What would you like to see in a man's dress?

[crfriend]

I'm curious - have you ever worn a dress?

No, and I wouldn't want to.

Having found -- and I'd say mastered -- your own look, cessna, I can easily understand that sentiment.

This is likely an even more avant-garde concept than donning a skirt, and certainly moreso than a kilt, but I suspect it might work if the right designer with the right frame of mind looked at it. Being on the cutting edge -- some would say bleeding -- is not for the more conservative of chaps, and we're fortunate that the world is big enough for everybody. That said, however, it's worth recalling that tunics and smocks were common enough up until the past hundred years or so ago; most of the real damage to the range of options open to guys has been done in the last hundred and fifty or two hundred years.

The first time I tried on a dress, I caught both barrels from Sapphire: "You look like a gorilla in a dress!" Ouch. However, the fabric was very nice, and the way the garment felt and moved was quite pleasing indeed. Unfortunately, it was cut completely wrong for my frame and that absolutely ruined the overall appearance. Interestingly, though, I have another one that was fashioned out of T-shirts that happens to work quite well but because of its casual nature is not up to the standards I like to (try to) hold myself to.

[JohnH]

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[JRMILLER]

JohnH,
I think you should post a pic of you in the dress, let us provide you with our feedback.

[RichardA]

this might work is a Colobium (Roman)/ Kolobas

[JohnH]

JohnH,
I think you should post a pic of you in the dress, let us provide you with our feedback.

I know you are curious how I look in that dress, so here is a preliminary shot.
My right hand is holding the mouse so I can take a shot with the webcam.

The picture below of course is that of the original model.

Ellos_Dress.jpg

The picture below is me wearing the same dress.

Johns_ellos_dress.jpg

I do admit I need to go down from my current 208 lbs down to 175 lbs so that my waist begins to curve inwards instead of bulging out. Someone at another forum did point out that for the dress to look good on me my waist needs to curve inwards. It did when I was young. At least I'm not at my peak weight of 242 lbs.

Also when I get a clearly defined waist I need to put additional elastic below to accommodate the lower waistline that a man has as opposed to a woman.

[RichardA]

I hope you don't mind, but it looks better on the girl than on you.....sorry

[JohnH]

Of course. She doesn't have the gut, and she is much better looking to start with!

[crfriend]

Of course. She doesn't have the gut, and she is much better looking to start with!

Well, it's good to see that there's a sense of humour in the mix!

To my eye, and I certainly mean no offence in this observation, whilst the dress on the young woman -- and a "plus-sized" one at that -- looks great for casual attire, on John somehow seems to scream "nightgown". What is likely causing that reaction is John's large frame not matching up with the design of the bodice of the dress; it's stretched tight due to his barrel-chest and broad shoulders and lack of a well-defined waist. All of those are typical of the "man shape", so it shouldn't be terribly surprising that the look of the garment seems "less than optimal".

Note: I am not saying, "This looks silly". If somebody likes the look, then I'd say "go for it", but I'd be wary of detractors.

What did I feel was "wrong" with the garment in this application? For one, I think the spaghetti-straps don't flatter the common male physique; better would be to have short sleeves up top to better frame the shoulder and look a little bit less like underwear. Second, I think the expanse of exposed chest is a bit much for the application. Finally, I think the length hits an awkward place on the legs; I suspect hitting right around the knee would have been better.

In summary, would I wear that particular rig to work or out to dinner? No. Would I discourage someone else to? Also, no.

[JohnH]

Of course. She doesn't have the gut, and she is much better looking to start with!

Well, it's good to see that there's a sense of humour in the mix!

To my eye, and I certainly mean no offence in this observation, whilst the dress on the young woman -- and a "plus-sized" one at that -- looks great for casual attire, on John somehow seems to scream "nightgown". What is likely causing that reaction is John's large frame not matching up with the design of the bodice of the dress; it's stretched tight due to his barrel-chest and broad shoulders and lack of a well-defined waist. All of those are typical of the "man shape", so it shouldn't be terribly surprising that the look of the garment seems "less than optimal".

Note: I am not saying, "This looks silly". If somebody likes the look, then I'd say "go for it", but I'd be wary of detractors.

What did I feel was "wrong" with the garment in this application? For one, I think the spaghetti-straps don't flatter the common male physique; better would be to have short sleeves up top to better frame the shoulder and look a little bit less like underwear. Second, I think the expanse of exposed chest is a bit much for the application. Finally, I think the length hits an awkward place on the legs; I suspect hitting right around the knee would have been better.

In summary, would I wear that particular rig to work or out to dinner? No. Would I discourage someone else to? Also, no.

As I lose weight I will take pictures when I am at 195 lbs, 185 lbs, and finally at 175 lbs. I think the lack of a well defined waist is the biggest issue at my current weight of 208 lbs. It will be interesting how it looks after I get a well defined waist. I once had a well-defined waist several decades ago and I had to get pants with a larger waist than necessary to fit the my waist (e.g., pants waist size of 36 for my 34 inch waist) so that the pants would go over my hips! This dress will be my incentive to lose weight and cut down on my high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. Just think - a 40 dollar dress could save me hundreds of dollars in medical bills!

You say the length is awkward. I like the length so that I do not have to wear any underwear with the dress. I feel it is necessary to wear underpants if the skirt length is up to the knees.

An interesting observation - you live in the United States yet you use British spelling - offence for offense, humour instead of humor, and whilst for while.

[crfriend]

[...]I once had a well-defined waist several decades ago and I had to get pants with a larger waist than necessary to fit the my waist so that the pants would go over my hips!

I'm still fortunate enough to have a bit of definition, but I'm also not particularly representative of the rest of the guys around me. I'll put that down to my blast-furnace metabolism and super-sized meal portions.

This dress will be my incentive to lose weight and cut down on my high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. Just think - a 40 dollar dress could save me hundreds of dollars in medical bills!

On that count, sir, I salute you! I've recently come under fire from the medical profession for high blood pressure and hope like the dickens that I can conquer it with diet modifications -- so long as they don't render everything I eat completely devoid of flavour -- because I don't want to be part of the "treatment" machine. If you can conquer yours by way of diet and exercise then you'll win in a big way. And all from a $40 dress -- that's wonderful.

You say the length is awkward.

I said the length looks odd given the geometries involved. I completely understand your sentiments as to why it works for you, though.

[SkirtedViking]

In the topic Sitting in short skirts I mentioned the Ellos dress that I wear. Several of you mentioned that you would like a garment that hangs from the shoulders and is maxi-length. The skirt is full so it does not inhibit walking or running.

However, some mentioned that the upper bodice and the waist are designed for the female figure. I did point out the "cups" in the bodice are shallow which accommodate my not-totally flat chest. The waist stretches to accommodate my gut. As a whole the dress fits me comfortably. It would look much better if the waist did not have to stretch nearly as far!

So, I would like to get your ideas of what that ideal man's dress would be.

Below is the Ellos dress that I have:

Ellos_Dress.jpg

I like the dress- it can suit a guy.I have muscular chest and such clothes accentuate it well.
P.S. Hens must be compared to hens,roosters to roosters! Do NOT expect and compare a guy in a dress to look similar as a female,this is applied even to male garments worn by women- they look different on females in most cases.

[SkirtedViking]

There are some nice fitting dresses. Of course fit is dependent on the individual. These are from Metrostyle.

I like you on the first picture.It fits your body well.With a nice pair of shoes it would be great.Remember, this site is a bit "masculinity" oriented - so negative comments may occur.

[JohnH]

Below is the Ellos dress that I have:

Ellos_Dress.jpg

I like the dress- it can suit a guy.I have muscular chest and such clothes accentuate it well.
P.S. Hens must be compared to hens,roosters to roosters! Do NOT expect and compare a guy in a dress to look similar as a female,this is applied even to male garments worn by women- they look different on females in most cases.

I'm glad someone likes the dress!

[SkirtedViking]

Below is the Ellos dress that I have:

Ellos_Dress.jpg

I like the dress- it can suit a guy.I have muscular chest and such clothes accentuate it well.
P.S. Hens must be compared to hens,roosters to roosters! Do NOT expect and compare a guy in a dress to look similar as a female,this is applied even to male garments worn by women- they look different on females in most cases.

I'm glad someone likes the dress!

Of course I like it, I strive for fashion equality and look at the dress and you in it as a guy and NEVER compare your body to a woman's,especially a photo model.You look good in it- and this type is appropriate for males combined with a pair of nice shoes.So be brave and remember-first women in men's clothing and shoes were not socially accepted and suffered a lot of critics.People feel insecure often when someone is braver than them.
P.S. Here is a guy with a good figure in a dress, hope you recognize him:
Loose the shoes,Brad - http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k300/ ... pitt-2.jpg, otherwise he looks great in a non-masculine dress.

[JohnH]

Of course I like it, I strive for fashion equality and look at the dress and you in it as a guy and NEVER compare your body to a woman's,especially a photo model.You look good in it- and this type is appropriate for males combined with a pair of nice shoes.So be brave and remember-first women in men's clothing and shoes were not socially accepted and suffered a lot of critics.People feel insecure often when someone is braver than them.

I also have to say that there are plenty of women that would look far worse in that dress than I do.
If you look closely at the sandals, you can see I was wearing the same sandals as the model!