Why?

[PretzelGirl]

It is certainly going to vary among each of us and our tastes. I love to dress up too. A lot of women do also. It doesn't mean they do it every waking minute. Since I do dress probably >90% of my non-work time, it isn't going to be all skirts and dresses. There is a lot of enjoyment in putting together outfits that work for all occasions and environments. I would also think that another factor is going to be if and how much one of us gets out and about. You most certainly can wear dresses and skirts all the time and be fine but it for those who want to, it is easier to blend in some situations by being in pants.

The key from all of this? Be yourself and enjoy. Life is suppose to be about being yourself and being happy. The rest is noise.

[CarlaWestin]

It is certainly going to vary among each of us and our tastes. I love to dress up too. A lot of women do also. It doesn't mean they do it every waking minute. Since I do dress probably >90% of my non-work time, it isn't going to be all skirts and dresses. There is a lot of enjoyment in putting together outfits that work for all occasions and environments. I would also think that another factor is going to be if and how much one of us gets out and about. You most certainly can wear dresses and skirts all the time and be fine but it for those who want to, it is easier to blend in some situations by being in pants.

The key from all of this? Be yourself and enjoy. Life is suppose to be about being yourself and being happy. The rest is noise.

Reading this just made me feel so good about myself. Sue, thank you so much for your kind validating words. Deep down inside we are all beautiful.

[bridget thronton]

Skirts and dresses are cooler year round than pants (which always feel too warm). I no longer feel compelled to wear hose or slip (unless the fabric is very sheer) when I am wearing a dress to be comfortable.

[Jenniferathome]

Erica, I think pants are just too close to what we have as men, so for a cross dresser, it barely crosses. I have often wrote that cross dressers tend toward the stereotypical female image. Also, women's pants tend to make it difficult for us to hide our junk. We have to wear a tunic or such to help coverage. It's part functional and part stereotype that gets most of us in skirts and dresses.

[TxCassie]

I can relate to the discussion because I've often thought the same thing. Many GG will wear jeans, shorts, pants, etc for comfort, ease, convenience, etc... I wear trousers everyday in my male mode. I like them, but for now, I want to dress in skirt, dresses because I haven't done it so much. I also don't have to tuck as much, so it's easier for me. My body shaper, and pantyhose tuck enough for a dress. Eventually, I do want to wear shorts, jeans, slacks, but I will need to learn how to tuck properly. For me, I know it's just a part of the journey. Baby steps for me.

Cassie

[Missy]

I like to wear skirts around the home and jeans when I go out into the world. having a skirt on just gives me a better feeling and more freedom

[lisa_cd]

Well that's a good question.
I guess you describe me to a T. I do prefer wearing skirts and dresses. I suppose that right now I'm at a phase where I want to be ultra-femme, and let the pink fog really roll in and envelope me completely. Skirts and dresses really do that for me.
I have bought a pair of women's jeans, and some leggings, and I really like them a lot, too. But maybe I just like baring my legs...smiles...
But you are right...most women do wear jeans now a days....
Good post...makes me think....

[Michelle789]

I think a lot of it is because we as cross-dressers dress just on occasion, be it once a week or once every few weeks, so we want to glam it up the few chances we get. A GG on average will probably wear a skirt and glam it up as often as we cross-dress.

You can definitely find outfits that include slacks, jeans, and leggings that are pretty, stylish, and definitely not boring. There are plenty of choices of pretty tops. You can also find leggings with different colors and patterns (such as animal prints). I see it all the time. A good choice of shoes (there are plenty of stylish flats), makeup, a bracelet, or other accessories can make all the difference too, and of course attitude.

If I were to live as a woman 24/7, I'd probably go for slacks/jeans/leggings sometimes and skirts/dresses sometimes, but I'd always try to look my best. I'd never go for the pajama bottom or ripped jeans or something that's just too plain or boring. I would probably wear hose more often than the average GG, but not daily.

The one exception to the rule I notice is summer dresses. During the summer months, GGs wear summer dresses more often than I see skirts and hose in the winter.

For the record, I used to work with a GG that wore hose every day during the winter, fall, and spring, and she was around 40 (hint that you're never too old or too young for hose).

My only other pet peeve is people dressing according to the calendar and not the weather. This annoys me because we often have Indian summers in California and I see GGs dressing for fall in early October and it's 95 degrees outside, just because the calendar says it's officially fall, and yet I'll see women wearing summer dresses on a cool July day just because the calendar says it's officially summer. Yes October can be warmer than July in California, especially in coastal towns. The further away from the coast you go, the more the weather starts to look like other places and stays in line with the calendar, but I can guarantee you coastal California towns weather does not conform to what the calendar says.

[Pandys]

For me, dresses and skirts partly because of a very limited wardrobe, but mostly because I don't look very fem.

[Karren H]

I loath womens jeans.... not hot or sexy.....

[Georgina]

I don't care what women wear. I wear skirts and dresses because I like them. I also love slips and petticoats and they don't work with jeans.

[reb.femme]

I can't or don't dare to wear a skirt in drab so when I go femme, preference is definitely for skirts, dresses and soft tops. My preference is and always has been toward the floating and soft materials.

However, as you quite rightly say, the standard GG doesn't seem to wear them, which is a damn nuisance. Maybe I could start a campaign for GGs in the UK to get into regular skirt and dress wearing as an underhand way of serving my own clothing preference, thus allowing me to blend more readily when done up to the nines .

........... Also, women's pants tend to make it difficult for us to hide our junk. We have to wear a tunic or such to help coverage. It's part functional and part stereotype that gets most of us in skirts and dresses.

And I couldn't have put it better than that.

Rebecca

[Siobhan_Cross]

For me, being an extreme newbie to the whole CD world. I never have even given any thought to wearing pants or slacks. For now it's going to be all about dresses and skirts. Probably somewhat on the conservative end. However, I will have at least one "****ty" outfit. ( it's part of my DNA, LOL). It's really nice to see so much conservative dressing, I for one thought it was all about dressing in a flamboyant manner. I dunno if that is some kind bad stereotype and if it is shame on me for that. But I'm here now and I love what the future looks like. And when I said dressing ****ty I meant a tasteful ****ty and not the flamboyant ****ty LOL.

Also I think most of the time around the house I'll probably wear some lounge wear or nightgowns. And I'll save my other dressing for the weekends when I'll have much more time to dress myself and make myself look as pretty as I can

[Dani0948]

Working in retail I see about 100 gg's every eay. Only about 10% wear skirts or dresses. IMHO a woman wearing a skirt always looks better than one wearing pants.

[Mssusan]

It's so interesting reading what you observe and think about what we wear. I guess I'm the only GG reading or inspired to weigh in....

Your average middle class GG will dress for comfort and mobility, and adjust the polish and femininity to her personal taste. I know this is a generalization, but I think it's pretty accurate. Bottoms with divided legs are easier to wear than skirts and dresses, not to mention a lot warmer in winter. Then of course there's the attention factor. Sometimes we don't want to have our legs admired, so no skirts or dresses. Sorry guys ;-)

Plus, from what I understand about cross dressing, it satisfies a need and helps you relax. So, a GG who is not a FTM dresser won't get any satisfaction or relaxation from dressing in a skirt or dress. We might do it to feel pretty, but not in quite the same way as MTF dressers.

Yes, you will see more skirts and dresses during warmer weather, especially in areas like mine (Chicago) where our summers are brief and glorious. And yes, when there's a special occasion or an event calls for it, many GGs enjoy or feel compelled to wear more traditional female clothing.

Ok back to your regularly scheduled musings.....and I hope I didn't intrude.

[raven_crosdresser]

I love dresses and tights, but I have taken a liking into skinny jeans.

[BLUE ORCHID]

Hi Erica Marie, Skirts Rule !!

[Alice B]

I think that for many of us it is in the legs. We want to show our legs and for many of us we see our legs as our best feature

[sandra-leigh]

Bottoms with divided legs are easier to wear than skirts and dresses, not to mention a lot warmer in winter.

Consider: Mittens are warmer than gloves because the heat generated by each finger and the palm gets to circulate around and warm the other fingers, whereas with gloves the fingers are isolated from each other and need to warm their own immediate area. Likewise, with jeans the heat from each leg is confined to a narrow area around the leg, whereas with long skirts or long dresses, the heat from each leg can warm the other.

The time that long skirts or long dresses can lose out is if you have a sharp wind near ground level, in which case the wind can blow up from underneath

Yes, I have put this into practice myself, at -30C (-22F)

[AimeeG]

Ironically I didn't wear jeans for ten years (male) and earned the nickname "jeans"! Now I look forward to wearing jeans, but I like skirts and dresses too, sometimes they're not as convenient.

[Jocelyn Quivers]

Making up for lost time consisting of the first couple of decades of denial where I tried resisting wearing anything female related. It's probably going to take a few more years of getting the dressing very girly phase out of my system before I'm at the point of copying the standard GG non professional business attire or dressed to the nine's attire.

[lingerieLiz]

Years ago skirts and dresses. Today shorts mostly and some jeans in the winter months.

[EnglishBeth]

I like to wear tight jeans with high heels. The shoes make all the difference

[Marleena]

Is it my imagination or do most crossdressers prefer skirts and dresses over girls pants and a top.
Maybe I should say at least for photo reasons. I notice in most of the photos that are posted a good percentage of the girls here go with fancier cloths.

Hi Erica when I first joined here I wasn't much of a CDer and had to learn the ropes from square one including makeup. You quickly learn that if you want action on your pictures you need to dress sexy and look convincing. I also think CDing can be a projection of how you would like to see your "dream girl" dress. Or it could be as simple as making up for lost years ( approaching 60 It was fun to post pictures of me in a minidress). As I progressed I posted a picture of me in casual wear (jeans and blouse) and the response was lukewarm at best compared to me in a short dress showing a lot of leg. I used the photo gallery as a sort of confirmation that I was doing okay and it was a slow progression. My current avatar is what I'd wear to an upscale restaurant. It's a knee length pencil skirt but looking at it now the hose need to be a darker shade.

If you're going out in public say to a mall, you'd want to dress down ( casual) like the other women. Being out in public you need to blend more unless you really want the attention, obviously. In the privacy of your home I would think anything goes. For a CDer it should be about fun and excitement (I think).

[Cheryl T]

My closet contains almost as many jeans/slacks as skirts or dresses. I'm comfortable being me in either style. I don't NEED a skirt to feel feminine, nor do I feel unfeminine in my slacks. I wear what I feel like wearing and what fits with where I'm going. I just can't see myself shopping at the mall in a cocktail dress and heels when all the other women are in jeans and capris.