People seemed to like my post about velvet, (Sartorial Sadness) so I thought I’d try another fashion meditation. It beats politics, right?
I would swear there was a time in the early 70s when I did not even own a dress or skirt. To be dressed up was a “pants suit” à la Hillary.
Then came Dress For Success, wherein we were instructed that for business, we should wear skirted suits. That was the highest-authority garb for professional,women, pants suits made us look like “imitation men”. So that’s what I wore to go to court or meet clients. And I had dresses that I could wear with the obligatory blazer.
But, for casual wear, it was still, more than ever, all pants all the time. Especially for traveling! If you did much travel back in the days when we could, lemme ask ya: didja. ever see globe-trotting American women wearing skirts or dresses?
Well, you know me (doncha?)—I like to buck the trends. F’rinstance, I never carry a purse, unless it’s full summer and I have no pockets; even then I’ll stick my car keys in my bra and attach my wallet to my belt if I can. So In the fall of 2019 when we went to Poland to attend a wedding, Just on a whim, I packed DRESSES! Full-skirted , deep- colored heavy cotton-knit ones, the ones I occasionally used to wear to work, which I wore with big scarves that I could kinda hang from one shoulder or as a bandolier secured at the waist with a big brass-buckled leather belt. Oh and a Western hat, which I had never taken traveling before because I was sure it’d get crushed, but: what was I SAVING it for?
It was a great feeling, swishing around Krakow and Warsaw dressed as….a woman!
Of course, what shoes to wear might’ve been a problem if it hadn’t been boot weather. Boots look great with a full skirt.
Oh, I got looks askance from the forkéd ladies, our fellow American tourists with their neat slim corduroy pants, mini-backpacks and and running shoes. But the beautiful Polish women (And they all are!) smiled at me and paid me compliments. “I love your dress: like red wine!” said one.
If you haven’t worn a skirt for a while, my fellow non-fellows, y’might like to try it, just for kicks! (And speaking of kicking, it’s much more satisfying in a rippling skirt!)
ST UnWoked & UnVaxxed! 
I worked once with two girls from Poland, they were so incredibly beautiful.
I usually wear dresses for special occasions, but for some reason, the idea of wearing a long skirt depresses me. Maybe because I used to wear mini skirts all the time when I was younger? And wearing a long skirt makes me feel old, but I need to get over that. Thank you, Hypatia 🙂
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Yes that’s the received wisdom. And I agree, maxi-skirts are frumpy, and also would not be practical for travel.
I’m just saying, it can be fun to vary the uniform! When we travel(or did😢) American women tend to dress like 12-year old boys. Which is great, I like the practicality of that myself: who loves blue jeans!I love blue jeans! Who wants to be…fussy? But beyond fussy, there’s..flamboyant.
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Sounds fun 🙂
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“Then came Dress For Success, wherein we were instructed that for business, we should wear skirted suits.”
I surely remembered that book as I was just entering the job market at the time. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it was somewhat useless because we were expected in my industry to dress “on the cutting edge” which is challenging when one is a “hick from the sticks” on a strict budget. Anyway, it was expected of me to represent the company appropriately so I did have some fun.
For example, at one point in the late 80s, white jeans in the dead of winter were considered ‘de rigueur’ while traveling or after hours. Skirts were always above the knee and suits were frowned upon until wide-legged pants and and fitted long jackets became a staple of work wear. NO NYLONS but black opaques were fine in the winter with stiletto knee high boots.
Now I wear mostly sundresses and sandals due to the warm climate and shorts/ denim minis instead of pants. I still have my NYC wardrobe and I look at it fondly wishing I could still wear some of those items! One thing I refused to give up- the color black. I rarely wear color and if feeling frisky, I’ll do white or grey. 🙂
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My mother was born in 1932, and she was always amused by the little black dresses my friends and I wore. She still considers black to be a color of mourning, and could never understand wearing black on a festive occasion. She used to tell us that we looked like a bunch of Merry widows 🙂
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My mom does too! I like black because it provides a good backdrop for blonde hair and I don’t have to worry about a multitude of accessories. 🙂
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I think Holly Golightly/Miss Audrey gave us the “little black dress”, don’t you, JaC?
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Nanda!!! Holly Golightly is my personal icon. I’m not kidding…
Whenever I shop there is always a voice in the back of mind asking “What would Audrey do?”
Sorry to sound so unoriginal but I never argue with sheer perfection. 🙂
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I have no argument with any of that, JaC. 🙂
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No idea 🙂 I don’t know fashion history, I just try to stay current 🙂
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🙂
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Oh yes, Liz, I thought of you as I wrote this—I knew you’d have a different take. You’re all LBD and pearls, right? I’ll bet you have some super-high fashion outfits. ‘Dressing for success” depended on in what industry you aspired to succeed.
But it’s interesting: you wear denim mini skirts instead of jeans!
I noticed the “no nylons” trend. Of course it was just the opposite in law practice: no bare legs no sandals. It looks so cold to me, bre legs in winter. But in reckon you get used to it, like the Roman soldiers with their short pleated kilts.
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“You’re all LBD and pearls, right?”
Bingo! I wear denim capris and minis during the summer because denim pants are too hot but I own 10 prs “just in case.” 🙂
As for nylons, we did wear opaques in the winter which were warmer and more durable.
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I love this post because I want to talk about maxi skirts. I owned a long, straight skirt with a long wrap around cardigan with a faux fur collar and stiletto ankle boots. It was one of my favorite outfits but a visiting friend from Michigan told me an executive wouldn’t be caught dead in that “get-up.” 🙂
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Liz, you’re “Mame”: You look fabulous in anything! Wear that maxi with a long cardigan whenever you want. Tickle their imaginations and bring back a classic look, say I….
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I wore skirts and dresses as often as possible – I liked the redux of the long-waisted look – when working/training. Using equipment for transfers now means colorful jeans, dress pants, fancy sweaters/shirts, and *jewelry*. Saving a favorite formal two-piece skirt/top with an asymmetric hemline – and some kitten heels – for my “going Home” outfit. Time to *dance*, then! 🙂
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Oh Nanda…🥲
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“ I gave what other women gave
that stepped out of their clothes.
but when this soul, its body off
naked to naked goes,
he it has found shall find therein
what none other knows-
And give his own, and take his own
And rule in his own right!
there’s not a bird of day that dare
extinguish that delight! ‘
—Yeats
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She ain’t Yeats but she was Coco Chanel:
In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.
Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.
🙂
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I love that! It’s like Beau Brummell, the famous dandy in Regency England. He said his,goal,was that nobody remember what he was wearing, but everyone would remember that he was the best-dressed person present.
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My husband frequented a favorite specialty store in NYC called Beau Brummell. I think we were meant to be …
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I wore my best shirt to a job interview during the dead of winter in NYNY. I didn’t get the job but the interviewer did ask me, at some point, whether or not I was a lumberjack. I wanted to punch him in the face.
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With AFRICOM’s Current Ops section I wore a black and white ‘uniform’ of my own design with Hawaiian shirts every TGIF.
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