When I was a teenage guy wanting to be more like my tall Dad, I would round my height up to 6 feet exactly. Nowadays I usually say I'm 5 feet/11 inches, which somehow sounds better to me for some reason. Still, that makes me pretty tall for a Caucasian woman, since the average height is apparently around 5 feet/4 inches. Which makes me feel like it would be hard to find clothes that fit, and unlikely I'd ever be able to "pass" as a woman in public, even if I got around my hair issues.
Then again, there are women around my height, including Brooke Shields, Michelle Obama, and even Wonder Woman herself, Lynda Carter! So, maybe I'm not such a tall freak after all! :)
You know I'm about 5'10" (5'9.7" to be more exact) and I find it way easier to find women's clothes that fit me than guy's clothes. My wife is exactly as tall as me too. The fact that the average is so sort is only because there are a lot of really short women, not because their aren't a lot of really tall women--there are.
ReplyDeleteHi Arcee, height has always been a worry for me too. Sometimes I am standing in a crowd and scan around and realize there are 100 people in a store or a mall that are shorter than me. I am 72.7" tall (sounds less imposing than 6'-1"!) but I keep reminding myself that my sister who is biological female is also 72" tall as was our Grandmother.
ReplyDeleteI wear flats or very low-heeled boots and can't imagine myself in public in heels, but both my daughters, who are 70" tall wear heels that make them stand as tall as me, as does my wife. In fact it mitigates my feelings of height insecurity to look these lovely ladies right in the eye!
As for clothes, when I was stil trying to figure out my sizes for woman's clothes, I bought a pair of long jeans, and finally had to give them (through my wife) to our neighbor gal (who is also 71" tall but has a longer inseam than me!) I am back to buying size 16M jeans and they fit great. Tops are a little challenging as much of my height is in a long torso, but Christian is right woman's clothes have so much better size ranges, careful shopping can be very beneficial. Several online stores have tall woman's sections with really cute tops. I also like tops that run down on my hips or even finger tip length to help soften the fact that my waist to hip relationship isn't ideal.
At the end of the day it does come down to being comfortable and liking who you are. I have found when I do I feel good enough that I don't worry that I am above average in several categories!
Best wishes and happy shopping, Laurie.
I bought my first pair of women's dress pants at a thrift store the other day. They're size 16 and plenty long, and oh-so-comfortable! Plus they're subtly feminine, but I can wear them to work without anyone giving me a second glance! :)
ReplyDeleteWay cool, I have to wear a suit and tie all day, so I rush home and put on a bright colored top (I love shades of purple the most, pink doesn't look good on me, I am too pale) and one of my favorite woman's jeans and the combination of physical and tactal and psychological comfort is uphoric.
ReplyDeleteI do have a long black dress and gold jacket that looks very professional that I would love to wear to work, but it would have to be to submit my resignation and I am not ready for that yet!!
Oh and I should say that last year the first time I dared go out in public wearing a stitch of woman's clothing was on a date with my sweetheart before she knew about TG, and it was the first time in 20 years that she complimented how nice my butt looked. That was enough for me.
ReplyDeleteAfter I was out and told her I had been wearing thrift store woman's jeans for months now, she finished my sentence by saying they fit me better than guys jeans. The last three pair we have bought together, there is nothing cooler than going clothes shopping with your wife in the same section and then accompanying her into the dressing booth and taking turns trying on the same clothes and deciding who looks best in which items!
My office is IT casual (typically jeans and a polo), and lately I've been dressing at the high end of that spectrum -- the first few days people kept asking me if I had a job interview on my lunch break or something! I don't usually do much overtly femme, but I have been branching out in terms of fabric and color, and I'm surprised at how much of a difference it makes in my overall attitude, and how much that small change keeps the dysphoria at bay.
ReplyDeleteI do know what you mean about the dysphoria, that's what my after hours wardrobe does for me, plus my silky night gown that I wear to bed (which was my amazing wife's idea!), it all helps make it bearable to wake up every morning as Laurie and have a few minutes as me before donning the suit of the day and facing the world.
ReplyDeleteIt is not about the clothes as much as the completeness and peace it fosters. Thanks! Laurie.