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Buying Guy Clothes For The First Time?

Started by Cody Jensen, December 04, 2011, 02:52:23 PM

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Cody Jensen

Yes I am still completely presenting as female, but I think that's about to change soon. I was thinking about going to buy some guys clothes this weekend!  ;D I had it in my head that if I go around Christmas time I can use that excuse that I'm buying the clothes for a gift for somebody else. I want some jeans, a shirt and a cool jacket. I am completely clueless about sizes though. My... ugh... my female body is pretty small. Advice? Aagh just thinking about it makes me want to dash down to the mall this instant!  ;D
Derp

"I just don't know what went wrong!"
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Anon

Just buy whatever fits. Guy's sizes are fairly straightforward usually (s, m, l). I don't think anyone at the store will care what you are doing, so you don't even need an excuse. Besides, if you're confident and look like you know what you're doing, storeclerks are less likely to come over and try to 'help' you find something (I find it annoying, personally).
There are plenty of guys who are slim or short. Try shopping around the boy's section to see if they have anything that fits better.

Also, you don't have to call your body your 'female body' if you don't want to. :P It's not like transition is getting a body-transplant, right? You'll still have the same one, just with different characteristics.
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Cody Jensen

Quote from: Anon on December 04, 2011, 03:09:54 PM
Just buy whatever fits. Guy's sizes are fairly straightforward usually (s, m, l). I don't think anyone at the store will care what you are doing, so you don't even need an excuse. Besides, if you're confident and look like you know what you're doing, storeclerks are less likely to come over and try to 'help' you find something (I find it annoying, personally).
There are plenty of guys who are slim or short. Try shopping around the boy's section to see if they have anything that fits better.

Also, you don't have to call your body your 'female body' if you don't want to. :P It's not like transition is getting a body-transplant, right? You'll still have the same one, just with different characteristics.

True :) I just didn't know what to call my body specifically for this thread  :P Yea I know! I hate it when they come over to you!! I'll see what I can find. Thanks man :)
Derp

"I just don't know what went wrong!"
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Felix

You should def measure yourself first if you're going to go into a store. That way you can feel a little more like you know what you're doing. I can't claim to have much clue what I'm doing re men's stuff, but my daughter grows like a weed and I frequently have to tell other people her sizes.

Here's a men's version of something I found useful:http://reviews.ebay.com/Getting-the-right-fit-4-men-How-2s-Measure-amp-Size-Chart?ugid=10000000001410637
everybody's house is haunted
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he who shall not be named

Definitely measure yourself first, especially if you're gonna be shopping for pants. Jeans are really hard for me to buy because I've got a curvy shape, but I found slim straight jeans fit best. :D If you're small enough you can probably shop in the boys section, I have a few friends that do that and pull it off. It's cheaper, too.

With jeans I really make sure the waist + hips fit and pay and less attention to the hemline -- you can always fold up and hem the pantlegs of jeans that are too long, it's the waist you have to worry about. :)

It's really just a lot of trying on different styles and sizes and figuring out what looks best on you. People usually don't care when I shop in the mens section -- I get some glances sometimes, but whatevs, I have more important things to worry about.  ::)
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Dane

I've been wearing and shopping for guy clothes for all of my life, practically. The one tip I can give you is: Try stuff on. Shirts, you can eyeball, but always try on the pants. Store's sizes might be a little different store to store. Generally, people won't look at you weird or anything for buying dude clothes.
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Noah James

Been wearing androgynous clothes my entire life, only wearing more feminine things when my parents told me to. Now, I always shop in the guys section and even wear shorts from there - which is a big deal for me, since I haven't worn shorts since I was ten or eleven.  ;D

My advice is that for pants, when trying them on, don't pull them up to rest on your waist. As silly as it sounds - for me, anyway - you might need to wear your pants like most other teenage guys do and pull them down to about the middle of your butt, a little higher if you don't feel comfortable. This will give you a flatter appearance back there (if you need it) and the material won't cling to curves as much as girls' pants would. If the underwear showing bothers you, I'd get some longer t-shirts, but if pulling your pants down that far in general bothers you, then don't do it. Really, it's all about comfort and confidence; I'm only giving this advice because when I first tried on some guy pants, I was fairly disappointed at how feminine my legs and butt looked in them.
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jessicas37

a general rule of thumb at least for me for pant sizes add 20 to the coresponding female size IE i wear a 14/16 in womens and a 36 in mens
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JohnAlex

I don't know if you knew this, but pants/jeans sizes go by width/length.  the average size for jean is 30/30.  Jeans that are 29/32 would be for a tall an skinny guy.
Personally, since my hips are so wide, I'm like a 36/29.  hard to find.  usually I get 36/30 or 34/30.

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Kyle_S

I concur with shopping in the boy's section if you are small. And Especially if you are short, in the case of say...button up shirts. I'm 4'11, and can't wear men's small button ups. They come down too long on my body- almost down to my knees. I wind up finding boy's M-L. They're the right length. It all depends on height for them, really.

Jeans, yes. Big diff between Women's and Men's. Men's pants are sized in larger numbers. Thankfully, if you are small enough, you may be able to fit into boys. They seem to run in between women's and men's sizes (12, 13, 14, etc). If you need men's,  you'll probably have to hem them up a bit. I take 34/30 since 30 is the shortest it seems to go. 6 inches come off of mine. I, personally wear them on my hips. So keep in mind you may need a larger size if you want them to sit there instead of your waist. I don't recommend around your butt though....

Hope we all help you!

'Though all men be made of one metal, yet they be not cast all in one mould'

- John Lyly Euphus, The Anatomy of Light (1579)
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supremecatoverlord

I'd tell you to look at some place like American Eagle, Rue 21, H&M, or Urban Outfitters since they tend to carry smaller sizes for men, but I dunno if you can really pick or choose where you go right now.
However, all of those stores also carry female clothing, so if you're still planning on being secretive about purchasing men's clothing, then those places would not be a bad place to start. However, if you are not binding yet, a nice baggy shirt could be a friend to you. However, if you are really thin around the stomach & waist area, you will have trouble finding men's pants that fit you in your regular ol' department store. I can get away with a 28 or 29 waist if I belt it, but sometimes stores won't carry anything lower than a 30. Even with a 28 or 29, I literally mean that I can get away with it - but it isn't desirable. I usually can wear a 26 waist without having to belt. Depending on your style, you'll probably be able to find jeans that will fit you at Hot Topic or American Eagle. Even though HT is awful nowadays, their jeans are usually labelled as more of a unisex item from my experience. There are nicer jeans out there, but I think you can find waists measurements as small as 24 there. I don't wear my pants that tight anymore, especially because of my packer and because it usually emphasizes your hips, but yeah. I still think it would be helpful if you told us where you are planning on going, because you may be disappointed at certain stores. If your midsection is build anywhere near like mine is, you may end up seeing a lot of shirts you like, but won't fit you (medium is sometimes the smallest size they carry in most of their shirts and or their both waist x inseam measurements of pants will end up making you wish you were taller). I dunno, you could always shop the boys department, but it's kind of questionable as to why you may be buying boys clothes "for a friend". Also, I've always found it to be awkward when I end up owning the same exact shirt same shirt as some who is potentially over ten years my minor. >_< I don't know if that would bother you, but you might want to take that into consideration.

As for Kyle_S, have you ever heard of www.topman.com?
   They can be rather pricey at times, but the quality of the clothes is worth it. They also sell button up shirts for men (not boys) from XXS-XXL. I do own some men's small button ups, but I'm maybe 5'2" or something like that, so they can be a little long at times. I've always been more comfortable wearing an XS men's button up, but alas, there are only certain places you can find them. American Eagle, as I mentioned earlier, sells smaller men's clothing as well. They also carry XS button up shirts. Oh, and Urban Outfitters does sometimes as well.
:]
Meow.



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Kyle_S

JasonRX,

I guess if I move to the bigger city in my province like I plan to, I'll have to check out A.E and the like. We don't have those stores here, but they're in both malls there. Thanks! :)
'Though all men be made of one metal, yet they be not cast all in one mould'

- John Lyly Euphus, The Anatomy of Light (1579)
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supremecatoverlord

Quote from: Kyle_S on December 05, 2011, 01:29:50 AM
JasonRX,

I guess if I move to the bigger city in my province like I plan to, I'll have to check out A.E and the like. We don't have those stores here, but they're in both malls there. Thanks! :)

There's always the option of ordering online as well if nothing else comes to avail. I don't even know if Topman is anything else but entirely web-based so.
But no problem, just trying to help.
:]
Meow.



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Adio

Measure yourself, yes.  And don't be afraid to try a bunch of stuff on.  I doubt anyone will look at you funny for shopping in the men's.  I see all sorts of people shop in the men's section.

Quote from: JohnAlex on December 04, 2011, 11:01:23 PM
I don't know if you knew this, but pants/jeans sizes go by width/length.  the average size for jean is 30/30.  Jeans that are 29/32 would be for a tall an skinny guy.
Personally, since my hips are so wide, I'm like a 36/29.  hard to find.  usually I get 36/30 or 34/30.

I didn't know this--the "average" size bit.  Seems odd considering that most guys are above a 30 waist.  Also, when I wore 36/29 they were some of the easiest pants to find.  Finding a 29 inseam in smaller sizes is harder it seems.

Quote from: Kyle_S on December 04, 2011, 11:26:30 PM
I take 34/30 since 30 is the shortest it seems to go.

I'm not sure which brands or stores you like to shop at, but there are definitely shorter inseams.  Probably not as short as a 24 or so, but I've seen a 28 before in store and a 27 online.  Not all brands make short inseams though.  I certainly wish they did though lol
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supremecatoverlord

Adio :

  Yeah, I've seen as short as 25 for inseam, but even a 26 is too short for me. I'm usually fine with anything between s 27-30, which isn't that hard to find as long you know where to look. :3
Meow.



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JohnAlex

Quote from: Adio on December 05, 2011, 01:45:05 AMI didn't know this--the "average" size bit.  Seems odd considering that most guys are above a 30 waist.  Also, when I wore 36/29 they were some of the easiest pants to find.  Finding a 29 inseam in smaller sizes is harder it seems

Maybe we just shop at different stores then, lol.  Personally, I shop at JCPenny for my jeans.  And my average, I don't mean that that's the average size of men, i just mean that there's like a million pairs of pants in that size, in my experience, of shopping for jeans.
And I wouldn't really know about finding a 29 inseem with smaller sizes, because obviously I don't search for smaller sizes, lol.
I would LOVE to be able to find a 36/29, because I think that would be my perfect size, unfortunately, I haven't run into it yet.


Oh, also, a heads up for anyone who can shop at a JCPenny. They have great dressing rooms, in the one's I've been in.  All the ones I've been in don't have anyone standing guard at the dressing room to ask you how many clothing items you have.  So it's very easy for even someone who doesn't pass at all to use the men's dressing room.  It doesn't even say "Men's dressing room."  It's just assumed since it's in the men's section.

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Kyle_S

Quote from: JohnAlex


I'm not sure which brands or stores you like to shop at, but there are definitely shorter inseams.  Probably not as short as a 24 or so, but I've seen a 28 before in store and a 27 online.  Not all brands make short inseams though.  I certainly wish they did though lol

we only 2 dept stores  here (Wal-Mart and Bargain Giant) and 30 inseam is the shortest. And soon we will be down to just WM, cause BG is closing. I don't have a car so I can't go anywhere else. And I have no credit card to buy stuff online, or many other options of buying online, so I do the best I can with the crap all thats in my run-down dump of a town :/
'Though all men be made of one metal, yet they be not cast all in one mould'

- John Lyly Euphus, The Anatomy of Light (1579)
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malinkibear

I'm assuming you're in the US. Like other guys said, try stuff on. When I started buying male clothing properly, I'd never try it on (I've just always hated dressing rooms) and ended up looking like a kid rummaged through his dad's work drawer all the time. It also takes away the worry of is this small enough? But what if it's too small? What if I look curvy in it?
If the changing rooms are gender segregated, then I guess that can be intimidating. If you don't pass, then use the women's. No one actually looks at what you're trying on. If you feel more confident, use the men's. No one cares. When I lived in Russia and didn't pass much (before binding, even) I completely forgot that of course the changing rooms in the male part of the shop was for men, and strolled in without a second thought. Only coming out and seeing the long queue of people that had accumulated to use them did I remember, and guess what... no one gave a damn, or even noticed. They never do, so go try some clothes on fo' sho'!
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JohnAlex

Quote from: Kyle_S on December 05, 2011, 02:34:20 AM
we only 2 dept stores  here (Wal-Mart and Bargain Giant) and 30 inseam is the shortest. And soon we will be down to just WM, cause BG is closing. I don't have a car so I can't go anywhere else. And I have no credit card to buy stuff online, or many other options of buying online, so I do the best I can with the crap all thats in my run-down dump of a town :/

hey, you made this quote from me, and it's not quoting me, it's quoting Adio, lol.

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Harbor

I'm pretty small as well and I sometimes buy button-up shirts in the boys section at JC Pennys or Target. You could try on a large or XL. If you're on a budget, those places are cheaper than someplace like American Eagle, and at big stores like that salespeople generally don't bother you. you can probably go in and out of the dressing room unnoticed.
I am a son of Hades...
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