity statement/to make the wearer feel better.

[Opaliz]

It was a little hard because it depends on what I feel like this day or that day. I'll admit that I never wear trousers or anything that shows of my body. I wear skirts, loose shirts with long sleeves and leggings all year around, haha. :P

[AlwaysADreamer]

I am very appreciative of fashion, and have done some sewing for fashion and costumes. I have found that, in recent years, I have become more conscious of my fashion choices. However, fashion isn't that important to me. In terms of making myself less sexually appealing, I have consciously chosen more modest clothing in certain situations for that reason, but I also dress modestly most of the time anyway. As I have very recently started coming to terms with some of the masculine side of my gender fluidity, I am becoming increasingly more interested in men's fashion, in addition to women's fashion. Sometimes I mix the two. But mostly, my fashions choices are tied more closely to my gender identity than my asexuality.

[LaMaestra]

I have no interest in fashion (yet I have designed fashions and play online fashion design games) and dress to please myself. As long as I look presentable, I don't care. I have no dresses or skirts.

[SkyWorld]

I feel like my fashion choice is more towards my gender expression and not my sexuality. Rarely do I ever plan my clothes in advance, unless it's some kind of special event. It takes me about 2-5 minutes to pick out an outfit. Seriously all I do is find a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, a hoodie/jacket, and some tennis shoes... Sometimes I try to make sure the lightness or darkness of my jeans match the t-shirt well or not. I have black, white, and grey shoes and I make sure I choose a pair that would look best with the outfit.

I'll admit, I kind of go out of my way to be as "asexy" as possible. I don't want any attention drawn to me and I'm not trying to stand out like, "Hey, look at my fabulous outfit!" I just try to blend in and be the invisible ace that I am. :P I usually shop for clothes in the summer and winter for the appropriate clothing for the weather. I don't really care much for current fashion trends and I don't really keep up with much stuff anyways. Besides, some of them just seem like it would be very uncomfortable on myself.

[Mycroft is Yourcroft]

I love dressing nicely! ^_^

I don't really like most modest clothing to be honest, it doesn't suit my tastes. If an item of clothing is gorgeous, I'll wear it regardless of whether it's a little revealing or not. One of my friends has similar ideas, and says that life is too short to dress modestly :P

And no, I don't think my fashion choices are directly influenced by my sexuality in any way. My style is my style, I dress for me.

[.,.]

Wow, at every single question I chose the alternative with the most votes..

Feel like addressing one thing though; I do admit and acknowledge, as an asexual male, that when I feel sexy, it's rare - but when it does happen, I do feel empowered by it. Anyone else feeling me? Seems like a lot of people here go out of their way to remain asexy in their style, but as for myself - I'll sometimes even try for a sexy look (especially if I'm playing concerts). It really boosts my confidence.

I don't want asexuality to /be/ my identity, it's a very tiny part of who I am - and I will not let it limit me. And towards how people judge me; if it makes them question my asexuality or anything, then I couldn't care less.

[NewfangledArtist]

I don't really care. Around the house I'll answer the door to anyone while wearing a dull hoodie and sweatpants while covered in cat hair (hey, my clothes get ruined at home anyway I may as well ruin some scruffy clothes until they're worn into rags!)

When I leave the house, I'll bother to look nice but casual. Yellow/white/whatever other fun colour cat-hairless jeans, army/DM/worker boots, 'fancy' t-shirts and coats (by 'fancy' I mean they simply don't have holes or paint stains on them), belt buckles, earrings, hats, the like.

I don't read up on fashion, I hate dresses but I don't think my asexuality is to blame for that. I'm also not worried about looking modest, if it's hot out I'll wear shorts and crop tops. Men go out shirtless all over this town whenever it's hot, I shouldn't have to boil because they want to take my shorts the wrong way. But it's usually cold here anyway, so in that case I prefer full length clothes. I don't go out of my way and freeze myself to show body skin, I'm not bothered about purposefully showing any at the same time.

You know what's odd to me? I've had homosexual guys say that they thought I was lesbian just from what I wear. Apparently, a lot of people think anyone who dresses in bright colours is gay/lesbian? They also say left handed people (like me) are homosexuals?! I'm not at all sure why that is. Last time I checked heterosexuals didn't gather and agree to only wear dull clothes + use their right hands, while homosexuals adopt bright clothes as a 'uniform' and use the opposite hand. That's just madness to me. I've never looked at anyone and just assumed I could tell their orientations just from their clothes. I find those assumptions weird

[Absol]

Interesting poll, I'd never really given this much thought before. Most of my answers were in the majority, of the answers were closely split, except for "Do you think that asexual and allosexual people dress differently?" I picked yes, but if there was an in between I would have picked that. In general, I would guess that aces are less likely to wear very revealing clothing to attract sexual attention (but if it's really hot out, then that's a different story).

[Mudlark]

I know nothing about fashion whatsoever and don't even know that much of what kind of clothes suit me best. I have a vague idea of what colours I look nice in, I like hoodies, jeans and combat trousers (but that's probably more because they're comfy than anything else), I have a bit of a thing for shirts and blouses too, and I like clothing that has embellishments or prints that I like--but to be honest a lot of that is often to do with the clothing itself, not how well it looks on me. Just because that T-shirt has a cat on the front of it, doesn't necessarily mean I must wear it. I should keep telling myself that. :P

That said, I do like it when I do eventually manage to find things that suit me; I just rarely have any clue what those things are when shopping. As for how my clothing reflects my orientation...I don't dress to intentionally say anything about myself, I've never had anyone question about my orientation based on how I look, though I am aware that I do dress a bit differently from most girls my age, and I think my friends may notice that sometimes...but as long as I feel alright, I don't really care.

[Rising Sun]

I hate fashion. Not only that, but my sense of fashion is a disaster and I constantly need others' help to dress correctly. Which isn't easy because we don't have quite the same idea of what I should wear, especially as I can't stand super girly clothes (they look pretty on others, not on me).

I admit I'm trying to look correct just so people don't judge me and ignore me. When I was a teenager, I wore mostly unisex clothes and my classmates thought I was a lesbian, which wasn't a good thing in the 1990s, I can tell you.

I wish I had a machine that would tell me what to buy and what to wear in order to look good and which would respect my preferences.

[DigitalBookDust]

I dress more for my gender choice (neutrois/androgyne) than for my sexuality. I do consciously choose clothes that are androgynous. I like to look edgy and hipster, though I refuse to wear clothes that are not comfortable or that are sexually provocative. My clothing clearly reflects who I am and makes a statement.

[Skycaptain]

As those who know me IRL, will confirm, I dress bright. The only exception is trousers, which are plain dark monocolours. This has nothing to do with fashion, but I hate my body and want to hide it all the time. So, I hide in plain view, buy wearing bright, flowery shirts and bold coloured trainers, that way people only see the clothes and not what's underneath. I do have a lot of clothes (and shoes!!!!!), but partly that's because I use two sets of clothes every day.

[Hazel lights]

I feel like the fact that I'm asexual has little impact on what clothing I like to wear. I mean my first goal is to look aesthetically appealing, but I also do like the idea appearing sexually appealing as well. Though it's hard for me to imagine someone being attracted to me, partially because I don't understand sexual attraction myself. I really don't care about modesty. I guess the asexual stereotype would be that asexuals dress modestly or don't care what they look like, and I at least don't think I follow that stereotype. Most of the time I really want like nice and pretty.

[deltaX]

I don't really care about fashion at all. I want to look nice I guess, but I don't plan outfits in advance and most days I just throw on whatever is acceptable. I consider it more as an aspect of my personality than my asexuality though. Perhaps my clothing choices are subconsciously influenced by my orientation, but I don't think of them as inherently connected.

[GoosePeelings]

I tend to put on the first thing I find, which usually means black, baggy clothes. I'm interested in fashion but I don't like wearing fashionable clothes. It might be related to asexuality a bit, but I think it's more about modesty and my body.

[wonderlost]

This survey doesn't take into account other factors, such as occupation. When I buy new clothes, I purchase things that are acceptable to wear at work as well as on my off-time so that I don't have to have two entirely separate wardrobes. I don't want to have to go home and change my outfit if I decide to meet up with friends after work.

[Toby The Casual Prince]

I don't think my sexuality has much to do with what I wear. My OCD has more to do with it, and due to that I may put on an extra shirt over my t-shirt or wear long trousers instead of shorts but it has nothing to do with me being ace.

[Archived]

My wardrobe consists of skinny jeans and v/crew-necks. I like how I dress, because it makes me feel casual. My sexual/romantic orientation doesn't determine that.

[Grumpy Alien]

I care somewhat and I never leave the house without looking at least decent but I don't think my fashion sense has anything at all to do with my sexuality. I can't think of any connection.

[Diceman]

After I do my laundry, I dump out all my clean laundry on the floor and throughout the week reach in and grab stuff out of the pile to wear until the pile is small enough that I feel like actually folding the rest and putting it away. As long as I leave the house with pants on I call it a win.

[allrightalready]

i am always casual. i wear mostly skirts or skorts with the occasional dress or shorts. semi-modest and i pick my clothes on sensory issues and cost (thrift stores almost entirely)

[cali87]

People are more likely to think I'm sexual based on ny clothing choices lol. Its not the least bit unlike me to go out in public in shorts and a bikini top. I care about my clothes to a point, and I do aim to look attractive..TO ME. But really my clothing choices are generally very simple and I don't shop unless I absolutely MUST. Usually I just wait for other people to just give me clothes lol. I have 2 very different styles I guess.. I either wear big mens t-shirts OR very open and feminine tops. I love both styles lol.

[A Different Mononoke]

I had a friend figure out I was asexual a few years before I did - partly because she could see I never found anyone "hot" but also because of the way I always just throw any clothes on (even to go out partying), and the make up of my wardrobe that kind of reflected my lack of understanding or desire for sexual attraction.

[Flyaway4me]

I feel like my fashion choice is more towards my gender expression and not my sexuality.

Sums it up for me, as my gender is somewhat fluid.

[Guest]

I wouldn't know where to start when it comes to fashion....

I wear modest clothing because I feel more comfortable that way. I don't think anyone really cares about how I dress now....at least if they have more than one brain cell.

[st3p]

This kind of bugs me because I don't believe there's much connection at all between one's sexuality and their fashion choices/sense.

I definitely identify on the asexual spectrum, and I enjoy fashion - how I dress is a way for me to express myself, and I like the aesthetic appeal of a well-put-together outfit.

[chankun]

i know its a bad thing but i know i put a lot of emphasis into my looks when going out because of the assumption that asexuals are unattrative