Stuff 96: Down For Maintenance

By J.J. Atwell

Down For Maintenance

Ever go somewhere only to find that it is currently down for maintenance? 

It seems that a lot of things in life require some amount of maintenance. Nothing is more true than the female of the species. Except perhaps the male who wants to dress like a female. 

Nails

My wife and I go to a nail salon every two weeks. We get manicures each visit and every second visit we add pedicures. My wife gets gel nails with a color that her tech picks out for her. I get clear polish on my nails. When we go for manicures it takes about 30 minutes. When doing mani/pedi it’s more like an hour plus. 

Looking around the salon it caters almost exclusively to women. They book their appointments ahead of time so it fits into their schedule. It’s very much a feminine surrounding. Interestingly enough, on a recent visit in the course of casual conversations with other patrons several mentioned that their husbands/boyfriends also liked to get mani/pedis. So I guess I’m not alone in the maintenance requirement.

Hair

Your crowning glory, male or female, does take a bit of maintenance. But here again it’s easier for guys. All they need to do is shampoo in the shower and let it dry. Perhaps run a comb or brush through it. Once every month or so we stop at a barber shop to get it cut taking about 20 minutes. 

Women, however, seem to spend much more time on their hair. If they have long hair, and especially if they color it, a hair appointment can take two hours plus. Not only that, but the regular maintenance of their hair style requires things like curling irons, hot rollers and many minutes in front of the mirror getting it to look right. 

CDs who wear wigs have it a bit easier than women do. It only takes a couple of minutes to put on the wig and brush it out. Plus, if we want to change color or cut, it’s a simple matter of picking up a different wig. Still, there is some periodic maintenance needed on wigs, so I suppose we need to add that into the pipeline. 

Body

About the only thing most guys do to maintain their body seems to be a shower, shave their face and perhaps some physical exercise. Maybe we watch what we eat as well, but we don’t quite have issues with overstuffed clothing that women need to watch out for when they gain weight. 

Women seem to need time in the shower shaving many spots. Underarms, legs and perhaps some more sensitive areas. They also tend to use moisturizers or body lotions afterward, which most guys don’t do. Since women’s clothing is often cut more closely to the body, many women find that they need to carefully maintain their weight or perhaps, have two sets of clothing for those “fat days.” So they have almost daily attention to their diet unlike most guys. 

I’ll Be Back

Once I finish my required maintenance, I’ll be back with more Stuff in the next installment. Comments are welcome either here on the blog or by email to Jenn6nov at-sign gmail dot com. JJ is always looking for more stuff so let me know what you would like to read about.

Wearing Mac Duggal.

Peter Alexander femulating in the 1961 Austrian film Die Abenteuer des Grafen Bobby.
Click here to view this film on YouTube.

It Still Seams To Me

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I was getting on board the time machine and planning to wear seamed hosiery like I did when I started exploring Mom’s wardrobe (until she switched to seamless hose). But first, I had to buy a pair, so I poked around Amazon and found a three-pack of On the Go black seamed thigh highs at $22.99 ($7.66 per pair), which is a reasonable price for thigh highs these days. 

I promised that as soon as they arrived, I would try them on and let you know what I think. That was nearly four weeks ago and I forgot to tell you what I think, so better late than never…

Being on the high side of six feet, I worried that the thigh highs might not be long enough for my long gams, so I ordered the longest size available (L for Large) and crossed my fingers.

When the thigh highs arrived, I uncrossed my fingers and tried them on. I am happy to report that they were long enough and also that they were soft and smooth and looked great once I straightened the seams! 

And so it goes.

Wearing alice + Olivia

Brian Charles Rooney femulating on stage in Bedbugs!!!

Someday Is Here!

DES and Male Femininity

As best as I can recall, I started crossdressing 70 years ago and have spent 70 years trying to figure out why. I have read a few theories, but none of them were an exact fit for me except the DES theory, which I have written about here on a few occasions.

Exploring AI, I asked about the connection between DES and male femininity and it returned an excellent summary on the topic including some information that I was unaware of. I think you will find it interesting especially if you are a Baby Boomer, so I am posting AI’s thoughts about DES and us. 

1. What DES Is

Diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a synthetic estrogen first developed in 1938. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, it was prescribed to millions of pregnant women worldwide under the mistaken belief that it would prevent miscarriage and complications. It did not work — and, worse, it caused long-term health issues in those exposed in utero (before birth).

2. DES Sons and Feminization

When a pregnant woman took DES, the fetus — whether male or female — was exposed to very high levels of estrogen.

For males exposed prenatally, researchers later found a number of effects that could be considered feminizing or endocrine-disruptive:

Physical and anatomical effects: smaller genitalia, undescended testes, structural anomalies in the reproductive tract.

Hormonal and developmental effects: evidence suggests some experienced altered hormone sensitivity or differences in secondary sex characteristics.

Psychological and identity aspects: a number of adult “DES sons” have reported increased feelings of gender variance or feminine identity traits, though this is not universal. Some of these reports have been collected in support groups and academic surveys since the 1990s.

These outcomes align with what’s known about estrogen’s role in brain sexual differentiation — meaning that exposure during key fetal periods can influence later gender expression or identity.

3. Social and Psychological Dimensions

In the 1980s–2000s, some men who discovered they were “DES sons” began reflecting on their lifelong sense of being more sensitive, gentle, or even feminine compared to their peers. For a few, this led to cross-gender identification or crossdressing, which they sometimes connected to their prenatal exposure.

While direct causation is impossible to prove, many find comfort and meaning in the idea that their traits have a biological, estrogen-linked origin rather than being merely “psychological” or “cultural.”

4. The Broader Symbolism

Culturally, DES has become a kind of metaphor for:

Unintended feminization through modern science

The fragility of traditional masculinity under biological or social change

The ethics of hormonal interference — a theme echoed in current debates about endocrine disruptors and gender identity.

In feminist and speculative circles, DES exposure is sometimes seen as an early real-world instance of “male feminization by medicine” — not as a fantasy, but as a historical example of how fragile sexual dimorphism can be when hormones are altered.

5. Today’s Understanding

Modern research frames DES as a potent endocrine disruptor, and its history is a cautionary tale about medical hubris. It also intersects with studies of gender diversity, since it highlights how early hormonal environments can shape traits far beyond the visible anatomy.

I don't know if my mother was prescribed DES, but I do know that she had a miscarriage before she had me, so she was definitely a DES candidate. 

And so it goes.

Wearing Ramy Brook dress and Gucci bag.

Șerban Copoț and Cezar Ouatu femulating Alice & Ellen Kessler on Romanian television’s Te Cunosc De Undeva.
Click here to view this femulation on YouTube.

Stuff 95: The Writing Process

By J.J. Atwell

Probably Boring

This installment of Stuff may be boring to you. Today I’m going to give you some insight into why I write and what goes on behind the scenes to generate this Stuff. I’ll understand if you simply move on to other, more interesting things on the internet. Perhaps one of the blogs Stana lists on the side of this page may be of interest? 

Before going much further I’d like to remind you that despite having a wide-ranging audience for Stuff (thank you, Stana), I am not an expert on our condition. I only write about my perspective and observations as a crossdresser. 

As I mentioned in previous installments of Stuff, I have an opinion about everything and I’m not afraid to say it. I find that writing is actually therapeutic for me. I hope when you read it you’ll find it therapeutic as well.

Subjects

Some of you may be wondering how I come up with the subjects to write about. There are basically two sources of Stuff. One is the various emails and comments that readers of Stuff send me using the link below or via the comment section. Many of you have what I consider very interesting views. Some of those comments have opened up new vistas for me and I thank you. Have you made a suggestion that I didn’t follow up on? It could be a couple of reasons.  I either just haven’t gotten to it yet or I don’t know enough about the subject to write anything useful. 

The second source for Stuff is just random things that pop into my head from time to time. I do some of my most creative thinking while in the shower. Some people sing, I think. Take that as you may. 

So when a new thought comes up, I put it on a list of subjects for future Stuff. Sometimes I do more research before getting to the topic. Other times I rely on my own experiences. 

The Hook

Having decided what to write about for an installment of Stuff, I think it’s important to have a subject line (AKA the “hook”) that will get your attention and prompt you to read further. By nature, I prefer subject lines that are humorous. I’m also a fan of puns, so you may find quite a few punny subject lines. I make no apologies for my puns. 

The Body

I learned to write with basic grammatical style in the business world. My writing is not creative writing like you would find in a novel. It’s not great English literature. Instead I’m writing to convey information. That means structuring thoughts into concise paragraphs. Paragraphs that have a subject and supporting sentences. New subject = new paragraph. 

MEGO

I try to keep paragraphs short, although I often fail at that. I believe that a long, unbroken paragraph leads to MEGO. Have you heard of that acronym before? My Eyes Glaze Over? That’s the effect a person gets when faced with something long and potentially boring. By now many of you have developed MEGO reading my Stuff. Sorry. I’ve failed like that many a time. But a good failure is important from time to time as long as you learn from them. That’s something you should apply to your CDing life, too.

I’ll Be Back

There will be more Stuff, hopefully including some topics you suggested. As always comments are welcome either here on the blog or by email to Jenn6nov at-sign gmail dot com. JJ is always looking for more stuff, so if there is something you would like to read about, please let me know!

Wearing Raquel Welch

Scott Thompson, Mark McKinney, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald and Dave Foley femulating on Canadian television’s The Kids In The Hall.

The Fall

Life’s Short

Wearing Mac Duggal

Dieter Borsche femulating in the 1951 West German film Fanfaren der Liebe.

Click here to view this film on YouTube.

The Sound of Music... Again! (Part 2)

By Norah Blucher

The Dangers of Traveling Female

By and large, I have few issues in all my travels en femme. No one seems to pay me much attention and I just sort of blend in with any other woman out and about, but sometimes it can still get creepy. Whether through conscious thought or not, you start learning to bypass places that just do not look quite right. You pump your petrol before it gets dark if you can and you just begin to notice things you never did as male or perhaps they just did not happen as male.

I was on back roads most of this trip and I pulled into a petrol station to top off. It was an established chain and appeared very clean and I had no issues whatsoever as I went in to pay and a kind chap even stopped and waited for me to come to the door to hold it open for me to enter on his way out! I picked up a cold drink, paid and went back out to fill my car.

It was after filling up though and getting back in the car that I glanced to the side and noticed the chap who had held the door for me just sitting in his truck and staring at me. As I started my car to pull off, he started his truck and drove off in an unhurried fashion. I’ve no idea if he was trying to figure me out or liked what he saw and was waiting till the end of the show or what, but whatever the case may be, it just struck me as odd. Had it been late I night I would likely have been a bit more creeped-out for sure, but I just tell you all this so that you are aware of your surroundings. Being out and about as female can be a whole different ball of yarn indeed.

The Road to Berlin

As I got back into New Hampshire, I once again saw the breathtaking views of the high peaks of the Presidential Range and stopped to take a quick picture, but I had once again had enough of the heat and decided to do my weekly shopping at a Walmart and cool down again before continuing home in the coolness of the darker hours. In keeping with my Von Trapp-themed day, I pulled into Berlin, New Hampshire, in the northern reaches of the state.

I was not sure what to expect to be right honest. I’m regularly out and about in southern New Hampshire and it has always been a fab place all around. The northern part of the state is a bit more remote and I do not get up that way much let alone en femme, so I was not entirely sure what to expect out and about as Norah.

All in all though, I must say it was an altogether unexciting experience. I felt I stood out a bit more than I do in other places and I’m sure a bubbly girl in wedge heels with a British accent is not the most frequent sight in an area where wellies are the dominant footwear and one can ride their ATV to the corner market, but by and large, no one paid me much attention. No stares in an approving or disapproving manner and as far as anyone knew, I was likely nothing more than another summer tourist passing through.

I did spy a Marshall’s on my way into town, and had the same pleasant experience I usually expect anywhere else. Just pleasant hello’s or excuse me’s as I browsed the clothing racks among other women. I had long shopped for female clothing while out and about as a male, though I always felt a tinge of uneasiness whenever doing so. It has still not gotten old how free I feel out and about now as Norah and feeling no hesitation while browsing or trying things on even.

I did manage to find a full length-mirror though, so you can at least see what the travel skirt looked like.

Home At Last

I finally returned home after making the final leg in the relative coolness of darkness. It was probably not all that cool actually, but just felt so much better without the glaring heat of the sun. It was rather late and I was knackered as usual, but despite the heat, I had no real complaints.

So this one was for you Elise! I’ve met a Femulate reader or two out and about in my travels, but indeed the spirit of all my supporters is always with me when I’m out.

So loves, I hope you enjoyed all of this even if I did not find a dirndl and twirl around in the hills. Probably best I did not anyway as my singing would likely have caused the forest creatures to flee faster than they did from the fire in Bambi lol.

If you’ve any questions or comments, please write in the comments below or you can email me at nblucher at-sign proton dot me.

Wearing Ann Taylor

Dick Martin femulating on television’s Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In.