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Dressing as if It Matters

Dressing as if It Matters

While some Americans have trickled back to the office, a large percent are staying home, and with this new work-from-home reality, it seems we have forgotten how to get dressed in the morning. Without any expectation to dress up, it’s easier to not put on proper clothing, leaving us to wander through our spaces looking disheveled and vacant.

It seems we don’t know how to be home any longer. Specifically, we don’t know how to be home on purpose. We have all donned sweatpants on the bottom half of our bodies, with the occasional crisp shirt only for the necessary work video call. Obviously comfort is king, but the lordship of comfort has become so unseemly, sloppy, and stretched out. When did our homes become places where we don’t care?

What we wear—how we present ourselves—matters, a lesson I learned at a young age. When I was four years old, I couldn’t wait to go to school. I believed that all things fun and mysterious and exciting happened at school, and I had my older brother coming home with books and projects and stories to prove it. But what I really wanted was to wear school clothes.

I adored the little skirts with tights, sweaters with animals on them, and dresses that my mom sewed. I wanted a high ponytail atop my head and a ribbon around it to match whatever color my clothes were that day. I had school clothes and play clothes and church clothes. Clothes told the story of what I was doing.

Changing into play clothes was always the first task to be completed when returning home from school. I had no idea what my mom did during our absence since I couldn’t imagine her doing anything other than missing us, but one thing stood as a signal of her accomplishments: laying out our clothes for our return from school. Neatly folded and piled on each bed, our play clothes were at the ready.

Clothes always interested me, and my life as a designer (interior and not fashion) draws inspiration from attire that can be seen everywhere and on everyone. I embrace dressing on purpose. This can fit a variety of styles—crisp and starched with an ensemble of vertical lines, color that pops out at you as if it wants to say something important, fluid and soft and gentle and draped, or studded and bold. But whatever the style, it is chosen; it is selected to be important and intentional. I am no stranger to the comfort uniform, but since when does comfort have to mean unkempt?

Each day, I dress casually when working in my home office. I will don a blazer for my conference call, shove my feet into boots for the trip to the store, put on sneakers at the gym, and finish up with a robe and slippers as night falls around me. I am ready whether the doorbell rings with an unexpected visitor or there’s a quick change of plans to meet a friend for lunch. My day is not only decided and formed but fluid and amenable to the exquisite spontaneity of life.

The matter of dress can be thought of as a costume meant to convey a message to ourselves as well as others. Just as a repairman carefully selects the correct tool for the job—with the expectation that the orderliness of his tools showcases that he knows what he is doing—we should put the same care into our selections to cover our bodies as we begin our days. The right outfit shows ourselves and others that we know what we are doing.

In this way, dressing on purpose starts our days with a decision fulfilled—a good decision fulfilled. Putting on the right clothing puts us in the right mentality for the day. It allows us to solve problems, think big thoughts, debate ideas, fulfill responsibilities, and love those around us. Certainly, dressing at home has become optional, but this seems to be a disrespect of not only ourselves but also those around us. Meanwhile, getting dressed in something more than flannel-patterned pants and a somewhat stale T-shirt signals that we are part of life and living it on purpose.

Image credit: StockSnap-Clem Onojeghuo, CC0 1.0

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24 comments
Maida Korte
Maida Korte
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24 Comments

  • Avatar
    Allan James
    March 15, 2023, 7:16 pm

    I like the way this writer thinks and presents her thoughts she always has good recommendations for living better. Thank you!

    REPLY
    • Avatar
      Matt@Allan James
      March 18, 2023, 4:24 pm

      Right on! Finally someone in 2023 talks about dress for success in all ways. Not just earning money!!

      REPLY
      • Maida Korte
        Maida Korte@Matt
        March 29, 2023, 12:33 pm

        Thanks for this commentary – I think back to my early days of dressing – from high school into college and beyond – looking for a signature that I could apply at that moment, budding artist to hippie to intellectual to reader to designer to writer – all necessary moments – strategic as well as intentional.

        REPLY
  • Avatar
    Karen
    March 15, 2023, 8:31 pm

    Such a timely observation! I have to bite my tongue every time I see pj clad shoppers walking down the aisle of the grocery store, and have been known to refrain from answering the door if I'm still in my morning clothes. We've gone a long way from the Victorian Era and outfits for every fraction of the day to being able to conduct a whole day in pj's. I love a variety of outfits to get through the day!

    REPLY
    • Maida Korte
      Maida Korte@Karen
      March 16, 2023, 10:46 am

      Love these comments – yes indeed, observing pajama clad Starbuck's line individuals means either the blush of youth is still on their roundish faces, or they just have forgotten the basic child-hood instruction of: Get up, get dressed and make your bed. – Maida

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  • Avatar
    Carol Baker
    March 15, 2023, 11:59 pm

    “When did our homes become places where we don’t care?”

    Probably about the time 75% of the country started becoming overweight and obese, and swearing became a lot more commonplace. It’s just another sign of cultural rot.

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    • Avatar
      Melvin Evans@Carol Baker
      March 16, 2023, 2:28 am

      Good comment, Carol. There seems to be a relationship between all these things, not just clothes.

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      • Avatar
        Matt Limarilli@Melvin Evans
        March 20, 2023, 8:25 pm

        Agreed, sloth has become the norm for many. A rolling stone gathers no moss…. Comfort stands in the way of growth. It’s time to carve new mental pathways.

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  • Avatar
    Charlotte
    March 16, 2023, 2:25 am

    This applies to stay at home moms as well!! How many of us just wear yoga pants with an oversized shirt and our hair in a messy bun?! I heard someone say "if I wanted to hire a housekeeper for my home and I applied in my regular attire, would I hire myself for the job?" That totally changed the way I dress at home!

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  • Avatar
    joan
    March 16, 2023, 7:02 am

    Author has no idea ? The so much more to life than clothes.

    REPLY
    • Maida Korte
      Maida Korte@joan
      March 16, 2023, 4:49 pm

      Oh goodness yes – there is more to life than clothes! It is our approach to life itself that creates the true tapestry, the true flavor, the true map-stream of our lives – I find that getting dressed rather than schlepping into the land of old laundry helps me concentrate and believe you me – I need all the help I can get!

      REPLY
    • Maida Korte
      Maida Korte@joan
      March 29, 2023, 12:36 pm

      I would agree with you Joan – completely. I have found that once and done works best – dress with intention so that our real selves can then shine forth as the blazing sun. The same way we have signatures in our lives, our work, our families, we show something of ourselves even when unintentional – so why not put some intention into it? This can also be in the form of casual and even cavalier.

      REPLY

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