Tag Archives: Wardrobe

Dressing the Part

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I recently hosted a Scripps prospie who will be interning for the same organization as me this summer, and what she told me came as a bit of a shock. Not only, she said, is the environment that I’m going to be working in one of the most professional she’s ever been exposed to, but all workers must adhere to a strict dress code. In this case, that means no halter-tops, nothing above the knees, and no leggings. While I had opposed dress codes before in my own public school, they make sense to have as an employee of a school, a position in which I would be expected to dress in a professional way that commanded respect even amongst seven year olds. Still, the fact that I’ll be working in an environment that lacks air conditioning, in summer in New York, poses the dual problem of dealing with the heat in one of the most fashionable cities in the world.

When I interviewed for the job in the dead of winter, I had to shadow a teacher for a brief period of time. I was immediately intimidated by the hip and chic attire the teacher, a young woman, was wearing- I remember she had these really cute black leather boots, and while she wasn’t wearing one of those really big floppy hats, she seemed like the type of person who could pull one off. I, on the other hand, was wearing a dinky old cardigan with a patterned top that my mom had bought me underneath. I call this shirt my interview shirt. I have worn it to every interview because it’s kind of cute and not too revealing, but at the same time, it doesn’t exactly exude power, or the idea that I could be the type of girl to pull off a big floppy hat like that teacher. Looking back on the interview, it was like that episode of Broad City, where Ilana accidentally (or purposefully?) wears a dog hoodie to a meeting with an important buyer at her job. The buyer, played by Vanessa Williams, looks absolutely flawless, and Ilana is immediately impressed and embarrassed.

vanessawilliams

This summer, I want to do things differently. The biggest challenge for me is dressing in a way that conveys this sense of power and confidence while working with the New York City heat. What I buy will be very dependent on whether or not jeans are allowed at the job- currently, I have several dark-wash, no rip pairs that in my eye seem appropriate for a teaching job, but then again, what do I know? While I’m too busy with work right now to really do some shopping, I can see myself burning a lot of cash at stores like Zara and H&M. Fashion has always been something that’s important to me in terms of expressing myself, and I’m excited to dress this newfound part of myself- the part that has a career that’s making a difference in the real world- in the best way possible.

It’s The Most Wonderful Time of The Year (for work wardrobe shopping…)

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Call me Elle Woods, but I hate black suits. I find them boring, stuffy and generally just kind of manly. However, for some reason whenever I have an interview or a reason to look remotely professional, a black suit is just about all I can seem to come up with in my closet.   Given that I don’t want to go into a professional industry that is too conservative, I have made it goal to come up with some alternative options for a work environment. Because, who could resist sneaking a couple things for yourself during the awesome holiday sales?

I had some great luck at J.Crew when I was home for break. I found a skirt on-sale that I think was part of their last spring collection. It’s bright. Like really bright. But, I think I found some ways to make it work.

Here’s what I came up with:

 

The yellow skirt says a lot, so I kept it simple with a black, long-sleeve top and a scarf on top and neutral flats on the bottom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You could even dress it down by pairing it with a denim shirt and some sandals for a completely different look.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone needs a LBD, but what about a LRD? I found an amazing red dress on sale at J. Crew that I can’t wait to put to good use. Again, the dress makes a statement, so I would keep accessories minimal. I am planning on mixing it up a little bit by pairing it with desert boots, instead of black heels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, incase I ever have a holiday cocktail party to go to (a girl can dream), I plan on wearing this vintage beauty I stumbled on at a store near my house in Minnesota. The cut is classic, the color is gorgeous. And, judging by the hole in the elbow, it’s already received some love from its previous owners. I’d probably keep it classic with some black heels and tights, but it would look great with the desert boots, too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alas, I think it’s safe to say I no longer need the black suit. Well, maybe I’ll keep it just in case…

 

Professional Dress

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When I was in the third grade, I decided that I couldn’t be a doctor because no one would ever be able to see my clothes underneath those boring, white coats. If I was a teacher, on the other hand, I would get to wear whatever I wanted to wear everyday. This logic, ridiculous as it was, offers some insight into my values at the tender young age of nine. I had my priorities. First, be smarter than the boys in my class. Second, look great doing it.

Fast forward some fifteen or so years later, and lo and behold I am a teacher! But, I was not thinking of clothes when I applied for Teach for America. I was thinking of educational inequity and closing the achievement gap.

Clothes did become an issue, though, when it came time for my TFA interview. After three and a half glorious years frolicking around in the Claremont sun, I had amassed quite the arsenal of sundresses, gladiator sandals, American Apparel v-necks and oversized sunglasses, but I was not well versed in the category of professional attire.

The day my mom and I went shopping for a suit for my interview was almost as painful an experience as the wild goose chases we undertook while looking for homecoming and prom dresses in high school. There were many moments of frustration and strife, and we looked through many a sale rack before giving in and going to Banana Republic, where we found a very modest black suit that fit well (and of course wasn’t discounted). The next weekend I picked up some power pumps at Nordstrom Rack and I was set.

Little did I know that the suit and those power pumps were the beginnings of a takeover.

My beloved closet has undergone a complete transformation over the past six months. At Scripps, my hangers were laden with colorful dresses, funky sweaters, jeans and jersey. Today, those hangers hold blouses, dress pants, dresses (sleeved with knee-length hemlines), A-line skirts and sweaters. The most prominent color? Black.

In college, my blacks were reserved for working backstage crew assignments at the theatre. Now my blacks are ironed, pleated, cuffed and respectable looking, while also ready to camouflage the black whiteboard marker dust that finds its way onto any garment that is vibrantly colored. (My bright yellow skirt gets dingy every time.) Jeans are now reserved for weekends. My shoes are sometimes orthopedic and always closed toe; and, my Reef flip flops are for trips to the mailbox and Target.

At first, I hated it. I hated these frumpy teacher clothes. I felt like my creativity was being stifled. Not only did I have to wear a bra everyday (Oh, Scripps…), but I had to wear closed toe shoes and trade my Scripps College sweatpants for dress pants. Luckily, I got the hang of dressing like a teacher rather quickly.

Having experienced an interdisciplinary education helped with the transition to dressing like a “grown up.” I soon learned to mix a colorful blouse from my college days of yore with dark dress pants purchased for work, match bright shoes and a funky scarf with a conservative dress, and jazz up an oxford button down with those awesome earrings I bought from the vendor who sells jewelry outside of the entrance to Viva Madrid!

Mixing old and new pieces has allowed me not only to maximize my closet’s potential (cotton sundresses can be successfully worn under sweaters and blazers alike), but also retain a sense of individuality in my daily wardrobe choices. And on Thursday mornings, when my alarm goes off at 5:00 a.m. to remind me that I have an hour of traffic waiting for me, sometimes a fun outfit can be great motivation to pop out of bed and greet the 10 west with both a battle cry and a sashay.  (My nine year-old self would be proud.)

Moral of the story: be your workplace a cubicle, lab or classroom, you can always infuse an element of style into your work wardrobe that is unabashedly “you.” It makes the dress pants all the more bearable.