Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Hey guys, I've asked this already in a thread before but I have a school dance tomorrow (it's informal) and I might go last-minute shopping after school and get something nice for myself. In the past, I've had shopping anxiety but now that I pass much better, I don't really have it as much. Problem is, I'm extremely short (~5'2'' feet) and have quite a slim figure. Most of the time I have to end up looking the boys' section but this is a little embarrassing to be honest. Today I tried looking in the young men's section, though their sizes are big for me (this was in Burlington Coat factory, I only looked because they have pretty good prices). If anyone has some suggestions of brands that carry small *men's* sizes, then that would be awesome.. For reference, I'm a 28/28 in jeans/pants, though unfortunately a size 12 in boys' collared shirts or xxs/xs in men's fits me best. Most of my shopping troubles come when searching for tops or coats especially, but I don't really have problems when shopping for pants. I've got a couple different pairs of Levi's (which carries pretty small sizes), and they're extremely comfortable but as I said before, my problem really lies in getting those darn tops. My style is kind of classy, I honestly prefer collared shirts and maybe even a sweater over that (or rarely a vest), and I've found that it helps to aid me when I'm binding to give me the flattest figure up front. Sorry for the long and disorganized paragraph, but if you guys have any brand suggestions, I would LOVE to hear them. Thanks!!

I've gotten over my embarrassment with boys, since the prices are really really good. But you might check out the Gap, Landsend (they go down to 28" in pants), American Apparel (online usually). Also if you have a shop where Asian guys go that might be your place. I don't personally know the name of any of them. The thing I don't like about boys is selection.

--Jay

I know a good place online that does really inexpensive made to measure clothes, but nothing for the next day.

Quote from: Nygeel on May 08, 2014, 08:03:10 PM
I know a good place online that does really inexpensive made to measure clothes, but nothing for the next day.

Site?

Quote from: Nygeel on May 08, 2014, 08:03:10 PM
I know a good place online that does really inexpensive made to measure clothes, but nothing for the next day.

Not to derail the thread, but if posting it's not an option, would you please PM me that info? Sounds interesting.

I also shop in the boys' section for shirts (can find pants in the mens' section). It's slightly awkward but doesn't bother me too much. A cis guy my size would have the same options: shop in the boys' department, get custom/altered clothing, or wear stuff that's too big.

Quote from: Alexthecat on May 08, 2014, 08:57:42 PM
Site?

Yeah, works best if you have a shirt that kinda fits and measuring from that (adjusting for where the shirt doesn't fit right). Send me a PM if you want more info.

Personally I have had good luck buying shirts online off of eBay from Japanese and Chinese sellers. You just have to make sure you read the conversions correctly and measure. Not next day but honestly if it looks nice I'll wait for it. Hard to find professional looking clothes here for men that doesn't make me look like I'm playing dress up or getting ready for picture day at the local high school.  :P

Besides the ones listed above, I've also found XS men's shirts at Urban Outfitters and Express.

I shop the boys' all the time. It used to embarrass me but then I was like, "->-bleeped-<- it, I'm lucky to be able to save money by buying it here!"
Plus, they don't know who the heck you're buying it for. You could be shopping for a family member's birthday or something.

Quote from: Kyler on May 09, 2014, 06:23:57 PM
I shop the boys' all the time. It used to embarrass me but then I was like, "<not allowed> it, I'm lucky to be able to save money by buying it here!"
Plus, they don't know who the heck you're buying it for. You could be shopping for a family member's birthday or something.

Well, my problem with shopping in the boy's section is that sometimes the things just aren't the style that I want. Idk, some just looks quite juvenile. I do buy in the boys section, but have to be very selective, and it's only good for clothes that I am just going to wear around the house, run errands in, that sort of thing.

And, it's really hard to find work-appropriate stuff that fits, looks good, and doesn't look cheap. I basically just wear girl clothes to work (law office so I need either suits or business casual) all the time so I don't look like crap. If I ever decided to start medically transitioning, I'd definitely need to start buying professional wear on those Japanese sites or find a really good tailor. :)

H&M carries XS in some models of clothing. I bought a 34R jacket there the other day. I wear 34S but the jacket was more than half off so I wanted to grab it.

I'm 5'8" size 31 waist and 32 length (preferably 33 because my leg to torso ratio is ridiculous) and 155lbs, and I wear XS to S from most retailers. I actually get XL (16-18) kids tees from Target! At your height and size, it's highly unlikely you'll find any men sizes that go that small but I'd say own it! No one cares if you're browsing the boys section or mens and boys stuff is much cheaper! There's little difference, for example, between men's XS and boys XL/XXL until you look at price. My Seattle Seahawks jersey is a boys XL and the tall guy at store I bought it from was jealous of me because he has to get an adult jersey that costs over $40 more!

To be honest with you, in my opinion, I'd be more likely to look twice at a short guy in the men's section and find that odd. But a short guy in the boys section, I'd probably think they're looking for clothes for their kid before thinking it's for them, and even if it is for them, so what?! Lucky them being able to get cheaper clothes! (FYI I'm a cheap Scot! Lol) Even more honestly, I don't think I notice anyone else when I'm shopping! I'm a guy who hates shopping. I think about what I need, find it, and get the hell out. Who cares what anyone else is looking at? I couldnt care less about their shopping needs!

There's plenty of decent clothes out there in the kids section. Not all clothes have dinosaurs on them! Lol A plain tee is a plain tee. A plain or check shirt is a plain or check shirt. A polo is a polo. Khakis are khakis. Jeans are jeans. The only difference is the size printed on the outside and the price tag. My baby brother has had a more sofisticated sense of style since he was around 7/8 and he's never struggled to wear more stylish clothing than his geeky shirt wearing brothers :-P.

I don't know why you'd look twice at a short guy in the men's dept Jack. There are lots of short men. I don't think I've gotten odd looks either place, tbh. (Except maybe from kids in the boy's dept.) I don't like how small the boy's clothes pockets are, but they do fit me a lot better. I have to take up men's pants unless I can find the very rare 29" inseam or something.

I agree about the price. I can go shop at REI or something and end up sometimes being able to afford stuff. I do not think they have the selection, I don't mean with little dinosaurs on them, just in general. I've heard an H&M is coming here which I am really happy about.

--Jay

(I'm a cis boy, not living as male now but may go back to it, anyway had similar fit issues)

Don't be embarrassed about shopping in the boy's section! Well, I know how you feel, but, it's a great option. :) Especially for like dressier clothes... like one time I had an interview and could not find a small enough button-up, so I just went and got like a 16 (18?) from the boys' and it fit great, and the style was made just like adult styles. Nobody would have known the difference.

Also I generally would try to get tops at TJ Maxx/Marshall's. They have lots of unheard of brands with a slimmer/european fit and usually there are a few extra smalls. I got a lot of my favorite tops there, and they were inexpensive. it can take getting lucky sometimes but was definitely worth it!

@jay for those who don't know, H&M also started offering online shopping sometime last year! Finally! (and the returns are no-hassle really)

Yeah H&M has limited offerings online. Kind of reminds me of how much (little) IKEA offers online. Really true about nice button down shirts. Men's sizes start with 14 1/2 necklines (and measure by necklines). These are gigantic on me. If I were a girl I could wear them as a dress.

--Jay

I'd maybe double take in the men's debt because it's rare for a guy to be looking for clothes for anyone but himself, that's all. Nothing wrong with it, it's just rare. More so if they're not overweight I guess too. There's a lot of chinese in Vancouver and the shorter ones shop in boys section of stores quite a lot or in asian shops in a place called Richmond. I guess it's quite common to see adults in kids sections here.

Hey everyone! Thanks SO much for the feedback, I really do appreciate it.

The day before the dance, I sucked it up and looked into the boys' section and found something that fit me perfectly, so I don't regret that decision at all. Heck, I even got called sir and he a couple times when asking for help from a worker at that store, so there definitely weren't any weird looks or bad impressions or anything like that. I'll look into your suggestions, and I think there happens to be an H&M within a mile's distance around me somewhere.. I've ordered from them online and was pleased when an XS men's cardigan from them fit me quite well.

Like some others have said, I don't really have any gripes about shopping in the boys' department (I'm still pretty young, too) except the fact that what I've seen doesn't seem too.. dapper or serious. That's a little understandable, since it *is* the boys' department and that's what companies are marketing for.. but still, it always takes a bit of deep digging for me to find something that doesn't seem too silly.

@Nygeel; I'll shoot you a PM about that, I'd love to hear more information.

Anyways, when I go shopping for summer clothes tomorrow, I'll check out some of the stores you have mentioned. Thanks again for the recommendations and if anyone has any others, it'd be awesome to hear them as well.  :)

Depending on where you go, the boys' section can have pretty fancy looking ->-bleeped-<- in it. I've bought some nice Calvin Klein polos from Burlington in the boys'. Fancy isn't really my style though, so I can't really give advice on it. I like jerseys and plain tees, lol.

The awesome thing about being a guy is that guys clothes are often more durable. Guys are also less likely to spend loads on clothes too, they're likely to shell out on a suit, but not regular pants and tees, so I find that you can actually get pretty decently priced designer stuff for guys, especially in the clearance sections. I recently bought 2 awesome Tommy Hilfiger sweaters that cost $60 for both. The fit was much better than any I had from say Old Navy so for me it was a steal. I also got Tommy Hilfiger pants at Winners for $25 that look great with them. I get stuff from Winners all the time really cheap. They have Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, etc shirts for around $20. Less known brands even cheaper. Plenty in the boys section too!

Like I said before, my baby brother never struggled to dress in more soffisticated styles from a very young age, you just have to find the stores that have that style. Gap for kids often has really nice outfits. Old Navy can have some kiddy looking stuff but their polos, shirts and pants tend to be just smaller versions of the guy's style. Target had a limited range but there was some decent looking clothes there too. Remember that kids have dances, weddings, funerals, and parties to go to just like the rest of us. There's definitely clothes for those ocassions, so there's plenty of options out there, you may just need to extend your search past the shops you're currently looking in and perhaps fork out more than your used to.

American Apparel and Urban Outfitters are the best options. They have some pretty small shirts. The GAP also carried XS shirts but only online.

When I was in Nordstrom years ago, I saw that the store had quite a nice selection of buttondowns and dressy clothing. I think they had a special section just for formal clothing. Of course, Nordy's is pretty upscale and expensive, but that's why you can find nicer stuff. I assume that they still carry such clothing.

I've seen a couple of other threads here about clothing. You might poke around and see if you can find info that isn't in this thread.

Quote from: Arch on May 15, 2014, 12:00:00 PM
When I was in Nordstrom years ago, I saw that the store had quite a nice selection of buttondowns and dressy clothing. I think they had a special section just for formal clothing. Of course, Nordy's is pretty upscale and expensive, but that's why you can find nicer stuff. I assume that they still carry such clothing.

I've seen a couple of other threads here about clothing. You might poke around and see if you can find info that isn't in this thread.

They also have a sale every summer where you get a bespoke suit for the same price as what it usually sells for off the rack.

Another option is Topman, since they offer clothes down to size XXS. Afaik they're only available online in the US, but since they offer free delivery (and returns) it might be worth checking out.

I used to get a catalog from a company called Short Sizes, or something like that. I found a listing for such a business in Cleveland, but I don't know whether it's the same place. I didn't see a website offhand. But you might find other such companies with a strong web presence. The only trouble is that you usually pay more for specialty clothing--and you can't try stuff on if you order online.

I don't know if you're American, but I know that American Eagle sells xs shirts and pants down to a 26/26. I have some pretty nice polos from them and khakis. They don't sell nice formal stuff, but it sounds like they'd be good for your everyday wear.

I second American Eagle. Aeropostale and Uniqlo also have sizes to fit smaller men. If we're getting expensive I've found that the Armani Exchange also has quite a variety of things that look great on shorter guys, but not so much smaller and heavier guys.

Thirding AE... their vintage and slim fits are really nice if you don't want a baggy waist. :)

Quote from: sad panda on May 15, 2014, 05:00:04 PM
Thirding AE... their vintage and slim fits are really nice if you don't want a baggy waist. :)

American Eagle is all I wear for casual clothes.  They fit my body perfectly!

(EDIT:  Ok, so I am actually off topic with the above statement because I am 5'9", but I got excited when I saw mention of AE)!

never heard of american eagle. there isn't one super close but I'll check one out if I have the chance

mostly I wanted to say that shopping in the boys section I scored a glow in the dark zombie shirt. not at all dignified or anything like that but it makes me happy. heh.

I had problems all my life trying to fit into clothes because I'm short , then I found the women's section

Quote from: stephaniec on May 17, 2014, 07:40:03 PM
I had problems all my life trying to fit into clothes because I'm short , then I found the women's section

Well most clothes in the women's section really doesn't work for us. I mean unless you are talking to a guy who is even less binary than I am or one who is on the femme side. (I imagine some styles or clothes would work.)

--Jay

Quote from: aleon515 on May 17, 2014, 11:26:43 PM
Well most clothes in the women's section really doesn't work for us. I mean unless you are talking to a guy who is even less binary than I am or one who is on the femme side. (I imagine some styles or clothes would work.)

--Jay

I didn't mean any thing other then women's clothes seem to be the proper fit for me. I know how hard it is to fit properly in men's fashions when your shorter. I personally don't like wearing men's clothes any more.

I'll remind myself to stop by at AE the next time I'm going shopping so I can see what they have on sale. Awesome suggestions, guys! Keep 'em coming if you have any more, I'd love to hear.  ;D

Quote from: Maleth on May 08, 2014, 06:26:18 PM
Hey guys, I've asked this already in a thread before but I have a school dance tomorrow (it's informal) and I might go last-minute shopping after school and get something nice for myself. In the past, I've had shopping anxiety but now that I pass much better, I don't really have it as much. Problem is, I'm extremely short (~5'2'' feet) and have quite a slim figure. Most of the time I have to end up looking the boys' section but this is a little embarrassing to be honest. Today I tried looking in the young men's section, though their sizes are big for me (this was in Burlington Coat factory, I only looked because they have pretty good prices). If anyone has some suggestions of brands that carry small *men's* sizes, then that would be awesome.. For reference, I'm a 28/28 in jeans/pants, though unfortunately a size 12 in boys' collared shirts or xxs/xs in men's fits me best. Most of my shopping troubles come when searching for tops or coats especially, but I don't really have problems when shopping for pants. I've got a couple different pairs of Levi's (which carries pretty small sizes), and they're extremely comfortable but as I said before, my problem really lies in getting those darn tops. My style is kind of classy, I honestly prefer collared shirts and maybe even a sweater over that (or rarely a vest), and I've found that it helps to aid me when I'm binding to give me the flattest figure up front. Sorry for the long and disorganized paragraph, but if you guys have any brand suggestions, I would LOVE to hear them. Thanks!!

Actually its way easier for you to find clothes than me. I always find clothes for short and skinny men, but not for short and chubby men. Xs would work best for you, even many boys clothes. Most boys casual clothes are juvenile but a lot of the dressy stuff isn't. Don't be too worried about it, I got over my anxiety of shopping in the men's section and now I'm over shopping in the kids section. Its mostly cheaper, fits better, and I look young anyways. For all anyone knows it's a gift for someone else. There's a lot of name brand clothing stores that carry clothing especially for small skinny guys, like everyone has mentioned. AE, gap, express. Slim fit shirts and pants would fit you best.

Landsend boys is very nice with lots of sales. But the pants are no good. They all have reinforced knees. Must be nice for mom, but I wouldn't want to go around with reinforced knees.


--Jay

Quote from: aleon515 on May 26, 2014, 11:22:45 PM
Landsend boys is very nice with lots of sales. But the pants are no good. They all have reinforced knees. Must be nice for mom, but I wouldn't want to go around with reinforced knees.


--Jay

Well, reinforced knees do come in handy for some people...

Ahem.
Levis husky is usually generous in the waist. An 18 boys husky is 36inch waist with 29 inch inseam.

Bumping this thread! I know it's ~6 months old but no need to start another topic about this.

Anyway, I wanted to inform you all of a store my friend recommended to me called Uniqlo. They're a pretty new company, they just opened up a store near me last month and I went there for the first time today. I really liked it a lot, cool clothes, good prices, and the best part, they have size XS for men! I like my new shirt so much I'm gonna post a pic of it so you can all see how awesome its design is/how well it fits

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1284.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fa567%2Fjacesphotobucket%2Funiqlo_zps8231a2a4.jpg&hash=11d59b9f18d50495a983c96b7c6fdcf4ee921c9d)

Ok ok that's enough, I swear I'm not tryna advertise for them and don't work for them lol.
My other suggestions would be, American Eagle, 100% agree with everyone who mentioned them. They are my favorite store and probably make up about 70% of my wardrobe. Express, they also have XS shirts and fit really well. I like Abercrombie too but only for certain things... their button up shirts size S fit me great. But some of their other stuff has a weird fit to it. Aaaaannnnd yep, that's just about the only places I shop. Sometimes I try to branch out but am continuously disappointed with how huge most clothes look on me. So f it, I'll just stick to my few trusted stores, why fix it if it's not broken?

Cool update to the thread, Chamillion. I checked them out and they have a couple stores in my area!! Super awesome. What are your stats btw? Like I said a while ago in my original post I'm 5'2'' and pretty skinny.. so I'd probably fit into the smallest sizes they have for men.

Urban outfitters is great but beware you have to try on each brand since they're size chart all vary slightly. I love Uniqlo which is this Japanese type store that's popular in the tri state area and California I believe they've got asian sizes(lot smaller than U.S. Sizes) so pretty much the whole stores game for small guys. Lastly I love Topman if you got a little money they're a british company and they got amazing stuff. You'll do fine with those bro I'm 5'3 size 30 jeans and they fit me perfect

I did not read the previous comment about uniqlo... My bad  :-X

I like the brand Superdry.....(I'm 5ft 6 and slim) Pre-T and pre working out I wore a small in Superdry sizes and it fit very well. 3 months on T and working out over the past year (mostly from working out) a superdry small is a bit snug, and a medium is perfect. So Maleth, if you're slim and 5ft 2 def check out men's Superdry.
Also American appearal tends to make good smalls/mediums in men's clothes. As far as denim goes chek out a brand called Nudie Jeans they go down to 27W but a 28 or 29 does just great for me....they make pretty fitted/slim styles too. I also find that diesel denim fits well same with G-star and Jack and Johns....if you are a slimmer smaller than average build, in my personal experience settling for a size bigger or ill-fitted jeans doesnt work well.
The problem I find with boys clothes is that a "youth L" is meant most often for a short but stockier boy, therefore the shirt fit is a little wide and not enough length in the torso or arms....however I do suspect that my arms are a bit lanky tho...

Quote from: Nygeel on May 26, 2014, 11:44:00 PM
Well, reinforced knees do come in handy for some people...

Ahem.
Levis husky is usually generous in the waist. An 18 boys husky is 36inch waist with 29 inch inseam.

They redesigned them and they don't LOOK like reinforced knees, which is nice. Just ordered some chinos, so we'll see. I REALLY like Landsend. Prices are great in the boy's section.

--Jay

Since I hadn't seen this mentioned - J.Crew and J.Crew Factory have good quality stuff for short guys. I'm 5'4, 130ish and their XS slim fit stuff fits well. They also carry 34R in suits (much better fabric quality then Express), and their boy's size 14 fit me well.

ASOS also has XS and XXS sizes for guys. Also - don't know if this was mentioned before, but Banana Republic has an XS tailored slim fit that works for me (slightly bigger than Express's Modern fit).

Their boy's stuff is nice as well. Very sharp looking, nice fabrics.

--Jay

Quote from: sylvester06 on October 05, 2014, 02:12:19 PM
Since I hadn't seen this mentioned - J.Crew and J.Crew Factory have good quality stuff for short guys. I'm 5'4, 130ish and their XS slim fit stuff fits well. They also carry 34R in suits (much better fabric quality then Express), and their boy's size 14 fit me well.

ASOS also has XS and XXS sizes for guys. Also - don't know if this was mentioned before, but Banana Republic has an XS tailored slim fit that works for me (slightly bigger than Express's Modern fit).

I'm not a small guy (I'm 33/32), but wanted to make mention of Calvin Klein as a good choice for dress shirts.  The sleeve length is spot on (not too long).  A lot of guys don't seem to pay attention to sleeve length because the cuffs keep the shirt from sliding down the hand, but for a shirt to fit well (not be puffy along the sleeve), this is something one should pay attention too.  I also found this to be the case with Express dress shirts, but I haven't worn Express in years, so I can't say they continue to be this way.

As an aside, the other issue FTMs need to watch (especially pre top surgery), is that the shoulder seam not land past the shoulder.  This can be harder if you are large chested as you need to find shirts that it over your chest.  Binding can help with this.

I like to wear non-iron dress shirts (for obvious reasons).  Has anyone else noticed that the color choices/styles are less attractive than the shirts one needs to iron?  It is something I have noticed lately, and that sucks!  I don't wear a suit jacket to work, just a dress shirt, so I have to be ironed well (and I don't want to pay the cost of a dry cleaner).

If you have a platos closet close to you. That's where I go. I am extremely small as well, and need smaller sizes. They carry all the upper brands, like Aeropostale and etc. I can always find something in my size. They carry xxs and up. They also have a good selection of different types of clothes. That is what most of my closet is consisted of.

I really like The Lees, it's a brand for slim guys and I believe the company is based in Malaysia so they go by Asian sizes. They also sell a lot of their clothes on Amazon.