What is the appropriate behavior for a man or a woman in the midst of this world, where each person is clinging to his piece of debris? —Buddha
Who says you can’t wear your underwear as outwear? The choice is always up to you
I don’t have a lot of time to type between fashion shows this morning, but I couldn’t just let this pass without comment. There have been far too many instances of late where some people think they have a need or right to tell other people what they can or cannot wear. On one hand, we have France getting all apoplectic over women wearing too much on the beach. At the same time, I’m covering fashion designers like Jason Wu whose most recent collection is 80 percent sheer, which makes it unwearable in most US cities without some level of modification.
The most recent piece of nonsense came this morning when I noticed that Victoria’s Secret was trending on Facebook. Curious, I checked to see why. The reason is one of the most pathetic ever: People were upset that the lingerie company was encouraging people to wear their sexy things where they’re visible. Â Apparently these people have forgotten that Madonna started wearing her bra as daywear back in the 1980s. That’s 30 years ago, folks. We should have some sense of what is appropriate by now.
So, what is appropriate to wear out in public? The answer is simple: whatever you feel comfortable wearing. Any other answer amounts to oppression. If you want to wear a purple hoodie, as ridiculous as I might think that sounds, then wear a purple hoodie. My opinion doesn’t make one damn bit of difference. Neither does anyone else’s.
Skewed Perspectives
One of the interesting things about fashion is that there are a lot of choices. Designers create somewhere between 40 and 60 ensembles for each collection. They then typically divide those collections into sections as they think an ensemble might be appropriate: day wear, casual wear, athletic wear, formal wear, and evening wear. Those separations are made based on how we normally dress during any given day.
However, there are no hard and fast rules. Athletic wear, for example, might look like it is appropriate for the gym, but Chromat showed us that it can work during other parts of your day as well. God Save Queens is a step ahead of Victoria’s Secret designing lingerie specifically so it can be worn in public, and people who purchase their clothes are doing just that. Want to wear an evening gown to breakfast? Go right ahead!
Our perspectives of what is or isn’t appropriate to wear are horribly skewed. For too long, we have let other people tell us what is appropriate and we have blindly followed along. No white after Labor Day. You must wear black to funerals. Who came up with these stupid rules in the first place?
Appropriate Is How You Define It
We don’t have to listen to those “rules” others keep throwing at us. Women, especially, who have been subjugated by men for centuries, don’t have  to let anyone else decide what is appropriate for them to wear at the beach, at the store, or even to work in most cases (there are exceptions for safety). You get to decide what is appropriate and if  someone tries to force you to wear something differently you get to walk away.
While style and fashion magazines might inform you as to what is available and give you ideas as to what looks good together, even Vogue doesn’t get to dictate what you wear on any given day at any given time. Â Those choices are yours. Don’t let anyone take them away.
I don’t know how many times I have to say this. Your body belongs only to you. You get to decide what is put on it. Create your own personal style. Go with that works for you and makes you comfortable.
And if someone doesn’t like your choices, tell them to fuck off.
Don’t we have that down  now? Good. I have fashion shows to get back to covering. There is another  set of choices just a few minutes away.
Dress Like A Woman
More misogyny from the White House
The Short Version
#DressLikeAWoman started trending overnight as word of an unofficial White House dress code that is more strict for women than men began to circulate. Women have been posting pictures of themselves in various styles to emphasize that there is no wrong way for a woman to dress.
Wait, Haven’t We Been Here Before?
Yes, yes we have. We’ve covered the topic of what is appropriate for women to wear no fewer than three times in just the past year:
So yeah, we’ve covered this general topic before. The fact that we have reason to discuss it again is rather disturbing.
What’s The Big Deal This Time?
This time around, the issue is an apparent double-standard in the unofficial White House dress code. We have to say “unofficial” because, officially, the White House doesn’t actually have a dress code. However, as presidents inevitably come and go, each one sets a different tone for how people dress.
For example, Jimmy Carter wore blue jeans in the oval office, something that really upset a lot of people at the time. So much so, that when Ronald Reagan became president he immediately reversed the trend and even required male reporters to wear ties inside the White House. President Clinton was, again, more relaxed, and, again, President Bush made things a bit more formal. Most recently, President Obama was known to not wear a jacket in the Oval Office and aides often came to meetings wearing t-shirts and jeans. So, it’s not the least bit surprising that as we return to largely Republican leadership fashion preferences run a more formal direction.
What got everyone up in arms, though, was an article from former Politico writer Mike Allen in his new newsletter Axios. Citing an anonymous source (which we consider questionable at all times), Mr. Allen wrote:
Trump likes the women who work for him “to dress like women,” says a source who worked on Trump’s campaign. “Even if you’re in jeans, you need to look neat and orderly.” We hear that women who worked in Trump’s campaign field office—folks who spend more time knocking on doors than attending glitzy events—felt pressure to wear dresses to impress Trump.”
That was all it took for women everywhere, especially those who already dislike the president and his policies, to take offense and start asking, “How is a woman supposed to dress?” then answering the question themselves with pictures.
While the article has no actual authoritative quote from the president or anyone on his staff, such a dress code requirement from this White House isn’t unbelievable. After all, this is the same man who, while on the campaign trail, rated women on a scale of 1 to 10 and insulting women who criticized him in any way. His misogynistic tendencies are already well known and well documented.
By questioning the White House dress code, however, we are at the same time questioning all dress codes where more emphasis is placed on how women dress over men’s styling. This isn’t an uncommon occurrence among businesses, especially those in more traditional industries such as banking and finance. The president is far from being the only one with antiquated ideas of how a woman should dress.
Does that give the White House a pass, though? Absolutely not. If anything, the White House should be the one setting an example of inclusion and self-definition.
Oh, wait, this White House doesn’t understand those words, does it?
In the end, this is an issue the entire business community needs to address, not just the White House. That we cannot depend on the White House to show any leadership on the matter is just sad.
Really sad.
Answering The Question
Thousands of women have already posted their pictures on twitter with the hashtag, #DressLikeAWoman. Here are some of our favoriates so far:
Whatever a woman chooses to wear is dressing like a woman. Any questions?
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