How to Dress Like a Girl (Transgender)
If you are transgender, it can be difficult to dress like a girl and fit the required stereotypes that make many of the ignorant people you may encounter on a daily basis feel comfortable around you. Like everyone else on the planet, trans people are free to dress however they like, as girls, boys, women or men, or in anything that just makes them comfortable, or is practical - after all, who looks good in bowling shoes at the local bowling alley, but we all put them on if we fancy a bit of 10 pin action. Sometimes, you gotta wear what you gotta wear! If you want to keep things simple and make it obvious you are a girl and want to be called miss and use the ladies room in public places and try on girls clothing in malls, department stores etc., you can make it easier for even the most blinkered of people to not mistake you for a boy in a few steps.
Steps
1
Take a look at your body, as tough as this may be if you don't like what you see.
What features do you consider to be feminine? Have you got great calves, a nice neck, slim wrists? What body parts are you less happy with? You may like to dress in a way that brings out the feminine parts, such as three quarter length sleeve tops, and hides the masculine, perhaps avoiding shoulder pads.
2
Look at your age.
Are you young enough still to dress as a girl? How to dress age appropriately is an issue for many people. Would you rather be taken for a boy, or an older woman? Stereotypically, young girls wear pink, sparkles and frills. You can wear these, you can not wear these items. Wearing very feminine clothes before your body is the female form you should have been born with can, in some people's eyes, mark you out as trying too hard, attention seeking and fake. If you have the strength of character to cope with that, Hello Kitty Tee shirts, tu-tus and tiaras or whatever else you like it is! Good on you. If you want people who are less open to the idea that not everyone's identity fits with the body they were born with, try less overtly girly clothes. Think of cut, shape and style. You can wear boys clothes and still look like a girl too if you are lucky enough to be very pretty.
3
Get the right clothes for you.
Shop in the female sections, obviously. Look at clothes aimed at your age group to see what is perceived as socially acceptable. If you don't find things you like, look at clothes for those a little older, or a little younger, if you can fit them. For example, you may be shorter, as a trans girls of 12, than other girls, having not had your growth spurt yet. Use this to your advantage. Boys usually wear baggy tops, pants or trousers and have, often, a slouchier style. You may want things to be a little tighter than boys would normally wear. Don't wear things too tight across your butt, shoulders or chest if that makes you uncomfortable. An apparent good and safe option is skinny jeans, pretty tops and hoodies.
4
Do your hair.
They say a women's hair is her crowning glory. Your hair has nothing to do with how you dress as a girl, so this step is simple. Let your hair grow, have it mid length, cut it short, get a wig, wear a hat, do what you like. Long hair isn't always feminine, short hair isn't always masculine. There are lots of short styles boys don't generally have, like a pixie cut, and there are long styles boys do have, like mullets. So make you hair look good with your outfit and you are set.
5
Do not wear so much makeup you aren't comfortable.
Wear just a little mascara, eyeliner and lip gloss if you like, go without if you prefer or go all out. It is up to you. Many girls wear minimal make-up, it's a socially acceptable 'norm'. Some people wear too much, making themselves look over the top. No amount of make up is right or wrong for anyone.
6
Think details!
Put on some pretty earrings, cute shoes, have a nice hand bag or purse, use some nail polish in a shade you like, carry a store carrier bag from a girls clothing store (even if you haven't shopped there for months!) etc. There are lots of little, under stated things you can do to look more girl and less boy without looking like you are in fancy dress or feeling vulnerable to bullying or public humiliation. Have a girls watch, wear a floral perfume, wear ladies sunglasses, just on top of your head if you like! People do judge by appearance and the nicest people can make a thoughtless mistake if they are unsure so, whilst you shouldn't have to, it's often easier to give little hints that you are a girl, not a boy.
Steps
1
Take a look at your body, as tough as this may be if you don't like what you see.
What features do you consider to be feminine? Have you got great calves, a nice neck, slim wrists? What body parts are you less happy with? You may like to dress in a way that brings out the feminine parts, such as three quarter length sleeve tops, and hides the masculine, perhaps avoiding shoulder pads.
2
Look at your age.
Are you young enough still to dress as a girl? How to dress age appropriately is an issue for many people. Would you rather be taken for a boy, or an older woman? Stereotypically, young girls wear pink, sparkles and frills. You can wear these, you can not wear these items. Wearing very feminine clothes before your body is the female form you should have been born with can, in some people's eyes, mark you out as trying too hard, attention seeking and fake. If you have the strength of character to cope with that, Hello Kitty Tee shirts, tu-tus and tiaras or whatever else you like it is! Good on you. If you want people who are less open to the idea that not everyone's identity fits with the body they were born with, try less overtly girly clothes. Think of cut, shape and style. You can wear boys clothes and still look like a girl too if you are lucky enough to be very pretty.
3
Get the right clothes for you.
Shop in the female sections, obviously. Look at clothes aimed at your age group to see what is perceived as socially acceptable. If you don't find things you like, look at clothes for those a little older, or a little younger, if you can fit them. For example, you may be shorter, as a trans girls of 12, than other girls, having not had your growth spurt yet. Use this to your advantage. Boys usually wear baggy tops, pants or trousers and have, often, a slouchier style. You may want things to be a little tighter than boys would normally wear. Don't wear things too tight across your butt, shoulders or chest if that makes you uncomfortable. An apparent good and safe option is skinny jeans, pretty tops and hoodies.
4
Do your hair.
They say a women's hair is her crowning glory. Your hair has nothing to do with how you dress as a girl, so this step is simple. Let your hair grow, have it mid length, cut it short, get a wig, wear a hat, do what you like. Long hair isn't always feminine, short hair isn't always masculine. There are lots of short styles boys don't generally have, like a pixie cut, and there are long styles boys do have, like mullets. So make you hair look good with your outfit and you are set.
5
Do not wear so much makeup you aren't comfortable.
Wear just a little mascara, eyeliner and lip gloss if you like, go without if you prefer or go all out. It is up to you. Many girls wear minimal make-up, it's a socially acceptable 'norm'. Some people wear too much, making themselves look over the top. No amount of make up is right or wrong for anyone.
6
Think details!
Put on some pretty earrings, cute shoes, have a nice hand bag or purse, use some nail polish in a shade you like, carry a store carrier bag from a girls clothing store (even if you haven't shopped there for months!) etc. There are lots of little, under stated things you can do to look more girl and less boy without looking like you are in fancy dress or feeling vulnerable to bullying or public humiliation. Have a girls watch, wear a floral perfume, wear ladies sunglasses, just on top of your head if you like! People do judge by appearance and the nicest people can make a thoughtless mistake if they are unsure so, whilst you shouldn't have to, it's often easier to give little hints that you are a girl, not a boy.
6 years ago
