Alright, let me tell you about this whole ‘fashion show dress for male’ thing I got tangled up in recently. It wasn’t for some big Paris runway, mind you, just a small local event we were trying to put a bit of flair into.
Getting Started – The Idea
So, the idea popped up: let’s push the boat out a bit, maybe include a piece that challenges traditional menswear. Someone suggested a ‘dress’ for one of the male models. Sounds simple, right? Wrong. Finding something suitable turned out to be a real headache.
The Search Begins – Hitting Walls
First thing I did was hit the internet. Searched things like “men’s dress fashion”, “male runway long garments”, you name it. Honestly, most of the results were either full-on drag outfits, historical costumes, or super artsy stuff that looked like it belonged in a museum, not on a person. Not quite the vibe we were after. We wanted something wearable, but different.
- Checked out some designer sites known for more fluid styles. Found some cool pieces, sure, but the price tags were astronomical. We just didn’t have that kind of budget.
- Looked at regular online shops. The closest things were maybe long tunics or kaftans, but they often looked too casual or culturally specific in a way that didn’t fit the theme.
Trying a Different Angle – DIY? Modification?
Then I thought, maybe I could make something? Or get something altered? I even sketched out a few simple ideas – basically long, straight-cut shapes. Went down to the fabric shop, looked at materials. But reality hit. My sewing skills are pretty basic, mostly just fixing buttons and small tears. Making a whole garment from scratch that looked decent? Not likely, especially with limited time.
Next idea: modifying existing clothes. Could we take a really oversized women’s dress? Maybe a long coat and style it differently? We played around with some long shirts, layering things, trying to create a silhouette. Some attempts were okay-ish, but nothing really clicked. It often just looked messy or like we hadn’t tried hard enough.
The Breakthrough – Sort Of
I was about ready to give up and just put the model in a sharp suit. Then, while browsing a sort of alternative clothing site, I stumbled across this piece. It wasn’t labelled as a dress, more like an “asymmetric longline tunic top”. It was black, made of a heavy cotton jersey, very simple, but with this interesting angular cut and drape. Crucially, it looked quite unisex.
This felt like it could work. We ordered it, not really expecting much. When it arrived, we had the model try it on with some slim black trousers and boots. And you know what? It actually looked pretty cool. The simplicity was key. It wasn’t trying too hard to be a ‘dress’, just a long, interestingly shaped garment. It had structure but also movement.
Final Result and Thoughts
So, that’s what we went with. It wasn’t exactly a ‘dress’ in the traditional sense, but it achieved that different silhouette we wanted. The model wore it well, looked confident. It stood out on our little runway.
The whole process showed me finding genuinely interesting, non-traditional menswear off-the-rack is still pretty tough unless you’re swimming in cash or looking for costume pieces. You often have to think outside the box, maybe look in womenswear sections for minimalist or oversized items, or just get lucky finding something labelled vaguely like that tunic. It took way more digging than I initially thought it would.
