While nothing really gives me bad vibes (I went to art school and saw it all), I think like Dawn, certain combined items put me off. It reminds me of this picture on the Sartorialist:

http://www.thesartorialist.com.....194Web.jpg

As usual, everyone is gushing and making pretentious comments on how great it is, and I just don't see it. It's too much leg, too much cleavage, too tight, too much black, and too much heel height and toe cleavage. Sure it looks lovely in a beautiful photograph with great lighting and shadows, but honestly...if I saw this woman walking down the street like this, I would just think "desperate for attention."

Of course, there is another school of thought that says she is confident and bold and comfortable with her body, etc. I suppose it depends on your perspective. I just happen to think you can be confident, bold, and comfortable without giving EVERYTHING away. That gal obviously has a great body and beautiful tanned skin. I just don't think all of that exposure is necessary.

I guess I'm a prude like you Angie! But also like you, I'm pretty liberal about these things. I agree that dreads are pretty gross and that's just a hygiene issue, but I'm okay with tats and piercings. I would not get a tattoo myself, and aesthetically I don't like them much, but that is subjective. I would not judge anyone a certain way for having them.

Maya I really like the pic of your straight fringe. And the facial piercing looks good to me too! How long ago did you take it out??

I have a nose and tragus piercing. I do wonder when/if I should take them out, esp. now that I'm a "responsible" doctor. I have had one elderly patient tell me that if I was his granddaughter he would pull my nosering out of my nose. Then again I've also had patients propose to me, cry when they see me or yell at me, so you learn to take things with a grain of salt!

Just found this thread, so funny! I don't really have anything to add, but I've said this before and I stand by it: I think making judgements about people based on the way they look/dress says more about the judgER than the judgEE.

Not that I'm a saint- ha! I can be very harsh sometimes but it's something I actively try to avoid and censor in myself. I am definitely NOT a prude, though- I can appreciate a whole slew of looks on others that I wouldn't choose to sport myself.

That said, I agree with a those who've said that it's the combination of elements that can take a look from interesting/edgy to poor taste. Either short skirt OR cleavage, crazy spiky heels OR a loud tattoo and body piercings, but not all at once!

the only thing that really puts me off is too much skin, really, but i don't know how much of that is a byproduct of having grown up in a pretty conservative, semi-religious background. after having traveled around and being in america for a few years (somewhat less conservative, shall we say...;)), i have to say my tolerance for everything else people have mentioned has grown by leaps and bounds!

First thing, so many people have piercings and tattoos that it's really not that edgy anymore. I like to watch the tattoo shows and hear the stories behind why people choose their particular tattoos. Some of those tattoo artists are super talented!

I think everyone makes judgements based on other people's looks. When seeing someone for the first time and not having prior knowledge about that person, we tend to process their appearance and reference it to our own personal experiences, good or bad. I think it's only a problem if you're close-minded and don't make an attempt to find out what the person is really all about beyond their appearance.

Most of the time, people are aware of and even actively trying to pursue the impression they're giving off so they shouldn't be surprised when they are judged by their appearance. A woman throwing her cleavage out for everyone to see clearly wants the attention and shouldn't be offended when men can't look her in the eye!

You guys! Properly created and cared-for dreadlocks are NOT dirty, smelly and unhygienic. That's a myth. I had dreads for a stretch (quite recently in fact) and they were extremely clean--literally squeaky clean. And they smelled like mint Hair knots or "locks" better when it has as little oil on it as possible, so cleaner hair = better, tighter dreads. Of course there are dreadies out there with nasty, smelly hair but they're either just nasty, smelly people in general or they've been given bad information about dreadlock care.

No one can convince me that Lauryn Hill, for example
http://images.google.com/image.....f&oq=

Or this girl
http://img407.imageshack.us/im.....ug2cs2.jpg

Or this one
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rarebutterfly/

Look dirty or smelly.

I have a nose ring that I love--facial piercings in general don't bother me and they're as common as rain here, although I have a hard time not making assumptions about what tongue rings imply.

Purposely visible thongs are my pet peeve when it comes to "those" looks. Oh, and really long fake nails.

Brianna, thanks for making me laugh this morning! I appreciate your candor. You crack me up. I guess we cracked you up too.

I have no doubt that your dreadlocks were sweet smelling and well cared for. But in my perception 99% of the people that sport natural dreadlocks worldwide are in the unhygienic camp. There is just no getting away from that fact because generally people don't care for their dreadlocks like they ought to. I see and smell it daily here in Capital Hill (very edgy and alternative part of Seattle). The same goes for Paris, London and Amsterdam where loads of people wear dreadlocks too.

Eww, Angie, really? I've never ever been in the presence of dreads I could actually smell (and there are tons of dreads in Vancouver, particularly in the Commercial Drive area). Most of the truly scary ones I see are on homeless people who of course are exempt from any and all style discussions. I do see too many ratty-LOOKING heads o' dreads on dirty hippie types (as opposed to clean hippie types, who I quite enjoy, LOL). None I've ever had the unpleasant experience of actually noticing the smell of, though. Gross, you have my sympathies.

One thing I think is a simple fact is that dreads tend to work and look better on people of African heritage. Their hair takes to the style naturally and tends to lock up much more tightly, cleanly and neatly than Asian, Caucasian or other ethnic hair types. Many black people can even rock dreads in business formal environments (Sisterlocks and similar styles especially.)

This thread is tickling me, but it just shows how different we all are in our perceptions. I guess it is a combination of things that leads us to these opinions, such as: environment, family values, friends, community, etc.

I am pretty tolerant of just about all things and try not to judge, especially in the industry that I am in. I have done makeup on a prostitute before who had no problem telling me that bit of information.

I try to appreciate each individual for their own style and realize that although it may not be what I would have chosen for myself, it still works for that person. Besides, the world would be pretty boring if we were all carbon copies of one another, we wouldn't even get to have this interesting discussion...lol!

Only when I see women who are in clothes five times too small, with everything hanging out from top to bottom do I usually give "those looks". I mean come on, just because they make it in your size does not mean you need to wear it, you look a hot mess!

You know, this is kind of funny. I was just thinking today that we are all talking about passing judgment on girls with tattoos, piercings, dreads, showing lots of skin, wearing too tight clothing, etc. I don't tend to judge these girls at all. I'm pretty used to seeing everything above. Showing lots of skin or trying too hard does give me bad vibes, but the other stuff is as normal as seeing someone with brown eyes.

Actually, in my case, the people I tend to pass judgment on are those who are frumpy, conservative, or totally lacking in effort. When I see women in sweats and other gear, my reaction is always the same: "She is lazy." Even though I know intellectually that it might not be true (lots of women dress like slobs because they're NOT lazy--they're overworked)...but it just goes to show you that presentation is important. Or maybe it goes to show that I'm just shallow...but I don't think so. It's very human to judge by appearance, and no amount of good intentions will change that. You can also be lazy in one area, even if you're not in another--so it is possible to be a lazy dresser even when you're hardworking in every other respect. And compared to other responsibilities and obligations, dressing a little nicer is easy as pie. Just swap out the sweats for jeans and a knit top and you're already off to a much better start.

Then there are women who think they look great and clearly made an effort but missed the mark by a long shot. I just feel bad in those cases.

Another group I tend to judge are the black rut women, for whom I also feel bad when I see. I often find a black rut is caused by insecurity, so I tend to judge these women as such.

The one type I find myself noticing most are older women who are SO TERRIFIED of looking "too young" that they end up dressing in the schlumpiest manner imaginable. It kills me. That's why I'm always fascinated by the fact that dressing "too young" is always a bigger concern for most women than dressing "too old," which I think is so much worse! An overly young style can usually easily be adjusted and tweaked to be more appropriate while still maintaining the basic elements and personality, but it's darn well near impossible to adjust a dumpy old lady outfit the same way. It tells me that as a society, we are very quick to shame and snicker at women who might have misplaced their youthfulness, but we're perfectly accepting of older women throwing in the towel and being dowdy. How sad. End of rant.

Maybe I wasn't clear in my original post, but I never meant this to be about judging other people, but what items you yourself wouldn't wear because of associations.

This thread cracks me up! My personal rule, if I'm doing shorts (5" inseam) NO heels. But, if I'm doing Bremuda shorts I LOVE wearing heels. Oh, LOL saw this this weekend & totally validated what I thought of the person anyway & had several people comment to me about it - loose jeans, short top, dirty dancing with the bright colored thong hanging out & showing while a couple of guys were commenting about it being a rip cord - total trash! I know, I'm completely judging here. Sorry if that offends anyone...you asked for 'those looks'. I also think 'those actions' combined with 'those looks' make a huge difference! Some people can pull off 'those looks' & you think none the less of them. Interesting topic!

Chewy, good point! My list of things I personally wouldn't wear is much longer than the list of things that outright disturb me on others (purposely bared thong, and I personally hate seeing guys with bare chests in public except at the beach). I would never PERSONALLY wear:
any facial piercings other than my nose ring
ear stretchers
anything midriff-baring
anything shorter than just above the knee
anything that shows any cleavage unless it's after dark and the occasion involves no work acquaintances or family other than my husband
spike heels
big hair
long nails
vinyl clothing
I could go on and on and on...!
On the flip side, I won't wear sweats or yoga wear or gear in public any more, unless it's to do some activity!