How to Accessorize!

Greetings dear readers. I hope this blog finds you well and feeling beautiful. I want to give a special shout out to Ally, who suggested I do a blog on jewelry. My thanks also to the rest of you who posted ideas for topics. I’ll work my way through them. If you have other topics you would like to see me work on, just let me know.

The topic of jewelry is much the same as makeup – less is more. If you’ve read my blog titled “Less is More” you’ll see that I used that phrase a number of times and with good reason. The same applies to jewelry. Before I go further, a few general tips are in order. First, the less is more rule applies because you want to draw attention to your clothing, not your jewelry. The jewelry is that final special touch that lends an overall feminine touch to your clothing. Secondly, don’t mix metals. In other words, silver with silver, gold with gold. Third, one of everything. You don’t need one ring on every finger or five bracelets. See again the less is more rule. The one exception is what is called statement jewelry. This particularly applies to necklaces. Statement jewelry is exactly that – it is bold and large. The best way to gauge whether or not this would work for you is to get online and look at some models wearing statement jewelry. One simple way to determine if you are wearing too much jewelry is this – look in the mirror, and if you look more like Mr. T than your favorite gg, start over!

Let’s consider some particular jewelry, starting with earrings. You can get clip-ons or pierced. Clip-ons are increasingly hard to find, but you can find them online. You will have a far greater choice with pierced earrings. Fortunately, these days’ men are much more accepted wearing earrings. I have both ears pierced, and the only comments I’ve gotten are compliments from women. The main types of pierced earrings are studs and drops (what some people call danglies). There are also hoops, huggys, and chandeliers (which I don’t recommend unless you want to look like a drag queen). One important rule – always get sterling silver, gold, stainless steel, or at the minimum, hypoallergenic posts. If you get inferior metal, chances are your ear piercing will react to the metal, making an unpleasant knot in your ear. I learned that unfortunate reality when I bought some cute earrings in Cozumel, Mexico. Also another guideline on earrings – big earrings should be kept short and long earrings should be kept narrow. The reason for this is due to facial symmetry. Big long earrings are going to make your head look smaller. Ear piercings are the only piercings I’ll deal with, as body piercings are not my personal cup of tea.

Next, let’s consider bracelets, including wrists and ankles. Again, the less is more rule applies. As with earrings, men wearing bracelets have become a common and accepted thing. I have one bracelet I really like which is a women’s bracelet but doesn’t shout out crossdresser. The rule of not mixing metals definitely applies here – if your bracelet is gold, your earrings should be gold. There are a lot of bracelets for women that you can safely wear in the general public. Just use good taste and common sense. One thing I absolutely love is ankle bracelets. Back in the day, we called them slave bracelets. I think they are uber-sexy looking. The cool thing is you can wear one if you are dressed in drabs, as long as you are wearing socks.

Next, let’s consider necklaces and rings. Men’s bone structure is larger, on average than women’s bone structure, so you may run into sizing issues, as you likely will with ankle bracelets. The solution here is getting extenders, for bracelets and necklaces. You can find them at hobby stores. With rings, I limit my rings to pinky rings. That way I have a broad selection of women’s rings that fit. Also, men wearing pinky rings is a fairly accepted practice in general society. Another solution is stretchy rings made with elastic. 

Lastly, we can’t forget wristwatches. There are some way blingy wristwatches out there, and I own three, all picked out by my wonderful wife. The fun thing with femme watches is you can match the color of the band to your outfit. I don’t personally apply the less is more rule to watches, as the only person who will ever see them is my wife. Have some fun with this one!

Well, there you have it – your tutorial on accessories from your Aunt Angie. So let’s have some fun. Tell me about your accessories and any ideas I might have missed. Accessories are one of the most fun parts of being a crossdresser. There are so many choices. Warm-up those keyboards and jump in the discussion. I love hearing from you.

Fond regards,

Angie