There's been lots of talk around blogworld lately about work-appropriate dressing - especially how hard it is as it's become less strict. As I work from home most of the time, it's hard to justify having much in the way of a work wardrobe, but I can generally manage to pull myself together and look respectable.
Today - and apologies for the convoluted explanation - I went with a client to meet their client. I asked in advance whether they had any dress guidelines, because for my client it's very relaxed (decent jeans, blazer and ballet flats is fine). They said best to be a bit more corporate.
I wore a grey fitted knee-length dress and black heels with my new favourite rust cardi. When I walked in to get L (my client), she was wearing ... shorts. She is young, tall, black, thin and quite depressingly gorgeous. So, she was wearing mid-thigh black shorts with a leopard print silk blouse and tan wedges. She looked sensational. Just not quite what I would consider to be business casual.
The clients didn't bat an eyelid, although interestly enough the woman we met assumed our names were the other way around - apparently L looks more like a Tiffany (hideous name that it is), and I look more like the more pedestrian L-name.
I don't think I'm going to adjust my work wardrobe sensibilities to match L's, but it was an eye-opener.
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8 comments:
Wow, I could *never* consider shorts "work appropriate" regardless of how great someone looks. You're ensemble sounds much more professional and appropriate.
Business casual is such a funny concept - I wore smart shorts for work once (well, I was in my twenties!)and was told that they weren't appropriate. I think your outfit sounds much better, you can't go wrong with the Michelle Obama shift dress and cardi!
I'm with Pseu -- shorts, no matter how tailored, are not office attire. (And I'm an old grump, but that's life.)
Pseu, I agree that it's not about how 'good' you look. I think the aim is to balance looking almost neutral (ie professional) with allowing for a bit of self-expression.
TNMA - I've seen so many magazine spreads touting the 'tailored short' (one leg only?) as appropriate city attire that it's not surprising people do it! I guess I was slightly channelling the First Lady, but not consciously :)
Rubi, I'm an old grump too. I keep trying to work out whether the outfit flummoxed me because I wished I could look so great in something like that, but at the end of the day I concluded that it really just wasn't CORRECT ...
Ha! Was going to comment on the post (just echoing what everyone else says), but you crack me up with that observation re the "tailored short" -- and only one leg. . . .
Mater, 'the short' is one of my favourite fashion idiocies, along with its longer friends, 'the pant' and 'the trouser'. The language around fashion is a great source of mirth to me.
I just saw this in a catalogue:
"the capri". I guess they think it sounds all fancy.
And by the way, your outfit sounds like it was very nice. The only thing worse than wearing a "short" to a client meeting would be a "romper". I still can't believe grown-up women are wearing rompers.
OWW, that's amazing that you mention 'the romper' - I saw one in action just this morning. I was driving through the city and thought I'd spotted another instance of 'the corporate short', but as I got closer I realised it was in fact a romper suit. Lordy, where will it end?!
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