Recent Entries

• The Girl Inside: AVOID

  by Ariane Durand March 15, 2023
  I do look around for dressing services offering a makeover and photoshoot, particularly in places that I’m expecting to visit in the near future. One that caught my eye is The Girl Inside, which is just outside Bath. The tastefully-designed website has a picture of an old house that looks as though ...

• Christiane Dowling

  by Ariane Durand March 15, 2023
  Today I drove to Sandhurst for a makeup lesson with professional artiste Christiane Dowling. The first thing to say about Christiane is how young she looks. In her 20s at most. She wasn’t wearing much, if any, makeup. Maybe she has a flawless complexion. She is certainly the most highly-qualified ar...

• Happy dressing

  by Ariane Durand March 14, 2023
  So I spent a happy morning as Ariane. The heels were more comfortable than I expected. I'm not used to walking around in a ladylike manner but I will get there. Also I enjoyed watching Endeavour S9 E1. No TGirls on show but that was the 1960s after all.   Then out on the bike for a short and pleas...

• Home alone

  by Ariane Durand March 14, 2023
  I'm at home on my own all day today. And most of Ariane's clothes have arrived, including at least two complete outfits. So it doesn't take a genius to work out what I'm doing. I won't be going out – that will have to wait for the makeup lesson tomorrow – but otherwise Ariane will be in residence an...

• Wigs

  by Ariane Durand March 13, 2023
  I decided to postpone my makeup lesson, not for complex psychological reasons, but simply because the wig I ordered online does not fit. I was not able to try it on until this morning. I do have a replacement on order from a different supplier and this should arrive within 24 hours. The makeup lesso...

• Ariane vs Rest of the World

  by Ariane Durand March 13, 2023
  On Sunday evening I suffered a profound psychological blow that undermined my entire approach to life. I felt it in my heart and I'm now trying to make sense of it. At least it was not related to Ariane – not outwardly at any rate.   The world does not move as fast as I would like and people do no...

• Building a wardrobe

  by Ariane Durand March 12, 2023
  I'm not talking DIY. My version of this is Destroy It Yourself. Instead I have received deliveries from the (reliable) suppliers M&S and Honour. So I now have at least one complete outfit to take to my makeup appointment tomorrow. Some of the items are temporary stand-ins but they are still the real...

• Private dresser loneliness

  by Ariane Durand March 10, 2023
  Imagine what it must be like to suppress a fundamental part of your identity, day after day, week after week, year after year. Always pretending to be something you’re not. Avoiding saying things that people don’t want to hear. This is the reality of life for many people living in the absence of fre...

• Waiting for deliveries

  by Ariane Durand March 10, 2023
  There is one other problem with buying clothes online. You don't always know when it's going to arrive. If you need the clothes for a deadline, you might find yourself left with nothing to wear. This is of course a short-term problem until you've bought all the necessary items and anything extra is ...

• Buying clothes

  by Ariane Durand March 9, 2023
  It's not straightforward for a crossdresser to buy clothes in a shop. You face more obstacles if you want to try something on in a changing room. If you're en femme, and you head off with a dress to the ladies' changing area, you run the risk of being turned back by the staff. Marks & Spencer have d...