femme – Dressing Dykes

Mabel Hampton, Lillian Foster, and Mid-Century Black Butch/Femme

Mabel Hampton and Lillian Foster have left a material, tangible legacy in a way that cannot be said of many in the lesbian communities of the 1930s, 40s and 50s. This is especially true when it comes to Black lesbians, and Black butch/femme lesbians (or butch/fem, stud/fem, etc); verbal histories slip away easily, and marginalisedContinue reading “Mabel Hampton, Lillian Foster, and Mid-Century Black Butch/Femme”

Femme Chronology: 1950s Bar Lesbians and 2020s Retro Dykes

Lesbian fashion is, by default, not constrained by a masculine/feminine binary. While some people or styles may find themselves drawn more to one or the other, lesbian fashion in general – much like lesbianism itself – is broad and boundary-breaking. Even more traditional butch and femme fashions are displaced from the “masculine” and “feminine” ofContinue reading “Femme Chronology: 1950s Bar Lesbians and 2020s Retro Dykes”