When ladies first began to wear pants designers were careful to attach a side zipper so that they would not easily be confused with men’s trousers. As the years have gone on, fashion normally reserved for men and woman has begun to become interchangeable. The lines have been blurred as to what is appropriate for a woman to wear, and with men feeling comfortable about painting their fingernails and sport tight threads, it seems that androgynous fashion is popular once again.
Style icons such as Grace Jones, Peter Burns and Boy George ruled in the 80s. Each of these celebrities showed audiences that there was no such thing as gender exclusive fashion. Men started wearing heavy eye makeup, teased their hair and fell in love with spandex while women had no problems wearing large blazers and cut their hair into fashionable buzz cuts. As Lea T., a transsexual model prepares to rip the runway during Brazil Fashion Week, even fashion designers are beginning to wonder whether it makes sense to create clothing for men and women separately anymore.
The fashion world has long welcomed those who refuse to dress and act according to society set standards, but it appears that androgyny is making a more poignant statement this time around. There are millions of people that struggle with their gender identity, and few of them are fortunate enough to ever get into the limelight. Just seeing one or two models and designers that trans men and woman can identify with helps them to see the beauty in their uniqueness.
