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Female bodied people who wears men clothes, share your shopping experiences


TardisBlue

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I've never had comments when shopping in the dudes section. It helps that if I'm buying clothes, I only shop in department stores cos I'm not concerned about brand etc. This usually means that there's no staff around and I've found that most dudes don't shop for themselves anyway - seems to always be their wives shopping for them. I've been told by several people that I tend to give off a "don't eff with me" vibe 99% of the time so this could be a contributing factor to the lack of harassment in the mens section.

Yep. I'm honestly shocked about the number of people who have been nervous about shopping about in the males section, and the fact that some people actually bother point out what section you're in....? I wish this would happen to me! That way I could respond with "I didn't realize they pay people to inform customers of which section they're in, do they put the signs up just in case we forget and you helpful people aren't around?" or what else happens in my head at the time. :D

Like others mentioned, men's clothes are just generally better built and more comfortable to wear. Something I've always found interesting is that females get colder easier than males (on average), but our clothing is often incapable of retaining heat! Intsead of going out and buying overpriced ski jackets, guess what? I just shop in the men's section!!

Honestly, I feel bad about the fact that I have to shop like this to begin with.. It's as if asking, 'What? Women don't deserve to wear better clothing?' 'I have to shop in the mens section for sweatpants because women don't need them, they've got yoga pants??' all the time.

It just says it all that cis-females shop in the mens section every now and then, but has anyone ever known a cis-male to do so? I don't think so, because they have absolutely no reason to unless it's for a joke.

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You guys are awesome! I just read the whole thread and after that I went to the store to look for sweater and T. I found some awesome sweater in the men department. Plus with my curve in those sweater, they look like men cloth any more ;) and they really are more comfortable and warmer to. I already pick my shoes from the men section cauz I got wide feet and the women shoe are just to slim. When I manage to find some that fit... they are either the high heel or plain ugly. :unsure: So guess am gonna shop more often. ^_^

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To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

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butterflydreams

To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

I have short legs and cannons for thighs, so that might be similar? I've found that relaxed fit khakis are better than your standard regular fit or slim fit. Be careful with anything pleated. I don't know why, but they never seem to fit right. Pleated pants also tend to kind of "balloon" out below the waistband, so I think that would be exactly what you wouldn't want.

Maybe something to try would be some pants that have a hidden elastic band in the waist. Might let you get a "smaller" pant that doesn't drag everywhere else while still fitting on your hips or waist because of the extra room afforded by the waistband.

Oh, and unless your absolutely married to jeans, I'd try khakis or cargo pants. Jeans never fit me right, and I think it was because of my short legs and big thighs. Jeans just tend to be more rigid and I never found their relaxed cuts to be as relaxed as an equivalent-sized pair of khakis :)

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Sleepy Skeleton

This topic baffles me. Do people not buy clothing for their brothers, fathers, friends, cousins, etc.? If I, a feminine-looking person, shops in the men's department, why wouldn't anyone assume I'm shopping for someone else? I've always planned on using that as an excuse, anyway. I've had no comments and I don't pay attention to other people.

I wish I could wear more men's clothes. I'm that awkward size where men's clothes are normally too big for me but boy's clothes are too small. I even have this problem with women's clothes. I'm tall and slender with zero boob. And big feet too. I just really hate clothes, you know?

I've seen plenty of women's clothes that could pass for androgynous, but the things I hate the most about women's clothing is that the fabric is way too thin (no one needs to see my bra) and the jeans have little to no pockets. I really wish I could find men's clothes that fit me. I don't care what people think.

I have to wear men's shoes exclusively though. I don't know how ladies can wear those uncomfortable things all day. Flats never stay on and heels are literally the devil. Sorry, I'm not torturing myself for ~fashion~.

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I sometimes like wearing men's shirts and hoodies, and I'm considering giving men's jeans a try. I've never had any problems with sales people though. The biggest problem I've had buying men's clothes is when my stupid self ordered an extra large mens' hoodie online(and I'm an extra small-small in women's sizes) and was surprised that it was a lot more big and baggy than I expected.

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To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

Khakis over jeans for sure. Pleats only look good if you are suuuper skinny and wearing dress trousers (think Fred Astaire), flat fronts always. I have also found hit-n-miss that climbing or hiking pants will sometimes have some hidden elastic that helps with the waist gapping and are also sometimes a bit lower than waist, which can be the other curse. A couple of times when everything else was just right I've had a tailor tweak the back of the waistband, it helps to know how they're built, and if it's a great thrift store find, it ends up still being cheap. :)

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This topic baffles me. Do people not buy clothing for their brothers, fathers, friends, cousins, etc.? If I, a feminine-looking person, shops in the men's department, why wouldn't anyone assume I'm shopping for someone else? I've always planned on using that as an excuse, anyway. I've had no comments and I don't pay attention to other people.

People do, but I expect that they wouldn't usually try them on first unless said brother/father/friend/cousin happened to be exactly the same size as them. I'm guessing that's where most of the nervousness comes in. I don't like having to drag all the stuff halfway across the store to try it on, because stores are bewilderingly large bright mazes of clothing racks all alike and I get lost in them easily, but my natural "I don't care what anyone thinks of me" field keeps me pretty safe from any potential social concerns. Doesn't help keep me from wanting to bolt whenever anyone actually tries to talk to me, unfortunately, but there 'tis.

To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

I don't have wide hips and men's pants generally fit me fairly well by default, so you should probably take this with a grain of salt, but my hunch is that cargo pants would be the way to go (assuming you don't mind cargo pants, of course). They tend to be fairly loose and often have a built-in cloth belt, so I would think they'd be likely to fit a fairly wide range of body types.

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Oh, and unless your absolutely married to jeans, I'd try khakis or cargo pants. Jeans never fit me right, and I think it was because of my short legs and big thighs. Jeans just tend to be more rigid and I never found their relaxed cuts to be as relaxed as an equivalent-sized pair of khakis :)

I am certainly not married to jeans. In fact, I don't think I've worn jeans regularly in... years :P It's just so hard to find ones that fit properly. I favour pants made from linen. I don't understand why these aren't more popular; they don't last as long, sure, but they tend to be cheap (much cheaper than jeans, at least the girl kinds) and they are perfect for weather and heat variation. Warm when you need them to be, but wick away sweat when it's hot and keeps the sun off.

But thank you everyone for the suggestions. I'll try again... man, I hate shopping sometimes :P

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Calligraphette_Coe

To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

Two words: Relaxed Fit. Just about all men's jeans now come in these two flavors. Some of them even have stretch denim, too.

I'm XY and believe it or not *I* have trouble getting jeans made for my biological sex to fit. Let's just say I have an oversized caboose even though I'm not overweight, but I have severely short legs. It's the devil finding sources of jeans that have very short inseams AND relaxed fit in the... ummm... seat.

About the only thing that fits reliably are those stash of jeans I find sometimes and some kinds of women's jeans in petite sizes. But then they don't have pockets, and I since I'd get murdered if I carried a purse, I need more space in pockets to carry about the everyday things I need.

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To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

Two words: Relaxed Fit. Just about all men's jeans now come in these two flavors. Some of them even have stretch denim, too.

I'm XY and believe it or not *I* have trouble getting jeans made for my biological sex to fit. Let's just say I have an oversized caboose even though I'm not overweight, but I have severely short legs. It's the devil finding sources of jeans that have very short inseams AND relaxed fit in the... ummm... seat.

About the only thing that fits reliably are those stash of jeans I find sometimes and some kinds of women's jeans in petite sizes. But then they don't have pockets, and I since I'd get murdered if I carried a purse, I need more space in pockets to carry about the everyday things I need.

I have trouble getting women's jeans that fit :P, let alone men's. Most stuff I try on is not designed to fit my curves (90-60-90, thin but curvy), and I shop mostly in women's department. Almost everything is either way too big and floating all over the place (i.e. me and clothing are separete when I move, not very practical), or doesn't have space for curves and hence looks awkward and is uncomfortable.

(Btw, nice profile pic, Zen :) )

I have to wear men's shoes exclusively though. I don't know how ladies can wear those uncomfortable things all day. Flats never stay on and heels are literally the devil. Sorry, I'm not torturing myself for ~fashion~.

My mom is always saying that flats are comfortable. I don't get it! I wear "girly shoes" sometimes, but none of them are comfortable in the least bit. Ok, I managed to get 1 pair of flats and 1 pair of pumps on medium heels that are comfortable. In my whole life, and I've had many pairs of "girly" shoes. So usually: sneakes or boots :) And thick soles mandatory.

I'd love to get a pair of nice oxfords :rolleyes:

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So a little while ago I decided I absolutely needed a suit vest. Of course I couldn't find a single one in any women's department or store, so I ventured into the men's. At only one place did an employee hint to me that I was in the wrong section ("We are having a sale on women's jeans. Over there."), but everywhere else people pretty much ignored me. I unfortunately walked away empty handed because even the smallest men's vests were too big, and the boys' vests were too wide and short.

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It might pretty much depend on shop. I went to Vans and asked the salesperson (a girl) about men's hoodies (colours, duh - otherwise men's and women's were identical I think), and she was totally nice, told me what my size is in men's section. It seemed like she also shopped in both sections as well ;) She was a tomboy. Do they hire only tomboys in Vans, Converse etc? :) That's what I've seen. Maybe it's the other way round: only tomboys, not the regular girls, want to work and get discounts there :P I would totally work at Converse/Vans if I had to choose where to work as a salesperson. Discount on cool sneakers and backpacks, c'mon :D !

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Calligraphette_Coe

I have trouble getting women's jeans that fit :P, let alone men's. Most stuff I try on is not designed to fit my curves (90-60-90, thin but curvy), and I shop mostly in women's department. Almost everything is either way too big and floating all over the place (i.e. me and clothing are separete when I move, not very practical), or doesn't have space for curves and hence looks awkward and is uncomfortable.

(Btw, nice profile pic, Zen :) )

::::blushing::: Aww, you're very kind. The thumbnail crop doesn't do it justice, and anything I've ever used here out in public forums doesn't quite look like the androgynous me, so I feel a little safer putting those up. Someday when I escape my present situation, I'll put up the more feminine looking pics.

Another thing you might try are men's carpenter jeans or cargo pants. I personally can't stand them even though they take care of some of my 'caboose' problem, so I always buy up the relaxed fit jeans when I find a store that has them in the ultra-short lengths.

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Interesting conversation(s), let me jump right in :)

Anybody else annoyed by the term 'boyfriend jeans'? I loathe it. Not only because it reinforces heteronormativity and gender stereotypes, but also because: why the hell can't female-bodied people wear whatever they like? Why do we need to 'borrow' cool clothes from the men? It's almost as if they invented this term for women with an exaggerated fear of being seen as 'dykey'. I don't know whether to call such marketing strategies cissexist or not; let's just say I'm anything but happy with those developments. They could at least start selling 'girlfriend skirts' in the men's section - not that it would help deconstructing gender roles, but it would at least be a start. Same rights for everyone.

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To add a question to this thread, how do people with wide hips find getting men's pants? I've recently been on a man-mode phase of my genderfluidity, and I kinda just really felt like getting man pants. But I couldn't find anything that would fit over my hips that weren't way too obviously big everywhere else... and I don't want to wear them on my waist necessarily, because that just accents that I have a narrow waist and wide hips :(

Any tips?

Two words: Relaxed Fit. Just about all men's jeans now come in these two flavors. Some of them even have stretch denim, too.

I'm XY and believe it or not *I* have trouble getting jeans made for my biological sex to fit. Let's just say I have an oversized caboose even though I'm not overweight, but I have severely short legs. It's the devil finding sources of jeans that have very short inseams AND relaxed fit in the... ummm... seat.

About the only thing that fits reliably are those stash of jeans I find sometimes and some kinds of women's jeans in petite sizes. But then they don't have pockets, and I since I'd get murdered if I carried a purse, I need more space in pockets to carry about the everyday things I need.

I have trouble getting women's jeans that fit :P, let alone men's. Most stuff I try on is not designed to fit my curves (90-60-90, thin but curvy), and I shop mostly in women's department. Almost everything is either way too big and floating all over the place (i.e. me and clothing are separete when I move, not very practical), or doesn't have space for curves and hence looks awkward and is uncomfortable.

(Btw, nice profile pic, Zen :) )

I have to wear men's shoes exclusively though. I don't know how ladies can wear those uncomfortable things all day. Flats never stay on and heels are literally the devil. Sorry, I'm not torturing myself for ~fashion~.

My mom is always saying that flats are comfortable. I don't get it! I wear "girly shoes" sometimes, but none of them are comfortable in the least bit. Ok, I managed to get 1 pair of flats and 1 pair of pumps on medium heels that are comfortable. In my whole life, and I've had many pairs of "girly" shoes. So usually: sneakes or boots :) And thick soles mandatory.

I'd love to get a pair of nice oxfords :rolleyes:

Aya. I hate jeans. It takes so much effort to find ones that fit any body, no matter which section I shop in. I haven't regularly worn jeans for at least a year or two :P But then again, a nice fitting pair of jeans, if and when you can find them, are so good looking and such a dream to wear! So comfortable and durable, but just too much work to find... le sigh... you're not alone :cake:

So a little while ago I decided I absolutely needed a suit vest. Of course I couldn't find a single one in any women's department or store, so I ventured into the men's. At only one place did an employee hint to me that I was in the wrong section ("We are having a sale on women's jeans. Over there."), but everywhere else people pretty much ignored me. I unfortunately walked away empty handed because even the smallest men's vests were too big, and the boys' vests were too wide and short.

Mini rant about suite vests: I can never get them over those darned hips. If they fit my shoulders, sure they aren't the most flattering around the waist (skinny waist compared to what they think I should have I guess) but then they just bunch up over the hips and don't fit at all! Too small there, too big at the waist... They're just not made for my body at all. Which is so unfortunate, because they look so frikkin' GOOD on the right bodies!!! :(

Interesting conversation(s), let me jump right in :)

Anybody else annoyed by the term 'boyfriend jeans'? I loathe it. Not only because it reinforces heteronormativity and gender stereotypes, but also because: why the hell can't female-bodied people wear whatever they like? Why do we need to 'borrow' cool clothes from the men? It's almost as if they invented this term for women with an exaggerated fear of being seen as 'dykey'. I don't know whether to call such marketing strategies cissexist or not; let's just say I'm anything but happy with those developments. They could at least start selling 'girlfriend skirts' in the men's section - not that it would help deconstructing gender roles, but it would at least be a start. Same rights for everyone.

I'd throw in heteronormative into the pot of things wrong with "boyfriend jeans"... what about them AFABs that have girlfriends? ;)

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Sleepy Skeleton

Interesting conversation(s), let me jump right in :)

Anybody else annoyed by the term 'boyfriend jeans'? I loathe it. Not only because it reinforces heteronormativity and gender stereotypes, but also because: why the hell can't female-bodied people wear whatever they like? Why do we need to 'borrow' cool clothes from the men? It's almost as if they invented this term for women with an exaggerated fear of being seen as 'dykey'. I don't know whether to call such marketing strategies cissexist or not; let's just say I'm anything but happy with those developments. They could at least start selling 'girlfriend skirts' in the men's section - not that it would help deconstructing gender roles, but it would at least be a start. Same rights for everyone.

I'm pretty sure they're called "boyfriend" jean because they're supposedly your boyfriend's jeans that you thought we nice, so you decided to wear them. Same with "boyfriend shirts." Hence why these clothes are normally baggy and with the sleeves/pants rolled up. It's a style. I don't see how it "reinforces heteronormativity and gender stereotypes."

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So a little while ago I decided I absolutely needed a suit vest. Of course I couldn't find a single one in any women's department or store, so I ventured into the men's. At only one place did an employee hint to me that I was in the wrong section ("We are having a sale on women's jeans. Over there."), but everywhere else people pretty much ignored me. I unfortunately walked away empty handed because even the smallest men's vests were too big, and the boys' vests were too wide and short.

Mini rant about suite vests: I can never get them over those darned hips. If they fit my shoulders, sure they aren't the most flattering around the waist (skinny waist compared to what they think I should have I guess) but then they just bunch up over the hips and don't fit at all! Too small there, too big at the waist... They're just not made for my body at all. Which is so unfortunate, because they look so frikkin' GOOD on the right bodies!!! :(

I have a similar problem. The men's vest that fit the best was way too roomy in the chest, but way too tight at the hips.

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I'm pretty sure they're called "boyfriend" jean because they're supposedly your boyfriend's jeans that you thought we nice, so you decided to wear them. Same with "boyfriend shirts." Hence why these clothes are normally baggy and with the sleeves/pants rolled up. It's a style.

I know. That's precisely the reason why such things are harmful to the queer and trans* community. Not every girl/woman wants a boyfriend. And why should nice-looking, comfortable jeans be exclusively designed for male-bodied people in the first place, why do we have to borrow clothes from them?

@Heart: Yes, exactly! That's what I meant.

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The other day, I had to return a coat to Superdry to have it exchanged because it was broken. It was a size S men's coat. The girl took it and said she had to go upstairs. I wondered why because the coats were right next to the till. But I didn't say anything because I thought they might have a store room upstairs or something. She took ages and when she finally brought the new coat, I asked her "Is it the same, the men's?" and she said it took her so long to find it because she thought it was a girls' coat and that's why she went upstairs. LOL, she was dead nice and didn't make any comments, but I don't feel sorry about not telling her it's a man's coat. I mean... she works there, she must know the difference between the coats. If she had looked at the coat instead of my lovely little face, that wouldn't have happened.

Also.. I once bought girl trousers for my brother, who is over six foot tall and athletic (They didn't look very girly, they were grey wool slacks or something). Why is it possible for my six foot tall and hunky brother to wear women's trousers, whereas an average female (i.e. me), can't find any women's trousers that fit her?

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I buy mens clothing most of the time now or unisex, I stopped buying womens clothing for the most part. I just dislike womens clothing because of how it fits on my chest, it's always tight or very low on the collarbone and makes me feel uncomfortable while mens clothing is much looser, goes up and covers there, more comfortable there and doesn't reveal anything. As for trousers, I pretty much go on walking trousers.

But woah, I don't ever get any questions or strange looks when buying the clothing though, even if it's buying boxers (as I prefer wearing jerseys in comparison to pants as I dislike the feeling of something touching me there which all female underwear has). I think though for me what helps is my fairly tall height and naturally androgynous appearance and my haircut which is very short and neutral, with the right clothes people would automatically assume I'm male and perhaps in stores I don't achieve the staring because of that.

But the staring comes outside of buying items, perhaps it's my appearance but I get some stares sometimes and even they turn and keep looking at me after walking past, sometimes if it's friends people ask "Is that a boy or girl". I don't go cloth shopping often however, I only go in to buy what I need then leave. I'll probably get the 'stare' sometime soon, but people keep to themselves where I live mostly but with some people, not the staring.

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Actually, the first time I bought men's pants, it was because one of the people working in Gap asked if I was open to looking in the men's section for jeans. (I really wanted deep pockets, but I felt weird at the time about telling my mom that I wanted men's pants.) It ended up working really well, and I pretty much exclusively wear men's clothing now.

Still, I have had the occasional odd reaction. I remember buying a pair of bow ties once, and the clerk asked "does the person you're buying these for know how to tie a bow tie?" So I said "Yes, yes I do." The clerk gave me a kinda weird surprised/disapproving look as I said that, but I certainly found the reaction amusing.

I've also had a scenario or two where I've asked where the men's pants were and employees trying really hard to redirect me to the women's section, but the most that happens by the end is they give me funny looks and I end up just finding what I want myself. Usually, the reaction is pretty neutral though.

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Penny Dreadful

*stares longingly at clothes in guys section* I've gotten a few guys t-shirts with no hassle, sice I can guesstimate my size. Haven't tried other stuff,though.

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