Gender neutral dressing has been steadily on the rise since the 90s. But what does it mean? Gender neutral dressing refers to fashion and outfits made to be worn by anyone, regardless of their gender. Examples include female celebrities like Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Doechii, and Zendaya stunning the red carpets in suits or male celebrities like Brad Pitt, Pete Davidson, Odell Beckham Jr., and Vin Diesel shocking audiences in skirts.

In July of 2022, Brad Pitt wore a skirt to the Berlin premiere of “Bullet Train”. In addition to the skirt, Pitt’s button down was pink. His combination of masculinity- the classic button down and coat- and femininity- the pink of his shirt and his skirt- was hardly unheard of, but still headline-making. Billy Porter had already been wearing skirts for years; yet, men in skirts is still extremely controversial. Much less controversial was Meryl Streep’s black tuxedo at the 2018 London premiere of “The Post”. Streep was not new to the suits game, although this particular suit received more attention from the media. She kept a touch of femininity through the heels, double breasted design, and reimagined coattail, but kept in masculine with the cut of her pants and color. It became commonplace for women to wear pants on red carpets starting with Barba Streissand in 1969, making it more accepted for women like Merly Streep to wear suits. While men like David Bowie occasionally made a splash in dresses, men dressing in a more feminine fashion has been few and far between until recently.

Women wearing pants was, arguably, inevitable. Pants are practical, and more comfortable. Skirts and dresses, on the other hand, were just as likely to go away entirely as they were to be worn by men. Skirts can offer more room for movement, but are more often impractical and uncomfortable. They’re rarely worn for anything other than aesthetic purposes. Unlike pants, not wearing skirts didn’t disable men from doing anything. Men wearing skirts wasn’t logical, so it didn’t need to happen. However, the twenty-first century has seen a rise in impractical clothing. Fast fashion has made trends quick, easy and accessible. Red carpet outfits have become even more extravagant- consider Kim Kardashian’s 2021 $10,000 ponytail. Enabling men to wear skirts or dresses provides more room for creativity than just wearing a traditional suit, and creativity is required for modern day high fashion. Seeing men and women in gender neutral outfits on the red carpet has inspired more gender neutral fashion in the streets and in stores.

There’s an additional benefit to the rise of gender neutral fashion. Despite being somewhat of a product of fast fashion, unisex clothing can also be used to combat fast fashion. More brands, like American Apparel, are introducing unisex sizing. Unisex sizing allows for companies to make less styles and less products because men and women can share measurements and looks. This enables fashion brands to produce less waste and unisex trends can slow micro trends. Gender neutral dressing not only provides room for more creativity, it also helps make fashion sustainable.