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Pontificating

Blending In

February 13, 2017February 15, 2017 by the directrice

  I occasionally wonder whether being “properly dressed” is determined by reference to normative standards or relative ones. As with many legal questions, the answer is, It depends. While there are normative standards for attire, at the end of the day, proper dress is about respect for your host. You should dress the way that … Read more

Categories Dressing, Miscellany, Pontificating9 Comments

The Dress That Started It All

September 29, 2016September 28, 2016 by the directrice

  Perhaps some of you have, at one time or another, taken a step back from your surroundings and asked, “How did I come to be here?” Admittedly, one is most likely to ask this question when something significant has gone completely sideways, but self-reflection should not be undertaken exclusively during dark moments!   This … Read more

Categories Appreciating, Dressing, Pontificating10 Comments

Come, Cross the Rubicon with Me

June 23, 2016June 23, 2016 by the directrice

  To cross the Rubicon is to take a bold, intentional step from which there is no turning back.   Mother, Desh: Look away! You won’t be able to unsee what follows.   Everyone else, settle in and feast your eyes.   This dress is, unquestionably, the most advanced thing I’ve ever put on. It … Read more

Categories Dressing, Pontificating, Strategizing25 Comments

Why We Should Dress Up for Jury Duty

September 16, 2015September 16, 2015 by the directrice

  In the District of Columbia, registered voters and licensed drivers are summoned for jury duty in the Superior Court every two years, almost like clockwork.   As you can see from the pictures, I am completely respectable in Business Casual, but I’m not that dressed-up.     Out of a pool of 100 prospective … Read more

Categories Pontificating10 Comments

Voting with Your Wallet

June 17, 2015June 18, 2015 by the directrice

  For many people, clothing is medium of artistic self-expression. Clothing can also be a way to express, and advance, your values — and given that clothing might be the largest discretionary line-item in your budget, that’s worth thinking about. What do I mean? I am not talking about wearing slogan t-shirts. (Remember: Legible clothing … Read more

Categories Pontificating7 Comments

Lament: Crop Tops Rise from the Dead

May 18, 2015May 19, 2015 by the directrice

  Approximately one year ago, I was musing about how quickly the styles of the 90s and 00s had been recycled and I thought, Thank God crop tops haven’t come back. They were too awful even for fast fashion to resurrect. Those thoughts had barely formed in my head when crop tops started appearing in … Read more

Categories Pontificating, Strategizing6 Comments

The Case for Being Properly Dressed

February 9, 2015September 3, 2015 by the directrice

  When I was a young associate at my firm, one of the partners asked me to participate in a panel at a professional conference that is always heavily attended.  He asked me because, in his words, “You’ll add diversity.  The conference sponsors care about that.”  Oddly touched and weirdly motivated by this invitation to … Read more

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The Case for Being Well-Dressed

February 9, 2015October 24, 2015 by the directrice

  Nice clothes are a type of armor: They can give you confidence, and they may even embolden you. Nice clothes have a corresponding effect on the people you encounter: If you are well-dressed, people will be nicer to you, and will even defer to you. (Sad, but true.) So, in encouraging you to be … Read more

Categories Pontificating2 Comments

Should I send you notice of new posts?

Dressing

  • We Are High and Dry
  • The White Shirtdress
  • Sleeves: A Worthy Quest
  • The Eye Is Fooled
  • Could Go Either Way

More Dressing

  • Casual Friday: A Professor and A Pirate2 years ago
  • Patch of Blue10 months ago
  • Beating the Heat with Black Silk3 years ago
  • A Slightly Madcap Dress2 years ago
  • Shadow Dress: The Negative3 years ago

Appreciating

  • The Perfect Jacket
  • A Mixed Bouquet
  • The Set-Off
  • Tweed and Stripes
  • A Rage for Novelty

Planning

  • Mixed Greens
  • The Science of Being Well-Dressed
  • My Current Favorite
  • The Watermelon-Flavored Dress
  • April Showers Preparedness
  • To the Jewelry Box
  • The Virtues of Black Blouses

Archives

  • Appreciating (43)
  • Dressing (283)
  • Finishing (89)
  • Miscellany (53)
  • Pontificating (8)
  • Refreshing, Restyling and Remaking (43)
  • Strategizing (75)

Annual Archive

  • 2018 (28)
  • 2017 (98)
  • 2016 (117)
  • 2015 (141)
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