Androgyny is back in fashion

Daily Fashion Juice
Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Androgyny is back in fashion, so man up, ladies

Last February, as fashion designers showed their fall 2011 collections, it didn't take long to see that this would be a season about sex. The woman in red lurked everywhere, along with the mysterious femme in black lace and feathers.

But the most provocative woman may look more like a man.

As exhibit A, we point to Lady Gaga's chain-smoking, expletive-fuming male alter ego, Jo Calderone, who set off a Tweet-fest during this past Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards. You had to appreciate the irony of "his" accepting her award for Best Female Video, even if some viewers thought the act wore out its welcome.

Androgyny is hardly new to the entertainment industry. Before David Bowie, Grace Jones, Annie Lennox, Michael Jackson, Boy George, Prince, Madonna, Morrissey, Adam Lambert and the Cure's Robert Smith, to name a few, there were Marlene Dietrich and Katharine Hepburn - although they didn't abandon their curlers and makeup.

The fashion industry has flirted with the idea for decades, too - even centuries. Fashion historian Tove Hermanson, writing for the academic blog Worn Through, notes how women accessorized with men's headgear in the 1700s after they began riding horses for sport.

Nearly as prevalent as the ladies in red and black on fall's runways were ladies in menswear-inspired suits. Many designers continue to channel Yves Saint Laurent's '70s sensibility, Nordstrom fashion director Gregg Andrews says. He also sees '40s influences happening.

Of course, YSL creative director Stefano Pilati sent out fabulous pantsuits, carrying on a tradition established in 1966 with his predecessor's iconic Le Smoking tuxedo suits. But so did Tommy Hilfiger, Gucci, Ferragamo, Ralph Lauren, Hermès and others. Often, their models had super-short, slicked-back hair; and if they wore jewelry, it was power chains, not pearls.

On the runways, who doesn't want to push the theatrics? Jean Paul Gaultier has sent Andrej Pejic, who's a man, down his women's show runways for several seasons now.

Magazine editors seem to love the menswear look, perhaps because a great model or actress can make it smolder in an alluringly styled, creatively lit fashion photograph. For quick reference, see last Sunday's Wall Street Journal Magazine cover featuring "The Seductive Charm of Rachel Weisz."

Note, however, that her underwear peeks through the wool in every image. Today, we prefer our man-women with some skin.

"It's not Annie Hall," Andrews suggests, "and it's not like you raided your husband's closet."

Fall's hot jackets and pants are shapely and feminine, he adds, with fitted silhouettes and fluidity. "It's about the lady, as opposed to the lady trying to look like a man." Today's woman is more powerful than her predecessors, he says. "She doesn't have to look like a man to compete in his world."

For most of us, there are some tricks to adapting the look. For starters, find one-button jackets that nip the silhouette in at the waist. Some jackets are boxy; belt them or layer them over something fitted "so you see shape underneath," Andrews advises.

Choose drapey pants and leave the man-tie behind. If you wear a great white shirt, make it one with bows or pleats.

Menswear influences also are showing up in dresses and other pieces with patterned fabrics such as houndstooth plaids. But there's always a feminine touch, Andrews says.

He loved Gaga's performance, by the way. "She's a master at what she does, whether you like it or not," he says.

He doesn't expect fashion to follow that look anymore than it did last year's meat dress, although he says "counter trends" can emerge immediately when consumers reject a trend.

Fall's ladylike attitude - which extends to pumps and structured handbags - appears to be plenty strong enough to hold up. Amid all her sisters in man-killer dresses, however, the woman in the pantsuit may only need to stand quietly in the doorway to be noticed.

Take note, Jo.