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2025 Dandy Outfits and Backstories
Phil Powell

My Instagram Top Nine most popular images of me in 2025

Do we really want to reflect upon 2025? I am not going to mention the obvious issues (putting it as mildly as humanly possible) regarding the events of 2025. I want to keep this as lighthearted as I can given the climate. I will talk about the few highlights of 2025 that I'm sure will provide some entertainment, maybe even hope for the future.

Click here to see the outfit Outfit #1 during Met Gala Weekend, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, Saturday, May 3, 2025   Click here to see the outfit Outfit #2 during Met Gala Weekend, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, Sunday, May 4, 2025

When I met Billy Porter at The Little Gay Pub, I immediately showed him my Instagram pics of my art back in June 2024. He was completely impressed and said they were "Amazing!" Months later I am told by multiple friends that the theme for the 2025 Met Gala was Black Dandyism, something on which my art is based. In my delulu mind, to this day, I believe my encounter with Billy Porter, one of the chairs of the 2025 Met Gala, may have had a role in influencing his style. I was determined to go. Unfortunately for me, a major obstacle got in the way of that: unemployment. I didn't have the money to go, and this was my biggest dream.

Spoiler Alert: I was able to go (read all about it here)

Click here to see the outfit Outfit #1 at Provincetown Carnival, "Summer Camp%", Provincetown, MA, Thursday, August 21, 2025   Click here to see the outfit Outfit #2 at Provincetown Carnival, "Summer Camp%", Provincetown, MA, Friday, August 22, 2025

With a new job I was able to have the money to go, after a 1-year hiatus due to old job-related financial issues, at last, to Provincetown Carnival 2025, my absolute most happy place on earth, my personal Disneyland. To say that those 5 days weren't magical would be a tremendous misnomer; it was everything I expected and a whole lot more. My outfits were on point and very well-received, especially at The Boatslip. It felt free and felt right in every single way to be there, to be able to walk down the street, dressed up, and instead of receiving derision and possible threats (my fears are absolutely real), I received heaps of joy and praise from the parade spectators, many of whom were equally fantastic in their outfits and costumes. It briefly gave me hope that the world could be this happy were it not for (fill in long list of ick here).

I was around my beautiful and amazing friends this past year, learning, growing, being loved, accepted, and included. I was able to improve my coding skills. I realized just how many amazing strangers there are out there in this dark world. I saw Cynthia Erivo at World Pride, and I saw Kylie Minogue in concert. And I wore great outfits. 2025, however, for us who desire to live in a world full of love, acceptance, inclusion, kindness, compassion, empathy, perspective, variety, diversity, and community, was not entirely a year which we probably would want to fondly remember.

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