The constant battle with what to where and when to wear it

I find that dress code and dress code etiquette are some of the most frustrating problems that just do not go away. What’s appropriate for a situation? Should I wear pants or a dress? And what the hell does business casual mean? These are all questions that I seem to face on a weekly basis and I feel like I am not alone.

As a woman, I feel like men have it easier when navigating how to dress for a number of situations. It generally tends to fall to some combination of pants and a shirt. Now of course what the details of those garments are can vary, but you can get away pretty easily with a button down and some type of decent-looking pants. And if it needs to be classy? Just add a jacket. Done. Simple.

For a woman, it’s different. When it comes to the workplace, I am happy with trends towards a more casual workplace and having the option to be less formal when it comes to my outfit. But of course, this can bring about a whole host of problems. Are jeans acceptable? What about nice jeans? Is my outfit too classy? Am I showing too much cleavage? The last question in particular is one that really grates on me, but I recently saw a survey that said that people generally think it’s fine. So that’s good. I’m glad that we’re making progress there.

One other interesting thing that I found in that survey that resonated with me: People find the term semiformal confusing. In fact, they find it the most confusing of any situation. I couldn’t agree more. I feel like this ties into the business casual aspect: Both terms are subjective and dependent on the specific situation. There’s multiple levels of semiformal depending on what kind of event it is. I don’t know about the rest of you, but that drives me wild. Can’t we come to an agreement? It’s 2018, let’s make that happen.

So, ladies, if you feel like you have trouble selecting the right outfit for the right situation, you aren’t alone. For me, I find it to be a never-ending struggle. Will it ever end? I sure hope so! I guess time will tell, but let’s work on that.

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