Androgynous Dressing
Androgynous dressing is often misinterpreted as a wholly masculine approach to style and image. But it’s not. To dress androgynously is to blend the boundaries of masculine and feminine and fuse the two together in a way which is unique to you and expresses an appreciation for complete gender equality through image.
In this blog we will be exploring some of our styling tips and ideas for power dressing, comfort dressing, and how to define your own androgynous style.
Finding your androgynous style
First thing’s first, you don’t have to throw away every skirt and dress you own to fall into this category. In fact, in many ways, every time you wear a pant suit to work or a pair of jeans when out and about, you are embracing some level of androgynous styling – mainly for comfort and practicality, but also because trousers and typically masculine garments can often look extremely sexy on women. And if you choose to embrace an androgynous style today, there’s nothing that says you can’t trial something else tomorrow.
Outside of the obvious trousers and shorts, we tend to find that some of the more committed androgynous styles leaning on short haircuts and other masculine features, while others are more focussed on garments and how to use the benefit of a pant suit or a masculine style to create and illusion of power.
One example comes in the fabric and colors you choose to express yourself with. Blacks, whites and greys are typically more masculine and therefore fit into an androgynous colour palette, while creams and softer neutrals are often perceived as more feminine. The fabric itself is another area for consideration, with thinner and floatier fabrics being seen as more feminine and straighter fabrics more masculine.
Likewise, you can make a pant suit more masculine with a shirt, or more feminine with a blouse – both suitable for the office but with each portraying a different side of your gender role.
Shoes and accessories hold their own space in the androgynous styling conversation, with feminine accessories typically smaller and more delicate while a more masculine look would embrace larger briefcases, chunky shoes and flat heels.
5 steps to comfort dressing in an androgynous style
- Choose straight cut trousers and shorts
- Invest in trainers
- Consider the fit of your t-shirts and chosen boxy styles and loose fits
- Forget lipstick and blusher, but focus on eyeliner and eye shadow
- Choose neutral colors
5 steps to power dressing in an androgynous style
- Choose a trouser suit rather than a skirt suit
- Try a shirt rather than a blouse
- If you aren’t comfortable with a short haircut, pin or tie it back
- Choose clean cut tailoring with no frills or lace
- Keep the colors monotone
Most important of all, own your look. An androgynous style is not something to be afraid or ashamed of – in fact, there has never been a better time to embrace the options on the market and the variety of styles out there.