Articles tagged with "Masculine"

UK Newspaper Daily Mail reports on the "unusual" relationship of Maren Butler (@marenn.x) and James Carrington (@jxcx3). The pair met on TikTok, James a feminine presenting man and Maren, a masculine presenting woman. Challenging many social and gender norms in the process the pair have formed a long-lasting relationship.

From the article:

"Maren said: 'I remember seeing James' video and thinking he was so cool.

'It was his confidence and his androgynous look that was so appealing to me.

'I left a comment on his video thinking he wouldn't respond but in less than an hour he replied and we started chatting.

'Before James, I'd only dated girls but I've always been attracted to fem-men because I love the combination of confidence and femininity.

'He has a pretty face and pretty smile, what's not to love! It's an unusual pairing but we're so happy.' "

Original URL: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-11481251/Masculine-woman-feminine-boyfriend-discuss-unusual-relationship.html

Jharna Pariani writes for Fashion Psychology (@fashionispsychology) website to explore how fashion's influence can be used to dismantle gender stereotypes.

From the article:

"Before the 20th century, women were shamed for cross-dressing in men’s outfits. It wasn’t until the 1920s that women’s clothing finally gained liberation and did away with tightly laced corsets, bustled skirts and puffy sleeves. Women began embracing the androgynous look, also known as ‘La garçonne’, revolutionised by Coco Chanel who paved the way for women’s trousers through her masculine-feminine aesthetic. In 1966, Yves Saint Laurent furthered the cause by introducing ‘Le Smoking’, a tuxedo look for women that became an embodiment of sexual empowerment."

"Women are now revered as ‘power dressers’ for donning sharp suits and enjoy the freedom of easily switching between both masculine and feminine styles. However, men haven’t enjoyed the same level of acceptance and freedom for embracing femininity."

"Gender is no longer just limited to male and female — or pink and blue — but is now a spectrum of non-conforming identities and fashion is beginning to reflect that."

Original URL: https://fashionispsychology.com/dismantling-gender-stereotypes-through-fashion/

Online newspaper "The Citizen" highlights the change lead by a new generation of fashion-forward, stereotype challenging celebrities.

From the article:

"Gender stereotypes are taking a hit. In the fashion industry, as in other sectors, collections and products that are co-ed, unisex, gender-neutral or gender-fluid are multiplying at high speed, challenging all clichés and precepts in the field."

"It’s no longer rare — or surprising — to see a man on the red carpet wearing a dress or a skirt, towering heels and flawless makeup. And it’s a phenomenon that’s not just limited to the confines of Hollywood — or the showbiz world more generally — since it has been working its way into the mainstream for several months, if not years."

The list in the article is not exhaustive and you might also be interested in one of our Q&A pieces - "Which male celebrities have been known to wear heels?" / Use quick code 'cel'.

Original URL: https://www.citizen.co.za/lifestyle/fashion-and-beauty/harry-styles-david-banda-lil-nas-x-the-new-icons-driving-stereotypes-out-of-fashion/

The TheIndusty.fashion website explores the reasons why more men are shopping in the women's department.

From the article:

"This increasing band of fashion-forward men are purchasing larger sizes in feminine womenswear and thanks to celebrities like Harry Styles and Lil Nas X, and designers like Marc Jacobs, men now have the “permission” to buy and wear womenswear as their own. From clothing to accessorises, these men are buying what they like, regardless of where is comes from, just as long as it fits."

“Where I’d like to see it trickle down more is the high street. I think certain brands are afraid of looking too feminine which could potentially ward off their key shopper, but I think that’s the beauty of online shopping there’s a space for everyone,” says Hobbs.

“THIS IS NOT A TREND. I REPEAT, THIS IS NOT A TREND,” says Glazin. “It's not something I just jumped on the bandwagon with, it's really because I want more out of my wardrobe. And I think I speak for every man who does the same. I truly think brands need to have more unisex sections in stores, there doesn't need to be segregated sections!” he says.

“As there’s a wave of more gender fluidity, there’s also less pressure to stick to clothing made for your gender. Womenswear has always had a lot more styles, shapes, fabrics, colours etc. so when considering the options it makes sense that some men are opting for more expressive pieces,”

"Clothing doesn’t reflect people’s sexuality anymore. The vast range of new role models has promoted an attitude of inclusivity."

Original URL: https://www.theindustry.fashion/crossing-the-floor-why-more-men-are-gravitating-towards-the-glamour-of-the-womenswear-department/

It's often a simple notion in your own head... "I like to wear heels and would like to wear them all the time". Ultimately you don't care what others think. You could be gender nonconforming. But what does that mean? This article from Psych Central unravels the meaning and puts it into context with other terms such as non-binary, genderqueer and genderfluid.

"Gender nonconformity is a way of expressing rejection of societal gender roles and expectations.

It isn’t automatically connected to a person’s gender identity or sexuality. Anyone of any gender identity can be gender nonconforming.

It’s best to inquire about how a person identifies and what pronouns they use rather than making any assumptions."

Original URL: https://psychcentral.com/health/gender-nonconforming

Livewire, the student new site of Bullitt East High School, explores the history of men defying social norms. Whether it's men in dresses, skirts, heels or other items of clothing normally associated with a different gender. Social norms perpetuate gender stereotypes about clothing. Harry Styles, though not the first, currently has the attention of the media for his gender nonconforming style.

From the article:

"Junior Sophie Boguszewski states her opinion that she doesn’t find anything wrong with it. “I don’t think it’s inappropriate. People used to not want women to wear pants, but now they do. So why can’t men wear dresses,” Boguszewski said.

Not only does this spark the idea of nongender-specific clothing, but it also sparks normalizing “feminine” things for everyone. The former One Direction member and the now solo artist is known for pushing against the social norms of men by painting his nails and wearing pearl necklaces.

Many famous men have paved the way for men in dresses in the past. In 1971, David Bowie was photographed wearing a dress while lounging around his house. Bowie has worn dresses on many occasions, including for one of his album covers."

Original URL: https://www.belivewire.com/8353/national/harry-styles-for-vogue-and-the-history-of-men-defying-social-norms/

While many curious men explore their gender identity at home, often with items of clothing they've acquired by mail order services, they may consider showing up at their workplace in those items as an unattainable dream. There is however some serious research being done in this area by many people to determine the sociological effect of workplace attire and how people who are gender nonconforming, non-binary, genderqueer and so forth are challenging the norm in the workplace.

From the Gender Sexuality at Work Conference 2022, Dr Briony Lipton gives this compelling presentation of her work on "Men In Heels And Workplace Attire" which forms part of a larger project "Invisibilities Of Gendered Inequality In The Age Of Remote And Hybrid Work". Her research on gender equality and changes in professional attire is particularly interesting as it addresses a fundamental shift in our pandemic and post-pandemic work lives where many of us now regularly work from home, or have a hybrid home/office arrangement with who we work for.

She explores "Queer Heterosexuality" and whether there are ways in which straight men can disrupt the dominant paradigm of the straight-masculine and whether this can help to communicate, challenge and influence organisations and individuals perceptions of gender and sexual identities and their perceptions of equality and inclusion in the workplace.

With notable mentions of @MarkBryan911, @The_Heads_Count, @AlokVMenon, @TheeBillyPorter, @GentlemanHeels and @Mens.Heels.Revolution there are a number of other Instagram accounts featured in the video which we'll leave you to discover for yourselves.

Original URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UCe441EoYI&list=PLhOObpoQndRlSrCjtoprhSRUWCa_qqZ8h&t=4s

Lillian Stone (@originalspinstr) writes for Mel Magazine on the rise of men in heels on social media and how some women are falling in love with the growing trend.

From the article:

"Mesmerized by their confidence and how their heeled shoes make their ass look like marble, women are falling head over heels for guys who dare to don a pair of pumps"

"Wearers are posting their videos to Instagram and, increasingly, TikTok, where videos with the hashtag #meninheels currently have more than 82 million views. Someone’s grandfather even went viral for pairing masculine silhouettes with a tasteful pump.".

"Seeing a man wear heels without a hint of irony confirms what we’ve always known, if only subconsciously — that heeled footwear is sexy, no matter the wearer’s gender. It speaks to a simple truth: If you find a pair of shoes that make your ass look like it’s made of steel, you should wear those shoes."

Men appearing to have more confidence comes across as one of the key attractions to women. Having greater confidence is often a reason stated by women as to why they wear high heels, but it's still interesting to see this coming across when the roles are reversed.

Original URL: https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/men-wearing-high-heels

Women Working magazine website brings us another report on Mark Bryan (@MarkBryan911), the 61 year old American Robotics Engineer who is legendary for rocking high heels on Instagram. With over 660,000 followers, he conveys a firm sense of his own style for high heels, and certainly provides an inspirational fashion and style narrative which includes the mantra that "Clothes and shoes should not dictate a persons sexual orientation or gender".

Mark comments about how he feels he appears to other people - "You look up and see this person, your mind tells you it’s a person with green hair, you think to yourself, ‘That’s odd or interesting,’ then you go back to do what you were doing and don’t give it another thought"

To Mark, a man in heels and a skirt is normal, and we can all take some inspiration from him. If he can do it, we can all do it!

Original URL: https://her.womenworking.com/straight-married-dad-of-three-wears-skirts-to-prove-clothes-have-no-gender-helps-raise-money

Stylus Media Group, an industry think-tank founded in 2009, reports on the collaboration between Jimmy Choo (@jimmychoo) and Billy Porter (@theebillyporter) to create heels for men in sizes up to US 15.

"While drag performers can find well-fitting footwear at specialised stores and retailers, many others including transgender women can often struggle to find appropriate heels in larger sizes. Reuters reports that transgender women can often be forced to “choose between more masculine styles and the hyper-sexualised designs of specialist retailers – with nothing in between.” Jimmy Choo and Porter’s collaboration taps into this market gap, providing more versatility in terms of sizing as well as everyday options, like classic heeled boots and suede pumps."

It is surely now only a question of time before the mainstream designers and retailers follow suit.

Original URL: https://www.stylus.com/unisex-heel-line-backs-fashions-blurred-binary

Asian magazine, Prestige reports on how Harry Halim has everyone talking about his Kitana boots for men and how his creation is simultaneously making waves in the fashion industry and shaking up our ideas about masculinity.

"To me, masculinity is not defined by what you wear. Masculinity is a term referring to the social roles expected of a man. In today’s world, a man who is masculine is a man who is responsible – who loves, honours and provides for his family and his surroundings. True masculinity is not determined by how much physical strength or muscles that a man has, but rather the strength of his character."

Original URL: https://www.prestigeonline.com/id/people-events/people/making-waves-with-harry-halim/

Unfinished Man blog ("not merely a men’s lifestyle and entertainment blog, but a site devoted to the essence of masculinity and becoming a real man") poses the question whether a man can wear "Women's Shoes".

I have to be honest, this article was close to not making the cut for inclusion on Men's Heels Revolution. It was only the fact that it was written by a man and concluded positively that it made it. The article could have benefited from deeper research and often repeats itself, but the intentions are noble.

Many articles written for men's magazines or blogs (and a small number by women), ridicule or make light of the idea of men wearing high heels, or any gender non-conforming style. Contrary to this particular article, here we call them high heels, or just heels as they are not women's shoes, but just shoes with heels. They don't belong to any specific gender any more than your toothbrush does!

Still worth a read if only to appreciate that things are maybe starting to change in how men talk to other men about gender non-conformity.

Original URL: https://www.unfinishedman.com/can-men-wear-womens-shoes-great-shoe-debate/

Opposing Views reports this story on @MarkBryan911 to raise awareness of gender neutral fashion. It's a brief, but interesting story on Mark and his views on wearing high heels to work every day.

Original URL: https://www.opposingviews.com/society/straight-married-father-of-three-says-hes-been-wearing-skirts-and-heels-to-work-for-years

Hypebae introduces Stixx (@StixxInTheCity), Wisdom Kaye (@Wisdm) and Henry Bae (@HenryBae), three men who are helping to re-define how we think about fashion today and in particular how heels are crossing the gender divide once again.

Original URL: https://hypebae.com/2022/4/men-heels-inclusive-fashion-gender-lgbtq-rick-owens

Dazed magazine features the SS21 campaign for Amsterdam based fashion house Ninamounah which included Viral high heel wearing sensation, Mark Bryan (@MarkBryan911) as a "Special Species".

Original URL: https://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/52137/1/mark-bryan-instagram-ninamounah-ss21-campaign-taxidermy-amsterdam

GQ Magazine looks back upon the style of legendary music artist Prince. Prince will first be remembered for his music, then arguably for his style which was never without a pair of custom made high heels.

Original URL: https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/fashion/gallery/prince-style

Forbes Magazine reports on our use of language when it comes to Gender. We often use language habitually, built up through social interaction and education, but small changes in the way we use language can go a long way to making minority groups feel included in the conversation.

Original URL: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kimelsesser/2020/07/08/how-to-use-gender-neutral-language-and-why-its-important-to-try/?sh=129f9aff26ba

You've possibly already heard of Mark Bryan (@MarkBryan911), though many outside of Instagram won't know that this sixty-something man regularly wears a skirt and heels to the office. He believes, like many more now do, that clothes and shoes have no gender. This interview for Harpers Bazaar brings us up to date with what Mark has been doing recently.

Original URL: https://harpersbazaar.com.au/mark-bryan-interview/

From 2018, Quartz magazine delves into the history of the high heel through the research of Elizabeth Semmelhack (@elizabeth_semmelhack) at the Bata Shoe Museum, recounting how women borrowed heels from the male wardrobe to look more masculine. Enlightenment put an end to men wearing heels at the end of the 17th century. Though as Elizabeth says “Heels are just things. They can be given any meaning we decide they have”. When asked, “So could men start wearing heels once more?” she concluded... “anything’s possible.”

Four years on and it seems it’s not only possible, but happening at a pace!

Original URL: https://qz.com/quartzy/1317090/its-enlightenment-philosophys-fault-that-women-wear-high-heels-instead-of-men/

Billy Porter reveals where his love of heels originated and how the role of Lola in Kinky Boots gave him the power to be himself in heels.

Original URL: https://www.ft.com/content/8da7beec-d827-4d02-86a3-22cc6db1102f

Bruzz interviews Mark Bryan.

“Most people assume that clothes say something about their sexual orientation, and they don’t want to put a label on them that doesn’t fit them.”

“The battle will only have been won when people stop seeing a skirt as uniquely feminine”

Original URL: https://www.bruzz.be/en/culture/culture/mark-bryan-man-high-heels-2021-11-03

Dapper Confidential (@dapperconfidential) looks at the current trend for Men’s heels, contrasting against previous times when heels for men were popular and offers some great tips for what and how to wear higher heels today.

Original URL: https://www.dapperconfidential.com/feelin-high-mens-heels-are-back/

DailyArt magazine looks back in time to explore the origins of High Heels. Often a surprise for many people, heels originated in Persia in the 10th Century and were worn by men until the 18th Century. Enlightenment put and end to that 800 year reign, but started making a comeback in the latter half of the 20th Century. The article ends on a positive note for all.

Original URL: https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/men-in-heels/

This article from Catholic University's "The Tower" newspaper asks if we're entering a new era in gender neutral fashion, centred around recent coverage of @HarryStyles' non-binary style. It looks at the origins of gender non-conforming fashion and why it is gaining in popularity now.

Original URL: http://cuatower.com/2021/11/does-harry-styles-mark-a-new-era-in-gender-neutral-fashion/

This article from Fashion United reports on the results of a panel discussion organised by the Hetrick-Martin Institute and how the fashion industry needs to adapt to accommodate a rapidly growing demand by the gender non-conforming demographic. How can the shopping experience be enhanced and growth managed in a sustainable way? The article explores the options.

Original URL: https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/the-future-of-gender-non-conforming-fashion/2019032742414

This great is a great article by @LandonPeoples for @Refinery29, which quite rightly points out that if you have an issue with men in heels, you really need to take a good hard look in the mirror as maybe that's "a you problem". I can't paraphrase any better, so I'm going to tempt you with a few of the best bits...

"The inquiry has become more of a reflection of the insecurities of those asking it than the actual subjects who wear them."

"A man's interest in style, no matter the color of their shirt or the height of their heel, should not be a litmus test for their masculinity"... "The feat of wearing heels, even a chelsea boot, should be celebrated as an act of bravery."

Great article. Well worth a read.

Original URL: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2017/08/166952/harry-styles-history-men-in-heels-photos

Summary: Danish magazine DR reports on Danish department store, Magasin (@magasindunord), stocking the new range of inclusive sized shoes soon to be launched by @SteveMadden and how shoes in larger sizes benefit everyone regardless of gender.

"Every time you do something that creates a visible equalization of gender differences it will in the long run help to create more equality between the sexes"

This is a great article and reflective of change that is happening in the fashion footwear industry. Bravo both @SteveMadden and @magasindunord!!

Special thanks go to @gender_free_universe and @willgonzalez1726 for leads on this story.

Original URL: https://www-dr-dk.translate.goog/nyheder/kultur/snart-kan-du-finde-stiletter-i-stoerrelse-45-i-dansk-stormagasin-og-det-er-faktisk-en?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=nui

MyBest ranks the top 10 best heels for men in the UK in 2021. Written in March of this year we can now look back and ask whether higher heels for men have been delivered. The trend is definitely moving in the right direction, and with many styles selling out fast, we can say they have delivered for sure. For some potential buyers though heel heights have still to reach the heights they desire to achieve the fashion aesthetic they desire. Independent shoe creators are still crucial in this area, but the higher heels go in the mainstream, the marginal styles will be sure to follow.

Original URL: https://mybest-gb.uk/10651

Vogue magazine reflects on the changes in the fashion world towards more gender specific dressing. Now, more than ever, it seems that gendered clothing is sharing the main stage with gender neutral clothing collections and that societal stigmas related to staples such as dresses and heels could finally get broken down.

Original URL: https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/genderless-fashion

Published only last week, @teovandenbroeke writes in GQ magazine that now is the time to bear our legs, and he’s not talking about shorts! Yes, it’s time we all stopped being so Victorian and let our legs loose!

Original URL: https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/fashion/article/stop-skirting-the-issue