Today, we welcome Chris from Paris, France to Profiles of Beskirted Men!
What is your name?
Chris
Where are you from?
Paris, France
Which types of gender non-conforming clothing do you enjoy wearing?
Skirts, heels, leggings
When did you start wearing gender non-conforming clothing?
About 5-6 years ago
How did you start wearing gender non-conforming clothing and why?
Hot summer, bored of shorts. Started with kilts but found them heavy, tried a cheap wrap skirt…
What is your motivation now for putting on gender non-conforming clothing?
I just love it ! So comfortable…
What do gender non-conforming clothes mean to you?
Mainly comfort in hot weather, soft fabrics, be myself
How often do you wear gender non-conforming clothing?
Everyday when at home (when in home office or when coming back from work, I change to more comfortable clothes if I do not need to go back outside)
Do you go out in public dressed in gender non-conforming clothes? If not, why not? If so, how often and where do you go? Are there any places you wouldn’t go?
Only on vacation where no one knows me. In my neighborhood, I just started wearing kilts in summer, this is already a big step for a shy person like me. And I am now starting to wear 5cm-heeled boots that do not look too feminine, but only with pants.
I sing and play guitar in a rock band, and sometimes wear a kilt on stage (then I have an excuse, it is not really me)
Do you find it hard to go out in public in gender non-conforming clothes?
Yes
What is your best and/or worst experience in gender non-conforming clothes?
Best: the freedom of wearing a short wrap skirt on holidays in Brittany (West of France) and no one cared. Worst: not when wearing, but hearing close family members talk negatively (and stupidly, talking about being gay, etc.) about men wearing feminine clothing, not knowing that I do.
Do your family or friends know about how you dress?
Only my ex-wife and our 14 year old daughter, who are supportive, but know that they should not talk about it to older members of the family. Most know about my kilts, and even that is considered weird.
Are there people you don’t want to know about it?
Especially my mother, she would not understand and she would feel bad about it. Also my work colleagues (I played in a kilt with my band at a company event though, not sure about the impact on my career), and the members of my band (they are quite conservative and think I wear a kilt just to act as a showman)
Does your partner accept your clothing choices?
My ex wife accepted it and was supportive. I have no new partner since I left her.
What is your favorite style?
I tend to prefer simple things and plain colors. I love wrap skirts.
Where do you shop for your clothes?
Online.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Thanks to all for sharing your experiences! Hopefully I might find the courage to wear my skirts in public in my neighborhood in the future.
Thank you for sharing, Chris!
If you would like to have your profile featured in Profiles of Beskirted Men, take a look at the post I wrote about it for more details.
Hey Chris, good to see that you already took this significant step of wearing kilts in neighborhood and on stage. While your mother can be upset, I still think it’s better if you reveal your true self to her, sounds difficult I know, but maybe she also does something that she would tell you but is afraid of your reaction.
Try a hiking kilt from sports kilt. They’re super light