I registered for Fantasia Fair during the week of Fantasia Fair 2013 to get the best price.  I also reserved a room at my favorite Provincetown B&B and by staying for seven nights, I get two nights for free --- such a deal!

So now that I am all registered and reserved for Fantasia Fair, I was kicking around ideas for conducting a workshop at the Fair. I was wondering if enough Femulate readers are going to Fantasia Fair this year to make it worthwhile to have a Femulate workshop.

It would be great to get all us femulators together so we can meet each other in person and have a big roundtable discussion about the fine art of femulating. We could call it the Femulate Blog Party!

Please let me know if you are going to Fantasia Fair this year and if so, would you attend the Femulate workshop.

Actor Paulo Gustavo (center) femulating in the 2013 Brazilian film Minha Mãe é uma Peça: O Filme.

Wearing Amelia Toro.

Yesterday was International Transgender Day of Visibility.

I missed it. I would have dressed more appropriately for work on Monday if I knew beforehand. On the other hand, I am glad that I was dressed in boy mode on Monday.

I drove to work through a wintry mix of rain, sleet, and snow. As I parked my car at work, the wintry mix was no longer mixed and it snowed for the next three hours depositing 5 inches of heavy snow throughout my neck of the woods!

Like I said, I am glad that I was dressed in boy mode because I hate walking in heels through slush. However, I did display visible signs of my femininity yesterday.

Have I mentioned that I am letting my hair grow?

I have not visited my hairdresser since November and my hair is now the longest it's been since my college days. A woman engineer at work noticed my long hair the other day and said it looked "cool."

I noticed other people at work checking out my hair. Some of them may be thinking that my days as a boy at work are numbered and that I will be working as a lady real soon now. 

Meanwhile, no one on the home front has mentioned it, although my sister made a negative comment the last time I saw her. This is the same sister who is a big LGBT supporter with one exception: her transgender brother, so I took her comment with a grain of salt.

I am not sure how long I will let my locks grow. They are harder to hide under a wig now and at a minimum, they need to be neatened up by a professional.

And so it grows.

A West Point cadet (right) femulates in a circa 1920 stage production at the academy.

Wearing Robert Rodriguez.

There was interest in having a Femulate gathering at Fantasia Fair this year, so I completed the workshop proposal and submitted it to Dallas Denny, the Fantasia Fair Program Coordinator.

With the workshop proposal, I also had to submit a recent photo for publication in the Fantasia Fair Program Guide (in case my workshop is approved). Instead of submitting any old recent photo, I used Photoshop to insert a backdrop into a recent photo to give it a little class. The result appears to the right.

To make up for missing International Transgender Day of Visibility on Monday, I femmed-up my appearance for Tuesday with skinny jeans, a hip-length magenta tunic, black flats, and pink lip gloss.

Nobody mentioned my appearance. Either they did not notice or they were not surprised.

Claude André, a French professional femulator circa 1960

Wearing Red Valentino.

By Romana

Romana wrote an interesting piece for Femulate, “The Many Aspects of Gender,” which describes her take on gender. Her article is long, so you will find it in its entirety on a separate webpage, but the introduction to her article follows with a link to the rest of the article. 

I have gained a lot of experience in my seven and a half years living full-time as a transgender woman. My Buddhist meditation practice has revealed many unexpected insights. My life has always been experiential, constantly trying new things out. I guess Asperger’s syndrome has enabled me to be quite bold. I have never been in the closet. My hormones had been out-of-balance for years, but that has been fixed, causing my entire psyche has come into focus. I am now legally Romana and legally female, without any gender-altering surgeries. Recently, I have been communicating with women just like another woman, so I think I now have a woman’s point-of-view. Women’s issues have become mine, and I have developed a true desire to improve women’s lives. I have reached, or aspire to reach all my recommendations.

I think that image and clothing is a catalyst that can provide a gateway to variations of gender expression beyond standard. New gender experiences can be liberating, because they can allow one to try out a diversity of behaviors that might otherwise have been severely restricted. that they can negotiate.

Read the rest of the article here.

The Raelle Sisters – sibling professional femulators circa 1972.

Wearing Madeleine.

Casa Susanna was a guest house in the Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York where crossdressers dressed en femme during their visits in the 1960s.

Although not mentioned by name, My Year Among the Girls by Darrel G. Raynor published in 1968 documented one crossdresser's experience at Casa Susanna.

Casa Susanna by Michel Hurst and Robert Swope published in 2005 was a collection of snapshots found at a New York City flea market that depicted various crossdressers during their stay at the guest house.

I have mentioned both of these books here in the past. My Year Among the Girls was an eye-opener for me; reading that book when I was 17, I discovered that I was not alone.

Later this month, Casa Valentina opens on Broadway. It is a play written by Harvey Fierstein and is loosely based on the activities that occurred at Casa Susanna 50 years ago.

I hope I have an opportunity to see the play, preferably en femme.

Harvey Fierstein, circa 1970.

Wearing Madeleine.

Attend any transgender event and this scene is not out of the realm of possibilities.

Personally, when I am en femme at a transgender, LGBT or civilian event, I refuse to use the men’s restroom or even the family restroom. Instead, I always sashay my derrière to the ladies’ restroom when nature calls or for those Max Factor moments.

I will never forget attending an LGBT fundraiser a few years ago where they designated one bathroom for transgenders. I was insulted as were many of my trans-sisters and when we had to go, guess which bathroom we did not go to? The folks running the event got the message and never pulled that stunt again.

Boy George femulating as the cover girl for the December 1984 UK edition of Cosmopolitan.

I love this dress and the whole outfit. The image appeared in an e-mail from MyHabit on Thursday, but the dress was not available on the MyHabit website. It looks similar to some of Sue Wong’s designs, but I could not find an exact match. If they had it in my size and the price was right, I would have bought it.

How often have you heard older transwomen say that they wished they were growing up today? I have said it many times myself.

Actually, I enjoyed growing up when I did. The only reason for wishing I grew up today is that there is a huge body of accessible knowledge about transgender folks that did not exist when I was young. Back then, all I had to go by was one sentence in our family's encyclopedia that mentioned transvestism.

I had no idea why I crossdressed. All I knew was that I liked it, but was ashamed of it and told no one about it. My shame and guilt convinced me that what I was doing was very wrong and that I would go straight to Hell (do not pass go) when I died. So I made up my mind to confess my big "sin" the next time I went to confession.

Since I went to a Catholic high school, that opportunity presented itself quite regularly. So the next time our class marched to church for confession, I will never forget how nervous I was. But I had made up my mind and when I entered the confessional I was read to spill the beans to be absolved and never crossdress again.

I quickly confessed my venial sins, but I just could not confess my big one. After I hemmed and hawed for awhile, the priest figured out that something was up. He said that if I had a sin that I was too embarrassed to confess that all I had to do was admit to that fact and he would absolve me.

What a deal!  He was offering me a free pass! But I was so embarrassed that I did not take him up on his offer and I left the confessional with my big sin still weighing me down.

Actors Richard Deacon and Adam West femulating
in the 1980 film The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood.

Wearing Basix.

I am a UConn graduate, Class of ‘73, and the past few days have been very exciting. It's not often that a school wins NCAA championships two days in a row! Go Huskies!

But there is a dark side; I am sleep-deprived.

The late games kept me up past my normal bed time. And there is no catching up because I still have to get up at 5:30 AM to feed the cats and get ready for work. I have been very tired the last few days and I look like something the cat dragged in due to the loss of beauty sleep.

I am in awe of people who can party all night, get little or no sleep and still look great in the morning. I see that phenomena occur whenever I attend conventions or Fantasia Fair. Most people are like me --- we suffer when we don't get enough sleep, but there are a few people who can get away with it.

Maybe it is similar to how some people can eat and drink everything in sight and not gain a pound, whereas I have to be very careful about my diet in order to maintain my girlish figure.

Go figure.

They say, "You can never catch up on lost sleep." But I'd like to try.

A proud mother and her trophy-winning femulating son at a vogue ball, circa 1985.

Wearing Hayden.

“Private Birthday Party is a private collection of found photographic slides that depict Kansas City’s early drag ball culture throughout the 1950s and 1960s. With over 200 images, this collection is a rare, important look into the rich history of mid-century drag ball culture in middle America.”

You can view a sample of the collection here and read a Cut article and interview about the collection here. Thank you Aunty Marlena for the links!

The photo above is very telling. Which femulator passes best? The three girls in glamorous attire or the girl in street clothes?

A Kansas City femulator and her friend in 1964 (from the Private Birthday Party collection).

Wearing Spense.

The staff at Girls “R” Us is thrilled with the results of their latest transformation!

Femulating in the 1920s.

Wearing Fashion to Figure.

One month from today, I will hit the road and head west to Dayton, Ohio, to attend Hamvention, the biggest ham radio show this side of the Arctic Circle.

I attend most years and this year will be no exception. And like most years, I will be staffing the TAPR suite of booths (numbers 451 through 454) Friday and Saturday.

If you are going to the convention, stop by and say “Hello!”

By the way, I will travel to/from Dayton and attend the convention en femme.

Actor Alex Newell (center) femulating on television’s Glee, 2012.

Wearing Daily Look.

Victor Zhu, MSIII, is working with the Yale University Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and, in collaboration with the Yale University transgender community, they have designed a research survey to better understand and meet the needs of the transgender community.  

If you would please complete the survey found at this link,  it would greatly facilitate their research. The responses they receive will go a long way in providing better quality of healthcare for transgender patients.  

Feel free to contact Victor Zhu with any questions.

Professional femulator Lee Shaw, circa 1960.

Wearing Le Redoute.

The above photo depicts a rare sight – a slot machine paying a jackpot!

I went to the casino yesterday to play slots and during the first two hours, I was not doing well --- not losing a lot, but definitely winning less than I was losing.

I was ready to pack it in, but decided to try my luck at the older casino at the other end of the shopping mall that connects the old and new casinos at Mohegan Sun.

Right off the bat, I started doing well at this two quarter machine and then it happened --- the three double diamond ovals rolled into place and I hit the jackpot, which is the top prize that the slot machine offers. My two quarter bet returned 1600 quarters!

I have been playing slots for years and usually do well, but I have never hit a jackpot until yesterday!

And so it goes.

Actor Neil Patrick Harris femulating on the Broadway in Hedwig and the Angry Itch, 2014.

Wearing Marc by Marc Jacobs.

Yesterday's post was short. After I returned home from the casino, I went to bed early without writing much about my day (other than mentioning my big win) because I had a nasty stomach ache. I don't know if it was something I ate or an illness, but I felt very sick and my stomach is still not 100% as I start writing this 24 hours later.

Pat asked what I wore to the casino and I replied to her comment with "I wore black leggings, white sweater, black pumps, and black bag. I have no photos --- did not bring my camera and my iPhone was not cooperative."

I did take a few selfies with my iPhone, but erased them by mistake. The only photo that survived was the slot machine photo that I took with the Camera app, whereas I took the selfies with the Selfie app, which I am a novice at using.

I arrived at the casino around 9:30 AM and the place was very quiet, but it filled up as buses deposited 2,500 senior citizens at the casino doors in the late morning just about the time my luck changed for the better.

It has gotten to the point that I am not as aware of the public I pass through as I have been in the past. In that not too distant past, I was noticed everyone around me to see how they reacted.

It turns out that very few people react to me because, I assume they don't notice me. I am invisible, more or less, just like other middle-aged women.

A small minority of men and women check me out, but I don't know why because no one ever confronts me. So why should I waste my time worrying about others? Instead, I just try to enjoy myself because after all, girls just want to have fun!  

Peter Lappin of Male Pattern Boldness fame femulating
as his cousin Cathy Lane on the streets of New York City.

Wearing Willow & Clay.

I prefer garments that have skirts versus garments that have legs. As a result, my wardrobe weighs heavily with dresses and not so much with pants. I own one pair of dress pants, one pair of capris, two pairs of shorts, and four pairs of leggings.

Real women wear pants more often than skirts or dresses, so it is time to woman up and add more pants to my wardrobe.

I plan to do some shopping real soon now and I already perused the Fashion to Figure website to get an idea of what to look for and try on. They have a cute jumpsuit that might look attractive on me and I definitely want to try on a pair of their faux leather leggings. And I am sure while I am in the store, other items of interest will catch my eye.

A new acquaintance, Jeanine, mentioned that she has been out and about and recently attended a Women's Expo in Duluth. She remarked that she was treated very nicely by several vendors including the Essentia Health Skin Renewal Center, a Mary Kay representative and other nice people she met at the fashion show. (That's Jeanine's photo in the Femulator slot below.)

These women's expos seem to occur regularly in various locations in my neck of the woods and I have often considered attending. I was wondering if any other Femulate readers have attended such expos and if so, what was your experience (good and/or bad).

Do tell!

Jeanine Williams attending the 2014 Choice Unlimited Arts Masquerade Party in Duluth.

Wearing Madeleine.

Dressbarn is super supportive of the trans community.

Their sales personnel do not bat an eye when a guy shopping for clothing in their stores wants to use the dressing room to try on what he picked out.

Dressbarn used to close the store and let groups host Very Indulgent Parties (VIPs). Members of the group would model the latest fashions and everyone in attendance could make purchases at a discount. I don’t see that option on their website any longer, but in the past, they were just as comfortable with transwomen VIPs  as they were with genetic women VIPs.

I always feel very comfortable shopping in Dressbarn, whether I am in en femme or en homme. The sales personnel at my local Dressbarn know me in either mode of dress and treat me with respect and in a friendly manner either way. And I am treated that same way in any of their stores even where I am UFO (unidentified femulating object).

So when are they going to drop the other high heel shoe and open a men’s department? Probably maybe never, but they will still get my business.

Professional femulator, Percy Vanderpoel, New York City, 1885.

Gila Golan

Tuesday is Woman's Day for me --- a full day out in the world as a woman.

I plan to do a little shopping in the morning, then go to Southern Connecticut State University to do transgender outreach at two Human Sexuality classes.

I live for Woman's Days --- those days when I can experience the world in my preferred gender. The rest of the time, those non-Woman's Days, I reflect on my last recent Woman's Day and anticipate my next Woman's Day.

Which is kind of sad... wasting those days in between living as a MINO (man in name only) when I  could be living full-time as a woman.

C'est la vie.

Actors Alex Ringler and Marty Thomas femulating on stage in Pageant: The Musical
(New York City, February 2014).

Wearing Madeleine.