Presenting as Male When You're Small?

Have a look in the boys section instead of the mens section. It's cheaper as well so that's pretty great. Just try and look for the less childish items.

 

I hear H&M and Old Navy have stuff suitable for shorter people, and being just under 5'0" myself, this was great to find out.

 

Yes to the boys section.

Also I just bought some lifts for my shoes on amazon for ten bucks plus shipping that add up to two inches of height.

Lastly, I have two cis male friends in their twenties who are between 5'2 and 5'4 so I wouldn't feel too self conscious about it.

 

Wear things that slim your hips and exaggerate your shoulders. I recommend jeans, dress pants made for guys and shorts without huge pockets to give you a slim look with your hips. I personally am only 5'5 and weigh around 100lbs, so I can definitely relate to the many issues you face when "passing". However, I've found my own formula for passing so hopefully it can help you.

For shirts, I will strongly advise you to NEVER wear stripes unless you are a small cup and are wearing a binder. For some reasons or another, stripes, polka dots, and zig-zags all have a tendency to show off that cleavage if you aren't binding. :/ I also recommend you start finding clothes with shoulder padding that's not obvious. It may take a bit of time finding proper clothes, but eventually you'll be able to. I know it's embarrassing, but considering your height you properly won't be able to find many clothing choices in the men's section. I pass, but it's still rare I find clothes that aren't from the boys' section due to my small height. I'm sure there's plenty of stores that cater to small men, but personally I just haven't found any myself.

My last tip I can give you is that you should NEVER wear any makeup other than very well-concealed ones if you want to pass as a dude. Sorry, but 90% of the time you'll get called a girl if you don't look the part. Now, foundations are usually fine, and contouring and filling in your eyebrows can actually help, but unless you're looking to gain attention bright blue lipstick just doesn't work for most people. Now, I'm probably the rare exception to that rule because of the way my face has only grown more and more masculine with time, but most people will not be able to pull off looking like a guy AND wearing pink eyeshadow. XD Plus, it's not that fun because if I'm out in a busy public spot and wear that stuff, there will be some idiot yelling "Faggot!", just so you know... Just... Contouring and darkening your eyebrows. There are a ton of tutorials online for this stuff, though really I wouldn't worry about those things too much unless you have a round face so you need contouring, or you have really thin eyebrows.

 

Accessories say alot. The right shoes, belt, watch, and wallet will all go a long way. The watch should be masculine but not too big for your wrist. Buy some decent leather shoes, and a belt and wallet to match. Jewelry should be minimal, understated, but don't be afraid of it.

You could also try running a brow pencil along the bottom of your eyebrows to make them look lower as well as thicker (more masculine), make sure the color is close to your hair and don't forget to blend.

 

My friend is 5'6 ish. He us quite masculine. Height isn't the be all end all.

Then again I have female students at school who are taller than I am (one us like 6'4 and another is 6'2 and a bunch of 6 foot tall girls).

But listen to Patrick. Shoe inserts can help.

 

Or try Sears. My father in-law is 5'5" or less. I am fairly certain he doesn't shop in the boy's section of the store.

 

Fun fact: Wolverine is 5'3.

I'm about 5'1 (157cm) and 125lbs (57kg). I do a lot of my shopping at H&M (and Uniqlo if they have those where you are?), the sizes there tend to run smaller. I find boys' sizes of pants don't have enough room for my hips/ass, but it's worth a try.

When picking an outfit, think of lines of sight. Where do your eyes go? If they go side to side, you'll look wider and shorter. If they go up and down, you'll look thinner and taller. So if you want your shoulders to look more broad, get a shirt with horizontal stripes (this will also make your chest look bigger, so a good binder will be necessary). Also pay attention to the length of your top. If it's long, it'll make your legs look shorter and therefore make you look shorter (this actually applies to hair too, so if it's long, tie it up). If you want to look taller, the tighter your jeans, the longer your legs. Dark wash will make your legs smaller, light wash = thicker. Any top with buttons or a zipper will draw the eye up-down. Colourful shoes for contrast help too!

 

I'm 5'7" and don't have a problem with it (being slim and having longer hair are what confused people). In fact, many guys here are below my height! I won't tell the story of being the tallest person at a friend's birthday party...

CJ and iimee give great advice.

 

Measure your hips and use that for the waist size e.g. I've got a 24 waist but 28 hips so I buy 28 waist jeans that then sit on my hips and that hides some of the curves too. You'd probably need the length to be small rather than regular. I don't knock which shops they have in Maine but stores I've found that do XS and XXS that are actually small are: Next, River Island, Topman and I've heard that American Eagle do small sizes too. It's just a case of trying everything out, after a while you'll find your go-to shops.

 

I'm 5'0 on the nail and I have a lot of unfortunate experience of buying clothing for a short body. My first piece of advice is to not shop at H&M and Old Navy, as I've personally never found an XS anywhere at Old Navy (in person, at least) and smalls are few and far in between. Both stores also tend to have really shoddy construction and cheap fabrics that will fall apart extremely quickly. You're much better off hunting for sale items at a nicer brand because they'll last you longer and sometimes be cheaper than even Old Navy fare, saving you tons of money in the long run. Another general protip is to ever buy clothing full price, and if you can help it, try to only buy during sales that will knock down discounted pieces further.

I have a sort of new age preppy style, so most of these I'll reccomended brands fit my style sense. However, I have found that I trans guy friends who I've helped dress get gendered more correctly the more "traditional" American style they're wearing. Some of it might be that trad or prep style is very good at making more feminine bodies appear more masculine, but it might also be because that trad or preppy style is very gendered and classically boyish, so they may be being precieved as a younger boy. Another reason why I advocate for owning some preppies pieces is that it translates well to job clothing if you have/get a job where your dress code is anywhere from smart casual to business.

Land's End makes pretty high quality products for a relatively low price, and their sale section is quite expansive. Due to your waist size, you might be stuck in the boys' section, but they have regular, husky and slim sizes, depending on how skinny your legs are.

I will always recommend J. Crew, but I understand that their prices aren't attainable for everyone. J. Crew Factory, their budget clothing line, is an excellent cost effective alternative that is still very quality.

Topman is okay quality, and I wouldn't normall suggest them, but they do carry very small sizes.

 

I'm 5'4 never had a problem, other than hating it. lol

 

I would like to second that Old Navy sucks for us transdudes, or skinny dudes in general. Not only do they not carry xs as far as I've seen, but their small actually runs larger than in many other brands.

American Eagle is my personal go to. That shit is expensive too and I would never buy it new, but I see a lot in thrifts stores. Might try ebay as well. They cater mostly to teenagers so their sizes run small and they always have xs.

 

I'm 5ft 8 and wish I were a touch taller. I'm by no means short but I have some things to look for when trying to appear more masculine:

No shorts/trousers with thick waist bands, as they accentuate the hips. I can get away with it from time to time if the body of my t shirt doesn't cling. It helps to have broad shoulders too.
Bulky pockets will have the same appearance (jogger type material).
Stop plucking the eyebrows. The errant hairs in the middle and underneath help to make them look thicker.
Try not to pout - hard one but my resting face is pouty when I'm annoyed.
Finger nails short.
Watch only - if trying to pass, jewellery will impede. Only when you pass can you wear a bit more.
Crew neck t shirts - v neck will accentuate the chest region as the cut will be so that it draws the eye to the chest.
Nike Air Force 1s have a super thick sole, for causal wear. Increase in height.
Short hair. Male style, a good fade helps.
Don't be too expressive with hand gestures.
Don't lean on one hip when standing. Men stand square.
Legs open, not crossed.
A tie to divert chest attention, but leave top button open if you have a slender neck to avoid looking little.

And lastly; you can't grow in height but you can in width. Weight lifting and a good diet for girth, which will help taper the waist, broaden the shoulders, reduce chest fat and thicker arms.

 

I'd like to mention here that hand gestures don't really affect your "passing" as much as people would like to think. More so, they just make people question your sexuality. If you look like a guy and use hand gestures people will think you're gay, and if you look like a girl and use hand gestures people will think you're straight. Don't ask me why- this is just my experience. XD

 

hey, I've presented as male all my life, didn't know any better, but im only 5'6 and no one would peg me as not male. height isn't the thing people make it out to be.

 

There's a sociological perceived femininity to flailing hand gestures/hand wringing/palm up/face touching that's in part derivative of the "hysterical woman" label from 1800s. Hand in hand (no pun intended) with jutted hips/hand on hip for the "nagging woman" image from childrens tales.

You're thinking of splayed hands, nails forward and limp wristed which is exaggeration and a counterpart of gay bashing.

 

Yeah, I move my hands waaaaay too much at times but not at all in a limp wristed way. Everyone has always thought i'm a lesbian, not straight as was suggested. Its more the way you move your hands than how much you move them.

 

For the guys who wear converse but want a height boost.



Hidden wedge sneaker. I actually want a pair and they are comfortable. I have tried them on. No one will know you have wedges in the heel, which are about 2 and a half inches.

Just putting that out there.

They go from like 6women/4men's to 11women/9mens.