Moot was a designer who wanted lingerie options for everyone, regardless of their gender identity or their anatomy. I love lingerie and I always look for new places to shop, especially for people like ourselves.
I was very much taken off guard when they announced last week they were wrapping up their business. I’ve been writing about Moot and wearing their items in photo shoots for years. I’m really sad about this news. I got to know the Moot team over time and they were always sincere, enthusiastic, and supportive. Lovely people all around.
This is the second lingerie designer for gender nonconforming people that has closed in less than a year. Last June HommeMystere also announced their closing.
I think any small business would be a challenge to run, and I think a business aimed at a very niche, but very dedicated community, doesn’t make it any easier. A business like Moot is very much a passion project.
One of the challenges, according to Moot, was staying visible on social media, such as Instagram. With such an intimate product it’s not difficult to be flagged as pornography by an algorithm. I don’t like going down the paranoia rabbit hole but I do wonder if companies like Victoria’s Secret run into issues like this. I wonder if the demographic that Moot targets has something to do with their social media issues.
I’ll always have the beautiful lingerie from Moot in my dresser, but I am sad knowing that I can’t add more of their gorgeous, hand-made panties to my wardrobe.
Our favorite wisdom and insight provider is back with her latest episode of Help Me, Hannah! Hannah McKnight tackles the importance of shapewear this episode – and bares all to show us what it takes to achieve those curves and smooth those lines using some of our most popular shapewear such as slimmers, cinchers and corsets! As always, Hannah delivers with her usual wit and charm to help us get the look we want when we step out in that dress or outfit. Watch Now>>
This is the longest video we’ve done and was one of the more humbling ones lol. I hope you enjoy it! I love doing these things.
So, I have a boss. My boss also has a boss. He in turn also has a boss. This would be my Great Grandpa Boss, I suppose.
In the almost six years I have been with the college where I work, I have never, ever spoken to Great Grandpa Boss (GGB).
Until a couple of weeks ago.
Each week my team has a Zoom meeting with another team and most of the time GGB pops in and he usually just listens but on rare occasions he will offer his thoughts. He’s a smart guy and I don’t want to portray him as out of touch but sometimes when a manager or whatever is that far up the leadership ladder they are not always aware of the challenges people in other roles face.
My school has made some… questionable financial decisions in the last few years and the cyclical nature of college enrollment sometimes makes it difficult to accurately predict how the upcoming year will shake out. This year is like that. Colleges are expensive to maintain and colleges, and, at least in the United States, can be expensive to attend. Declining enrollment, influenced by things outside of our control, usually leads to financial problems.
I don’t think my college will be closing anytime soon or ever, but last week, for the first time I’ve been with the school, they laid off five to ten percent of the staff. Considering that, alongside declining enrollment, and the aforementioned questionable financial decisions, it makes things a little… twitchy.
During a recent Zoom meeting GGB did something he’s never done before. He asked the team for their thoughts on “the current situation”. Predictably, crickets. I mean, who wants to risk saying anything that could come across as criticism?
Apparently I do.
After a few moments of tense silence that could be cut with a stiletto, I offered my thoughts. Mind you, I didn’t mention the business decisions he made but after twenty years in education it’s easy to see patterns in education and the ups and downs of college enrollment. Although there are things outside of our control, certain factors, such as employment statistics, are usually a telltale sign when it comes to college enrollment.
What I mean is that if the unemployment rate is high, colleges see an increase in people going back to school to learn new skills and to be more marketable. The opposite of this is true. If you have been paying attention, declining college enrollment shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.
Essentially, this could have been predicted and the current environment could have been planned for. MAYBE we shouldn’t have made the business decisions we did and spent the millions we did when anyone with a passing familiarity with patterns would have seen the current environment coming. I mean, aren’t industry trends and history important when it comes to planning for the future?
I know I overthink but none of this is, in my opinion, is overthinking. It’s simply paying attention. I am not freaking out because I saw this coming.
Anyway, back to the meeting.
I carefully offered my thoughts. I slowly chose my words. I avoided any phrasing that sounded like criticism. I stuck to the facts, metrics, statistics, and what history has shown us. I was nervous the whole time and kept telling myself to stooooooooooop. Eventually I did.
As I was babbling away, I looked at my boss in the little square to gauge his reaction. I mean, it’s kinda risky when your employee is engaging with your boss’ boss. I was afraid I was crossing a line but considering he wasn’t gritting his teeth with a wide-eyed stare I took that as a good sign.
The call ended, and I waited for my boss to call me. His boss tends to overreact and calls him the moment anything happens. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he yelled at my boss for my comments, not necessarily for what I said, but for simply engaging with his boss and offering anything less than a perspective that everything is awesome.
But that call never came so I chalked it up as maybe I didn’t do anything wrong.
Morbid curiosity and paranoia got the best of me so a few days later I asked my boss if I committed a faux pas or career suicide. He assured me that I was fine but he did say that he was stifling a laugh the whole time because he could tell from my facial expressions that I was holding back. That I was painfully being polite. That I was struggling to choose the right words and phrasing.
I laughed and I said he was probably right. I likely was doing these things, even subconsciously. Just as history and trends can be telltale signs, I also have them.
The other day my wife and I had a similar conversation about my facial expressions. I am not mysterious, I am not subtle, I don’t have a poker face. Even if I am not saying a word it’s easy to decipher what I am thinking or feeling.
By now you HAVE to be wondering what on earth ANY of this has to do with a website that focuses on gender identity. If you are, that’s okay, because I am starting to wonder about that as well.
Not long ago I did a lingerie photo shoot. I received the final pictures about three weeks ago and besides tweeting a shot here and there, I haven’t shared them. Normally I am alllll over posting new pictures but I am just not enthusiastic about these.
My lack of enthusiasm has nothing to do with Shannonlee’s photography or the beautiful studio or the gorgeous lingerie. It has everything to do with ME. I mean, I am the constant in these shots, right? The lingerie might be cute, the angle of the photo might be perfect, the light streaming into the studio might be breathtaking, but at the end of the day it’s a photo with me in it.
I am consciously smiling more during these shoots. I mean, why wouldn’t I? I love these things. I have also finally accepted that I can’t really pull off a come-hither look so, I may as well smile. But there were two things that were on my mind that day. I was having car issues and I was worried if my Kia would make the 13 mile journey to the mechanic. The other was the undeniable fact that I have gained weight.
I can fake a smile during these shoots. No problem. But it’s not realllly faking a smile. I love shoots and I love working with Shannonlee so they’re a lot of fun. When I start hearing the click of her camera it means that it’s showtime. I shift my mindset and smile away.
However, this shoot was a little different. Shannonlee was using a different camera which didn’t have the friendly click signaling that she was taking photos. Without this auditory cue I was never sure if she was taking photos or looking through the camera lens and deciding if the shot looked good or not. What I mean is that I was mostly lost in my thoughts and my facial expressions, my body language, was reflecting what I was thinking about.
In addition to thinking about my car (and the potential expenses and the risk of breaking down on the freeway in four inch stilettos), I was thinking about my body. Which is easy to do when you’re wearing nothing but a bra and panty and you’re surrounded by mirrors. I lost quite a bit of weight about ten years ago and it’s been creeping back. I still work out, I still avoid sweets, and I don’t drink alcohol or soda, so there’s not an obvious reason for this. I mean, I am aging and my body is also aging and slowing down, particularly my metabolism.
I met with my doctor very recently and we are exploring if something is wrong with my thyroid which impacts metabolism. My anti-depressant also has a side effect of weight gain. I was prescribed something new that I am hoping my insurance will approve.
I am thankful for my body but I suppose I can’t shake off feeling discouraged that all the work I did to lose weight and to keep it off is coming undone.
Because of these two consuming thoughts, I simply wasn’t in the right headspace for a shoot. And because I never really knew if Shannonlee was taking a photo I wasn’t always flashing a smile for the camera when it was time to. In a way, this shoot shows me at my most human. You can see the pictures and just know that something is on my mind. Worry, regret, discouragement, disappointment, reluctant acceptance…
In many ways I don’t like these photos. But in other ways, I think it’s interesting to have moments of introspection and emotion captured. I think the lingerie, although sexy, adds to a feeling of vulnerability. This is a normal emotion when you’re almost nude.
The photo below is me staring into a mirror. I remember a feeling of resigned reality that my body has changed and my lack of clothing can’t hide my curves and love handles. It was a very introspective moment that I didn’t know Shannonlee had captured.
Of course, the shoot wasn’t all doom and gloom. It’s always fun to shoot with Shannonlee and when I knew she was taking pictures I did my best to flash a smile. I was feeling a little bold and we stepped onto the roof and I climbed up the fire escape in stilettos for a few pictures.
I used to keep a journal when I was younger and I wrote almost every day. Looking back through them I am glad I did this. Remembering moments and thoughts and emotions and experiences that have been lost to time is really interesting to me. To have that chronicle of your life. Although I don’t journal anymore, I feel that this website, these photos, show a journey. My perspective shifts, my body changes, my confidence ebbs and flows… I suppose in a few years (or hours) I will think that this post is rather foolish and self-pitying.
These photos, although not all of them are my favorite, mark a day in my life when I wore my heart on my sleeve.
…when I wasn’t even wearing sleeves, but you know what I mean.
Love, Hannah
P.S. Instead of the normal posting of each outfit that I wear in a shoot over several posts, I just updated the photo page with pictures from the day.
Not to sound tooooo shallow but when the MN T-Girls meet up it’s not uncommon for us to compliment each other on our outfits. Can you blame us? We always look so cute.
Talking about shoes or a dress usually leads to us talking about lucky we were to find heels that fit or the wonderful experience we had trying on a dress at a department store. Every outfit has a story.
Part of the story is where we found it. It seems like most of the clothes I wear on a regular basis are from En Femme. And this is not because I am promoting them specifically or because of the Help Me, Hannah! videos we create together. I wear En Femme for the same reason I work with them: because I love their clothes.
This adoration comes from the variety of outfits, the quality and design of their gaffs, but also from how they fit. I love that a bodysuit can solve a lot of my wardrobe dilemmas and I love how their bodysuits just fit perfectly, especially in the shoulders.
When they have a new item on their site I am excited to check it out. I was pleasantly surprised when they announced the Angelina Bustier. I heart lingerie and I was excited to see En Femme add this to their website. They do amazing things with bodysuits and dresses so expanding to more lingerie options made me a happy girl.
It arrived and I added it to the ever expanding items for my last photo shoot. Like every item I order I had tried it on to make sure it fit (no concerns there) but I usually try things on in boy mode since that’s my default presentation. When I actually wear something whether it’s for a shoot or going out, that’s when I really see how something looks on me.
I was excited to see how the bustier looked with my forms (hooray for breast form pockets) when I was all dolled up. I was not disappointed. Like En Femme’s bodysuits, the bustier is designed for a longer torso. Since the bustier has pocket bras the addition of curves did not alter how the bustier fit. Sometimes a dress fits perfectly but when I wear it with forms the added va va voom alters how it drapes over me.
I paired this with one of En Femme’s thong gaffs, stockings, and gloves. I think I looked amazing.
I feel that a quality and sexy bustier is hard to find. I also feel that they are an underrated piece of lingerie with a lot of attention pointed towards corsets. But a bustier is sexy and is perfect for someone who wants something beautiful without the discipline that a corset demands.
Love this item and I hope that En Femme continues to offer more pieces like this.
underDARE is the Twin Cities first in-person shopping experience for gender-affirming undergarments.
underDARE offers a physical location for LGBTQ+ folks to shop for gender-affirming and other community-specific undergarments they would otherwise have to find online. With multiple brands and inclusive sizing, underDARE offers a comfortable, safe, and nurturing, appointment-only setting for people to touch, try on, and purchase undergarments.
This is wonderful and I am absolutely going to schedule a visit. I hope underDARE is around for a long time.
I tend to think that I am creative but I am intimidated by complete freedom. If someone asked me to paint a picture and they said to do whatever I pleased I would stare at the canvas for months. But if they said they wanted a square painting of their cat with a lot of blue or whatever I would have much more fun with it. I think limitations inspire creativity.
Keeping that in mind, I did a photo shoot with Malone Portraits in June of 2023. Alison, the studio owner and photographer (and all around amazing human being) asked if I would be willing to model for some pictures she would be using to promote the boudoir side of her work.
And obviously I said yes.
I asked what she wanted to shoot and her request was working with different textures, fabrics, and looks that screamed confidence.
I liked those guidelines.
I asked two friends for suggestions and through their generosity they sent me a few items and accessories for the shoot. I soon had some outfits in my wardrobe that I likely wouldn’t have purchased on my own but they fit the vibe of the shoot perfectly.
I would like to interject here that although I don’t think myself as A model, I DO model sometimes. I think there’s a difference. When you agree to model something, you are not always wearing something you would choose to wear on your own accord. I mean, one time I wore pants. Obviously you are choosing to wear it for the shoot, but it might not be something you would select if you were left to your own devices.
That being said, the outfits fit perfectly for what Alison was looking for, but were not necessarily ME, if that makes sense. I know not everyone is going to like these photos but please know that they are not representative of any lifestyle choice I am making nor do they reveal a personal fetish.
There’s a lot of skin, lol.
And I have no problem with that. One benefit of getting older is that I am less focused on the eroticism that is commonly associated with someone’s body. I find it a little off putting when someone messages me about how much they enjoyed seeing a bulge in my panties.
It’s like… grow up.
Some messages tell me how I should be tucking or that I am revealing “my true gender” by not having a completely smooth front. I don’t feel that certain anatomical features, whether one’s height or genitalia, have to be associated with gender. Everyone has genitalia. It’s not that exciting.
If there’s one thing I wish to communicate to the world it’s that there are no standards or requirements for identifying as a certain gender (if you chose to identify as a specific gender at all). There’s no such thing as passing, there’s no such thing as being too tall or anything else. You can be super tall, you can have a deep voice, you can have a penis… none of these details should make a difference when it comes to being who you are.
Hopefully if you see someone who is as tall as you are, or has the same genitalia that you do, it may reassure you that if that person can identify as a certain gender, then you can as well.
Anyway, enough about genitalia.
The three outfits in this post are all very different looks. Each outfit may delight and turn off different people. A small number of people do email me after I post a photo set to let me know that they are displeased with my lifestyle choice that an outfit represents. I am fully aware and conscious that black leather and fishnets are part of the uniform (if you will) of a dominatrix. I am equally aware that pink and ruffles are the staples of anyone who enjoys the sissy life.
However.
Any assumed career path or lifestyle choice are not where I am or where I am going. Just as I don’t feel that certain anatomical features signifies gender, I don’t feel that an outfit HAS to be associated with a fetish, though I am very aware for many people it is.
I think what I am trying and struggling to say is that there’s a strong possibility that not everyone will like these pictures. And that’s okay. You can still send me an email to let me know, lol. But please remember that I am not adopting a new lifestyle or embarking on a new career.
Okay, let’s take a look.
Do you see what I mean? Very fetishy. Outfits that potentially trigger assumptions. When I wear something like this I feel a little silly but I get over it. It’s a strange feeling to wear something that is typically associated with a kink but it does not inspire any sort of emotion in me. Some girls feel very aroused in outfits like these, but they don’t do anything for me.
Regardless, I love these pictures and it was a fun afternoon. Alison’s studio is amazing and she is just a joy to work with.
Where did you find that absolutely gorgeous hot pink bustier with the garters? I am absolutely in love with it and every time you post a picture of your beautiful self with that on I find myself wishing I knew where to find it!
Hi!
I will never pass up an opportunity (or excuse) to post a picture of this cute little bustier.
Unfortunately I have completely forgotten where I found this. I do know that I added this to my overflowing lingerie dresser years and years ago. Even if I could recall where I found it I would be surprised if it was still available.
I bought this when I was deeeeeep in the Pink Fog. I would visit the lingerie section of every boutique and department store and would hope they had something in my size. I was constantly picking up new items and spending waaaay too much money on lingerie when my wife and I were at a point when I probably shouldn’t have been so reckless with money.
This is an example of how this side of us isn’t always an issue, but rather our behavior that is associated with this side of us is. It’s not that I was buying lingerie, the issue was I was spending money that should have been used on the important things, such as utilities and the like.
This set was also likely rather inexpensive and like most clothes, the cost and quality go hand in hand. Many pieces of lingerie, though typically associated with sexy time, can also be practical. A bustier like this is designed to support your bust, in a similar way to a bra, but this cute little number is more about titillation than anything else. The garters have the plastic grips which constantly needed refastening and I can’t imagine wearing this outside of a photo shoot or the bedroom. Or a photo shoot in a bedroom.
I write a lot about the duality that our lives can bring. How our femme lives and our masc lives can often be completely separate from each other with little to no overlap. It’s a strange moment when I am out en femme and I am exchanging emails with my boss or I am in a Zoom meeting but I am dress shopping on a different tab during it.
I can take that duality to a different level when it comes to Hannah’s life. I have the very visible and somewhat public part that this website and other things (such as the Help Me, Hannah! videos) brings. But I also have the more grounded aspect as well, such as my friends in the MN T-Girls.
I usually forget about the public aspect of myself when I am socializing with the other MN T-Girls. What I mean is that a girl in the group will ask a question about something happening in my life. For a moment I am a little confused about how they knew about that and then I remembered that I blogged about it and they read my website. I wore a really cute dress at a recent event and someone asked if the dress came from Venus. I was amazed that they guessed it but then they reminded me that I also blogged that as well.
To be honest, I completely forget about the more prolific aspects of Hannah’s life when the MN T-Girls are together and we’re having girl talk. I forget that my In Real Life friends might see what I write about and what I post.
I do feel a little self-conscious when I am reminded of my online life. Like maybe I overshare, maybe I come off as arrogant or bitchy. I feel, and sometimes hope, that who I am In Real Life is not the same girl as my website suggests. I get emails from time to time calling me shallow or arrogant or self-centered. I hope I don’t come off that way in real life.
It’s more or less a running joke about how I am almost always the first girl to leave an event. I have a short social battery and events tend to take a lot of my energy. I feel easily overwhelmed and anxious in groups but I do okay one-on-one. I sometimes zone out or become easily distracted. One of the traits that lead to my autism diagnoses is that I am realllllly bad at reading social cues and how I just… walk about from a conversation because I think it’s over but it’s not. I suppose I come off as rude or a little spacey.
Honestly I am the last person on the planet that should be running a social group but it is what it is.
I have become quite good at, or at least used to, compartmentalizing different aspects of my life. I keep different friend groups separate, and I keep HIS life and HER life very separate. I then separate Hannah’s In Real Life with her Social Media Life. And this is a good thing. I think if I wasn’t so easily humbled by so many aspects of my life (I am more insecure than I let on) I could easily let the number of followers I have inflate my ego.
But who knows? It’s very possible that some of the members of the MN T-Girls consider me arrogant or bitchy. It’s very possible I have rubbed someone the wrong way. If that happened I am really sorry.
If someone doesn’t like me In Real Life because I came off as rude then it bothers me. As mentioned earlier if I walk away from a conversation it’s because I honestly thought it was over. If someone sends me an email that is critical AND rude, I MAY respond publicly in rare occasions and sometimes my response is bitchy but this is not representative about how I would resolve something in real life.
The reason is that In Real Life interactions are done between people. It’s much easier to be bitchy and cruel through a message or an email or on a website, especially if the message is written anonymously. We write things to other humans that we would never say to another human. I am guilty of this.
An overly critical (or unhinged) email kind of unlocks Bitchy Hannah but if someone were to say the same things to me In Real Life I would probably cry.
I think about criticism more than I should because I always wonder if it’s valid, even if the criticism could have been communicated in a little more constructive or gentle manner.
This has been on my mind lately for two reasons. One reason is a recent email I received and you can read about that here. The other reason is I am getting close to catching up on posting pictures from my last few photo shoots. There’s a fair amount of lingerie pictures.
Annnnnd I forget that people I know In Real Life might see these pictures. Obviously I am comfortable with my body (even if I am unsecure about it) and have no hesitation to share these photos on my website, but being reminded that people I know In Real Life see more of my skin than my doctor sees is a little… uncomfortable, you know?
There’s also the fear that my friends think I am delusional about how I see myself. I am not a model, I do not have a lingerie model’s body. I am almost fifty, I am tired, and my tummy isn’t tight. I am no illusions about myself.
I do what I do because, well, it’s fun. It’s empowering. If you don’t believe me, then you might want to book a boudoir shoot. Seriously. It’s one of the most affirming and beautiful and powerful things I have ever done, but it took a little time to ease into the mindset that these type of shoots require.
Ultimately it’s a good thing that I forget that people I know In Real Life have the potential to see these type of photos. It would be awwwwkward to realize that the girls I am chatting with potentially saw these revealing pictures.
At any rate, I have been thinking about this over the last few weeks as I have been catching up on posting picture for last year’s shoots. I rarely think about what I post, either pictures or something I wrote, after I post it. Once it’s published, it’s out of my head and I start thinking of what the next post will be. I am quite good when it comes to moving on.
That being said, here is the second to last post from November’s photo shoot. I am doing my best to rock two different lingerie sets, both from Allure.
I hope you like these pictures! And if you know me In Real Life, let’s never speak of them, lol.
This is the last picture set from the photo shoot I did waaaaaay back in October of 2023.
It’s funny how something that occurred just a few months ago feels like forever, but I can remember moments from decades past that seemed like they happened yesterday.
That’s perhaps a little more profound than I want to be on a Sunday morning but there you have it.
This picture set is being posted last of this session because I didn’t know what to say about this outfit that I didn’t say already, but let’s see what I can come up with.
So, this set is lingerie. See?
It’s a very pretty set.
Time marches on no matter how one lives their life. You can do nothing or you can pursue amazing things over the course of a year but the passage of the twelve months is going to happen whether or not you do nothing or do everything. It all comes down to what we choose to do with our time.
And I THINK that’s a line from The Lord of the Rings.
We can change over time, but it doesn’t always happen. Sometimes we don’t know notice change until we pause and look back to see and appreciate how far we’ve come. This is when we have to choose how we measure change or progress. Am I financially better off than I was ten years ago? God no. Am I more at peace? Absolutely.
Which is better? It depends on the day, if I am being honest. I am at a crossroads of sort when it comes to my career. I really like my job, more than I have in a while. Therapy helps keeps things in perspective, AND my boss is also in therapy and I’ve seen a significant change in him which has made working for him, and working with him, a lot easier, despite the challenges I had with him about a year or so ago.
But I have to make a decision soon if I want to stay where I am or pursue another job which would pay more.
It’s pretty much the devil I know versus the devil I don’t.
Where was I? Oh, right.
When it comes to my gender identity, my physical appearance plays a more significant part of my self-esteem than I am used to. Not that it should, mind you. When presenting as male I barely give a second thought to how I look. I am not a slob by any means, but as long as my facial hair isn’t too scruffy and I look presentable (of course, where I am going plays a part) than I don’t think about how HE looks. As long as my wife says the shirt I picked out is good then I am content. The standards for male presentation have a very low bar.
I can change, and I have changed, how I look. Some changes have involved weight loss or the quality of the wig I invest in. But these modifications can only go so far. If I don’t FEEL cute, no matter my dress size or how amazing my makeover is, then nothing else matters.
There are some things I can’t control. I can’t control how my body is aging in the typical way a cisgender male’s body ages. Well, I COULD control it through HRT and age with the influence of estrogen but transitioning or doing anything medically or hormonally are not steps I feel are the right path for me.
But I can do two different things.
I can do nothing, or I can pursue amazing things.
Doing nothing, in regards to Hannah’s world, is simply that. I could stop going out en femme, I could stop doing shoots, I could stop sharing pictures. That would eliminate any disparaging thoughts I have about how I look.
But we all know that is not going to happen. Sorry to the haters, lol.
So I choose to pursue amazing things. Of course, we all have different opinions about amazing things. Doing a lingerie photo shoot isn’t appealing to most people on the planet but it’s one of my favorite things. Not because I am giving a supermodel a run for her money but because they represent how far I’ve come over time.
This progress is not necessarily measured by how femme I look. I arguably looked more femme five years ago (and twenty pounds ago) than I do today.
The progress is completely mental. The progress is not caring. The progress is not scrutinizing every single flaw that I have. The progress is strutting forward instead of being overly critical. The progress is not banishing a picture to my hard drive because my tummy is too big or I could have done a better job tucking.
Photo shoots require a lot of things coming together. My makeup artist being available, Shannonlee being available to take the pictures, a studio being available… but even if those stars align it means nothing if I am not feeling it.
Part of this particular shoot had a black leathery mesh bodysuit that is super cute but after just a few pictures I asked to stop. I don’t know why, but I just didn’t feel it. I really have to be in the right mindset for any outfit. But the right mindset has to be there for anything I am doing, photo shoot or anything else. I have a hard time faking sincerity or enthusiasm and if and when I catch myself making that sincerity I just… check out and I have to stop whatever I am doing.
I know if I feel a stillness then I go proceed with an outfit. Essentially if I don’t feel ugly or feel self-conscience or feel silly. If I can’t hear my inner critic (or if I can ignore it) then I feel… empowered. Free.
This is not a stillness I would have felt five years, ten years ago. As I mentioned I arguably looked more femme in 2014 but I didn’t have the courage, the mindset, the confidence, the ability to silence my inner critic, to do a lingerie shoot. I may have looked younger and thinner than I do today, but I look more confident, and I am more confident than I did a decade ago.
That’s how I choose to measure change and progress. It’s about self-esteem, it’s about not giving a second thought to what others might think.
All right. This is getting too reflective for a photo set about underwear so I will leave you with a few more pictures and I hope you like them. :)
Despite all the cute tops and cute skirts in my wardrobe I gravitate towards dresses. They’re so easy! Slip into it, zip it up, and bam! you’re dressed.
Of course, it’s not as simple as that.
I tend to shy away from skirts because they, obviously, require a top. I am not always confident I am choosing separates that look cute together AND of course some tops should be tucked into a skirt and some shouldn’t.
And! Sometimes a top ISN’T supposed to be tucked in BUT it just looks a little… unattractive. The outfit might look baggy or unflattering or even just a little unkept.
And! For tops that SHOULD be tucked in, they may not be long enough to be properly tucked in.
These are the reasons I love bodysuits.
BUT! the challenge of bodysuits for someone with a body shape like mine is that they are often not the right size. I have a long torso so they need to be long enough to cover my shoulders, have enough room in the bust, and to be able to snap between my legs. Most bodysuits I have that are designed for cisgender girls tend to unsnap as soon as I sit down OR a seam splits somewhere.
I always feel a little awkward when I recommend anything from En Femme. I imagine some readers might be thinking “oh what a surprise, the girl who partners with En Femme to make videos is recommending a product from En Femme”.
Fair enough.
But I choose to partner with En Femme BECAUSE I like their products. I like their clothes. I like working with them. I wouldn’t work with anyone if I didn’t think they had a quality product.
And honestly of all their products, their bodysuits are just perfect. The sleeved designs have long enough sleeves. The capped sleeves fall exactly where they should. The material is perfectly stretchy and are designed for someone with my body shape.
Bodysuits also avoid the “should I tuck this top or not?” dilemma.
But like any top, I am often paralyzed with what I should pair it with.
En Femme sent me their new Sleeveless Mini Fishnet and Mesh Cutout Bodysuit to review and I was excited to do so. I love doing reviews because I will include items into a photo shoot and often times they are for an item that I normally wouldn’t think of adding to my wardrobe but this girl loves her bodysuits and I am always happy to add another to my closet.
I went through my closet looking for a skirt to match it with. I have a hard time with the color white and I wasn’t quite sure what to pair it with.
So, I skipped a skirt altogether.
I love how certain articles of clothing can be worn as real clothes or as lingerie. Like a bustier as a top with a jacket, for example. Although a more fashion savvy girl could easily pick out the perfect skirt to go with this cute bodysuit, I decided to treat it as lingerie.
I chose to match it with white stockings (a very under utilized stocking color) and silver glittery ankle strapped platform stilettos.
The cut of the bodysuit is very flattering and the mesh and fishnets are perfectly placed to be modest and have a hint of sexiness at the same time.
The material is stretchy enough to be comfortable and the shoulders are the right dimensions to be flattering and to not cut into my skin when I move.
As you can tell from what I hope is a tasteful picture above, it is a thong cut which I feel is the ideal style for a bodysuit when it comes to the snaps.
The only drawback for a bodysuit in my opinion is that they are not really practical when it comes to dressing and undressing. Since they tend to be form-fitting, it can be tricky putting it on and taking it off without it smudging your makeup or without removing a wig. If I am out shopping and I intend on trying on new outfits I don’t wear a bodysuit. However this one has a zipper in the back which isn’t very common in a bodysuit which makes it easier for outfit changes.
I love this bodysuit. The fabric and pattern are fun and unique, sexy and modest at the same time. I will have to try pairing it with, well, real clothes, but for the time being, I love this cute new addition to my lingerie wardrobe.
Hannah McKnight 