Julia Fox says she dresses for women (Picture: Getty)
Julia Fox dresses for the gals, the gays and the theys – and recently shared that men now ‘hate’ her style.
Chatting with Emma Barnett on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, she said: ‘Men hate my outfits. They’re so mad that I’m not like how I was on Uncut Gems.
‘I hear that all the time, but I don’t care…because the girls love it. The girls and the gays love it!’
Dressing for the male gaze has long been a complicated decision – sometimes not even consciously made – for women.
Rachel Gagie, 29, from London, says she ‘used to dress for men’.
‘I would make sure my boobs were out, tight clothes,’ she tells Metro.co.uk.
‘I’d also wear make up, assumed men wouldn’t like me without it. But then I got in a relationship and was told I looked great in anything, that I didn’t need to wear make up if I didn’t want to. And so my style has become a lot more relaxed.
‘However, now when I do dress up and post a mirror selfie, I’m exclusively looking for approval from women. Which is equally unhealthy in all honesty, as you’re still looking for compliments, but I think social media has a lot to say for dressing for other people and not for ourselves.’
Rachel’s style before was crafted for the male gaze (Picture: Rachel Gagie)
Before, on a daily basis, she ‘made more effort if I thought I’d be somewhere where I might have my “meet cute”.
‘So generally tight skinny jeans or leather leggings, a top that emphasizes my boobs, either in tightness or showing cleavage.
‘On nights out, however, I would wear going out dresses, always tight and always showing my boobs. Sometimes short, sometimes midi and heels.’
Nowadays, she wears jeans, baggy t-shirts and blazers or oversized jumpers.
‘I’d say I don’t dress in your ‘classic’ feminine way, much more about comfort,’ she adds.
‘I actually love me in jeans and a blazer, it’s so comfortable as the blazer is oversized and I can unbutton the jeans if I’m too full with the blazer covering it.
‘Going out is now an elevated version of that, so trousers or suit, jeans, heeled boots and a nicer version of my daytime top. I can’t remember the last time I had my legs or boobs out.’
Now, she dresses in a style she’s more comfortable in Picture: Rachel Gagie)
Where once it was about tight fitting and revealing clothes, with blonde hair down, now her natural brunette colour, she ties her hair up and wears looser fitting clothes.
Her style is very much ‘female approved’, and women always love her stylish outfits.
Dress to suit the male gaze, and you’re compromising yourself (and potentially upsetting other women), but dress for yourself and you’re running the risk of losing the attention of men.
A frivolous choice though it may seem, turning against traditional notions of attractiveness can have consequences.
Meredith Jones, an academic at Brunel University, previously told Metro.co.uk when speaking on preserving youthful looks as a woman: ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we lived in a world where this was not something that women had to worry about.
‘Women are caught between a rock and a hard place, because there are things to gain from doing it. If you don’t adhere to it, then there could be penalties.’
Dressing for men as a heterosexual woman could be seen as ‘acting very sensibly in the constraints she has’, much like the choice to forego common cosmetic procedures like Botox.
However, personal sacrifice comes with dressing for men.
For Rachel, meeting a partner who valued her for her personality in a sense gave her ‘permission’ to let go of the male gaze, and rethink her wardrobe.
‘My partner was actually horrified that I dressed for men, and he said he couldn’t understand why I felt that way (he’s grown into understanding his privilege),’ she says.
‘He brought me a comfort no other man had given me and unless I go for something seriously out there, he tends to love anything I wear.
‘I started to try and build a capsule wardrobe, moved out of fast fashion which helped to fuel a lot of my decisions as I find a lot of the fast fashion models are sexualised on those websites, adding to that illusion.
‘I found I got a lot more from women. Before men would stare.’
Julia Fox is known for not giving a damn what men think about her clothes (Picture: GC Images)
Naturally, she ‘missed the attention’ as her fashion choices changed, ‘there’s something nice about feeling wanted even if it’s fleeting and superficial’.
Being in a relationship inadvertently has affected Rachel’s dress sense, as she tries trends she previously ignored, but ones that appeal to the female gaze.
‘When a woman compliments me, it completely boosts my confidence and it’s normally when I’m following the ‘clean’ aesthetic,’ she says.
‘I also think women in general love something that is subtly sexy. I wore a dress to a wedding in Portugal that I felt incredible in, and it was loose, not figure hugging at all, but with a cowl neckline and semi sheer (I wore a bodysuit underneath) and the amount of women who messaged to say they loved it, but nothing from a man.’
Rachel adds: ‘I also love myself in the cycling short and t-shirt trend. I find it so comfortable and again the oversized t-shirt helps.’
Fashion means something different now to what it once did.
How to stop dressing for the male gaze
Megan Watkins, Head Stylist at online fashion destination SilkFred says: ‘Male gaze dressing can include items that accentuate the more “sexy” parts of the bodies.
‘The first thing you can do to start dressing for yourself is wearing items you actually like. Sort through your cupboard and get rid of the items that don’t speak to you.
‘Cultivate your personal style by identifying the items that make you happy, suit you and make you feel assured when you leave the house.
‘When shopping, women will often avoid bright colours or quirky silhouettes, which could be to do with not wanting to draw too much attention or to avoid covering up their bodies too much. However, if there is a bright colour or funky cut that speaks to you, then go for it.
‘Studies have shown that dressing in bright colours – otherwise known as dopamine dressing – can greatly elevate our moods and make us feel more confident. When dressing for men, women tend to tone themselves down and stick to tried and tested styles.’
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‘I would make sure my boobs were out and wore tight clothes.’