A question for the youngsters as well as the "older folks"...

[Wildaboutheels]

late to the party. Basically people who have not been crossdressing all that long. I am guessing only you folks can remember life BEFORE you started crossdressing?

Do you remember how "long and/or hard" you looked at females BEFORE you strted CDing? I happen to believe that most CDers are their own worst enemy given the evidence at these Forums on an ongoing basis. I am betting IF you are someone who either goes out en femme OR wants to, you know LOOK FOR "telltale signs" on females as to whether they really are females? In other words, now as a CDer you are consciously trying to "clock" people. As in find the other impersonators?

Many of the "telltale signs" can be misleading IMO. Just ONE of them, and probably THE hardest to pull off for most men is the VOICE. [And most here claim to "clock" other CDers much more on attire, body carriage etc.] I have known a tall/ slender GG for many years. If you talked to her on the phone or met her blidfolded you would swear she was a man.

At any rate, assuming the pictures people use here are reasonably accurate, I think most "ladies" here are far too critical about whether they would pass or DO pass. Maybe the people who do or have clocked you are also CDers? How would/could you know?

Chew on this. When was the last time you were out in the public anywhere. Doesn't matter how you were dressed. Do you remember what ANY female was wearing?
I'm betting unless she was in great shape and/or impeccably dressed you won't remember. The other extreme might be a female extremely overweight or wearing dirty, shabby or ill fitting clothing or maybe had on flipflops with dirty feet?

Sure, it is not real hard to post a "good" picture. And a good picture has little to do with passing "live" in the flesh.

But it sure seems to me that many here are far too critical of themselves. JMO of course.

[kimdl93]

Could we narrow this down to one question? I'm not sure wheich one you want to answer....life before CDing (in my case there wasn't one...I started at age 3 or so).

[Kate Simmons]

I didn't just study women when I was little, I adored them. I said to myself:"That's what I want to be when I grow up." I wanted to be a heroine like Wonder Woman or Supergirl. I would spare nothing to be the best. I don't bother clocking people at all in any case.:)

[Beverley Sims]

Some of us actually go out and perve on womens clothing!
Victorias secret springs to mind here.
I only discover a CD when they have presented poorly dressed, beard, larger than normal shoulders, thick arms and so on.
If I am approached by a badly dressed CD'er I would make eye contact most of the time and answer any questions that were asked.
This "hobby" of ours dictates different rules.
For me I wish to look convincing as a female and will present myself in a pleasant manner.
Some others do not wish to go this far or go out.
Everyone has a certain level of pride in their appearance and because familiarity breeds contempt we all ask a second opinion.
The only ones that don't are those that go out regularly.
For some, this is the only place to find fashion advice and kindly but sometimes misplaced compliments are made.
If I want to post a good picture of myself I would post a soft focus picture that hides the hard features I would want to find out about.
I always check out what women are wearing, may not remember it unless for the reasons you have outlined.
I did not look at females at all when I started my adventures because girls were "icky" then.:)

[GeminaRenee]

I can't say I spend all that much energy trying to clock other CD'ers in dress. Maybe I'm just naive, but I really doubt I encounter them all that frequently. I just don't believe that there's that many going out dressed - at least not in my blue collar neck of the woods. I can only think of a handful of times that I have ever randomly encountered dressed t-girls, and none of them required any special investigation to figure out what was going on.

Now in situations where I've gone to the local CD store, or the couple of t-girl events that I've gone to, it wasn't difficult to clock most of the girls. I can think of about two exceptions so far, and only one of them still remains a mystery to me. She was no cd though... if she wasn't a woman, she was TG.

I do, mostly out of curiosity, keep an eye out for subtle signs on guys that they may dress... you know, smooth legs, femme jeans, etc. I also enjoy keeping an eye out for other guys en drab that are cruising the shoe or lingerie sections while I'm around. I know guys think they're being all smooth when they do the subtle look for a second, then keep walking out of the department thing... but it's terribly obvious to the initiated. The final clue I enjoy searching for is women's clothing left in the restock bins outside men's dressing rooms. This is what gives me the most hope for our kind! There are quite frequently ladies garments to be found in these bins... especially at Burlington Coat Factory! No wonder the attendants there never bat an eye when they ask how many items, and I show them 8 dresses (:

In the odd event that I ever do clock anyone, I try never to pay them any mind. I just smile and chalk up a little victory for our kind, and let them go on in privacy.

I will say that I frequently DO remember what women are wearing, as long as they're nicely dressed. I do filter out the ones that look like slobs. Or I will try to pick up on different makeup looks - I try and take notes, LOL. Also, being a bit of a fetisher, I am always noting when a woman is wearing nylons, or a hot shade of lipstick. This I have been doing since I was very, very young - maybe 4 or 5. I can pick out a nyloned ankle at a hundred paces. LOL. This is not to say that I notice only the clothes. I very much appreciate a woman's beauty in the more traditional male sense.

Hope that helps!

[Pexetta]

Another vote for 'I do notice what women are wearing.' I can remember at least ten overall 'looks' from my travels today - every woman I encounter gets a quick 'would any of that work for me?' check.

In 30 years of CD/TG awareness I've only knowingly 'clocked' one man presenting as a woman, and that was because she had clearly got out of her depth and was getting out of the situation as quickly as she could. If she'd kept calm I wouldn't have given her a second glance.

[Wildaboutheels]

Thanks for the responses ladies. Is it possible that no one remembers life before becoming a CDer?

Isn't it very likely that most CDers look more "critically" at females than "normal" men and women?

[BLUE ORCHID]

I've been dressing almosr 65yrs. now and I've always watched ladies and I do try to spot CDs'.