Androgyny
 

Does anyone have any idea how to make this ugly bloke:
http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/62/picture1795je.jpg

Look all cool and androgynous? Style/makeup suggestions?

Slick the hair back with gel and put some lipstick on that pout!

1. Slick hair. It should also be dyed as black as possible, and done straight back. Think Jamie Lee Curtis as the hooker in "True Lies".
2. Eye shadow and eye liner. Mascara, but subtly.
3. Wardrobe is probably most important. I suggest that you review a lot of Bowie pics from the 70's. You *are* thinking Bowie, here, right?

Of course I'm thinking partly Bowie, but really, you could completely tell bowie was a dude. I'm not setting out to confuse people, but I do want it to not be obvious at first glance that I'm male.

Okay...well, hiphuggers with a little bit of depilated belly exposed by a tapered shirt, and you're gonna need to do the "tuckunder" with the willy. Some facial makeup which accentuates the cheekbones, making them look higher, would also help with the illusion.

Your features are rather soft to begin with, and you have the glow of youth about you, so I don't think it is going to be very difficult to achieve the look you want. Do you know anyone who is into theatrical makeup? Consult with them.

Why are you doing this? Is this a new, permanent lifestyle look, or is there a party coming up?

I've been trying, slowly, to make my image more and more effeminate and androgynous, but it hasnt done much, so i'm gonna jump ahead. Permanently, if I decide I like it.

pluck them brows, yo!

Shorten the hair on the sides and top, layering down to the nape of your neck (ditch the long hair in back). Could dye it if you want (or bleach some or all of it), then slick it straight back with wet-look gel. Tweeze the brows a little and put a stud earring in each ear.

That looks like a button up Izod style shirt. Dump it. Wear shirts without pockets or buttons on them. Plain, without decorations, in dark solid colors.

I know a couple of females who dress like this and they look like they could be either gender. I'm only positive they're females because of the extra curves in front.

Stormie

That shirt is actually my button-up Jim Morrison shirt, but point taken.

Earrings and haircut I'm not so cool with.

How about a face transplant?

Just joking, dude.... just joking.

Get the brows professionally tweezed/waxed.

But...why?

What's wrong with being a manly man?

Report to Maggie for gender counselling.

I think you should go for the Bowie look.

I think you look lovely as you are.

I do think that there is a question which bears asking...Ibram, do you *feel* androgynous? I mean, is your sexuality itself somewhat ambiguous at this point in your life, or are you planning on playing a part?

Having some notion of the purpose of your plan to change your outward expression might be enlightening...or at least generate some prurient interest.

Turn around.

Pat

From Wikpedia
Androgyny refers to two concepts. The first is the mixing of masculine and feminine characteristics, be it the example of the loud fashion statements of musicians like Ziggy Stardust or the balance of "anima" and "animus" in Jungian psychoanalytic theory. The second is in describing something that is neither masculine nor feminine, for example the Hijras of India who are often described as "neither man nor woman".

Androgynous traits are those that either have no gender value, or have some aspects generally attributed to the opposite gender. Physiological androgyny (compare intersex), which deals with physical traits, is distinct from behavioral androgyny which deals with personal and social anomalies in gender, and from psychological androgyny, which is a matter of gender identity. A psychologically androgynous person is commonly known as an androgyne, although there is a politicized version known as genderqueer.

To say that a culture or relationship is androgynous is to say that it lacks rigid gender roles and that the people involved display characteristics or partake in activities traditionally associated with the other gender. The term androgynous is often used to refer to a person whose look or build make determining their gender difficult but is generally not used as a synonym for actual intersexuality or transgender or two-spirit status of people.

Homosexual women who don't belong to either femme or butch type, and take a more neutral approach are known as Chapstick lesbians.

The word androgynous is derived from the Greek words andros (meaning man) and gynos (meaning woman).

Some famous people known for their androgynous appearances include Antony Hegarty, Brett Anderson, Gladys Bentley, Marc Bolan, Leigh Bowery, David Bowie, Pete Burns, Jaye Davidson, Marlene Dietrich, Mylène Farmer, Gackt, Boy George, Davey Havok, Norman Iceberg, Michael Jackson, Grace Jones, k.d.lang, Annie Lennox, Mana, Marilyn Manson, Shirley Manson, Kristen McMenamy, Katherine Moennig, Brian Molko, Gary Numan, Steve Strange, Rozz Williams, Carole Pope, Phranc, Susan Powter, Prince, Tilda Swinton and Patrick Wolf.

In fiction (particularly manga and anime), androgynous characters are growing in popularity. Examples include Envy from Full Metal Alchemist, Haku from Naruto, Rupi from Bleach, and Sailor Uranus from Sailor Moon.

Also known as cyndal.

Elves in fantasy-fiction are portrayed as androgynous.

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I don't think you want to look "genderless" or "gender neutral" but you want to attract everyone. Yes, David Bowie and Boy George have it nailed IMHO.

Trying to piss off the old man enough to send you back to the states? :eyebrow:

I'm not sure the word famous really applies to any of the named people.
"Some famous people known for their androgynous appearances include Antony Hegarty, Brett Anderson, Gladys Bentley, Marc Bolan, Leigh Bowery, David Bowie, Pete Burns, Jaye Davidson, Marlene Dietrich, Mylène Farmer, Gackt, Boy George, Davey Havok, Norman Iceberg, Michael Jackson, Grace Jones, k.d.lang, Annie Lennox, Mana, Marilyn Manson, Shirley Manson, Kristen McMenamy, Katherine Moennig, Brian Molko, Gary Numan, Steve Strange, Rozz Williams, Carole Pope, Phranc, Susan Powter, Prince, Tilda Swinton and Patrick Wolf."

I know Marc Bolan, David Bowie, Jaye Davidson, Marlene Dietrich, Boy George, Michael jackson, Grace Jones, k.d. lang, Annie Lennox, Marilyn Manson, Shirley Manson, Gary numan, Susan Powter and Prince.

Glam Rocker image I thought. Am I right Ibram?

Not completely glam-rock image, really... and MsSparkie, I really am kind of aiming for a gender-neutral image.

And Bruce... that's just a plus.

I guess the answer would be, well, yeah... I dont really think of myself as a dude except in cases where, uh, anatomy come into play, cause I have no interest in masculinity or machismo, but I dont think of myself as a chick either. I kinda think having a solid line between male and female is kinda, well, pointless. A person is just a person, to me, not a boy or a girl, not a black person or a white person or an arab or a hispanic, but simply a person. That said, the ones with an, er, femminie physique are best to look at;) .

Wear pastel colored (but man tailored) clothing, put your hair in a pony tail, a hat other than baseball cap, clogs, and rings. nothing permanent, all ambiguous.

We had a young man in our coven for awhile who had much the same attitude, Ibram. He explained that, as regards sexuality anyway, that he refused to limit who he might be in love with because of some arbitrary set of socialogical gender standards.

Interestingly enough, he's going to "NASCAR College" to learn to be a pit crewman. Not exactly an androgynous sort of profession - but who knows? Maybe in twenty years, David will have effected a quantum change in NASCAR's target audience.

For me its not so much about who I'll love (I am bi, but I have a girlfriend that I love very very much, and its irrelivant to this topic anyway), its more about what I can and can't do or say or think.

If you want to avoid people making assumptions about you because you are male, remember they'll make assumptions for looking/being androgynous.:D

I see a conflict between wanting to be accepted as you are and trying to remake yourself into something that didn't come about naturally.
Experiment, have fun, just be careful of making a permanent commitment to something your not going to be comfortable with later.

Ah, but I think the assumptions made for androgyny would be closer to truth. I don't care so much if I'm accepted for who I am, as long as I AM who I am (no popeye references, please). TAS (my school) is rather on the homophobic side, but that dosent bother me (well, yes, it bothers me, but in a "DAMN thats stupid and annoying" way, not in a "*sniffle* nobody likes me..." way).

And I'm not gonna do anything that can't be reversed, which is why I'm no so cool with a haircut or earrings.

Individualism has it's moments, but are you doing this to try to please yourself, or impress, piss off, or intrigue others?

Why do you think that how you look will affect what you "can or can't do or say or think"? Why not just do, say and think what you want, regardless of how you look? (That's what I do ;) ).

I'm doing it to please myself, wolf. I do most things to please either myself or someone I care about.

Limey, i was talking about when Elspode said My response, that I want to do what I want, includes looking androgynous


Besides, look at it this way: it'll tell people at a glance what would otherwise take a while of knowing me to figure out.

I prefer the mystery of looking quite ordinary, but being very surprising about who I am.

I don't give much of a damn about what other people think. My mother does not understand this.

If I cared what others think, really, wouldnt I just try to conform? I just wanna have fun, really.

Between this thread and that picture of Kurt, you've got me worried. :eyebrow:

...what?

I'm with you Wolf, except that my mother does understand ...

My mother's responsibility right now is to concentrate on healing. I understand the need for her to focus on other things, but surely, "There's a strand of hair on your face" and "what's that white splotch on your pants, keep that covered" should not be her primary concerns.

An attempt to maintain the status quo when facing adversity, Wolf? :confused:

Didn't mean to seem to be taking a pop at your mother - I know she is unwell and wish her a speedy recovery.

I didn't take your comment as a pop at my mom. I just needed to vent, this seemed a good place to do it.

Vent away, wolf. Vent away.

Abso-bally-lutely.

Cover the Adam's apple with a De Beers diamond-studded choker .

ahem..

If all else fails, you could just decide who the fuck you wanted to be and be that person.

What's wrong with who you are now? Just asking.

Not to piss on your parade, and I hate to have to tell you this, but a haircut is not irreversible. Hole in the ear, seems to last a long time, judging by my middle aged friends.

And what ever you do, don't forget the patchouli.

Clothes? I take them off and put others on, bam, nothings changes.
Hairstyle? I take a shower and style it back different.
Makeup? Wash it off.
Haircut? Wait six months for it to finally grow back to where it was before.

Six months is a good thirtieth of my life. Six-to-eight-weeks is a long time to me. I'm a teenager, remember?

Trust me, you won't be a teenager for long, your hair will grow back at about the same rate as your interest in androgyny wanes.

And don't forget the patchouli!

I hope you weren't expecting me to discourage hir. :-)

I'd stay away from seeking a lot of advice from others; this is one you have to figure out for yourself. It takes a lot of experimentation (which includes making some mistakes, too) for discover your own look. Try stuff, and then gauge your own reaction in mirror/photos. Deep down inside you *know* who you are, even if the true answer can be a bit scary at times.

Just get jiggy with who you *are*...how you *look* will fall out of that pretty naturally.

If it's any comfort, you've got a facial bone structure (from what I can see in that (technically crappy low-light webcamish photo) that could go femme with no problem whatsoever. So if you decide you belong on the other side of the line, you're ahead of the game. Those eyebrows could really kick butt with some careful shaping (by someone who knows how and won't go overboard).