1. A Fun Exercise: Design a Male and Female Version
One exercise I love to practice is designing a masculine and feminine version of the same product. It’s an eye-opening way to explore design language—that subtle visual vocabulary that communicates mood, identity, and purpose through shape, texture, and proportion.
- Whether it’s a smartphone, a shoe, or even a water bottle, giving a design a gender lets you experiment deeply with personality, style, and emotional connection.
- This exercise is more than playing with stereotypes. It’s about feeling the essence of masculinity or femininity, then letting that feeling flow naturally into your lines and shapes.
- Think of how bottles of perfume are created for example.
2. Feel the Gender, Let Your Lines Follow
When you think of male versus female bodies, what comes to mind?
- Wide shoulders and muscular forms?
- Sleek curves and soft contours?
- There’s no magic formula to apply—it’s more about feeling these differences intuitively and letting that guide your hand.
For example, I often imagine a strong, confident male silhouette versus a slender, elegant female form, then translate those sensations into design elements. When you slow down to sense what each gender embodies, your sketch lines gain a life of their own.
3. How I Approach Gender in Design
When giving a gender to my shoe designs, I pay attention to a few subtle but telling details:
- Last size: Typically, women’s shoes have a smaller size (like 36) compared to men’s (around 42).
- Instep shape: The curve and height can signal masculinity or femininity.
- Outsole thickness: Thicker soles often read as more rugged or masculine.
- Tongue foam: A softer, thinner tongue conveys delicacy; a thicker one suggests robustness.
- Line curves: Flowing, gentle curves often feel feminine; sharper, straighter lines feel masculine.
These details layer together to tell the story of your design’s identity without forcing it.
4. Trust Your Creativity, Not a Rigid Checklist
I never approach this with a checklist—I find that too constraining.
- Creativity needs freedom. Instead, I let my intuition lead, experimenting with form and shape until the gender feels “right.”
- It’s almost like composing music or writing poetry—there are guidelines, but the real magic is in your personal interpretation.
5. Why This Matters: Giving Designs a Voice
Gendering your designs isn’t about making clichés; it’s about making them speak to an audience. People form emotional connections with products, and a thoughtfully gendered design can amplify those connections.
By embracing this practice, you also enhance your sensitivity as a designer, learning to use subtle visual cues that convey complex ideas and feelings.
6. Try It Yourself and Share Your Thoughts
Give this exercise a try:
- Compare Apple vs Samsung phones. Is one brand more masculine than the other?
- Have fun! It will sharpen your sensitivity to design nuances and help you develop a more personal style.
Which design do you think reads masculine or feminine?
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
Cheers,
Chou-Tac
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Hi guys, ahah I guess I need to review my design gender :).
A is female and B is male?