What do I wear? (Electric Boogaloo)

[PRlady]

Tell me about it. I love DC, but I stick out like a sore thumb walking down 17th weekday mornings. I can't bear to wear sneakers and a dress skirt on my commute like I see the DC business women do.

ITA that a matching suit is a bit out of vogue; it's quite acceptable to mix and match a blazer with a different pant, skirt, dress, etc.

I'm walking down New Hampshire towards Dupont in nice shoes or boots with low heels. I can't stand wearing sneakers with work clothes either.

 

[J-Ro]

I'm walking down New Hampshire towards Dupont in nice shoes or boots with low heels. I can't stand wearing sneakers with work clothes either.

This is why they invented flats. Sneakers with professional attire, unless someone stole your shoes at the gym, is a no.

 

[quartz]

My point about the suit is that a suit does not need to be uptight and frumpy. It can be fun with funky colors, shoes, and accessories.

That aside, here's another idea: a wrap dress (or faux wrap dress), which looks good on every body type, and a complementary cardigan with nice shoes.

A wrap dress! That is a great idea. Should it be a solid color, or a discrete pattern?

 

[Spun Silver]

Have to be careful there, too, and do your homework. The people interviewing in my city just outside of Boston aren't making 6 figure salaries. Most of the managers are just a shade above paycheck to paycheck and come from working class or lower middle class backgrounds. I always try to wear something that fits in so I don't get started off looking snooty or looking like I'm applying for a job way above the interviewers pay grade. Homework is key.

Homework: Yes. I will never forget an interview I had decades ago when I was a young thing in NYC. It was at an experimental arts center. I liked all the arts and thought it would be great. I wore the closest thing I could afford to a low-key tailored look, maybe not a black suit but something resembling that. When I got there I was met and interviewed by a butchy lesbian with a crewcut wearing shorts. I took one look and knew I wasn't going to get that job. I could so easily have worn jeans but I didn't do my homework. Oh well. It wouldn't have been a good fit anyway! I wasn't iconoclastic enough.

J-Ro mentioned that dress could be the deciding factor between two equally qualified candidates. In the case of a faux pas like mine above, definitely. But when it comes to a city agency deciding between a well dressed candidate and a somewhat dowdier one, I doubt it. I think there are many other factors that would be more likely to decide it. Intangibles like personality fit, management style, references, particularly relevant training or experience, etc. Of course it's different if the job involves PR or something sales-like, but it doesn't sound like that is the case here.

 

[myhoneyhoney]

Anita18, you're in So. Cal., right? It's been so warm here in S.F., I'm sure it's been hot there. Will something like this dress work? http://www.anntaylor.com/floral-pri...tPageType=fullPriceProducts&defaultColor=1878
I have no clue what shows to pair with it though.

 

[Aceon6]

A wrap dress! That is a great idea. Should it be a solid color, or a discrete pattern?

I think subtle prints look the best, especially if you have a few lumps and bumps.

 

[Aceon6]

But when it comes to a city agency deciding between a well dressed candidate and a somewhat dowdier one, I doubt it. I think there are many other factors that would be more likely to decide it. Intangibles like personality fit, management style, references, particularly relevant training or experience, etc.

Or a phone call from a city councilor or someone in the city manager's office. City departments get their budgets from the council and city manager. A well placed phone call seems to finalize every hire. Depressing as it is, I don't think our city has hired an outsider for any position since we've lived here.

 

[PRlady]

Oh that's right, Anita, you're in SoCal, worldwide HQ for casual. DEFINITELY not a suit. Buy a sheath or wrap dress in a discrete color or pattern (you're thin; the wrap dress might give you a bit more curves) and a basic blazer that you can wear over the dress or with decent slacks. Investment dressing.

My daughter is in SoCal as well and is now working at a job that has "events" with donors from time to time. If it were in NY or DC I would have told her, get yourself a LBD for these things. But she's in LA, so I bought her this http://www.bodenusa.com/en-US/Women...esses/WH764/Womens-Broderie-Jersey-Dress.html as a new-job present and she loves it.

 

[Anita18]

Oh that's right, Anita, you're in SoCal, worldwide HQ for casual. DEFINITELY not a suit. Buy a sheath or wrap dress in a discrete color or pattern (you're thin; the wrap dress might give you a bit more curves) and a basic blazer that you can wear over the dress or with decent slacks. Investment dressing.

That's what I thought, hence everyone on the website being in suit and tie threw me for a loop!

I have this dress from WHBM that my lawyer friend cajoled me into buying with a semi-blingy belt, but it is TIGHT and I can't help but feel like it might be too showy? (It isn't vulgar since I'm so thin, but STILL.) But it honestly looks the same on the model, so maybe it's just me and my Asian parents always in my head telling me to never show off?

Um....seriously in no teknik, but what's the difference between slacks/blazer and suit pant/jacket? Materials and shaping?

 

[Aceon6]

That's what I thought, hence everyone on the website being in suit and tie threw me for a loop!

I have this dress from WHBM that my lawyer friend cajoled me into buying with a semi-blingy belt, but it is TIGHT and I can't help but feel like it might be too showy? (It isn't vulgar since I'm so thin, but STILL.) But it honestly looks the same on the model, so maybe it's just me and my Asian parents always in my head telling me to never show off?

Um....seriously in no teknik, but what's the difference between slacks/blazer and suit pant/jacket? Materials and shaping?

Love the dress, but it's screaming sales/marketing/PR in the northeast to me, even if you threw a cardi on it.

You're right about the slacks/blazer vs. suiting, Suit pants tend to fall straight from the hip. Suit jackets tend to have a stronger shoulder and might have a nipped in waist. All of my suit jackets look better buttoned. My blazers tend to look better open.

Don't overthink it. The priorities should be clean, pressed and fitting you properly. If you're brain is saying "maybe too tight", trust yourself. I do a lot of interviewing and I was thinking something on the lines of this page at Talbots is what I like to see, adjusted for age and shape. Black pants, shirt with personality and a plain jacket. It gives me something to remember without screaming at me.

 

[BittyBug]

I have this dress from WHBM that my lawyer friend cajoled me into buying with a semi-blingy belt, but it is TIGHT and I can't help but feel like it might be too showy? (It isn't vulgar since I'm so thin, but STILL.) But it honestly looks the same on the model, so maybe it's just me and my Asian parents always in my head telling me to never show off?

Nice dress but not for an interview, and IMO, not for work unless you wore a jacket over it. It's too body con (i.e., tight); you'll end up looking like Claire Underwood in House of Cards.

I liked the dress in the link @myhoneyhoney, and the stuff @Aceon6 showed in the post right above.

You might also try Nordstrom's web site. They have a house brand called Halogen that does basic work attire with a hint of fashion forwardness / trendiness, so you wouldn't look stuffy. And oddly enough, I'd also recommend checking out Old Navy for tops and cardigans. Amid all the one-season-only throwaway trendy stuff, there are usually some nuggets that are priced very well.

 

[PRlady]

Even H&M has some basic button-down shirts (although I agree the quality isn't the best, I own a couple that have made it thru more than one season) that would look nice under the right blazer and pants.

As to the difference, think a guy in sports coat and pants rather than a suit. The blazer should not clash with the pants or dress but shouldn't exactly match them either.

I spend more money on good blazers than on any other part of my wardrobe because the cost amortizes so quickly. Elie Tahari is my go-to brand in that (on sale.)

 

[vesperholly]

My point about the suit is that a suit does not need to be uptight and frumpy. It can be fun with funky colors, shoes, and accessories.

Agreed! I wore a bright yellow blazer to interviews a few months ago. Granted they were for creative positions, but I felt chic and hoped it made me memorable.

I also skipped the button-down shirts as they feel incredibly stuffy and also fit me extremely poorly. I have a few scoop-neck tops in loose, dressy material that worked really well.

Dress Barn ended up being where I bought pants. They had a ton of different cuts, lengths and colors, and I paid around $30 each. Looking around the store, they had a lot of clothes that would be really good for a business casual workplace, and quite a few suiting/blazer options for mix-and-match interview outfits. Some of it bordered on frumpy but if you choose carefully, there are a lot of young professional stylish that's less, uh, trashy? than Express and its ilk.

 

[MacMadame]

They're not THAT old, but yeah, that's totally what would happen, considering the fit when I tried them on. They would overshoot my shoulders by an inch or two. And they weren't that awesome to keep and tailor.

Then why on earth do you still have them?!

 

[Anita18]

Then why on earth do you still have them?!

I don't, we said "thanks but no thanks" when my aunt offered piles and piles of dowdy work clothes to us. THAT'S what I consider to be suits, because it was the only thing I've seen.

But it was the kind of work-clothes that she would offer, is what I'm saying. Whatever my aunt talked my mom into keeping, I managed to give to a grad student at my former lab, who is now a community college instructor. Her wardrobe was even sadder than mine (her jeans/t-shirts had holes in them), she had no money, and she happens to be the same size as us, which is actually pretty rare. And even then, I had to be pretty discerning with the kind of stuff I passed on, because loud prints and ruffles are a no, even for someone who's desperate.

 

[quartz]

I like ruffles. I like to think they hide my fat.

 

[Anita18]

I like ruffles. I like to think they hide my fat.

I like subtle ruffles, but this is the aunt who thought it was a fantastic idea to show up to my wedding in a short dress with a giant tulle bow right on her stomach. When I mean "giant" I mean "actually larger than her stomach so it resembled a tutu."

I am in no fashion teknik, but I would think putting a giant tutu bow on your stomach isn't the best course of action when you've gained some weight from age...

When I say "loud prints" in regards to my aunt's style, I mean practically radioactive, and when I say "ruffles" I mean "straight out of the 1800s."

 

[quartz]

 

[quartz]

Whoops. Posting issue.

 

[Habs]

I like subtle ruffles, but this is the aunt who thought it was a fantastic idea to show up to my wedding in a short dress with a giant tulle bow right on her stomach. When I mean "giant" I mean "actually larger than her stomach so it resembled a tutu."

I am in no fashion teknik, but I would think putting a giant tutu bow on your stomach isn't the best course of action when you've gained some weight from age...

When I say "loud prints" in regards to my aunt's style, I mean practically radioactive, and when I say "ruffles" I mean "straight out of the 1800s."

Photo, or it didn't happen.

 

[PDilemma]

I like subtle ruffles, but this is the aunt who thought it was a fantastic idea to show up to my wedding in a short dress with a giant tulle bow right on her stomach. When I mean "giant" I mean "actually larger than her stomach so it resembled a tutu."

I am in no fashion teknik, but I would think putting a giant tutu bow on your stomach isn't the best course of action when you've gained some weight from age...

When I say "loud prints" in regards to my aunt's style, I mean practically radioactive, and when I say "ruffles" I mean "straight out of the 1800s."

The stomach bow makes me think of the bridesmaid dress a college friend of mine had to wear in the early 90s. It had an enormous bow on the back positioned smack at the tailbone. She couldn't really sit in it and was horrified at the thought of how it actually looked from the back in the church.

When I got married she was in my wedding party. I told her that everyone was picking out their own dresses except her because I wanted hers to have a butt bow. She was not amused.

 

[Anita18]

Photo, or it didn't happen.

Fine fine fine.

She's a kind, generous woman (almost to the point of being pushy), but for a shopaholic, her fashion sense can be sometimes!

 

[PRlady]

How wonderful!

so here is the dress I am wearing today: http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/product/4130337191499.jsp#/. Unlike your aunt's dress it covers bloat and the several extra pounds I have at the moment, sigh.

The funny thing is that I wore this to an all-day conference in Israel last month. Most people were in jeans but I had press interviews and needed to look a little more professional.

I think every Israeli woman there asked me where I got the dress, from the female head of one of Israel political parties to several teenaged interns.

Anthropologie so needs to open a store in Tel Aviv.

 

[Habs]

Fine fine fine.

She's a kind, generous woman (almost to the point of being pushy), but for a shopaholic, her fashion sense can be sometimes!

I'm sure she's a lovely lady. But, that dress..... it's amazing. And not in a good way.

 

[skatesindreams]

so here is the dress I am wearing today: http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/product/4130337191499.jsp#/.

I love it; just as its' other admirers do!

 

[Aceon6]

I love it; just as its' other admirers do!

I love the review... she's a 38" hip and tried on the 4 and it was tight. Well, duh!

 

[quartz]

Love your dress PRlady. It's got a little gypsy/hippie flair to it.
What style of shoes/boots do you wear with it?

 

[skatesindreams]

I was about to say that it reminded me of a dress I had in 1971!

 

[PRlady]

Black Taryn Rose suede wedges, the tops are suede and the wedges are shiny, so they look dressy. And black tights. So the fact I am basically wearing a maternity dress and grandmom comfort shoes is well-disguised.

And yes, I totally had high school flashbacks when I saw it. I don't own a lot of prints but ordered it, and since now it's gone, I'm glad I did.

 

[Anita18]

So I went on a shopping spree at WHBM and got a few solid color dresses that I can wear for work and nice events. Not to mention a black skirt and black pants and a patterned cardigan, so I can finally mix and match things properly. Altogether, I think it was the most I've spent on clothing in years, but considering they were all on sale, individually it wasn't too bad.

The recruiter thinks I should go full business professional tomorrow, but he's not even located in the state, so what does he know. He's also an older gentleman.

Considering it's going to be 80F tomorrow and my interview will be mid-day, I'll go for one of the dresses. Now the question is, pantyhose or not?