I wear the pants around here ...
Just a comment on something I saw via Meryl's shared items ...
Wearing Pants to Work a Feminist Act
I have no doubt that many places still have rules about women and skirts. I worked at a place once that said if women wore skirts they had to wear hose and they had to wear make-up to work as part of the dress code. The make-up one really tweaked me off so I did not wear make-up on several occasions. My thought was puh-lease ... try to punish me for not wearing make-up. I'll call the paper so fast ...
Point of note, we lived in Boston, where less make-up really is the norm. I probably went through half a thing of foundation when I lived there for just over 2 years because I rarely wore it. When I moved back to Texas ... what a shock!
But the real reason I wanted to post something ...
In interviews I always advise women to wear pants instead of skirts with their suits. Why? Legs are distracting, and I didn't want my outfit to become the focal point. Better to wear a plain black / blue / brown suit with a nice undershirt than attract attention in other, inappropriate ways.
Now as evidenced by American Idol last night, if I'd showed some cleavage or shown up in a bikini in some of those interviews, maybe I'd be a Director right now.
My thought has always been, and will continue to be, if you want to be noticed for your brain and your ideas, don't distract with flashy clothes and short skirts. I tend to think that skirts are for dressy time, pants are for work time. And to me at least, pants are the more conservative option. I think women wear skirts (at least short ones) to show their legs and to garner attention, and to distract from other things. So unless these lawyers mentioned above are wearing the puritanical skirts that go all the way to the floor, they are being encouraged to wear skirts so a judge will stare at their legs and not listen to what they are saying. I can't intelligently say if that's anti-feminist are pro-feminist, as part of the feminist movement seems to include sexual prowess and encouraging ladies to be as sexual as they want.
Either way, I say wear pants ladies or wear skirts or wear a potatoe sack for all I care. But as much as you own the clothes you wear, you have to own the attention it gets you. And business owners - don't tell me to wear skirts unless you're going to wear one too. :)
*Another thought ...
I do wear skirts to work. I wore one yesterday. And I like skirts. I like skirt suits. I have one of those too. I just get a little uncomfortable in a room full of older men if I happen to be wearing one. This may have more to do with my age (which is increasing, daily, I've noticed) than with anything else. Maybe if I were in a similar age bracket with some of these people (which, I will be, some day all too soon) I wouldn't feel the same.
Wearing Pants to Work a Feminist Act
I have no doubt that many places still have rules about women and skirts. I worked at a place once that said if women wore skirts they had to wear hose and they had to wear make-up to work as part of the dress code. The make-up one really tweaked me off so I did not wear make-up on several occasions. My thought was puh-lease ... try to punish me for not wearing make-up. I'll call the paper so fast ...
Point of note, we lived in Boston, where less make-up really is the norm. I probably went through half a thing of foundation when I lived there for just over 2 years because I rarely wore it. When I moved back to Texas ... what a shock!
But the real reason I wanted to post something ...
In interviews I always advise women to wear pants instead of skirts with their suits. Why? Legs are distracting, and I didn't want my outfit to become the focal point. Better to wear a plain black / blue / brown suit with a nice undershirt than attract attention in other, inappropriate ways.
Now as evidenced by American Idol last night, if I'd showed some cleavage or shown up in a bikini in some of those interviews, maybe I'd be a Director right now.
My thought has always been, and will continue to be, if you want to be noticed for your brain and your ideas, don't distract with flashy clothes and short skirts. I tend to think that skirts are for dressy time, pants are for work time. And to me at least, pants are the more conservative option. I think women wear skirts (at least short ones) to show their legs and to garner attention, and to distract from other things. So unless these lawyers mentioned above are wearing the puritanical skirts that go all the way to the floor, they are being encouraged to wear skirts so a judge will stare at their legs and not listen to what they are saying. I can't intelligently say if that's anti-feminist are pro-feminist, as part of the feminist movement seems to include sexual prowess and encouraging ladies to be as sexual as they want.
Either way, I say wear pants ladies or wear skirts or wear a potatoe sack for all I care. But as much as you own the clothes you wear, you have to own the attention it gets you. And business owners - don't tell me to wear skirts unless you're going to wear one too. :)
*Another thought ...
I do wear skirts to work. I wore one yesterday. And I like skirts. I like skirt suits. I have one of those too. I just get a little uncomfortable in a room full of older men if I happen to be wearing one. This may have more to do with my age (which is increasing, daily, I've noticed) than with anything else. Maybe if I were in a similar age bracket with some of these people (which, I will be, some day all too soon) I wouldn't feel the same.
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