By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
September 11, 2003
When Lucas Livingston and his girlfriend were shopping for pants at Bebe, they found just the right thing — a pair of fierce silver trousers accented with zippers and buckles. For him.
No, Bebe hasn’t opened a men’s store. But like a growing number of fashion-forward men who are tired of waiting for their clothes to get as stylish as the gals’, Livingston turned to women’s clothes for something unique. And he managed to win a ton of compliments from his female friends without getting any flack from his guy pals.
“Let’s face it — most guys don’t notice other guys’ clothes,” says the 27-year-old North Sider. “And my female friends didn’t ask if I was wearing women’s clothes. They just thought the pants were really nice. They key for guys is to not try on anything that’s too feminine, unless you want to look like a cross-dresser.”
In a Victoria/Victoria twist, Livingston’s girlfriend wants to borrow his pants — but they’re too big on her. Wearing baggy men’s jeans is cute on a woman. Stepping into a pair of unintentionally baggy women’s trousers just looks unkempt.
Sure, rock stars have been getting away with wearing women’s clothes for decades. At last month’s Glamorama benefit, Uncle Kracker’s guitarist Phillip Sayce ‘fessed up that his rock star pants were a vintage find that had been designed for a woman. Chicago musician Brian Liesegang has shown up for photo shoots wearing pieces from his girlfriend’s closet.
But what’s OK for musicians just doesn’t seem to sit well with the average guy whose concept of women’s clothing is that of frills, lace and
tissue-thin material.
But while slipping into a strapless dress and heels may get your man a great seat at the Baton, let’s face it — a lot of women’s clothes are as
androgynous as men’s.
“More guys are shopping in the women’s department because the sizes fit better,” says Chai Lee, 30, who lives in Lakeview. “I have a 28-inch waist, so I’m not a big guy. A lot of men’s clothing just doesn’t fit me well. I went into the Gap to buy some T-shirts and they were just so big and baggy. Your option is either that or those really skin-tight Lycra muscle shirts.”
Lee ended up purchasing a few medium-size T-shirts from the women’s department at Urban Outfitters.
“They fit me perfectly,” he says. “They’re just tight enough without being constricting. They don’t look like women’s shirts. They just look nice.”
Tricia Tunstall, co-owner of Wicker Park’s trendy women’s boutique p.45, has noticed more Chicago males stepping into her store to browse for pieces for themselves.
“Clothing nowadays is so androgynous that men can find something in women’s clothing that would work for them,” she says. “But you definitely have to have a certain body type to do that. If you’re a guy with a skinnier, straight body type, our sizes will work pretty well.”
And in case you’re a guy who’d love to wear your girlfriend’s T-shirt but are afraid you’ll be razzed for donning chicks’ clothes, have no fear.
“I’ve seen all kinds of guys in fashionable clothes and there’s a good chance that some of them had on women’s pants or shirts,” Tunstall says. “But I never knew. No one else will, either.”
Livingston sums it up this way.
“Ideally, I wouldn’t have to go to women’s stores to find unique clothes,” he says. “But it seems that unless you get into the couture clothes like Gaultier, you really don’t have a lot of choice in the men’s department. With women’s fashion, there’s a greater variety — and that makes shopping for clothes less of a burden and more of an adventure.”
