Non-Binary Outfits, Gender Neutral Clothing and Androgynous Style Ideas

What do your clothes say about you? How do they make you feel? 

Our clothes are important. Or rather, they should be. They should make us feel good about ourselves, or protected or safe. They’re central to the visual narrative that defines us. Saying who we are, what’s important to us, whether we’re style conscious or we prioritise function or comfort. They can tell whether we’re extrovert or introvert. They make us feel part of a community. They’re the way we express ourselves. 

And for centuries they’ve been a visual marker of our gender.

So as more of us define our gender as being outside the binaries we’re finding that traditional styles and fits don’t necessarily work for us any more. And while society, led by Gen Z, is changing quickly, the fashion world is taking longer to reflect the needs and wants of consumers. 

So we have to work harder and be more creative to find a look that matches our gender expression. 

The idea that you need to look a certain way if you're non-binary is a harmful misconception propagated by the media. Although the world is still grappling with the idea that gender identity is different to gender expression. It’s really up to you how you express yourself. 

Of course some people are happy with gendered clothing, and that's completely valid. But generally Enby people seem to have three approaches to expressing themselves outside of the binaries. The first is to cover up any sign of gender, the second to avoid gendered clothing entirely, and the third is about not being bound by any gender norms and breaking out to wear whatever feels good.

Of course these are not prescriptive. You can take a single path or mix it up. How you express yourself is down to whatever matches your personality and feels good, because it really depends on who you are and how much you want to draw attention. 

So here we’ve put together a few fashion and styling ideas to help you look good and feel good wherever you go. But remember, you might not get it right on your first try. This is very much about experimentation and it’s your style to define.

The first thing to finding the right look is to know how you see your gender. Are you entirely gender neutral, demigender or gender fluid? And does your gender expression differ from your gender identity? To put it in a nutshell, your gender expression is the outward reflection of who you are, and your gender identity is the inward, and they can be different. 

The concept of unisex has been around for a long time and refers to clothes that are socially acceptable when worn by men or women. So we’re talking T-shirts, jeans, sweatshirts, hoodies etc. Wearing unisex clothes isn’t breaking gender norms. This is great for people who simply want to remove signs of gender or prefer some ambiguity.

The word androgynous refers to the quality of possessing both masculine and feminine traits. So androgynous fashion incorporates both feminine and masculine. Wearing androgynous clothing is much more of an act of resistance, it says “I refuse to comply to what you consider socially acceptable.”

If you’re concealing you’ll need to look for oversize clothing to draw attention away from your body shape, making it much harder to identify your gender. This look may also go hand in hand with a gender neutral hairstyle. You may even want to go for multiple layers. But don’t think concealing is just a baggy skater style.

Oversize came back into fashion in 2020 with Balenciaga and Marc Jacobs showing oversize on their catwalks. And the effect of lockdown, with more of us spending time at home, has spurred the likes of Gucci, Chloe, and Moschino, who have all showed oversize or more billowy looks in softer fabrics on their runways in the last couple of years. This trend doesn't seem to be letting up so oversize is here to stay. And in 2024 this has firmly trickled down to less expensive high street brands. 

But to look chic rather than shabby buy oversized garments in your size or one size larger, rather than just buying things that are three or four sizes too big. That will ensure that overall length and sleeves still fit and it’s not unflattering or baggy in all the wrong places.

One thing to remember is that it can be harder to look professional in oversized clothing. It’s certainly not impossible but doing stylish in oversize starts to get a bit more expensive, so do bear this in mind if that’s the route you’re going.

Style icons: Billie Eilish

Shop at: The Rainbow Stores, ASOS, Shein, H&M, Boohoo

This is a path of total individuality. A fusion in which anything and everything goes and there are no rules. Your choices are as much about you personally as they are about your gender identity.

We won’t surprise anyone for pointing out the genderless status of the humble t-shirt. But there’s tees and there's tees. For neutral-gendered looks avoid cap sleeves, scoop necks and anything fitted such as muscle shirts. Go for a basic crew neck in either regular fit or baggy.

If you’re on a budget then there are loads of places to buy plain basic tees. But do be aware of high street brands trying to pass off their standard streetwear ranges and rebrand them as genderless.

Why not go to retailers that are making genuine efforts to support the community. And preferably those who don’t force you down binary routes when you get to their website. Finding a site with ‘Mens’ and ‘Womens’ as navigation choices will tell you how far a brand is really embracing non-binary choices.

All of our regular tees are unisex (the ones printed on the front, not the ones printed all over), so you can grab any of those off our rails and they should fit the bill. You can see some in the slider above. 

There are a few other brands you could also try who specifically do genderless tees: try Lonely Kids Club.   

These are such a ubiquitous item that you may feel that nothing is gendered. If you dress androgynously then everything is available, but for gender neutral avoid tight fitted trousers. So straight leg jeans, wide leg trousers (pleated works really well), cargo pants or slacks are all good. Ijji offer a good selection of straight leg options. 

There are many gender neutral jackets to choose from. From the standard unisex styles such as denim jackets, bombers, puffers, anoraks and raincoats to specifically gender neutral styles such as quilt jackets, which are hugely fashionable right now.

Also blazers or boyfriend jackets work well for AFAB people. Places like Kirrin Finch pride themselves on their menswear-inspired suits & jackets that are cut for a female body shape. You can see one of Kirrin Finch's awesome suits in the picture to the right.

Oversize overcoats are also a great addition to any wardrobe. 

If you’re bored of the mainstream items then there are many more interesting styles that can be explored. Jumpsuits, playsuits and dungarees are a great choice at the moment and they’re available from many high street stores, thrift shops and independent makers. It’s hard to beat Lucy & Yak though for their spectacular range of patterns and colours. 

Recently, some clothing brands like Both& have taken a different stance, designing what they call gender affirming clothing. The distinction is primarily around fit. While unisex, gender neutral, or nonbinary clothing often caters to a baggy/oversized style (which it has to do, in order to fit on any body), Both& believes in creating new fit systems that cater to the specific needs and desires of gender queer folks. Specifically, they have built a fit and sizing system for anyone was assigned female at birth and wants a masculine silhouette. You can learn more about that system for transmasc clothing here.

There was a time when absence of gender meant absence of colour, and black or neutral greys were the default. That’s no longer the case. You can mix and match colours and patterns just as you can garments. So a lime green sleeveless jumper with a pair of orange patterned slacks fits the bill. Have fun with matching and clashing patterns and fabrics.

Colour and pattern haven’t always been great in mens clothing. In fact it’s been largely pretty drab, while women have had a full spectrum of delights. So if colour is important to your look you may find yourself erring on the femme side. That’s not to say mens fashion is devoid of colour. It’s just a bit scarce. 

Not only is the whole spectrum of colour in your realm but you should be exploring a whole gamut of amazing patterns. If you’re gender neutral, find patterns that don’t sit in either masc or femme categories. And for gender fluid then defy expectations and AMAB people can wear femme patterns and AFAB dig out more masc ones such as herringbone, plaid, houndstooth and pinstripe. 

Fabric falls along similar lines to colour. But really it’s all down to your personal preference. 

Denim obviously never went away, but it has a huge role within genderless fashion. That’s largely been driven by newer, looser shapes and styles that don’t highlight gendered body shapes. In 2019 Levis were one of the first global brands to embrace non-binary clothing when they did a blog called The Levi’s Guide to Unisex Style. 

Fabrics that have become to any degree gendered are also now free for all. AFAB people may want to look at Twills, Worsteds or Tweeds. 

And more delicate fabrics, such as lace, mesh, sheer, silks and satins, that have been traditionally associated with women can now be worn by anyone, but especially for gender fluid people.

There are no rules. Use and abuse accessories by mixing colours, textures, stones and metals. Try a pearl brooch on a denim jacket, a pink belt on  pinstripe trousers or a rhinestoned bag with a jumpsuit. Be experimental.