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A great question Jennifer,
I shop in most of the establishments you’ve included. I prefer shopping in person and am able to try a potential purchase on for fit and style. Sizing can vary quite a bit. If a store doesn’t have the size or color you want it may be available on line. Often the sales associate can check and order your size for you. And the store will ship it free to your home or to the store if Home isn’t a good option.
Thrift stores and outlet stores are great choices too. You’ll enjoy great savings and often find a special promotion. These stores may offer additional savings by joining their rewards program.
If you wear tall or Plus sizes there are speciality stores that carry items just for you.
Small boutiques often offer personal service as well as fashion/color//style recommendations that a department store doesn’t.
Alice
Jennifer,
My go to store for fashions is Macy’s…and TGIF boutiques for padded panties and wigs. For the most part I buy in person drab and also online. Macy’s has a pickup option at the store for which I take advantage. When the SA asks whether to open the sealed package, I politely say no thank you. However, one of the ladies here mentioned they know exactly what I purchased…so let them guess who they are for, lol….all my purchases are on special…e.g. My favorite $89 lace LBD was $35 with an extra $10 coupon… At Christmas time , I buy in drab at Macy’s for dress, slacks, tops, etc.
One for Leonara and one for my wife. Kathy’s an 8 petite and I am 10 misses. When the SA points out that they are different sizes , I smile and say “I know” ;-). I’ve Ben getting my clothes this way for the last 5 years and it has worked for me…
Thanks for listening ladies and I hope my buying experience my be of some help…Leonara
I was just joking when I voted neighbors clothesline… I could not resist that…. Dee..
My first buys were from Amazon because I was too shy to shop in person. Then I “graduated” to the self-checkout line at Walmart; to buy online and pick-up at Dressbarn, and finally in-person shopping at Penney, Macy, Dillard and Kohl. As a bonus, I’ve inherited a few things which my wife outgrew, and a few more which she ordered online for herself, but fit me, instead. Except for two online buys, shoes all came from Payless during their liquidation.
When I first began dressing again I made several purchases from on-line CD stores but had too much trouble finding quality clothing that fit right. I also made several purchases from Amazon but I quickly became tired of returning most of my purchases for poor fit or it just looked better on the model. Now, I only purchase from stores like Macy’s, Dillards, JC Penney and/or smaller boutiques where I can try on clothing before I buy it. And I must say, I do live 24/7 as a woman, but I have days where the male in me over powers the female and every store clerk I have encountered has been wonderfully helpful and respectful!!
Thanks for the question Jennifer. I’ll shop anywhere there is a good sale, especially at Christmas/Boxing Day. I much prefer to shop in person. And when I go shopping, I’m always dressed androgynously. I’m mistaken for female quite often. I really enjoy when the cashiers call me Ma’am when I’m paying. Because of the crazy difference in sizing in women’s clothing, trying them on is a good thing to do. Saves the hassle of returning stuff. I only do a little bit of online shopping from regular department store sites. Always check their website clearance page. But my problem nowadays is that I just have too much women’s clothing. I have three large closets. My men’s clothes take up maybe a quarter of the space. I also have three chests of drawers. And again my men’s stuff takes up only a small portion of the space. My rule is when I buy something new, I have to donate something to charity to make room for the purchase. It’s a win-win I guess. Hugs, Krista
I checked both online boxes, dept store and boutique.
It’s dangerous “window shopping” online. The stores do a great job with the model images that show off the clothes….thank God I am not an impulse buyer (though my red cocktail dress and red pumps were impulse buys as I walked through JC Penney for the dress and Boston Store for the pumps. Never regretted those purchases. 🙂 )
I’ve shopped for and bought clothes from pretty much everywhere, starting with buying my own pantyhose at 13 from JC Penney.
At 17 when I began dressing partly fem to a year later being fully fem, I bought all my clothes from stores. I enjoyed being out partially dressed while buying more fem fantasy clothes as I worked on new and improved way to show off my legs in pantyhose. Sometimes if I saw and item in a store I wanted but wasn’t in my size I would go to a catalogue and order from there.
More often I have been purchasing clothes online. I still prefer stores and seeing what I’m buying and even trying them on. But the online selections are just too good to ignore.
Initially my outerwear was purchased from online second hand outlets. I am now shopping online from a variety of outlets. On line shopping is a hit or miss proposition, up to now mostly miss.
Don’t go by size number as there are no standards. Take your measurements and compare with what is stated on store web sites. There will usually be a link for a Size Guide on the page for the item. However, some places, like Sierra Trading, often have a generic sizing guide and that is less helpful.
Shoe size guides are also frequently published on sites like Zappos, DSW, etc. in inches. That often mentioned thing about 2 sizes between men’s and women’s sizes doesn’t work for many people. For example. My men’s size is 9 1/2 or 10. My length measurement is 10 9/16”. Depending upon the site, 10 1/2” Or 10 5/8” is a women’s size 11.
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Initially from Amazon then from UK stores such as Sainsburys, Tescos, and Marks and Spencer buying on line for collection at store. Do buy some items such as Panties, Camis, and Hold Ups in person at Marks and Spencer and Sainsburys. I prefer dresses to skirts but have not yet gone into a store en Femme to try any clothes on. Was achieving a 50% success rate with my on line purchasing of dresses prior to my purge very early this year. Have so far only made one on line dress purchase since building a new collection and am pleased with it.
Rachel
I’ve found seasonal appropriate fashion, safety and security shopping in chain stores with self checkout options (Meijer, Walmart, Target). I also like to shop chain stores with clearance racks (Ross, TJ Maxx, JCP, Kohl’s). No one seems to care when/whether I’m looking through underwear/bras, dresses, tops or slacks. I usually shop openly as a male and have never been questioned. (I am always prepared to say I’m looking for bargains for my wife (girlfriend).) Just be confident. You only look awkward or guilty if you FEEL that way 😉
Macy’s is my go to store for clothing like blouses, slacks, etc. that can be in public appearing unisex. The sales assistants are not judgmental and helpful when you have a question in drab or not. Mostly sizes. If I try the items on it’s in the men’s changing rooms while in drab.
I had great success online at Ali Express. You need know your size and figure it out in metric since most are sold that way. I DO NOT rely on the sizes either US or European countries even when they are listed. I have never had a problem that was not fixed, substituted or refunded because there was a mistake by myself or the vendor.
I shop in drab for clothes and cosmetics, perhaps resembling a husband with a shopping list, at Macy’s, H&M, Uniqlo, Target, Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, TJ Maxx and Land’s End. These are places where I can return things easily. Now that Amazon takes returns at Kohl’s stores, I take advantage of that. Some of the girls tell me that shopping en femme is a thrill, but I haven’t tried that yet. I have found a couple of lucky buys at eBay and Poshmark and haven’t had to return anything.
LIKE ALL OF YOU I PURCHASE MY CLOTHES FROM SEVERAL SOURCES, SOME MY FAVORITE ARE VANITY FAIR OUTLETS AS THEY ALWAYS HAVE A GOOD SELECTION BRAS PANTIES AS WELL AS JEANS AND TOPS. I ALSO HAVE FOUND SOME VERY NICE TOPS AND LEGGINGS AT RUE 21, JC PENNY IS ALWAYS ON MY LIST AS A GREAT PLACE TO SHOP AS WELL AS COLES. SOME TIMES I FIND THINGS AT DILLARDS I LIKE.
I usually buy my Foundations, nighties and Breast forms @ Sally Ann Corset Shop, they are in Chicago Il. on Western Ave. about 105th street in the Beverly area.
They have been in business for years and originally owned by two CIS sisters who were so very kind and thoughtful. Unfortunately one of the sisters died and I believe the other sister has turned over most of her time in the shop to other ladies. Anyway the shop is still CD friendly, I just went in last week and fitted for a Bra and I bought another pair of padded Control panties.
I have also had great experiences dealing with Janet’s Closet.
By the way Sally Ann Corset Shop can be found online and they do advertise on some web sites.
At least 80% of my clothes come from thrift stores, both online and brick and mortar. All of my jewelry comes from thrift stores. All of my shoes, undergarments and hats are new, either online or brick and mortar…
The area where I live has a number of thrift shops run buy various charities. There are a couple that I frequent and both have multiple locations here in The Valley. I’m torn between them as one organization sorts by size and that makes shopping much easier. The other organization sorts by color, which I find annoying, but there seems to be more upscale labels that are donated.
There is a chain of thrift stores called SAVERS. They started in Canada and also have shops in the US and Australia. What they do is partner with a local charity and the profits are shared. All of the SAVERS stores that I’ve been in (includes 7 stores in 5 states) are laid out essentially the same. Unfortunately the closest one to me is an hour away, but I always stop in when I’m in or passing through the area. In some areas the chain is known as Value Village. I had a friend with whom I would make runs to SAVERS and make a day out of it, but she passed away a year and a half ago.
Online, I frequent rustyzipper.com for vintage items and sierra.com for new items. Ems.com is good for activity and athletic-oriented clothing. I’ve bought a number of skorts and convertible hiking pants there. I would go there in person, but we don’t have any stores out this way. They have name brand and house brand items.
I am often on Etsy, and to a lesser extent, Poshmark. I really like Etsy and have bought suits, blazers, blouses, pants, scarves, shorts and jewelry there. On the other hand, Poshmark is EXTREMELY frustrating. One of the things that I learned early on is that there is NO Standard Sizing in women’s clothing. This is the reason behind some of my pants being size 14 on others size 16. Same for dresses and blazers between size 16 and 18. However, what SO MANY Poshmark vendors will do is ONLY list the numerical or letter size with NO Measurements. Even if there was standard sizing, how a garment is designed to fit would throw that off. For example, dresses could be bodycon, traditional or oversize in terms of fit. I’ve gotten to the point that if no measurements are listed, I skip that entry. A piece would have to be EXTREMELY interesting in order for me to take the time to send a message to request measurements. If someone is lame enough to not take initial measurements when they list an item, why should I waste my time? To top it off, I’ve seen questions go unanswered for MONTHS, even though the listing says “updated” and the date. There was one piece that I REALLY liked and I asked for measurements. The reply was that they only had the size that was on the tag and there were no measurements on the tag. If they are that dumb, they do not deserve my business!!
For some reason, I rarely go shoe shopping. I will usually do DSW, Zappos, 6pm and Sierra online. Most outlets will have sizing information in inches or centimeters somewhere on their web site. That thing about a 2 size difference between men’s and women’s doesn’t work for many people, including me (9 1/2 or 10 in men’s). My longer foot measures 10 9/16”. There is a bit of difference between various charts, but the majority show a women’s size 11 as 10 1/2” or 10 5/8”. My only problem is width as most women’s shoes are only in Medium width and I need a Wide or sometimes a Double Wide. Open sandals are usually not a problem, but often closed toe or completely close shoes will need some width stretching.
Hats from Magellan’s and Sierra or a local flea market.
Undergarments are Target or Walmart in person or onehanesplacce.com and HerRoom.com (and maybe a few others) online.
I think the look that you are after will greatly influence where you shop. My goal has never been to be “in style”. It is to be “stylish”. I have items dating back to at least the 60’s and up to the 90’s. I enjoy mixing eras and am either very colorful or only one or two colors in order to emphasize my jewelry. My one regret is that I love sweater dresses and the desert is not sweater dress friendly!
I usually buy my bras and panties from two lovely specialist boutiques where the owners will fit me – such a lovely, thrilling feeling to have a woman adjusting the straps on your bra and then saying ‘oh, that fits you perfectly’! For outerwear I have been making my purchases from http://www.longtallsally.com, who specialise in clothes for taller girls. They had a store in central London until July where I could try on blouses or pants before buying, but sadly it closed like so many stores these days, so now I buy from them online. Not quite the same experience, but I know my size and have been very happy with my purchases so far.
My first skirt was a mini I bought on a whim at WalMart! After I decided to explore more of this side of me, I began shopping at local thrift stores, where I could try things on more easily without attracting attention and where prices were much easier on the wallet if they didn’t work out later. Lately, I have begun shopping at Burlington factory and the local Sears that is going out of business. Usually, I first take mens clothing to the dressing rooms to scope out how much of a gatekeeper presence there is. If there is no gatekeeper or they are just there watching people come and go, then I head back to the real goodies and load up.
I have shopped as Jemma in the local Diversity Thrift but not at a major chain yet. that is my next evolution and I cannot wait to try. The amazing thing is, that as I have shopped more and more, I have begun not to care so much whether I pass or not. I love being Jemma and wearing what I want and I no longer need the approval of others when doing it. That being said, it is wonderful when I do manage to pass!!
I just got off the phone with an old client who needs a ride to DC! I do believe I will take Jemma with me and let her do a little shopping full on!! I can hardly wait!!
Torrid Torrid Torrid and Catherine’s 💋
I recently discovered the on-line world of ThredUp, (thredup.com). ThredUp sells new and second-hand women’s clothing at bargain prices! You can even sell your clothes on consignment through their site. I have bought, new (with tags still attached and probably never worn), and gently used clothing, purses, etc. and have only been disappointed once, (when I received a clothing item accidently inaccurately cataloged by ThredUp). When I contacted the website, they paid for me to ship the item back to them and refunded my purchase price at 100%. This site is really worth a look; ( and I have no financial interest or business interest with the site/business).
eBay- convenient, affordable, and anonymous.
Well I like going shopping at the stores so my favorite place is the goodwill I have gotten some nice thing there at a good price
Anywhere I find something I like. Macy’s, Dillard’s, the Rack, JCP, Torrid, the Avenue, Rosegal, Amazon, some small chain fashion shops like Madrag and Rainbow.
Our money is as green as anybody’s.
Gaby
I buy my femme clothes from a good range of outlets. As I’m in the U.K. I’m guessing quite a lot of you won’t have heard of them.
My first skirt bought many, many moons ago was from Matalan. Did this in person as at that time very few retailers had a web presence. I still buy quite a lot from Matalan but mainly click and collect these days.
I also use Asda (U.K. flavour of Walmart) quite a lot both in person and click and collect. Also use TU at Sainsburys supermaket. Again both in person and click and collect.
Of course, I use Amazon and eBay. I’m not really a massive fan of these (don’t like there business models but still get dragged in – no pun intended lol).
Then if I’m out and about and spy something I like at the right price and in my size of course, it just has to cime home with me so have bought qite a few items like this. I have bought from BHS (before they clossed) Debenhams, M&S, New look, Top shop, Principles, Simply Be, Yours etc etc – the list goes on and on.
Just incase you are wondeing, when it cones to femme clothes, I’m a shopaholic – I just cannot resist!
Take care girls.
Anne-Marie.
I”m a girl on a budget. When helping SO or relatives with “cleaning out” and find something destined for the donation pile, I’ll pilfer something cute……….as payment for free labor and being easy going and cheerful in doing the mule work. When I was a lot younger, I did my clothes wash at the coin laundromat. Once a couple of young chatty cute girls came to do theirs. Their skimpy attire and sexy figures aroused me as a guy and made me jealous as a girl. Anyway, something came up on their phone and they rushed out………..leaving a lingerie bag in a machine. I slipped it into my stuff and left. Jackpot! Victoria Secret bra and panties! Something I always wanted but to shy to buy. A little small, but exercised and rode my bike more to lose those few pounds and I was a pretty girl!! This was in pre-internet shopping . These days there is the alley behind me with occasional flotsam of stuff, sometimes piles of clothes. When cleaning my part of the alley, I’ll sometimes find a treasure there. Wash it, and I have a cute skirt, blouse or …….something. Then there is the neighborhood yard sales ( not my neighborhood) and buy other things to mask my true piece of interest. Other than that, it’s thrift stores and internet shopping with personal pick up.
I started out buying from my area Wal-Marts, Targets, Meijers, K-Marts(currently closing), and even my local mega grocery store. I still hit these stores. The start of 2018, I’ve expanded to small boutiques and thrift/charity/vintage shops. Late summer 2019, I finally bought from Lane Bryant and Victoria’s Secret. I will always browse in any store but I avoid ultra high-end retail. The most I’ve ever spent on any one item was in the 90 dollar range. I’ve also gotten clothes in swap meets through my local CD/TG support group.
My primary source for clothes are the various thrift stores in my area. My first purchases were made at stores further afield, but more recently I have been shopping more locally. I was actually out today and finally found a size 11 pair of heel boots. I have also plucked up the courage to ask to use the fitting room.
A few weeks ago I made my first boutique shopping trip – it went very well and was a great experience. I have purchased a few items from department stores, but I don’t find them quite as fun as charity shops.I have found excellent buys at Uniqlo. Though there may not be one in your area, the company hopes to have 200 U.S. locations in the next year and at least one in every major city. (There are several in the Boston area, for example.) You could call this Tokyo-based company Fast Fashion (Zara, for example). Things come and go quickly, prices are low and service, in-store and online, is excellent. The advertising is aimed at younger men and women, but I have found classic clothing suitable for mature women: wool-blend skirts for $20 or less, a wool-blend coat for $30 on sale, a sweater for $12, a wrap dress for $15. The only thing I bought at full price was a Marimekko dress. I am a great admirer of that Finnish company, which periodically allows Uniqlo to sell Marimekko-branded clothing at about one-fifth the usual price. You can get free shipping periodically by getting on the mailing list and watching for your chance. Free returns if you ca get to a store. Sizes generally range from XS to XL; nothing that might be called Plus Size.
Oh gosh, This might be a long list, so here goes:
Department store’s: Wal-Mart, Beall’s, J.C. Penney, Target, Kohl’s etc.
Thrift stores: Salvation Army, Goodwill etc.
Online: Amazon, Torrid, Her Room, Leg Avenue, Jouette
Small Boutique: Cato’s, Torrid (the girls there are wonderful and we are on a first name basis, Paula, not the male version) and it’s one of the few I have a charge card with. Also Catherine’s, Lane Bryant, Soma.
As you see, I do love shopping.
PaulaF
I shop at Lane Bryant , Long Tall Sally, and pretty much all stores in the mall and department stores, Online Bare necessities , Her Room and the bra and panty manufactures web sites. The only store I won’t shop is Soma they where rude to me. One note please don’t take clothes from clothes line or laundry machines. That is stealing and if caught the police comes and you are going to be in the news for sure. That gives a bad name to too us and you would be angry if someone took your property. Also there is a lot of cameras today.
Following up my earlier note about Uniqlo:
This Japan-based retailer says it will open another five dozen stores in the U.S. this year. If you don’t have one in your metro area, watch for it. It is what’s known in the trade as fast fashion, in the manner of Zara: Things come and go quickly, and prices drop rapidly. Good value for the money.
Watch for free shipping if you’re buying online. Returns to stores are easy. If you live near a store it’s a good place to browse regularly. I never see anybody trying anything on in a dressing room. Customers are used to taking things home to try out. If in doubt you could buy two sizes and return one if the other one fits.
You might find a $40 item at half price only a week or two after first appearing. I’ve bought merino wool sweaters for $15. My latest buy is a heavyweight knit jersey dress marked down in a Boston-area store for $5.75
If you live near a TJ Maxx there are convenient bargains. Wait for a day when shipping is free and order everything promising you found at a great price online. You may return everything, but all it costs you is time and gasoline. I just got two great turtlenecks, one of them wool, for $10 and $7. As I write this I’m wearing one of the tops beneath a luxurious ruana I got for $15. A dressy pleated skirt cost me $10.
I buy everything, well 98% in person while shopping as Sandy. I want to try whatever it is on to see how it fits and looks. Catalog models almost always look fantastic wearing the item but that doesn’t mean it I will like it.
Top 3 stores are Nordstrom’s, WHBM and Macy’s. Beyond this I shop most everywhere women’s clothes are sold but those places account for the majority of what I have.
WHBM seems to have the most consistent sizing of any brand I buy so if I see something online I will not hesitate to buy. About the only other time I buy online is if I tried something on but correct size was not available in the store then I will order.
Sandy
I use various UK stores, mostly on line and collect in store. NEXT is very good when they have the clearance sale, can get some lovely dresses at reasonable prices. Also use Dorothy Perkins, TU at Sainsbury’s, Tesco.
Get my tights and stockings from stockings HQ, or if I want cheaper one’s any supermarket is good.. like the gloss finish tights from Tesco.
I tend to buy my panties on EBAY, always a good choice, all brand new and much cheaper than shops. xEbay is great.
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Most places have been mentioned…I find clothing from Torrid, Karina Dresses and Draper James fit perfect and look wonderful. Francesca’s is another on-line store that sells really cute clothing. When I shop I use Rakuten to see if that store is listed so I can get a % back in a check each quarter. Old Navy has cute summer clothing and instead of going to the brick and mortar store I shop on line and today Rakuten has 2% cash back.
I get a lot of my clothes from Rickies and enjoy any shopping experience I’ve had there. I use to order from La Chateau until they closed down but now they are back up. Fairweathers was another and I met a wonderful sales associate who was super happy to help me pick things out and try them on.When I first started I used some second hand shops as well.
She’s so excited! Tehehe!!
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