Business casual beyond pants: skirts and dresses

JewelryGirl

Angie, I LOVE this look on others & try it from time to time myself but here’s why I shy away…

~ Don’t like my legs exposed (I could do fun hose but can’t stand the high waisted belly cut off one’s)
~ Finding the right fit, fabric & color. I enjoy having a waist & 99% of the time don’t want to surrender it. I also seem to feel bigger in a dress or skirt much of the time. I find that I like a more pencil skirt feel with a lower waist. Dresses, oh gosh now I have to have a very versatile top & bottom (shopping for that overwhelms me a little I guess because maybe I don’t have the right skills to know what to look for here yet?). Fabric & Color – I want a neutral solid with a durable fabric that is forgiving yet glides over my body. That seems to be tough to find right there…
~ Heels – no problems here. I love about a 2-3″ heel & wear with about everything anyway.

I am anxious to see where you go with this one as I would love to be abel to do something that works for me here because I think it would open up so many more possibilities!

January 28, 2010 at 7:04 am

londonkiwi (now back in NZ)

Veteran

I have always loved skirts, for my hourglass body they are less problematic to fit than trousers and I love how they move when I walk. In the last few years as dresses have become more fashionable I have steadily built up my collection of these as well.

When I tend to want to wear trousers to work is in Spring and Autumn when it is too cold to wear bare legs and I am sick of wearing hose and also on rainy summer days when bare legs seem inappropriate. Trousers are practical if you live in a city where it is windy as well!

January 28, 2010 at 7:17 am

Meredith

I think that traditional hose are truly uncomfortable, because they leave you feeling sweaty from your toes to your belly button.

If we can convince these reluctant skirt sporters to try some heavier weight tights, they might be surprised.

Heavier weight tights are usually are made out of more natural materials, or at least feel that way. I personally loathe wearing sweaty hose, but I love wearing tights and leggings that don’t leave my toes feeling like they are drowning.

I also think that wearing a skirt is also about finding the right length–this I have learned from you, Angie! Too short and you’re tarty, too long and you’re hippie.

January 28, 2010 at 7:23 am

Phoebe

Veteran

Dressing for a professional woman is hard. Dressing for a professional man is quite easy: suit, tie, shirt. It´s a uniform, the only thing to discuss is the color of the tie. When you take turns with pants, dresses and skirts as a woman, your outfit can be interpreted. You read that every day in the newspaper concerning female politicians. I guess that´s why Hillary wears the same suits all the time and Mrs O is a fashion icon.
A skirt says: Hey, I´m a woman!! Sometimes that´s not the message you want to send in a professional environment.

January 28, 2010 at 7:23 am

Lisette

(website)

Active Member

For me it tends to be a seasonal thing, pants are warmer. I do wear skirts and dresses in the S/S but I hate hose! Bare legs only and flats too! Unfortunately working in the lab, the safety people actually prefer pants in case of a biohazard/ chemical spill and close toed shoes. It wasn’t till I started sewing that I really could wear skirts or dresses anyway. I have a very tipped waist (5″ lower in front) and that would mess with the hang of the skirt. Dresses were a problem because if it fit in the chest and shoulders it was huge in the skirt -to the point of ridiculousness. Now that I can make my own, everything fits better but I confess, my first instinct is to reach for pants.

January 28, 2010 at 7:28 am

danysedai

I love wearing skirts and dresses,even though my work environment is pretty casual, I don’t wear hose with them in the summer. In winter I wear cute A-line skirts in a heavy fabric with tights and knee-high boots, unless temperatures drop to in the -20s C like in these days, so I’m wearing pants with tights underneath (I use a pair of black sneakers for commuting, I take the buss and there’s a lot of snow in the ground. As for dresses and heels, I like wrap dresses so I have several of those, and I’m usually in low heels.
I think it is a reflection of how much we have changed when all women used to wear was skirts and dresses and not we prefer pants.

January 28, 2010 at 7:38 am

Rachel

I wear a lot of skirts, but I find I often default to trousers in the winter because it makes for much quicker dressing in the morning, and I’m always in a hurry! Trousers are one piece, quick to put on, whereas tights take longer and require more co-ordination. A terrible excuse, I know, but the truth.

January 28, 2010 at 7:40 am

kimlee

Veteran

For me, my limited wearing of skirts/dresses is about fitting into an environmental norm. I live in an area where many men still feel that woman should not be in position of high authority — and often it feels as though wearing a skirt/dress draws attention to the fact that I am a female, which distracts them from focusing on the point I am making or the work that I am doing. Moreover, the other female directors around me where dress pants, so I tend to just follow their lead. However, I am hoping to incorporate more dresses/skirts into my work wardrobe.

January 28, 2010 at 7:52 am

Sally McGraw

(website)

Active Member

As a die-hard skirt and dress girl myself, I am stymied, too. I think that many women find pants to be more comfortable and modest, and worry less about how they look in slacks than skirts. But I completely agree that the right skirt or dress paired with cute hosiery can be just as comfy and chic as dress pants.

January 28, 2010 at 7:53 am

Palmfronds

For me it is part aversion to cold(even in the summer the AC indoors is painful for me sometimes) and part praticality that makes pants easier. I love skirts and have some great work outfits built on them.but for running hospital stairs and hallways,leaning over bedrails and stooping for examining patients’ feet etc, pants are much better suited.
I do find that unless I wear almost flats with dresses,I get more comments about ‘looking special today’ which, while a nice ego boost, isn’t necessarily what I need distracting me from work.sounds strange but I am more self conscious when I get those comments and I really don’t need to be thinking about my dress while at work!

January 28, 2010 at 7:53 am

Dusty

(website)

Active Member

When I worked in a business casual office I avoided skirts and dresses because they made my job more difficult. I had to do a lot of filing and pulling files, including some things on lower shelves and all the bending and lifting and kneeling just didn’t get along well with skirts and hose. Plus, “traditional” hose really are kind of uncomfortable and bare legs were not an option in that office.

January 28, 2010 at 7:53 am

LauraElizabeth

I think women can get into a pants rut because quality dress slacks/suit pants will drape well and offer a long, lean line, and without good knowledge of appropriate workwear, slacks are easy, modest, and (can be) flattering. Before I came to YLF I was a pants girls because I didn’t think a skirt, fitted or not, would look good on my pear frame OR it would be too sexy and therefore improper for the workplace. Now that I know how to find flattering items for my body I wear skirts, pants and dresses that are modest and modern.

In my workplace, wearing pants keeps many women ‘under the radar.’ Copying men’s workwear (slacks, buttondown shirt, jacket) is easy, and the masculine look can be interpreted as powerful, which is how a women might want to be seen in her workplace(I do!). However, I get more comments about my wardrobe when I wear skirts and dresses because it shows the shoe/boot details. It takes courage to dress outside the norm, as Angie mentioned in an earlier post, so when a woman is confident enough to try new combinations with dresses or skirts she can appear just as confident and powerful as a man in a suit.

January 28, 2010 at 8:00 am

Sarah

(website)

Veteran

I think skirts look better on me in general, but I feel like I look less sexy and more professional in trousers.
I struggle with looking professional in skirts/dresses. I don’t *try* to look sexy, but my curves just always do.
It is difficult creating outfits with skirts. Dresses end up looking bland because they’re missing something, and the outfits dont’ look complete.
And lastly, boots. I struggle with boots a lot and can’t seem to find the right kind to wear with skirts/dresses for work. In the winter, I need to wear boots to stay warm enough.

January 28, 2010 at 8:01 am

marianne

For me, pants are warmer and more resistant to city living. I can’t tell you how many pair of hose I ruined on public transportation. I also always felt like with skirts and dresses you have to wear much better (or more refined, or more expensive) shoes, and that makes pants easier, too.
I also find slacks more comfortable for sitting at a desk the whole day. But right now my dress code is casual, and I find that casual skirts and dresses are more comfortable for sitting jobs.

January 28, 2010 at 8:17 am

malcontent

I’ve been wearing dresses more frequently lately, but I’ve also been getting unwanted attention from men more frequently as well. Maybe this is one of the reasons women sometimes feel more comfortable in pants? I feel feminine and pretty in a dress, but I do have to put up with more stares, honks, “compliments” from strange men, and so on.

January 28, 2010 at 8:20 am

Cricket

I love dresses and skirts, but can’t wear hose very often. Its too synthetic. I wear dresses and skirts the majority of the summer and then miss them all winter. My winter pants outfits feel blah.

January 28, 2010 at 8:21 am

jessica

Active Member

I LOVE skirts but still don’t wear them very often. I have the problem, which I think Angie has addressed before, of not having enough shorter, fitted tops for skirt wear. Longer tops don’t seem to work with my skirts, as they are mostly a-line (and even straighter skirts look a-line on my pear frame), so I really need a waist defining top or cardigan. Basically, it will take some further thought and effort to create the outfits….

Also, basic, solid skirts are a hole in my wardrobe. I tend to be drawn to print skirts that become closet orphans or they’re what I call a “one hit wonder” (I have one top that goes with the skirt and have not figured out any variations, so I don’t repeat the skirt very often).

I seem to do the same with dresses…treat them as a one hit wonder and don’t repeat them very often because I have not put the time in to create different looks…or I do not have flattering cardigans or jackets that work with the dresses.

January 28, 2010 at 8:22 am

ORenD

Active Member

About pants: I do think many women find them more modest…I know I do too many times. Plus when it comes to dressing at work, it depends upon the industry a lot of times. I work around men, older men largely. I am pretty much the only young female engineer around here. And the few women who are around in accounting dress in slacks and black. So skirts make me stand out a lot. I wore a lot more skirts this past summer and I started to see how odd I looked in an office full of beige and black. Its kinda depressing. Now that its winter I am back to black pants while I try to figure out how much color is okay for this place. I don’t really want to remind my co-workers that I am a woman. They already tend to address meetings with “Hello Gents!” But outside of working at this kind of a place, I think skirts are really great on nearly all women.

January 28, 2010 at 8:25 am

Antje

Veteran

Tricky subject.
I love wearing skirts and dresses in general. In fall and winter, I wear skirts for a business casual look a lot and love it. I’d wear a dress, too, but find it much harder to find fall/winter dresses since I don’t wear wool, and I just haven’t put a lot of time into it.
I do agree with previous posters that skirts and dresses make you stand out more as a woman if you work in a male-dominated field (like I do, in technology.) I for one have come to embrace rather than fight that, though, and refuse to wear a “uniform” of dark pants, dark jacket, light colored button down, instead taking pleasure in stretching the boundaries of business casual through bright colors, the addition of accessories, and also through wearing more skirts.
The one thing I struggle with, and which is the reason I don’t wear skirts in a business casual setting more often especially in spring/summer, is that I don’t really like the look of skirt, hose, and pumps. There is just something about it that seems dressy and conversative to me, or at least I haven’t found a way to make it work for me. So instead I keep my skirt looks confined to the combination with dressy boots.

January 28, 2010 at 8:29 am

Joy

Veteran

It used to be that the most difficult article of clothing for me to find was a dress that would fit both top and bottom. Now the problem in finding a dress is that petites fit well but are too short. Regular sizes are usually cut too big on top but are more likely to have the length. Separates solve the problem, so I have more skirts than dresses.
When I wear dresses and skirts, I’ve often had women comment that they can’t wear them because their thighs rub together and they don’t like that feeling. I suggest hose, but that doesn’t go over well either. I don’t find stockings uncomfortable, but buying a size larger than the package indicates is even more comfortable. I once read an article advising women to only buy Queen size hosiery no matter what size they are. Those fall down on me but it might be an idea worth trying for those who find stockings uncomfortable.

January 28, 2010 at 8:29 am

debbiek

I love dresses but I also feel intimidated when shopping for them. Sometimes I find that I’m different sizes on the top and bottom so skirt can work well in that situation. I love the simplicity of a dress though.

Everytime you update the store though I hope for a dress because that is what I’m looking for this spring.

January 28, 2010 at 8:29 am

shiny

I will answer based on the assumption I was working in an office all day long…

1. You have to keep your legs together and/or crossed. Most office chairs/desks just aren’t built for someone with my proportions (very petite), I often have to change up how I sit, or I will end up with horrible back problems. This means sometimes I sit cross-legged on the chair, and I also find that sitting with my legs wide apart (kinda straddling the chair) helps keep my back in straighter alignment. I know, that sounds weird, huh? Also I often need to get up and do stretches that just can’t be done in a skirt or dress.

2. Fit issues. Dresses are tough to fit, because I’m one size on top and another size below. Separates are easier, but skirts I find are harder to fit than slacks. My best strategy is to have the skirt tailored, and stick to stretchable, forgiving fabrics like ponte knit, so it’s not impossible, it’s just more difficult.

3. The most flattering hemline is one which, when I sit, bares more leg than I am comfortable showing in the office. This is probably more mental than anything else.

4. I don’t mind wearing hose and don’t find them uncomfortable, but it can be a challenge to find ones that fit, because I’m so short. For example, the smallest Oroblu’s are enormous on me and bag out. I actually have the best luck with drugstore brands, which aren’t the most attractive.

January 28, 2010 at 8:34 am

Sabrina

I never wear “traditional” hose because I hate how they always put a control top by the waist. And they run easily.
Tights, microfishnets, and leggings with boots (functioning as tights) are another story. Total love affair. I don’t have amazing, slender mile-long legs, but I wear skirts and dresses of all kinds. My boyfriend (and others) have expressed that they thought I had nice legs, even though the calves are muscular, and the ankle is not so delicate, and I believe them. In fact, I think my legs are one of my most attractive assets, even if they are not model-like. Legs of all shapes and sizes are more beautiful than we imagine. Just like Angie says our eyes have to adjust to new silhouettes, maybe our eyes have to adjust to seeing the shapely curves of our legs? I encourage my female friends of all shapes and sizes to let go up their insecurities and show off their legs! (I even have a very slender legged friend who loathe to show off her bare legs in summer because she thinks she is too “chicken-legged”, or long, slender and pale).

January 28, 2010 at 8:42 am

sihaya

I find it hard to shop for and wear skirts and dresses. I don’t have as good a sense of the exact types of pieces that work on my body and it requires a lot more trial and error than a pair of trousers. There also seem to be more pieces to worry about and so putting together the full outfit is more work. I fully believe if I invest the time to put this all together, it will happen but making the time to prioritize it when pants work great, is hard. When I say more pieces, I mean the right jackets that work with skirts since they aren’t always the same as with pants, having perfect hose (hose can have runs in them when i’m wearing pants), the exact shoes that work with skirts since I can hide more shoes under the pants, etc.

January 28, 2010 at 8:45 am

Mary

Pants give me a long, lean line. My legs are heavier and I have a bulging vein on my knee that is unsightly – that makes skirts and dresses pretty much out for me.

January 28, 2010 at 9:24 am

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Quite a few hose loathers! And conforming to an environmental norm is unfortunately once more a reality. It wasn’t even that long ago when women weren’t allowed to wear pants. (Thank you Coco Chanel). What did that say about women back then? Madmen springs to mind.

Thanks for opening my eyes to all sorts of new reasons as to why dress slacks or pants are the preferred option for biz casual. I’d like to offer my 2 cents to some of the comments:

o With all my heart I believe that you are not giving hosiery a fair chance. It’s a question of purchasing the right type of hose. You don’t need to wear hosiery with a built-in control top. Sizing up is often a good idea too. If I don’t size up, I lose length in the legs.

o There is something more alluring about wearing dresses and skirts, and it’s definitely more feminine. This is something you are either comfortable celebrating in the work place, or not.

o Antje, you have an enviable assortment of dressy fun flats. Wear those with your fun skirts and dresses

o Laura Elizabeth and Sabrina, your comments really rocked.

January 28, 2010 at 9:27 am

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Oh! I forgot to add that many top-and-skirt challenges are solved by adding a waist-cinching belt over the top. But I can’t help out further if you’re adverse to wearing belts, other than that you can wear a pencil skirt and stick to a more voluminous top.

January 28, 2010 at 9:34 am

san

I would love to wear more dresses. My problem with actually wearing them, is that all of the dresses I see in the store seem to be for much younger women than me, or they are either “party”dresses, or tailored workwear, or for vacation lounging on the deck wear. I know that there is an answer to my problem by finding a pattern and making some simple dresses.
When Angie walked into her Valentino dinner party at Tango, I about fell off my chair because she made wearing a dress look like the most easy outfit to wear. Find a fabulous color, comfortable fabric, white assessories, and walaa, fabulousness.
In my imagination a dress or skirt ensemble is more simple and easier to fit than having perfectly fitting pants which show more of the body and movements. A skirt can float over my flat butt, I don’t have to worry about it cutting into the crotch area. I can pull the skirt up or down on my waist for the length I want. I can show off cute shoes and boots, and great tights. It all seems good.
A couple of places where I would only wear pants would be a movie theater and public transit, or any place I would be afraid of dirty seats. Sorry, I have a bit of a phobia in that way. Only wash and wear pants in some places for me.

January 28, 2010 at 9:47 am

Dashrashi

Veteran

Maybe I’m just neurotic, but whenever I wear a skirt (with the possible exception of my long floaty skirt in the summer), I am constantly aware of whether my undies are showing, could be showing, have shown in the recent past, etc. Usually I throw a pair of brightly colored boyshorts on over my tights and actual underwear, and under my skirt–just in case. (“I meant to do that!”)

Add in:
–that you have to add a step of tights or stockings in the mornings when you wear a skirt or a dress;
–that tights and stockings kind of constrict my feet in an extremely annoying way that can become borderline unbearable at around 3 PM (I also usually can’t sleep with the covers over my feet–I think I am just neurotic);
–that pants are way warmer and can be layered on top of long underwear;
–that I can skip shaving my legs when I wear pants but feel less enthused about doing so even if I wear tights;
–and the fact that a nice pair of pants is quite flattering on me;
and that about covers the reasons I default to pants.

January 28, 2010 at 9:55 am

RoseandJoan

Veteran

I also wear more trousers to work than skirts or dresses, there are two reasons for this,
1) I have to cover my much loved body art in the office which is far easier in trousers.
2)On the weeks when my husband works a late shift I go straight from office worker to MOTG without being able to change my clothes, again I find this easier in trousers as they are often more durable.

It’s a shame as I do love skirts.

January 28, 2010 at 10:01 am

gina

(website)

I think there are some great options in tights or leggings now to keep a woman warm while wearing a skirt, either in the winter or in the air conditioning in the summer. Those options, however, are fairly new. Someone who started working in a professional position, say 10 years ago, didn’t have the tights and leggings options that are everywhere in the stores now. They weren’t as stylish, or available, or affordable. Also several years ago, boots weren’t as popular and plentiful. Boots that looked good with skirts were harder to find, and the boots and skirt look was a bit outside the norm. So pants were really the only option for warmth. Women get in the habit of wearing them, build up a wardrobe around them, and learn how to shop for them. Then a fews years later, styles change and more options become available to make skirts comfortable, but that requires reevaluating assumptions about the ease of pants vs. skirts for workwear. Someone not big into fashion is going to find making the change more tiresome or frustrating or uninteresting than exciting and fun. At least, that’s my experience with some of my family members. Once they find something that works, they don’t stray from it, even as styles change and new options become available.

January 28, 2010 at 10:05 am

Margee

(website)

After losing 50 pounds (with 40 more to go), I’ve been exploring new dressing options, including skirts and dresses. Before, it was simply uncomfortable to have my legs rub together all day. And tights truly are uncomfortable to put on in comparison to slacks. But what I’ve started to realize is that dresses and skirts are simply more fun and feminine!

I need to buy a new suit for an upcoming event, and I’m considering buying one with a skirt! The only problem is that tights are so much more work than slacks, and it’s hard to find cute ones in my size, which is super frustrating.

January 28, 2010 at 10:09 am

Kristine

Veteran

I used to exclusively wear pants to work, but started wearing skirts and dresses more often (maybe once a week) in the last year or two. The reasons why I didn’t wear skirts:

-Didn’t feel comfortable showing my legs. This wasn’t a body image issue, more of the issue of being “dressed up”. I work with a lot of men and grubby contractors and sometimes felt out of place wearing a skirt.

-Didn’t know/have the right shoes to wear.

-Didn’t like hose, but feel too exposed/unprofessional with bare legs.

-Perception that it was too cold in the winter. I now wear skirts in the winter with boots, but some days, like today, it really is still too cold!

-Perception that a skirt wasn’t practical for some facets of my job. This is still true, but I consider what I’m doing that day and dress for it. I wore a skirt on Monday and unexpectedly ended up climbing around in exhibits and cleaning up leaky pipes. It worked out ok, but pants would have been more functional.

I’m doing better though! I really enjoy wearing skirts and dresses, so hopefully this will be my year to make them a solid part of my wardrobe.

January 28, 2010 at 10:17 am

Tanya

Veteran

Another serious case of environmental norm here. In a science world women just do not wear skirts and dresses. Ever. Anything feminine totally undermines your credibility.
Plus, if you actually work in the lab, like I do, the safety rules are very clear and strict: no exposed legs – meaning long pants only, and closed toed shoes only. You can actually get sent home for not complying with the rules.
I do love skirts and dresses and feel quite comfortable with them. I just have to keep them for my spare time.

January 28, 2010 at 10:20 am

Sunfall77

I love skirts and look fabulous in them. But, skirts are so cold for walking to work/school in the freezing mornings, even with hose. And then, knee-high boots are too bulky and heavy to wear all day long indoors

January 28, 2010 at 10:23 am

Violet

I love wearing both skirts and dresses. In warmer weather, I wear those during the entire work week and rarely wear pants.

I am at my desk the majority of the day and I generally find dresses and skirts more comfortable than pants.

Also, dresses are so easy to wear. It’s just have to put on one piece of clothing and some accessories and I’m done!

I drive a car to work and don’t have to take public transportation and I have a very short walk from the car to the building, so I am fine with wearing skirts and dresses even in cold weather. I wear heavier tights rather than hose or even layer textured hose over a solid color pair.

One of the only limiting factors for me is finding a jacket that is the right length to wear in the winter. I have a light weight fall jacket that is the perfect length, but it is not warm enough for winter.

January 28, 2010 at 10:30 am

Tricia

Veteran

I’m starting to wear more skirts and dresses at work, but I have the same problem as someone up above – I’m petite, and can’t seem to find many shorter tops that work with skirts. And I can’t get belts to look right on me, either.

January 28, 2010 at 10:49 am

Dusty

(website)

Active Member

Heck, I’m the opposite of petite and I have a hard time finding tops that work with skirts. I’ve found one, so far (I guess I could look in petites, but then the darts, etc. don’t usually work out).

I have to admit that I’m guilty of the “not shaving” reason, too. It seems I have a tendency to skip that shaving thing in the winter and try to say it’s for warmth purposes, but it’s really just being lazy (and choosing to spend my short supply of “me time” in another way).

January 28, 2010 at 11:00 am

Rose

Active Member

Exactly what Tanya said: LAB work. Totally impractical for skirts/dresses. As an academic scientist in the lab/field, there are just very few occasions when a skirt/dress is practical or appropriate so I don’t spend $ on them.

January 28, 2010 at 11:01 am

secondhand shopaholic

(website)

This is a great topic. This is going to sound weird, but I have always preferred skirts to pants, and I enjoy wearing hose. I think the traditional high-waisted, pleated pants have always been uncomfortable for me. I just can’t stand how they fit on my waist.

But now with spandex, it’s a whole new world for me. I have just incorporated pants into my wardrobe in the last 2 -3 years. That, and the lower waists finally make pants comfortable for me, however I think I will always prefer skirts for comfort. And, like I said, I enjoy wearing hose, because I feel they keep everything in it’s place – I just feel more secure with them. I know, I’m weird.

But the more I think about it, the more I realize that I like skirts because of the variety they give me. All the pretty patterns and colors. The last convention I went to, I was doing a little mental inventory on what the average length of a women’s skirt was these days. and guess what I saw. Black pants. That’s all women wore…..

But thanks, Angie, this is a great post, and I’ve really enjoyed hearing all sides of this issue!!

January 28, 2010 at 11:26 am

Cedar

What trips me about dresses and skirts is shoes. I work, I go to school, I volunteer, and I don’t own a car, so I take the bus and walk most of the day. Three out of the five days of the week are 12 hour days for me–I leave the house at 7, and don’t get home ’til close to 8. On those days, I end up wearing either a) my Danskos, or b) my Rocketdogs. They are both extrmely comfortable shoes, and they’re cute enough to be stylish and not frumpy, but they’re not show-stopper shoes, and neither looks really good with a skirt/dress, so I end up falling back on pants. (In fact, in general, this is probably the biggest problem with my wardrobe–I own very few shoes that pass this test–or, I don’t know if they’ll pass the test. They’re comfortable enough on a short day, or generally comfortable with one small issue, but I don’t want to risk attempting to wear them for 12 hours.

I end up wearing the same two pairs over and over again). And I’ve carrying an extra pair of comfortable shoes with me, but considering how much I lug around with me on an average day, adding a bulky pair of shoes to the mix is not really worth it.

January 28, 2010 at 11:42 am

JessicaHK

My office is so cold that I couldn’t wear skirts or dresses. I very commonly wear thermals (long johns) or footless tights under my pants in the fall, winter, and spring. Even in the summer I definitely need to wear layers to keep warm.

January 28, 2010 at 12:28 pm

taylor

I like slacks least, and I am really not sure why.
I think I just don’t feel feminine in them, no matter what I wear on top, and this makes no sense because I love denim, and I love to wear a man’s tie with a buttondown and pencil skirt, so again I am not sure why I don’t care for slacks.

January 28, 2010 at 12:51 pm

Andye

The problem with skirts and dresses at work for me is that my tights stick to my skirt. Then i spend all day trying to unstick and rearrange them. No amount of anti-static spray helps with this. I try wearing slips, but then the tights, slip and skirt all stick together. Maddening! During the summer I wear skirts without tights or hose, but then my bare, pale, vein-y legs are visible, and they look neither attractive nor professional.

January 28, 2010 at 1:04 pm

Daisy

I’m a pants person to the office. Ever since I started in the corporate world (in my early 20’s) pants were the accepted norm. Some girls in the office wear the trendiest skirts and dresses, but I just don’t think it’s professional. Ok, call me old fashioned! I sit all day so naturally pants are more comfortable. I could wear tights (as opposed to hose) but that would mean a skirt and I probably don’t put much effort into thinking about what I wear to the office. While I love the look of skirts and dresses, it’s best for me to leave it for the weekends. (BTW Angie, love your pics from the “blue outfit” topic the other day. I usually stick to a monochrome palette, so you most definitely gave me ideas!)

January 28, 2010 at 1:12 pm

rute

Veteran

I love dresses and skirts, in fact I hate to wear trousers, I feel I don’t look good in them. I think that to look professional and respectable you don’t need to look like a man and no one expects you to look like a many with boring suits, you can look professional in a suit with feminine details like a silk blouse, a skirt or a dress, totally appropriate and feminine.

January 28, 2010 at 1:26 pm

Emily

Last time you brought this up, I mentioned that I work in tech, and that wearing skirts or a dress is so huge a divergence from the office wear norm that I might as well be wearing a prom gown.

A few years ago, I had a job in tech that included a factory floor, and I sometimes needed to go to the factory to document the technical creations. Nothing was stopping me from wearing a skirt or dress – as long as I wore close-toed steel-reinforced shoes. Which do tend to go better with pants. Also, sometimes I’d be crawling on top of or under large machines, and that, too, went better with pants.

I’m noting a trend in all of our comments – that we LIKE skirts and dresses, we know they look good on us, but we have them in a niche in our minds that says “special occasion”, “warm weather only”, or “impractical/just for fun.” I wear dresses a lot on the weekend, and also less modest shirts – I’ve been known to say “I’m going to wear my cleavage tonight.”

The blog Dress A Day had a good post a while back about wearing dresses in cold weather.

January 28, 2010 at 1:49 pm

hanna

I haven’t worn a skirt in about 14 years b/c I hate my skinny bowlegs. I have a nice figure but my legs are just not right, I wish they were more like Kate Moss’ or Sarah Jessica Parker’s. I used to wear short skirts and dresses when I was a girl, but as I grew older I became more self-conscious. So I’m stuck with pants forever. Boy do I envy women in skirts… even the ones with heavy legs and fat ankles, they don’t know how lucky they are as long as the legs are straight!

January 28, 2010 at 2:12 pm

Maya

Veteran

I like Antje and Rute’s attitudes–if you keep following the rules, nothing changes. I have written about this extensively on the forum countless times so I won’t bother again.

Honestly, I look best in skirts. Pants feel too old and serious, and while I like dresses…well, my bust and bottom fill them out nicely but my waist is just too fat for them.

A skirt offers a happy medium, offering the flattery of separates with the girliness of a dress and the ability to wear hose and tall boots. Unfortunately they are also the one thing I have the most difficulty styling because I have a devil of a time trying to find appropriate tops. I can’t even figure out what the right length for me is. I tried folding a top to hipbone length, but because of my extremely short waist, it looked silly. Longer and it looked frumpy and disproportionate. I’ll have to ask on the forum.

As for looking too sexy: Anything that shows your shape can potentially look “too sexy” to some people, but that doesn’t mean we all need to go to work in sacks. This American cultural stigma about the human body, especially the female body, leads to so much shame and insecurity. It’s a major problem IMO.

January 28, 2010 at 5:56 pm

missarcasm

I agree with andye – static cling is the biggest deterrent for me when I think of wearing skirts or dresses in the winter. In the spring and summer, I can wear them with bare legs, which I love, but spending the whole day unsticking my clothing, and getting a gust of cold air up my skirt, isn’t my idea of fun

January 28, 2010 at 6:25 pm

tatyana

Active Member

Angie, I’m with the scientists. I no longer work in a lab, but in the process of earning a chemistry PhD I very very rarely wore a skirt. Part of that was for protection from chemicals and part was to be taken seriously by my male colleagues. Out of 14 grads/undergrads in my lab, I was the only female. I don’t work in a lab now, but I continue to work in a male-dominated field. When I need to be taken seriously, I wear a pantsuit.

January 28, 2010 at 7:28 pm

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

I always loved skirts but when I was heavier it was so hard to find ones that fit and with the right shape. Why the big-girl stores think we need MORE volume on the bottom I will never know.

Now I’ve gone in the other direction and have very few pants and tons of dresses and skirts. For a while there I had no pants at all! But a good assortment of all works best, I think; sometimes pants are necessary for modesty, or warmth, or with certain favorite sweaters and jacketsor shoes, or when I just feel like it.

January 28, 2010 at 7:34 pm

stringy

Veteran

My problem with skirts is fit.
a) I’ve got short legs, and having a skirt taken up always seems like more of a hassle than pants or jeans.

b) The shops in my city seem to have a selection of uber-trendy minis for 20 year old girls off to the beach, or baggy skirts for nanas. I keep checking each season, but the tulip skirts this year were very unflattering on me. Fingers crossed for next season!

I’ve been trying to do better with dresses, although the length is still a bit of an issue. At least once you’ve picked a dress you’re done, no need to find a top to match.

January 28, 2010 at 8:15 pm

Desmo April

(website)

Veteran

I find skirts/dresses HUGELY limiting. I do wear them occasionally, mainly in cooler weather with tights and boots. They also feel like a big list of can’ts to me… Can’t sit naturally, can’t get on the floor easily, can’t walk through the wind tunnel outside my building without holding the skirt down, can’t ride my motorcycle to work, can’t be relaxed about showing too much…and the list goes on.

I totally disagree, traditional hose is awful. I’m a plus size though which I think makes it worse.

January 28, 2010 at 8:50 pm

Iris

I was thinking of pursuing research – is it really that terrible to wear a nice, knee-length skirt in a lab? I thought we were way past sexism in the workplace…

January 28, 2010 at 9:51 pm

stainedglass

Active Member

I’m another member of the pants and closed toe shoes due to lab safety requirements, as well as the environmental norm issue. I have dresses/skirts, but they only get worn to non-work related events.

January 28, 2010 at 10:12 pm

Linda

Hanna, I will bet you $100 that no one would bat an eye at your legs if you wore a skirt. They don’t have to be SHORT.

I guess this is all enlightening to me, because I find pants to be soooooo much more trouble that I never wear them at all! Funny enough, though, when my one pair of nice trousers fit, which I don’t think they do at the moment, that was what I would wear to be “more dressed up,” as for a job interview or even a party. Because skirts are everyday clothes to me.

(As for hose, yes, the sheer kind that run easily are a pain. But sturdier tights are comfy and fun! Wear leggings and a slip over them to be nice and warm with boots!)

January 29, 2010 at 10:48 am

All Women Stalker

(website)

I felt the same way about pantyhose and now I cannot stop wearing them. Every time I feel like wearing a skirt, I almost always reach for hose.

January 29, 2010 at 2:26 pm

lyrebirdgully

As a non-skirt wearer for decades, I am just starting to dip my toe in the waters of the world of FROCKS. I thought a skirt would be a safe starting point for work,(since I have proportion/fit issues with top-and-bottom outfits such as suits, and dresses would pose similar problems).Yesterday I tried on a very classy detailed black skirt that I thought would go well as my very first skirt for work. Nice fit, flattering cut and length. Straightaway I realised that i owned no footwear to go with it …. and as for a top?! I couldn’t imagine how my current summer shirts/tops would look with this item, so I kept it on and started trying on nearly every black or white top/blouse in the shop. No style looked right – and in the end I just walked away, wondering how many weekends it would have taken me before I had the coordinates needed to wear this outfit. (Footwear is hard for me to find for me as I have ultra-wide feet, tops are often too shortwaisted on me). Honestly, I felt OVERWHELMED.
So Angie, any thoughts on this challenge for a novice skirtwearer?
CHOOSING COORDINATES
Tops, jackets -I’ve got a wardrobe full of stuff; but who knows if any of it will go with skirts? On top of purchasing the actual skirt/frock (and slip and hose and footwear), this could work out to be expensive. Is there such a thing as “most useful/versatile top styles for skirts”?. and should the skirt dictate the choice of top- or should I even think of trying to buy a skirt to go with my existing “work pants tops”?
WORK SKIRT AESTHETIC – MY SECRET DOUBT
Because all skirts (unless floorlength) chop your silhouette at the hemline, I am not yet convinced that a work skirt outfit (even with boots!) will EVER confer the gift of an automatic longer and more flattering line that I can get with pants; however, it is early days yet..
BTW, I have to concur with the importance of the consideration which a number of readers have mentioned:
CLIMATE
For example, here in Sydney it is humid and sticky hot for at least 1/3 of the year. Wearing any sort of hose in summer is absolutely out of the question, but the bare- legs-and-skirt option for the office (worn by office-workers in their thousands over here, mostly unsuccessfully I would add, usually due to finishing off the ensemble with badly made, overly-casual, poorly-coordinated and scuffed footwear) doesn’t feel appropriate for me with my visible leg blemishes and ankle wrinkles – not uncommon at my age. If there were more office-appropriate summer boots around, that could be worn minus hose (and that fitted!), I would definitely seek out skirts for summer.
In the meantime, after yesterday’s experience I will narrow down my skirts-for-work searches to autumn/winter skirts. Thanks Angie for your thought-provoking blog. Am looking forward (as always) to your next post!

January 30, 2010 at 6:39 pm

Candi

Before I started reading this and other fashion blogs, I rarely wore dresses or skirts – only the occasional church/funeral/wedding etc. event. However, Angie and other fashion bloggers opened my eyes to dresses and skirts as everyday wear as opposed to the rare special occasion item. In turn, it has changed the way I look and feel about myself and my body. In a dress or skirt I feel pretty, feminine, powerful, confident, and special. I look (or at least to my eyes) and feel 100 times better in a skirt or dress than pants. I would even go so far as to say switching to dresses and skirts has done more for my self esteem and self image than anything else in my life ever could.
A denim pencil skirt hugs my curves like no pair of jeans ever have and a sheath dress is my best friend. This winter I have taken my first steps into the world of tights so I can continue to wear my dresses year round. These days my jeans only come out on very rare occasions. I believe there are very few situations for my lifestyle where a dress or skirt would not be appropriate. In fact, I have even switched to running skirts (the kind with the built in shorts) for my jogging and gym attire.

January 30, 2010 at 6:40 pm

timepiece

(website)

Contrary to most, I wear skirts more often in the winter. This is because I’m perfectly comfortable in tights and boots, but reluctant to expose my lower legs to sight – I have a real ingrown hair problem and always have healing sores and scars. I’m hoping I can finally conquer the problem in time for spring, because I love skirts, and want to show off more of my shoes.

I especially love sweaterdresses, have 6 or 7, and have been wearing them all winter, along with a bunch of new boots I just had to buy to go with them.

February 1, 2010 at 12:47 pm

Kira

Active Member

I would LOVE to be able to wear skirts and dresses. The reason I can’t expose my legs is because I have pale skin and dark hair. It seems no matter what I do to make my legs presentable, you can still see black pores, and it’s ugly.

I exfoliate my legs with something by Bath and Body Works, shave with Venus and Skintimate shave cream after ten minutes in a warm shower, and then moisturize or use self tanner on my legs. You can still see the hair, or where it was. The tanner just sinks into the poors and makes it look orange. I swear I have normal skin, even though it’s pale. Am I doing something wrong?

I have some cute dresses, I just can’t work up the nerve to wear them with legs that look like I haven’t shaved properly. I also need to find some hose that match my skin tone better. I’ll read up on hose, and then try again!

February 1, 2010 at 3:01 pm

A guy's opinion

Sorry to break it to you, ladies, but seeing a woman at work with pants on could not be more bland and uninteresting, regardless of her accessories (though for some of you that actually sounds like that’s what you’re going for; if so, I guess more power to you). If you’re looking to be ignored, just keep pulling on those pants.

Don’t knock a guy’s “uniform” of suit and tie; unlike y’all, we don’t have any other options. You should all take advantage of – and ENJOY – the fact you have more than one option for what to wear (including skirts, dresses, etc.). Don’t “compliment” your more feminine wear with bare legs, though: as has been said, it comes across as unprofessional and perhaps even a bit lazy (and quite honestly often times looks downright frumpy, too).

February 2, 2010 at 6:46 am

QuiteLight

Honestly, I just can’t face slithering & tugging into pantyhose first thing in the morning. It’s the only thing stopping me.

That & my office is COLD in the winter!

February 3, 2010 at 11:43 am

Career wear: will people take you seriously in a skirt?

(website)

[…] has drawbacks. Several reasons were mentioned by readers in their comments on a recent post about business casual beyond skirts and dresses: “A skirt says: Hey, I´m a woman!! Sometimes that´s not the message you want to send in a […]

February 26, 2010 at 7:18 am

Inspiration Calendar – Stripes and Ruffles « Secrets of a Secondhand Shopaholic

(website)

[…] “In some situations, wearing business casual skirts and dresses in the workplace has drawbacks. Several reasons were mentioned by readers in their comments on a recent post about business casual beyond skirts and dresses: […]

April 17, 2010 at 6:14 pm

PaulH

Male viewpoint here, unwelcome or otherwise. I can see why ladies prefer the convenience of pants (or trousers as they say where I came from). You don’t have to bother with the hassle of wearing hosiery or freezing to death in winter or keeping your legs (or worst still your underwear) concealed from the attentions of leering men. But for me trousers will only ever be a safe, functional clothing option for women and in my view never look as smart, professional and feminine as skirts. As one other contributor put it, in this day and age why do women feel they need to dress like men to compete with them? On the contrary, I admire women who are not afraid to dress like women and who therefore shun those ghastly, ubiquitous black trousers or the boring trouser suits in favour of the old fashioned elegance of skirts, hosiery and heels.

April 21, 2010 at 3:48 pm

karin

i wear pants because they are more modest. most skirts and dresses show some leg and draw men’s attention. my daily outfit consists of pants and ankle boots. there is no need for any sheer nylon hose !

June 11, 2010 at 3:11 am

Courtney

Skirts say “I am feminine.” This is a hop, skip, and jump from saying, “I am demure and squishy” to a middle-aged male audience, which is exactly what I’m in the middle of these days. If you want to look formidable and get people’s attention, you have to look like one of the big boys. Being short doesn’t help me any, either, so I need all the first impression I can get.

October 12, 2011 at 11:03 am

MissDisplaced

I think for me the whole hose thing gets confusing and/or uncomfortable. As Dashrashi mentioned, I also get paranoid about a skirt or dress riding up and showing too much. Plus, you have the whole underwear or no underwear dilemma under hose: it’s panty lines and bulges or too naked. And, sorry to be gross, but I find it hard to pull down and undo or redo hose quickly when I have to pee! Going to the potty with a skirt or dress becomes an effort in the work bathroom stall, while with pants it’s just not. Pants or trousers are just easy.

December 10, 2014 at 9:03 am

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