Hygiene obsession when femme

[Solange]

I am wondering if anyone else experiences this. When I am preparing to dress femme, I feel a compulsion about grooming I don't feel when masculine, like I want to be super smooth and clean, right down to finger and toe nails spotless and trimmed.

Anyone else ever feel this way?

[Tracy Irving]

I'm sure there are many who feel that way. I do not.

[Tracii G]

Very common actually do a search and I'm sure you will find lots of posts about this very subject.

[Solange]

Thanks Tracii, I'm trying to get past the Catch-22 of being new to the site. My desire is to actually chat with others about life as a CD. But one must have a certain number of posts before many of the site functions activate. Searching the forums may provide information but little opportunity to actually chat about living life.

[docrobbysherry]

Solange, I have seen the way many single women live and have lived with a few including an ex wife. I can tell u that even tho many live neater than men, they usually aren't any cleaner!:heehee:

There r some things I do differently when presenting female. One of them is being more careful not to dirty or damage my fem clothing. But, I'm the same person cleanliness wise no matter how I'm dressed!:thumbsup:

[Janine cd]

Solange, I agree that living as a female has certain characteristics which bring into play the need to by scrupulously clean and neat. I'm especially aware of my shaving habits. I never shower without shaving all of my body scrupulously.

[Tracii G]

Solange CDers have a habit of projecting habits they pick up because they "think" women have that characteristic.
I have met some women that are just as funky as guys when it comes to hygiene.

[Danika]

Tracii G yes indeed!

[Yukihime]

Except for paying extra attention and care towards my face, I can't say that I changed habits much as far as hygiene is concerned.

I don't shave as much as I'd like, because I still stay with family and they would notice such a drastic change in routine.

[mattea]

Solange,

I feel that way but I think it’s because I’m really trying to be my best when dressed. I’ve always been a bit obsessive about hygiene in any event but usually go the extra mile when preparing for my time dressed. I don’t think it’s because I’m trying to channel my inner girl (my wife is ready in no time) I’m just trying to put as much effort as I can to put my best girl foot forward if you know what I mean. It’s part of my routine now to do just about everything as meticulously as my body and my budget will allow. There is also the fact that if I’m going to invest my time in this art and expression of who I am, I’m going to make sure I’m doing it the best I can since my time to truly be myself is limited by my situation. There is that other part when my wife sees me dressed that she says wow or gives me that approving look that makes it all worth it. I do count myself lucky as she is fully participating and an admiring wife and I have the support of my immediate family but my work and surroundings mean I only get out so often. We usually take couple day trips out of town to get our girl on.....

Good Luck!

Mattea.

[Kiwi Primrose]

I presume that grooming is the main point here. I am no cleaner but my legs, body and under-arms are always smooth; I use body lotion, my nails are smooth and I use perfume.

[biancabellelover]

I put WAY more effort into my female appearance than my male appearance (no surprises there for any of us there), but my hygiene levels are the same if I’m presenting male or female.

I’m much neater than my wife; she is one of the few women I’ve met who is untidy, but she is very clean.

Michelle.

[Solange]

Thanks ladies, for your candor and honesty. I guess I'm not surprised by the spectrum of answers, but am still amazed by the difference I feel. I pondered Tracii G's suggestion I am projecting gender stereotypes. If so, it's at a deeply subconscious level. To some extent, Mattea's suggestion about artistry comes into play, but again doesn't quite capture the compulsive nature of the change.

In retrospect, I think grooming would have been a better choice of words than hygiene. Sorry for the confusion.

The discussion has helped me think more deeply about this. I realized I have created multiple identities (I write erotica when I can find the time, and explore aspects of this through that medium) and consciously or subconsciously define grooming habits as part of their personalities when creating characters. As several ladies pointed out, humans span a broad spectrum of grooming behaviors, and although there are trends, there are no absolute gender correlations.

So, in the end, I combine Mattea's answer with Tracii G's assertion. Dressing is only part of portraying a character I've created in my head. Grooming, mannerisms, sexuality are all facets of that person. When I assume a femme personality, it comes with more than just panties.

This opens a whole different set of questions about having multiple femme identities which is probably best as another discussion; or I should perform a search! (Winking playfully at Tracii G).

Thanks again, ladies!

[DIANEF]

My hygiene (or grooming) routine is the same male or female. The only real difference is when I shave. I'm happy with an electric shaver for drab but when dressed I prefer the closer cut of a razor.

[DaisyLawrence]

Yeah, what Diane said.

[VS Fan]

I like my femme perfume (Liz Claiborne) much better than my guy deodorant hahahah

[Teresa]

Solange,
It's why I prefer to get the nitty gritty jobs done before I dress . I don't want dirty broken nails , OK women aren't perfect they have to do some less than wholesome jobs and not exactly come out smelling of roses . I have to admit I try very hard to look after my female clothes as well , I had to force myself to buy some new trousers and male sock for the basic jobs .

[Stacy Darling]

I actually have difficulty understanding the change in hygiene/grooming which some experience. Possibly because my compulsiveness doesn't vary, I'm always obsessive.

It may be the adoration thing which I, or we have? Stacy.

[Solange]

Stacy: I admit there is nothing rational about the compulsion. It may be that the personalities I'm dressing are all glamorous, I don't have a day to day girl character. I also may be transferring frustration from being unable to do things I'd love to do but can't like shave and do my nails.

Teresa: Definitely agree with the dirty nails thing, which is a pain because gardening leaves me with perpetually chewed up hands and dirt crusted nails. I only have a couple articles of clothing other than panties and pantyhose. My situation isn't ideal for full expression, but I indulge what I can

[hellkat13]

Nothing really changes for me other than if I know I'm not dressing for a while I'll let the beard run wild. I also don't always go through the hassle of shaving them legs.