JeffB

Thanks. The black and gold combination was what attracted me to those sandals and I knew they would work for me.

22 hours ago, jeremy1986 said:

These sandals are very cute

but I really love that denim mini - really nice!

Thanks for the kind words.

20 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

The 30 pounds has made a noticeable and positive difference! Do the clothes that you have bought recently still fit?

Yes, they do. And stuff I've had for years and had been, shall I say it, snug, now fits much better.

16 hours ago, SkirtDude said:

Looking great as always! "Sunni" seems a controversial name for sandals, though I've got a pair of their "Shia" ones at home in silver   What did your cousin think of your outfit? I think it looks very smart, and I LOVE the purple top! I wish toner carts weren't so expensive. Be warned that the cheap refills can burst and wreck your printer  

Looking forward to your next jaunt  

Well, my cousin didn't arrive until three hours later and I had already changed. As for the cartridge, I bought one especially for my printer, nothing cheap about it.

15 hours ago, Lawrence said:

I didn't know ab out the hair handicap.  Sorry.  I was just thinking how nice it would be to look the part.  If you only want to dress as a woman then go for it.  I would prefer to be mistaken for a woman and look the part.

Don't sweat it. Like I've said, I like how I look.

19 hours ago, CAT said:

I agree Jeff,,,,, I want to look like me just a guy in a skirt and heels not someone else.   No problem with someone who wants to look or "the part" or fully dress, just not my thing 

Same here. I'm perfectly happy with how I present myself in public.

17 hours ago, mlroseplant said:

Jeff is, despite his trailblazing attire, the Master of blending in. There are not many women in Jeff's age bracket with long hair, at least not in this country. It would truly shock me if Jeff suddenly wanted long hair!

Regarding hair, it's enough to have any at all, given my age. Heck, I'm surprised I haven't started going bald! 

Jaunt #384, 7/25/2017: An empty toner cartridge on my printer lead to yesterday’s brief outing. You see, my cousin is a landlord for a couple of properties and she has me print out leases for new tenants, well, I was tasked with printing a lease but wasn’t able to do so because my toner cartridge ran out of juice. Since I promised her a lease, I had to go to a computer store in the sticks to buy a replacement, so I decided to turn that into an outing, garbed in a light purple tank top, a dark denim miniskirt, yet another new pair of flat sandals from Payless, they being the “Sunni” in black and gold along with a black handbag.

Yes, I went casual again, because it felt both natural and extremely comfortable, oh, yeah, regarding the skirt, the first time I wore it was several years ago, pairing it with my four inch heeled thigh high boots, I remember being so self-conscious about wearing the darn thing, I was fearful of even bending over, never mind sitting down. But today it’s no big deal as I feel at ease in it, as for the new sandals, they were both cute and comfy, even a little flashy, given the black and gold color combination and were a treat to wear. By the by, I also have those shoes in brown. As for the expedition, it took a little while to get where I was going thanks to late afternoon traffic, but I arrived, hopped out and went in the store where there was a good crowd, as fortune would have it, the cartridge I needed was in stock, but, being a hopeless gadget nut, I still wandered through the store gazing at stuff for a good twenty minutes before I went to the register to pay for my item.

Once again, there was no hesitation about the outfit, I simply put on clothes, MY clothes and went about my business like everyone else, and that’s what makes what I do lots of fun, and isn’t that what freestyling is all about? Lastly, my cousin was pleased with the lease I printed out for her after I got back home. More to come....

nzfreestyler: Well, I do pay a great deal of attention to my appearance because I strive to look my very best. I wouldn't leave the house if I didn't. And yes, I agree that I do blaze trails for others to follow through my experiences in public as a freestyler, and that's a good feeling.

Lawrence: I don't have enough hair to let it grow, so I don't worry about it. When I go out in a skirt or dress, I only want to look like me.

Whoa! Didn't notice the nails! Nice catch, Cali!

Thanks for the kind words, nz! I take pride in my legs and how good they look in a short skirt. As for the coordination, I work hard at that as well since I take my appearance as a freestyler seriously, even when I wear a casual outfit.

I must say that's a pretty cool look he's sporting.

Jaunt #383, 7/23/2017: Originally, I was going to go to King of Prussia on Saturday, but the weather was so icky hot and humid, I just didn't have the strength to bother, so I didn't. However, conditions were a good deal more comfortable the next day, giving me the proper incentive to head out to do a couple of errands, garbed once again in purely casual attire: a turquoise tank top, a denim miniskirt which I paired with a white belt, a brand new pair of flat sandals (“Parsley”) in white from Payless and a handbag to match. I think I've arrived at the point in my evolution as a freestyler that I don't consider my outings as any big deal, I simply put on the clothes I choose to wear, slip on shoes, toss stuff in a handbag, clip on earrings and took off to care care of business, nothing more, nothing less. And that's the way it should be.

My destination was Springfield and Home Depot, while it was still a tad sticky and humid, even without sunshine, I still felt nice and comfortable in my short skirt, and the new shoes were both easy and fun to wear as the notion of wearing heels never once entered my mind. Oh, by the by, I have the “Parsley” sandals in tan and black, look to see me in them as summer progresses. I was at Home Depot to buy a tire inflator for myself to keep in the trunk of my car, and an outdoor planter for a neighbor who liked the one I bought last week and wanted one of his own, and, at just ten bucks, it wasn't a huge expenditure. From there, I headed down the road to Best Buy for some good natured gadget ogling for a solid twenty minutes before heading to the register with a Blu-Ray copy of Kong: Skull Island. My last stop of the day was to McDonalds for lunch where I had a salad and a bottle of water before I returned home.

While I love dressing up just as much as the next woman, going casual is great fun too as I can let my hair down and be totally free and easy, something that felt incredibly good. And by giving off that particular vibe, no one pays any notice to what I'm wearing, because I go out of my way to make it no big deal, I'm just out and about and doing my thing like everybody else. As Frank Sinatra once sang, that's life. More to come....

On 7/13/2017 at 1:01 PM, w6ish said:

of course i should add:  over the winter my hair went big time grey.  so i'm sporting that salt and pepper look which i think doesn't jive with 6 inch heels.  some gal pals say keep it, others say get down to the salon where they can fix you up to jet black.

what do you think?  keep the salt and pepper look or go with, like in the above "hair do" photo, back to jet black?  (i'm thinking jet black.)

I've been salt and pepper for some time now, but then, I'm 58, so that's to be expected. And you know what? I don't care. I know I'm middle aged and that's no big deal, so I don't bother doing anything with what hair I have other that washing it and having it cut.

nzfreestyler: Yeah, that does seem to be a lot of beaurocratic nonsense to me. I mean, whatever happens to letting the employees dictate ergonomics in the workplace since they spend all their time there while bean counters and so-called experts on the matter don't.

Thanks for the kind words. The gray skirt I wore on Monday came from Primark and I like it a lot as it's versatile as I've worn it with flats and heels, bare legged and with tights, I've worn it in the summer and in the middle of winter. No, I don't get any stares while out and about, I can only assume the public accepts my presentation, or that a guy in a skirt is no big deal. As for the earrings, they're clip-on, I'm not ready to get my ears pierced, at least not right now.

Thanks for the kind words, guys! Much appreciated. While I still love heels, flat sandals have become great fun for me as well.

Jaunt #382, 7/17/2017: As fate would have it, I was afforded an opportunity to go out on a brief outing to the Best Buy in Springfield when I got an email saying that an external hard drive I ordered that morning was ready for pickup at the store, so I decided to turn an otherwise dull run into an outing. Just like yesterday, I went casual because the mid-afternoon heat made me lazy, so I went with a black tank top, my gray miniskirt with the distressed hem, the Payless “Noble” flat sandals in black and a black handbag, nothing special because I didn't feel like wearing anything special.

Despite the icky heat and humidity, I felt nice and cool in my outfit, especially the skirt while it felt good to wear those flat sandals, after all, I seek to blend in with my surroundings through the outfits I wear, it’s exceedingly rare to see women wearing heels on casual outings (in fact, more often than not, they wear flip-flops, something I will NEVER do), so, why should I, right? Anyhoo, I arrived at the store some twenty minutes later, hopped out of the car and strolled in, picked up my order, lollygaged in the aisles for ten to fifteen minutes, then paid for my order and left.  On my way back home, I was feeling thirsty, so I stopped off at McDonald’s for a refreshing cup of iced tea which I enjoyed in the store before hopping back in the car and driving home.

Short and sweet, but enjoyable like all my outings, particularly since I didn't plan my trip well in advance and fiddled around for an hour beforehand assembling an outfit, I just threw on a top and skirt, slipped on sandals, stuffed things in a handbag, put on earrings (I don't feel dressed without them now) and left. Nothing more, nothing less. Oh, by the way, to explain the pose in the second picture, I’ve probably mentioned that I wear a body briefer to keep a middle aged belly in check, but, I've been on a diet regimen and, thanks to cutting out junk food and hitting the gym regularly, I've lost thirty pounds since May 1st. In that picture, I wore no briefer, what you see is my natural, slimmed down midsection. Not bad, eh? More to come....

Jaunt #381, 7/16/2017: There are times when I want to dress up and look fancy, and then there are other times when I prefer to go the purely casual route. Today was a case of the latter as I went out for the day in a blue shirt with a lace insert, an 18 inch khaki chino skirt, my new Payless “Mara” flat sandals in tan and a brown handbag. Yes, I know this website is all about high heels, but I'm all about the complete image as a fashion freestyler, besides, I love wearing flat sandals, and these shoes, which you can see below were cute and comfortable. Meanwhile, I'm somewhat irked hat I don't have a tan handbag to go with the shoes, but I'll take care of that oversight as soon as I can.

So, dressed casually, I headed out to Springfield and Home Depot as I had a task to complete, buying an outdoor planter to place in front of my house. While I don't have a green thumb, I'll figure something out as I've been curious about having a planter. It took me a good twenty minutes or so to decide on a planter I wanted, but I found one that suited my needs, and it was on sale for twenty bucks, and, after adding potting soil to the haul, I was on my way. Or rather, I was off to Acme next door to buy a couple of things, then it was off to downtown for fun and frolic. Arriving downtown, it took just ten minutes to find a parking spot some two blocks from Rittenhouse Square Park, but my first stop was to One Liberty Square for lunch, even though it was noticeably warm, I was cool and comfy in my short skirt, I can't understand why more guys don't wear skirts which beats shorts for comfort hands down on hot days. At OLS, I had a turkey club salad with a bottle of water from Saladworks, both of which I enjoyed. Oh, yes, I forgot to mention, no one paid me any notice. Big surprise, huh?

And that lack of attention continued on my way from OLS along crowded streets to the park when I found a bench in a shady spot where I seethed down to read my latest e-book, The Hatching by Ezekiel Boone, a 1950’s style sci-fi creature feature set in the modern day about mankind being threatened by hordes of carnivorous spiders, and so far, it's been a good read. Perhaps I'll dress up for my next Sunday jaunt, but, for today, it felt good to dress down while enjoying the short skirt I wore and the new flat sandals. More to come....

23 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Apparently the magazine received quite a backlash and a fair bit of mockery on Twitter - not because of its 'daring' but more because of its presumption. Apparently the extent of gender fluidity expressed in the article was little more than the occasional sharing of T-shirts by the two...

I'd say it was a well deserved bit of mockery. Heck, you could even say the Singer article smacked of deceptive advertising as I saw precious little in the way of Gender Fluidity.

I don't think I would've gone to that house. In fact, I darn welll KNOW I wouldn't have gone!

SkirtDude: The anxiety tends to come from not knowing what we'll encounter while out in public, and those imaginary fears leads to the skittishness that people pick up on. However, by displaying calmness and confidence, perhaps even a blasé attitude helps us get by while freestyling, and that's important. 

nzfreestyler: I've come to take every aspect of my appearance seriously, and that includes making sure my accessories look right. But, I'm still learning what works and what doesn't, it's an ongoing process.

Jaunt #380, 7/8/2017: A week into July and the weather has been a tad unpredictable, sunny one day, rainy the next, but conditions were good today for a jaunt to the King of Prussia Mall, attired in a dark olive shirt, a dark gray denim pencil skirt, the Payless “Stacia” low wedge sandals in black and a black satchel bag. After a previous trip to KOP wearing those sandals, I rather enjoyed the experience and was eager to take advantage of the opportunity a second time, the whole outfit was designed to look casual and feel comfortable, and I succeeded at both, especially the latter, and that was important to me as summer meanders along with its heat and humidity.

Arriving at the mall a little after eleven a.m., I hopped out and strolled into the mall where, predictably, my appearance was met by total indifference which has become par for the course on my outings at KOP, and I found that refreshing. My first stop was to a comic book shop where several employees and their friends were cosplaying as superheroes for a raffle being held in the store, I saw Spider-Man, Green Arrow, Captain America and a guy in an elaborate version of Iron Man’s armor. Compared to those folks, a guy in a skirt like me was dull and boring as hell. After leaving there, I walked down to the food court which was packed as it was just before twelve, I dined on a six inch ham sandwich and a bottle of water from Subway while the only stare a got was from a little girl who sat six feet away, that was it. From there, I headed off to JCPenney as the store was in the final stages of its store closing sale, surprisingly, I didn't find anything I liked, so I left.

I wound up spending nearly four hours at the mall which is typical for time spent at KOP and no one gave me a second glance the whole time, which was plenty cool. I guess that my appearance, always tasteful and appropriate doesn't warrant any attention from the public, and yes, there were times when I wondered, “Is it really THIS easy?”, and the answer is a definite YES! It is that easy to freestyle in a huge mall as long as you don't look odd, strange or out of place, and I mean to continue having fun as a freestyler at malls. More to come....

Well, in those shoes, there's no danger of not being seen after dark.  

On 5/5/2017 at 3:18 PM, torybri said:

I LOVE wearing flats.  Even though they don't have heels they are still cute and feminine looking.

 

Very nice indeed!

9 hours ago, HappyinHeels said:

JeffB,

Since you already look fabulous standing up yo should try some photos in a seated position. Or stand close to a wall and raise one leg halfway up to accent your shoes just like the women do. How about some outside shots?? You get all over SE PA and South Jersey so there is no shortage of chances to do this. Think about it.  HappyinHeels 

Good suggestions. I'll see what I can do about trying them out.

miroseplant: Well, I have considered getting my ears pierced, and I just might do that one day. That would be fun. As for the poses, it's not often someone brings that up, and I appreciate your having done so. It hadn't occurred to me that my poses haven't changed all that much in seven years, and, I must admit that had surprised me. Working with a ten second timer on my camera, that doesn't give me too much time to work on my poses unless I do so before I take the pictures. In any event, I'm going to have to work on that.

Cali: I also walk and stand like a woman, I also smooth my skirt before I sit and cross my legs as femininely as possible. The way I see it, that's the least I could do when dressed as a woman.

36 minutes ago, nzfreestyler said:

Just received these red slingbacks by courier today! I had no idea ! Its so exciting! Thought I should put a photo up before I cook dinner

I think they'll fit - I really like them, and I love reds, and they're my size, so I'll have to try them on and see how they look.

(I also thought I'd show off my laptop desktop background!)

Impressive! Those sling backs look uber sharp! And you just can't beat red shoes! Bravo, my friend!

7 hours ago, nzfreestyler said:

Agreed 100%. Thats a great look JeffB. Those maxi skirts are lovely, light and floaty on the hips, they're a pleasure to wear, work with any heel height and we don't need to worry about the skirt blowing in the breeze!

Your ensemble is great. I love the necklace mirroring the keyhole in your top, and the navy/grey to navy matching is superb, also your lace in the top matches the skirt so well. A lot of attention to detail - its very polished.

Can I suggest a grey/neutral toned handbag would be a more versatile investment. Black and navy do work together, but you're right a navy handbag would be better than black. My point is I think a neutral handbag in greys(maybe a little lavender too) would work well with many many outfits....

 

Keep up the good work!

Thanks for the kind words. I've mentioned in previous posts that I take upwards of an hour to plan my outfits where I experiment with tops, skirts, shoes and accessories until I put together something I like and feel good wearing. I never leave the house unless I'm fully satisfied with my appearance. Meanwhile, I'm going to see about adding more jewelry, namely necklaces and especially earrings as I'm now hooked on them and don't feel dressed without them. A gray or neutral handbag, eh? Hmm! Interesting! I'll have to see about that!

7 hours ago, nzfreestyler said:

Hi Jeff,

Sorry to dredge up the past - I'm going back through an astounding journal of jaunts....

I must say this look from ages back - is just so much on trend now - maxi skirt with see through panels, a hint of legs within, classical patent pumps...  you were well ahead of the fashions - or the designers are following you now!

This is an awesome look!

WOW! That sure was a long time ago! HA! I was barely two years into my jaunting thread and haven't been skirting for all that long, so I was still refining my overall look. The polo shirt was a men's shirt, something I wouldn't be caught dead wearing today as EVERYTHING that I sport on my outings are from the women's side of the store.

20 hours ago, Lawrence said:

You go man!  You look quite nice and moderately conservative.  I prefer shorter skirts and dresses but what ever floats your boat!!

 

Thanks for the kind words. I do strive to look stylish and tasteful when it comes to what I wear in public. There's a certain....something about those long, gauzy skirts I've sported that really makes me feel feminine when I wear them.

19 hours ago, Thighbootguy said:

The Philly museum is a major museum.  It would take days to see all of it, so like you said, "giving me a reason to go back, and soon".  I think @Lawrencesummed it up nicely that you present a "quite nice and moderately conservative" look.  I see no reason why anyone (other than kids) would notice you wandering through the museum or sitting in a park.  And as maddening as "no one noticed" is, it was nice that some folks did and made positive comments.  Again, you get points for proper, prior, planning.

"Moderately conservative" works for me when it comes to my attire. I like to dress up as it makes me feel good inside, case in point, when it comes to tops, I've gone out of my way of late to wear openly feminine styles because I like how they look on me, I don't want to sport anything that looks even remotely mannish. I'm paying more attention to the jewelry I wear and, thanks to you and the gift you provided, I refuse to leave the house without earrings. Just another part of my evolution as a fashion freestyler. As for the museum, I'm already planning to return later this month, again, there's so much to see, perhaps I'll become a member and save on my trips there.

Jaunt #379, 7/2/2017: July arrived on Saturday sticky, steamy, soupy and generally yucky. Even without much in the way of sunshine, it still felt like a sauna, while I had considered doing a jaunt, the miserable humidity just sucked all the energy out of me, so I stayed home. Sunday was much better after a cold front, complete with a thunderstorm blew through late on Saturday, knocking the humidity down to more tolerable levels, so I decided to dress up again, sporting a navy blue blouse, a white and navy print skirt, the Payless “Sinclair” platform wedge sandals in navy and a black handbag. For longtime followers of this thread, you know I like to have my bag match my shoes whenever possible, so pairing navy with black wasn't exactly ideal, in any event, I'll have to buy a navy bag at my earliest convenience.

As for my outing, I headed to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, my first trip of 2017 there. Because of the Fourth of July holiday, there was a larger than usual crowd of patrons, in fact, I had to wait in live outside for several minutes before I got inside. As usual, it was most enjoyable to partake of the sort of culture that comes from being around art, and it's certainly an enlightening experience, however, it sure was crowded, including a goodly number of young kids, a few of whom wide eyed and did double takes when they saw me, but hey, I'm used to that, it's commonplace with youngsters, the grownups for the most part don't pay me much mind however. I wound up spending little over three hours in the museum, and, as is often the case, I never feel as though I saw everything the place had to offer, thus giving me a reason to go back, and soon. My second stop was to the familiar haunts of Rittenhouse Square Park, I parked some two blocks from there, and, as I was on my way to the park, I was stopped by a group of nearly a dozen twentysomethings who, standing in front of a church, asked me to take a picture of them, which I was happy to do, after I took the picture, one of the girls said I looked very nice while a second said she liked my shoes, I smiled and thanked them both before going my way.

It felt like the park and the streets were more crowded and bustling as usual especially the park, and I liked that, even though it took a wee bit of time to find an empty bench to occupy. Armed with my trusty nook e-reader, I spent nearly an hour and a half with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson while the public came and went, then I packed up and went towards Barnes & Noble for a drink and a snack. While at the corner across the street from the store, another twentysomething looked down at my feet and said my shoes looked cute, I smiled and thanked her before crossing. Two compliments in one day, not bad, all the more reason why I love wearing women's clothes and shoes in public, for moments just like those, because when I look good, I feel good, and that's what fashion freestyling is all about. More to come....