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I was hanging out with a friend and she said that passing would be less challenging if the man dressing doesn't have broad shoulders. I can't say I'm familiar with broad shoulders and crossdressing, so I'm hoping some of you can explain how having broad shoulders can affect your appearance when being a woman
Broad shoulders are a particularly masculine feature, so if you have broad shoulders you'll have to consider that when buying/trying on tops. It's not advisable for broad-shouldered dressers to wear spaghetti-strap tops, for example. Of course, if passing is not a high priority, then just wear whatever you feel most comfortable in.
The biggest thing about broad shoulders plays in to what you wear.. you can't wear tight, or straight short skirts.. this makes the shoulders look that much bigger and is a quick way to get read. i have broad shoulders.. what works best with me is loose fitting tops over shorts or slacks.. this kind of lessens the look of the wide shoulders and the narrow hips. Another thing i wear and love are straight dresses or even what i call swing dresses with no waist so they hang from the shoulders.. this makes me look a little wider on bottom then i am.. but that works in balancing out the top and bottom to look for fem.
One trick in disguising broad shoulders is to wear a dark or black cardigan sweater or shrug with your outfit. Sleeves can be short too. It's a tried-and-true trick. :thumbsup:
Men have wider shoulders while women have wider hips.
Men's shoulders are noticeably wider than their hips. Women's shoulders are closer to the width of their hips.
Simple as that.
Yep - it's really just the classic men's triangle versus women's hourglass shape.
As others have said, on average, women have wider hips, guys have wider shoulders.
however, while I don't claim to have a particularly masculine shape, one girl I work with, has proportions, shoulders to hips, is Way, more masculine than mine, I think her shoulders are actually wider, and her hips are narrower. It might be just the proportions are throwing me off, those proportions are much more masculine than mine, just in ratio.
She's still a lovely girl, and anyone talking to her is going to notice her build, but they will still identify her as female.
Katie,
I am short,5'6", stocky, 220# grunt of a guy. When I was a pre-teen, I had the hardest time fitting into anything. Every SA would tell my mom, he has such broad shoulders, he's gonna be a bruiser of a football player. HA!, that was a knees slapper!:D :battingeyelashes:
I wear a 44D bra, now that's a woman! :eek: :heehee:
The tips and advice are exactly what I use as well. I bought this white, ruffled blouse that is high in the neck, tapered short sleeves, and well, you can just imagine. I looked like that football player those SA suspected I was.. :brolleyes:
My tip is .. .Buy a scarf. A scarf can be quite helpful in covering, not concealing, or distracting parts of the body you wish to diminish.
I submit, photo one, my white blouse without my scarf, ,and photo two, with the scarf. Now, I am not saying my shoulders just proof! But it does give you a different look. The viewer's eye looks but does not really see what you're covering.
The third photo is a softer blouse, that soften the shoulders a bit.
You can't get rid of what Mother Nature gave you but you can work with it. The main idea... Dress for yourself, Feel Pretty, Enjoy, Have Fun...
Well, I am having trouble posting the pics. As soon as I figure things out, I'll post them.
Cassie:love:
Hi,
Hips 39 in, waistline 34 to 35 in, bust 41 in & real, shoulders 18 in. across the top. height 5 ,9. weight 154 lbs, or 11 stone, avg 5 lbs over,
waist ,skirt size 16 , bras , 16 d, tops 18 to 20 depends on make, shoes 11 womens or mens 8, kiwi.
...noeleena...
If one has broad shoulders then they have a need to balance their shape by adding padding in the hips/butt area. That creates the feminine hourglass figure and gives a waist that is defined. Without this the shoulders draw too much attention and shout MALE. Few women (except world class swimmers) have broad shoulders in relation to their lower body.
Broad shoulders are easily disguised with long cascading curly and wavy locks. One must keep the torso hairless though.
Wear vertical stripes or dark colors and cover them arms and shoulders with a 3/4 sleeve....
Broad shoulders can be covered up in many ways just by the right type of clothing. I didn.t know how to do this so I had a female friend help me out. Not only did she teach me many ways to do this, but also gave me much support on my journey to CD....
QUOTE=Katiegal;2899716]... I can't say I'm familiar with broad shoulders and crossdressing, so I'm hoping some of you can explain how having broad shoulders can affect your appearance when being a woman[/QUOTE]
Here is my biggest issue with having broad shoulders. What fits at the top, seldom fits at the bottom without significant alterations. Tops for example will end up with a lot of extra material flowing around the waistline. Dress suits are typically sold as a set containing a jacket, top and either pants or a skirt. The jacket will look great but the bottom falls to my knees. Like others have reported, I just have to be careful when selecting my outfits. A little thinking ahead of time will net me clothes that do look very nice.
Babette
To minimize your shoulders, I avoid jackets and tops with very sharp shoulders and look for raglan or dohlman sleeves, usually 1/2 or 3/4 lenght sleeves. Also, I often wear wrap tops or tunics with V necklines that are runched or tie at the waist. This helps tease out a more feminine shape and draw the eye away from the shoulder line.
The other little trick is to wear a necklace - again to catch the eye and draw attention elsewhere ;)
I have had my style analysed professionally, and they said I had an inverted triangle shape, which is the same as models. I am slim, but not that slim, and I have great legs. I have since heard other stylists say this inverted triangle thing. I know that some designers are said to choose models who look like boys, but my own priority is to look good in the clothes not to pass as a woman. I think the secret is in getting the walk right.