Gender bender

On our way back to the office from a client meeting, one of my colleagues asked me:

"Sir Lester, since you always look like a walking lookbook, can you give me tips on how to shop and dress up so I look unique?"

It was a question that caught me unaware, primarily because I think of myself as plain, boring and unadventurous in terms of fashion. So, I don't think I belong in a lookbook, unless there's a "before and after" segment, and I'd be the "before."

But since she asked the question, and I'm obviously into shopping, I decided to give her a piece of advice that she probably doesn't hear a lot:

"When you go shopping, shop outside your gender."

As expected, she asked me what I meant when I said: "shop outside your gender." So, I explained to her that if she wants to look unique, she shouldn't limit herself to shopping in the women's section. After all, you can find equally interesting items in the men's section.

Here's a case in point:

I bought Ate Bullet this printed pair of pants from Express. The cut was skinny, and the print was almost leopard-like, rendered in red and black.

The moment I saw it, I knew that a plain black top would be the perfect foil for the pants. Also, the top should feel very relaxed and loose, since the pants are already very slim and structured. It called for a "boyfriend top," so I thought, buy something for the boys.

So, I bought this men's undershirt from Body Glove. It was made of very soft cotton, and had a nice slouch to it. The v-neck was higher than usual, and it frames the face well.

To give it a bit of a girly vibe, I just folded the sleeves. That gave it the right length and clipped a bit of the masculinity off of the shirt.

Putting those two pieces together resulted in this very Alexa Chung look which was laid-back yet chic.

And it's a look that's achieved because of thinking outside the clothes box and not limiting your choices to the women's department.