Moving forward

Research has not kept pace with changes in queer dress and appearance, particularly outside of cisgender monosexuals. As several participants discussed, queer spaces and communities are no longer as strictly divided in aesthetics as they once were, and dichotomous divisions of femme/butch are outdated.

The sense of freedom and expression that participants such as Becca, Melissa and Charlie reported feeling in queer spaces suggests that a wider array of aesthetics are emerging, which are enabling plurisexuals to draw from a wider palette of influences and still feel visible and understood as queer.

Creating their own definitions of plurisexual style, allows these women to deterritorialise from mainstream and stereotypically queer style-fashion-dress. In so doing, through their interviews, portraits and daily embodied practices, the women of The Queer Wardrobe Project are able to “create their own affirmative values”.

There is a need for more research to understand the diversifying styles of queer communities as monosexual uniforms evolve into queer assemblages, and queer style is increasingly influential. The Queer Wardrobe Project is a way to start conversations and shift perceptions in this area, but there is more work to be done.

At the time of writing, there are seven participants in TQWP, but Leanne and I have agreed to keep the project going through the coming months, as a way to broaden understandings of plurisexual women and their style, offering greater visibility for this often-erased group and exploring a wider range of subject positions.