Been a while!

It's been a while since I've posted! For a quick catch-up:

1. I turned 25, and I am now a quarter century old!
2. I met many members of Billie's family on Thanksgiving, and subsequently had a fight debate over gay marriage at the dinner table.
3. I'm taking another semester to write my thesis prospectus, then hopefully I'll be starting the thesis itself over the summer.
4. Linus continues to grow, and might actually be a tiny ninja in a fur suit.
5. I lost my health insurance on my birthday, which is already starting to ruin my life. Grr.

Aaaand now for something that's actually on-topic!

Butch fashion, and specifically, accessorizing.

A fairly common faux pas I see among my butch brethren is over-doing the cool little masculine details in ones' outfit. The other day, I saw one wearing a newsboy-style hat, vest, suspenders (both? really?), a bandanna tied about the wrist, a hefty leather watch, and gauged ear lobes. Now, I love me a good hat and leather wrist cuff, but when you heap too many details on, you end up looking more like you're wearing a costume, not like you're taking yourself seriously.

Same goes for formal wear. As totally awesome as your tie, vest, pocket square, cufflinks, pocket watch, suspenders, etc are, don't wear them all together. Of course, all of these things could potentially go together in a three-piece suit, which are coming out in more modern, updated cuts, and are totally awesome. However, when you try to heap a blazer, tie, and vest together, particularly in a heavy material like velvet, for instance, you're adding a lot of layers to your upper body that will probably make you look a lot bigger than you actually are. All those little details can pile up to make you very visible, and really, shouldn't that lovely lady on your arm be attracting the attention?

So, here's a hint. Take your base outfit, whether it's jeans and a t-shirt, or slacks and a dress shirt, or a suit, pick one awesome detail to add in. If this feels boring to you, find patterns that work for what you're going for. However, patterns can be abused just as much as accessories, so don't overdo it on the patterns either. For instance, distressed jeans already have a look about them, and will affect your appearence all by themselves. In men's fashion, details count, even details like the triangle of white peeking out from underneath your polo shirt.

Please remember that Johnny Depp is the only person in the world who is allowed to wear eight necklaces, three bracelets on each wrist, a hat, and bandannas tied around his neck and waist.

And another thing: Pants that fit. Jesus christ, wear pants that fit. Some women are notorious for buying clothes too small, simply because they think that they ought to be wearing that size. Butches, you do it too, sometimes. If you *feel* like you ought to be wearing 32's, your hips might not actually agree. Now, it can be hard for women to find men's pants that fit. Luckily, Target's Mossimo brand works perfectly for me, so I'm all set, but not everyone lucks out like I have. My advice is to look around, try lots of pairs on, and don't pay attention to sizes. Women's sizes are notoriously arbitrary, but men's sizes can be weird, too. You'd think a 34 would be the same everywhere you go, but they can fluxtuate.