emptyinbtwn asked: Hey. I am looking for some advice as to what to wear to a summer, specifically august wedding. Normally I would wear skinny dress pants, a dress shirt and a tie, but I feel like this would be too hot in the summer. Any suggestions?

I would keep the dress shirt and tie but roll up the sleeves and then get some nice dress shorts. Topman has some fancy ones, and their clothes tend to fit me really well:

Dark Blue Oxford Cinch Tailored Shorts, available at Topman for $70

Anonymous asked: I'm going to a party to celebrate my grandmothers 100'th birthday and I was wondering what to wear. The rest of my family/my relatives are going to wear suits and dresses. I dont wanna wear a dress and I dont look good in a suit. Thinking about a shirt and a vest with a bowtie or something like that. Kinda have a low budget 2. Any suggestions? Thanks 4 an awesome blog.

Assuming she is your biological grandmother, congrats. You have some GOOD GENES. I don’t believe you that you don’t look good in suits, because everyone does as long as it’s the right fit. Shirt + Vest + Bow tie is an excellent choice though. Since you have a low budget I’d first check out thrift stores in your area because you never know what might pop up. If you have more time, go back a few days later. The shelves rotate and new things will pop up. If you don’t have any luck there, Topman and American Apparel carry well-priced bow ties. I’m imagining you’d want a tux style vest; both the women’s and the men’s sections at Banana Republic, H&M, Topshop/Topman, and J. Crew have them. For women’s button-ups, try the Gap, Banana Republic, and H&M. For men’s try Topman or Boy’s departments.

labexperiment asked: Hot weather is here (at least in my part of the world), and I have a question. I'm comfortable with the tops I have, but struggle with what to wear on the bottom. Skirts are SO much cooler but I don't like how "girly" they look. Is there a style of skirt or way I can wear them that are more "tomboyish" or "dykey?" Love, love, love your blog!

Rae says: Try straight skirts (nothing a line or flow-y) in stiffer fabric like denim or twill. 

Playground daze skirt, available at Modcloth for $39.99

Anonymous asked: I'm on the quest for dapper shoes (at the moment: brogues and boat shoes) that come in women's/boy's sizes and are also vegetarian! Any tips?

Rae says: As far as boat shoes, Sperry Topsider has a great selection of canvas boat shoes in boy’s and women’s sizes.

Anonymous asked: I bought a pain of yellow corduroy shorts that were really awesome but now I don't know what to wear them with. What's something that would look really good with them?

I don’t even know where one manages to find such a thing, but when they do (as you did) they should buy them. I could see them working with lots and lots of things. Button-ups, T-shirts, brown shoes. Other bright colors:

Source: Lorena Cupcake, Flikr

UPDATE: staletasteofrecycledair says, “You can buy corduroy-looking shorts in bright colours, including yellow, green, peach, etc. at Target.” WORD

escapistry asked: Hey! I was wondering what I should wear to this years Huntington Pride Parade (on June 9th). This is actually my first time going to Pride so I'm not really sure how I should go about dressing

I see Pride as an opportunity to wear something a little bolder that I’ve been itching to wear. Anything rainbow themed is an obvious choice, but you could also just go with bright colors. Also, if you have any identity related shirts that you wouldn’t necessarily wear to the grocery store, this is the time to do it! Have fun!

Anonymous asked: Ok so i took your advice, and decided to try on some black brogues from the boys section. I brought them to wear them for my graduation having never ever owned a pair of smart black shoes. After falling head of heels for them (excuse the pun) i’ve rather fell in love with them and would love to wear them with something more casual but i’m at a bit of a loss what to put with them. Any suggestions?

This is exciting! They would go with pretty much anything; denim, chinos, you name it. They would be especially cool with brightly colored socks. You could pick some up at Topman or American Apparel. 

source: blog.stylesight.com

I’ve gotten many questions from larger breasted folks wanting to know how to deal with their breasts in button-up situations, particularily around wearing men’s shirts. For example: ”I love button down shirts and polos, but I have a big chest and find it hard to pull off the outfits I put together because the buttons in the chest area are stressed or I look big around the middle from my chest creating a drape look with the shirt. I’d buy a binder, but they are a bit out of my price range. Any suggestions?” 

I decided to consult with Eric Powell from Ratio Clothing about this issue. Ratio Clothing is a handcrafted men’s shirt company located in Denver, Colorado who made me a shirt a few months ago. Eric said that everyone needs a good tailor because “Few of us are blessed with perfect sample size proportions.” He recommended Yelp reviews or menswear forums for some good reviews for tailors in your city. 

He says, “It sounds like the problem the reader is having is the same one that some athletic men have — getting a shirt to fit in the upper body (muscular pecs for men, breasts for women) can cause the lower portion of the shirt to be baggy. Made-to-measure solves that, of course, but bringing in the lower sides a bit on the shirt will allow it to fit while still maintaining the ‘look’ of the shirt.’” For larger breasted folks he suggests “sizing up a bit so that you get a good fit through the chest, and then have the tailor bring in sides of the shirt so that you end up with a better sideseam shape. In most cases, you’ll probably be looking at between $10-$20 per shirt.”

I think this brings hope to all of us looking to wear men’s button-ups and keep our breasts at bay.

Check out the tailoring tag for more info.

Related posts: Ratio Clothing: Gay or Just Awesome?

Anonymous asked: Please, please help me i'm at the end of my tether! I'm from the uk and no matter what i do i can't pass as male :( When i was younger i'd pass all the time but now i'm 28 yrs everyone instantly knows i'm female. I've tried everything. I have short hair, wear mens clothes and bind but no matter what i do i still don't pass. I normally wear shirts, t shirts, jeans or occassionly chinos normally with vans but nothing seems to work and i find it so frustrating as i would like to identify as male.

I’m sorry to hear that people are making misguided judgements about your identity. This must be very frustrating and for you. For some trans people, passing is really important because it allows them to feel most themselves. For others, just knowing their identity is enough. If you are looking for your identity to be seen as legitimate (and it is!) finding allies is a great place to start. You can’t control what people think of you on the street, but you can surround yourself by people who love and support you. Check these FTM resources: http://www.ftmguide.org/links.html for trans organizations near you or online communities. As you continue to explore your identity, you can look into what tactics you might take to make yourself as comfortable in your own body as possible. I wish you the best of luck and hope that the Dyke Duds community can continue to be a place of support for you! Not to mention a way to check out other cute queers celebrating their identities.

Thanks to Missy for help with this question!

Anonymous asked: I'm genderqueer and dress pretty androgynously and dapperly, however this is a new discovery. I left highschool dressing pretty feminine and came back home to my family dressing androgynously/masculinely. So this is kind of new to my family. My sister's college graduation is coming up. Suggestions on what to wear?

Congrats on this new discovery! Sounds like you’ve had a lot of growth in the past year and I hope you will continue to find supportive communities during this journey of exploration. It takes a lot of courage going to the first formal event with your family where you’re not going to dress according to the gender binary, so take pride in dressing like yourself! I hope that if they aren’t there yet, your family will come to accept and celebrate your new identity with you. (Regardless, I’m sure there will be at least one other queer there who will be happy to see you ;)) 

You might find these questions helpful:

• “it’s my school prom coming up and i’m having a bit of a problem…”
• “My friend’s wedding is coming up soon & I’m expected to be in a dress with the rest of the bridesmaids…”

Check out the formal wear tag for graduation attire inspiration… and don’t forget to snap a picture for us!