Let your gender flag fly.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love to wear makeup. What began a few years ago as a simple desire to cover up skin imperfections has now become one of my favorite forms of artistic and personal expression.

What I didn't realize was the profound effect that heavier makeup and colorful clothes would have on my self-perception, and consequently, others' perceptions of me.

When I began coming to terms with my genderqueer identity two years ago, makeup and clothing became my natural ways of presenting a truer version of myself in public and alleviating any dysphoria that I felt.