Women Adopt Masculine Styles In Watches, Jeans And More

During the 1920s, Coco Chanel made waves by wearing and designing the first pants for women. She had the radical idea that women should feel free, comfortable and capable, rather than stiff, constricted and sweaty.

Fast-forward almost 100 years, and you will notice how Chanel's lady trousers were just the tip of the iceberg. These days, masculine fashions have popped up in almost every aspect of women's clothing, whether for practical reasons or not. Perhaps it is a result of the continuous blurring of gender roles in society, or perhaps it just looks cute. Either way, women have been flaunting chunky metal watches, "boyfriend" jeans and flannel shirts for years now. What started as several isolated trends seems to have merged into an androgynous fashion phenomenon.

- Suiting Up

Famed French designer Yves Saint Laurent made his mark upon fashion history by designing the ladies' smoking suit, a tailored tuxedo meant for the female body. To explain his design, Saint Laurent stated that putting a woman in a masculine silhouette encourages her movement and behavior to be that much more feminine in order to balance out the outfit.

Perhaps this offers some insight into the prevalence of masculine designs in women's fashion. Just as putting weights on a baseball bat trains a batter to swing harder, putting a suit on a woman teaches her to flaunt her femininity from within.

These days we can find sleek tailored pants suit on the red carpet worn by everyone from Tilda Swinton to Angelina Jolie.

- If I Was Your Boyfriend ...

Ask 100 guys on the street what they think their female significant other looks most sexy wearing. Chances are a good portion of them would mention something from their own closets. "Boyfriend" apparel can range from oversize button-down shirts, to loose straight-fitting straight jeans, to underwear designed in the style of little boys' superhero briefs.

To avoid looking sloppy or grungy, mix just one boyfriend piece with something ultra feminine. A men's style button-down can be paired with a short pair of shorts or skirt. A pair of boyfriend jeans can be worn with a cute top and lots of jewelry to make his look your own.

Watch What Happens

Chunky male accessories can also be added to bring a little edge into your wardrobe. Walking through a jewelry department these days, you may not be able to discern the difference between the men's and women's watches. Almost every major designer of female accessories has pumped out at least a few masculine-style watches to keep up with the trend, which has stuck around for the past several years.

Another accessory in this vein is the large, bulky belt. Big, loud, Texas-style belt buckles have taken up a place in women's stores as well. While this addition is a bit harder to work into some outfits, it can completely renew the look of an old dress or skirt.