got to learn fashion 101

[Abby74]

So the wife and I are going to an event this summer and I'd love to dress 24/7 at this event. The event is friendly so the going out in drag isn't the problem. The problem is I know nothing about fashion! I have some clothes but I need to talk to my wife about sorting out my outfits and making them passable. You see I've taken the slow approach into dressing but at age 37 I've found friendly places I can go and wear a skirt with 5" heels, a corest and wig. Now going on 38 I'd like to take it a bit farther. I'd really like to go out and have a good time dressed but that will take practice. I have to start somewhere so here are the clothes I have now.
1 short black leather skirt
2 hot new (Carolina blue) tube dress wife bought it from VS for my v day present
3 black halter dress
4 long black skirt and short red skirt
5 shoes I have 3" heel for a maid dress 5" black heels 4" black strap heels open toe 3" white heels ankle strap

I have more than that but that's what I'd like to wear and the what goes with what I'm lost. I know I need tops for my skirts corsets just are not practical. Shoes I'd love some flats especially for that hot blue dress or a wedge heel.
Ok I'm about done but I'm 5' 8" 160 with that gut look and wear a size 9 to 10 women's shoe but wide which you can't find. And jewelry, belts, purse any advice.

Ok ladies please help make me over and of course keep budget end mind I'd like to keep it $100 per year.

[Laura912]

The best help will come from your wife because it appears she is understanding. Just make sure she is on board. For prolonged wearing you will definitely want some lower heels or flats. Pick some outfits with more pastel colors that will tend to blend better. Blacks, reds, and whites together tend to be contrasty, dramatic, and more suitable for nights. Just don't look at the little picture over there. :)

[Karren H]

"Corsets are not practical"?? Ohh please... When did practicality enter into the equation! Lol.

[Chickhe]

Nor heels, or nails... but then again purses are pretty useful if you keep the card catalog up to date. For a small budget, I would hit up the used clothing shops and use your wife or pick a woman your shape and size and use their style as a model or even ask the people in the store what goes with what?... one thing not to forget if you are being practical is outer wear like a jacket.

[drushin703]

Well! You got some work to do...From your already got list, I love anything short and leather..But what do you expect, ime a cd..But being a cd,
unless your 160lbs has a female translation, I would stary clear of anything halter...Other than that, since skirts are what you like, pair them with
any chiffon top especially if it ties at the waist...Other than those simple suggestions.....sorry, your on your own...dana

[Kristyn Hill]

sounds like you have a great list of clothing. You will figure it out.

[RenneB]

I've live in your little queen city and the best advise I can give you is head on down to trade and tryon during lunch and see what comes out of the buildings. GG wise I mean. That's going to be your best clue on what the locals think match. Speed street is when they all come out and that's a blast. I took a lot of mental notes during my days in that city....

In another month or so you'll be entering the tropic time of year and it's all about finding a/c buildings or sweating.... LOL..

Hope this helps...

Renne.....

[Katesback]

You get your courage up and to go a department store such as say Macys and you approach the sales lady and explain you REALLY need some help with APPROPRIATE outfits. They will probabably be glad to help since your likely to dump a lot of money. Same thing for cosmetics. MAC is awesome!

Of course it would be best if you went to the store dressed as a woman.

Katie

[Lyric]

I was all ready with some answers until I saw at the end you say you want to "keep it to $100 per year". I hate to say it, but you're in the wrong century if you want to be fashionable for $100/yr. Even the best thrift store scrounger has to exceed that.

Getting a feel for fashion and what looks good on you isn't really that hard. Don't be as concerned about individual items as the overall look. Look at magazine/online/etc. fashion photos for looks you like, then look for low priced versions of the items that make up the look. I call this playing "The Look for Less" after an old cable TV show I liked.

A fun shortcut to being fashionable is to steal looks from celebrities. Big celebs spend huge sums on professional stylists to dress and groom them to perfection. Just choose one with a general look you admire and whose looks are close enough to your own. Every week I do a Google Image search of Jennifer Aniston to see what she's wearing these days.

But you do need to reassess your commitment a bit. I can't think of any hobby you can seriously undertake that won't cost more than $100/yr. If crossdressing doesn't mean more to you than that, perhaps your heart isn't really with it after all.

Lyric

[JenniferR771]

Lyric is right. But the local news on your TV is a good place to start. Take a look at what the news girls or weather girls are wearing. I love to watch morning news shows to see what female news anchors are wearing. Seldom slacks. Always tall heels. Almost always long romantic hair.

Print out a few pics. Introduce yourself. Be extra nice to the Girls at Goodwill during a slow time. They will help--and maybe giggle just a bit.
Consignment shops are a fun place to shop. Many times they are small and run by one lady that loves clothes. They love this sort of thing. For myself, they will pick out things that match. and them come up with jewelry, purse and accessories, plus shoes, belt, and necklace.

If you are not sure--call ahead and make sure its OK to come dressed and pick out a slow time.

[Jenniferathome]

Well, of all the things you own, how much of it would your wife wear? In fact, what does she wear when going out? Unlikely it is a tube top dress. The debate has been frequented here, but I firmly believe in age appropriate. As a guy, I would not wear pants below my butt to expose my underwear, as an example. Women in their 40's can dress very sexily and that does not require a tube top or mini skirt.

Use your wife as your guide and ask for her help. You are quite luck in that respect.

[Vickie_CDTV]

You can always wear your corset underneath your clothes. It really helps give you a figure, and no one has to see it and know you are wearing it; if you really don't want to wear a corset, you could always wear a girdle that can at least flatten your tummy.

[sometimes_miss]

Ok ladies please help make me over and of course keep budget end mind I'd like to keep it $100 per year.
^Now that's funny right there. A makeover and a woman's wardrobe on less than $100 a year.
Oh well. Here goes. Get yourself onto the woman's fashion catalog mailing lists. Look through the catalogs. Try to best duplicate the outfits you see in the catalogs; the merchants go to great lengths to put together ensembles that look good together. When you find something in a catalog that looks really nice, try to buy the whole outfit, because you know it's 'right'. For someone your age, if you can look like you're in your twenties, try Boston Proper, Body Central, of course Victoria's secret and Fredericks of Hollywood (they make pretty clothes as well as sex outfits) etc.. Your wife is probably already getting some of those catalogs. And, once you're on THEIR mailing list, other catalogs will pick you up and you'll get more. Once you order something, the process multiplies, and you'll get enough junk mail to burn to heat your house (don't ask me how I know).
Shoes, well I wear a 16 E and usually get mine from an Amazon merchant. Pleaser makes 'big girl' shoes, heels of all sorts. Another good vendor is Pierre Silber for big girls shoes. If I can find them, so can you. Be persistant, and check out lots of links from crossdresser websites.

[Katesback]

I have another suggestion. Based on the many CDs I have met over time I would say many of them had a ton of clothes and often they were out of style. I would think it more reasonable to have a small number of current fassion outfits than a large wardrobe with clothes out of style.