I am continually amazed at the things people will wear to work. I know lots of workplaces have casual dress these days and I wholeheartedly embrace that. But, come on, folks, there are certain things you should never wear to work. On my commute this morning I saw the following...
1) Crocs - great for gardening, not for work
2) 99 cent drugstore flip flops with a suit - is it only in DC where this look is so 'in'?
3) Ripped pantyhose - I'm not talking one tiny run, I'm talking several huge holes and runs on both legs. There's no way this woman didn't notice.
4) Ripped jeans
5) Tank tops with bra straps hanging out - That is never a good look and particularly not in an office (especially when it's 50 and raining).
6) A beer t-shirt
that does sound like a collection that stacey and clinton would have a field day with.
ReplyDeleteI love the show what not to wear-- because it is helpful and critical but also loving. It is not about making people over. It is about letting them shine.
I'd like to see what stacey would say about me. And the person in the tank top with bra straps.
Trish,
ReplyDeleteYou can't believe how different it is over here. Most people look like they should be in a fashion magazine (although I hate the fashion these days, but that is another topic altogether) and then they get to work and often change into a company uniform. I've met teachers on the train who look fabulous and then when I see them in school, they have changed into their "work" clothes, which in that case is not a uniform, but something that they don't mind getting dirty.
This attitude of looking your best no matter what (at least for women) also extends to wearing spiked heels at the beach or hiking. Remember our walk to the Minoo waterfall? On a Saturday or Sunday, that place would have been filled with couples hiking to the falls, and most of the women would be wearing spiked heels.
I never heard of Stacey and Clinton, but I hate the idea of anyone telling me or anyone what not to wear. Maybe the show is just dressing advice, so I may be wrong, but I hate those segments on TV or in magazines that tell you what is in and out, what you should or should not be wearing this season, or pointing out fashion faux pas. Personally, I think anyone who is wearing the newest fashions or looks like they've been dressed by a stylist (and yes, I'm talking about the women in Japan, too) are 1) are paying way too much attention to their looks and 2) are too vulnerable to trends.
As someone who wore sneakers with my suits when working in New York before it became popular (yeah, I'm giving away my age) I like the idea of the flip flops with the suit. I would love to talk to that person and hear their story, but I do understand your point. To me, the problem with the way Americans dress (in general) is not that they don't follow the fashion rules but that even when they do, they so often look slovenly and sloppy. And as I look at the "looks" that you encountered on the train, it seems like they all fall into those categories.
Oh, and another thing...I love tank tops with bra straps showing (although not on my to work, though). I know, can you believe it? I remember so clearly even when I was young my mom whispering to me her disgust about some woman in a store because you could see her bra strap peeking out from her shirt. (and another time, another woman, another complaint about a woman walking around braless). Bra straps can be so beautiful now that they are almost like fashion accessories, and I like the multiple strap look.
Linda
I just got back from DC and there were tons of flip flop suit ladies... must be a thing now.
ReplyDeletelet me tell you about what the students at Delaware Tech wear..... I like to think I'm staying young and edgy in my fashion outlook despite having said hello to 50- but my god- last summer I saw a young woman wearing a tight white tee shirt that barely came to her thigh...a pair of flip flops... and that was it...seriously, no bra, no thong (I could tell 'cause the tee-shirt was so tight.) Forget showing all you got, how could that have been comfortable?
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