The feel of it all

[gownman]

I seems to me that that most cross dressers do it because they want to feel like a woman and/or look like a woman. And I must say, there are some pretty nice-looking girls out there, judging from the pictures posted. I used to be on Experience Project, and there was this one small guy who really looked cute dressed in his negligees (I think I saw him on this site as well).
But for me it is (almost) all about the sensuous feel of the silky nylon fabric on my skin. I do like the little feminine touches like the string ties at the neck of my robes, and especially the lace trim. I love lace, preferably in tasteful moderation. But mostly I like the way it feels to wear my nighties. I like to walk around with my nightgown swishing around my legs. I also underdress some. I like the way it feels to wear petti-pants (they don't bunch up under my jeans the way a slip does) and a camisole under my clothes.
I have changed a bit over the years. In the beginning I wore my gowns only for masturbation. I still do that, but I also wear them to lounge in, just because it feels nice, and to sleep in (The Amanda Rich gowns are especially comfortable for sleeping). I can go a whole day in a state of what I call semi-arousal. Sometimes I finish by getting off and sometimes I don't. It's all good.

[CarlaWestin]

The feel of it all is a big part of it. The whole change in body alignment when walking in heels with the weight of breasts. The sound and feel of jewelry. And the softness of nightgowns and lingerie. The feel, aroma and taste of makeup and perfume.

[sometimes_miss]

It is, as they say, the 'whole nine yards'. In our case, nine yards of lacy, frilly, soft and slinky material and accessories, and the long, silky hair brushing against my neck and shoulders too. But there's more to it as well. We crave ALL the feedback, not just tactile, but visual, olfactory too. We want everything around us to give us the feeling that we're female. A lot of us even go through the trouble to change our voices and mannerisms into as-feminine-as possible duplications of the real thing. And as much as it feels right to me, I know that it's just a knee jerk reaction to things that happened to me in the past. I don't really talk like a girl because I don't think that way. I don't really walk like a girl because I'm not built that way. And I don't really experience the world the way girls do because my genes dictate otherwise.

But damned if I'm not going to try, for a little while, at least, anyway. Because it feels right.

[Billy]

I am about the feel of the clothing. I am new to crossdressing and don't know that I plan to wear wigs, shave my goatee, or wear a bra, even though I purchased one. I just love the clothing. I would wear perfume because it smells good. I will wear women's shoes because I like them and think my legs look good. I am hoping to wear skirts and slacks with tops that don't have to be filled out with bust.

[Helen_Highwater]

I to had in the early days been drawn to and by how clothing felt. After all it's different fabrics, the feel of skirts and dresses on legs especially out side in a breeze. Silks and satin's, exposed shoulders with spaghetti straps, shaved legs and hose. But many move on and reading this resonated with me and reminded me of a post I made back in 2014.

I’ve just been lucky enough to have spent from Monday evening to Saturday morning fully enfem and by that I mean forms glued on, permanently tucked, false nails glued on, not a drab bit of clothing in sight. Out and about for 12-15 hours a day.
I won’t bore you here with the where I went wearing what’s, that in many ways ignores the really important factors that many of us who get only limited chances to dress experience. It was, at least for me, the feelings, the sensations of living in a different world, in a different way that are important.

Having slept wearing forms to wake up, get out of bed, wig on and then to have that different dynamic of walking down stairs with the extra weight moving as you do. You become more aware, more body conscious. I soon develop the “hair flick”, that almost subconscious head movement to take the hair off your face. In truth, my entire body language alters in subtle ways. It’s a different centre of gravity.

After a brief nod to drab, a close shave, then on with the slap and dress. Just doing the mundane, making a sandwich for the packed lunch, gathering all the bits needed for the day ahead out in the world, feels different. Check handbag, glasses, purse, today’s lippy, it’s all just that little bit different to the drab world normally inhabited. It’s a different tempo.

And then it’s all the things that have been discussed here in the past. How what you wear (should) alter how you get into and out of a car. Retrieving your coat off the back seat, putting it on and moving your hair from under the collar. Then the sort of shoulder shuffle to get the coat set properly before grabbing your handbag and venturing forth. It’s these behavioral differences that stay with me. Yep clothes play their part but just the act of putting on a dress or skirt doesn’t automatically stop you walking like a dude even when wearing heels. That’s in the head. It’s these behaviors that allow you to blend, to feel fem.
It’s the change in style that I love, that’s what draws me. That’s what fulfills me. And if I can do it in a well-fitting dress and heels, life’s a good’un.

These clothes have a significant influence over us. Some will say they're exactly the same regardless of being enfemme or in drab but I believe that for many of us the clothing becomes an enabler, a way of allowing us to express ourselves differently. Don't get me wrong, I bought items of clothing that when first worn left me almost overwhelmed by the sensations they gave me, the softness or the way they held me. I never want to loose that.