What old fashion rules still apply? Which are outdated

[Anonymous]

No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No white before Memorial Day and after Labor Day. That's the only rule I follow.

What an absolutely stupid (outdated American) rule. Bet you're ugly and unstylish so no loss. But feel free to come back and announce how chic a gorgeous you are. We'll believe you.

You win for the meanest post.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

Little girls aren’t allowed to wear black? Wtf?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

They will take my "dangly" hoops from my cold, dead hands. I have worn them my entire professional career, with no regrets and no issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

Little girls aren’t allowed to wear black? Wtf?

DP. I wasn’t allowed to wear black as a kid. Now my wardrobe is mostly black.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Perfume is not only outdated, it instantly brands the wearer as completely clueless. Only tweens and old ladies wear perfume.

The way to a man’s heart is through his nose.

Cinnabar has enthralled many a man. The “modern” woman needs a re-think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Spinoff from the enamel bracelet thread where someone said you can’t wear simple diamond studs during the day. I’m curious which fashion rules are still considered gauche if you break them and which you just ignore?

Off the top of my head:
Diamonds during the day — I wouldn’t wear a multiple diamond necklace but a simple pendant or stud earrings? Perfectly fine.

White after Labor Day — this was a rule built in classism to show those who were able to afford to wear white. Winter white is perfectly fine and lovely. I tend to not wear white sneakers after the summer but no rule you can’t

Proper to always cover legs in dresses and skirts — pantyhose are dead. Anyone wearing pantyhose is horribly old fashioned.

Mixing brown and black — I’ve seen it done well and I’ve seen it go wrong. All depends on the how.

Mixing metal colors in jewelry — I do it all the time. I have a dual tone watch and mix white and yellow across all my jewelry.

What are the rules you break? Which do you follow?

Rules are for the old people stuck in the past.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

Little girls aren’t allowed to wear black? Wtf?

Of course they are!!! I'm a WASP and have never heard such thing. At funerals everyone wears black.

That said, I'd never put a little girl in black outside a funeral. Kids wear bright colors!

......so do I!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perfume is not only outdated, it instantly brands the wearer as completely clueless. Only tweens and old ladies wear perfume.

The way to a man’s heart is through his nose.

Cinnabar has enthralled many a man. The “modern” woman needs a re-think.

Agree.

There is a huge hated on DCUM about perfume. Like the subject of wearing it brings out the crazies. I wear Chanel, as does my mother, grandmother, etc etc. I would never wear the old lady scents, like No 5. There are very nice ones. I get compliments all the time.

I think if someone overdoes it with something cheap, it's annoying. Maybe those people have only had exposure to perfume in a middleschool hallway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

Little girls aren’t allowed to wear black? Wtf?

DP. I wasn’t allowed to wear black as a kid. Now my wardrobe is mostly black.

It looks depressed and cold. Nothing ages people like having rough stale edges, like those given by the color black.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No dangly earrings during the day.

No exposed armpits at work/church.

Little girls are not allowed to wear black, or high heels

Little girls aren’t allowed to wear black? Wtf?

My mother had this rule and so did I. Black is a somber and mature color, sometimes very sophisticated. It's inappropriate for a child.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No white before Memorial Day and after Labor Day. That's the only rule I follow.

What an absolutely stupid (outdated American) rule. Bet you're ugly and unstylish so no loss. But feel free to come back and announce how chic an gorgeous you are. We'll believe you.

Why so mean DP??? Poster is simply stating the rule that she still follows. Geez. So rude!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everyone who says pantyhose are dead must not have been raised by a mother with class. Full stop.

ICYMI: certain outfits, occasions, and weather require your legs to be covered…and tights aren’t appropriate for certain outfits/settings.

Plus, I guarantee most men prefer seeing a woman in high end silky hosiery at dressy events.

In terms of other rules I follow: no bare shoulders in church. Ever. And no jeans in church.

Well by all means ... let's continue the tradition of wearing horribly uncomfortable things because of how "men prefer seeing a woman."

Gag.

ICYMI - That comment obviously isn’t aimed at dressing for the work place. Rather, it’s meant for all the women who erroneously believe they look better bare-legged in a cocktail dress. Presumably you are dressing up for a night on the town and want to look appealing. If you think your naked legs look better than high end hosiery when wearing a cocktail dress, you might want to see what your husband thinks. That’s all.

for better or worse my husband thinks i look best in my rattiest pajama pants. it’s both nice and not nice. anyway.

This is sweet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spinoff from the enamel bracelet thread where someone said you can’t wear simple diamond studs during the day. I’m curious which fashion rules are still considered gauche if you break them and which you just ignore?

Off the top of my head:
Diamonds during the day — I wouldn’t wear a multiple diamond necklace but a simple pendant or stud earrings? Perfectly fine.

White after Labor Day — this was a rule built in classism to show those who were able to afford to wear white. Winter white is perfectly fine and lovely. I tend to not wear white sneakers after the summer but no rule you can’t

Proper to always cover legs in dresses and skirts — pantyhose are dead. Anyone wearing pantyhose is horribly old fashioned.

Mixing brown and black — I’ve seen it done well and I’ve seen it go wrong. All depends on the how.

Mixing metal colors in jewelry — I do it all the time. I have a dual tone watch and mix white and yellow across all my jewelry.

What are the rules you break? Which do you follow?

Rules are for the old people stuck in the past.

Most of the rules come from certain subgroups - WASP, Southern, etc. But many groups have rules, but since we’re a minority, I wouldn’t post mine because they are not generally accepted fashion guidelines in 2025 in the DMV.

But as someone who did not grow up with parents who imposed those kind of rules, I had to figure them out through osmosis. I like seeing them spelled out and how they might have been updated over the years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Full disclosure, I'm a WASP from Chevy Chase and I grew up with a lot of fashion and etiquette rules that the rest of the country had dropped at least a generation before. Even now, if I showed up wearing a white dress to lunch with my 80 year old father in, say, October there is a 100% chance he'd make a comment about it. I still follow a lot of these rules for my own personal style, but I have lots of friends who dress totally differently and I love that for them. I'm 42 and a stay at home mom.

-I love black tights and wear them all the time in fall/winter. I also like colored tights sometimes. I do actually wear pantyhose but only to church when it's chilly outside, like today. Most people at my church are over 60 anyway.

-I don't wear diamond jewelry in general. I prefer solid gold pieces.

-I don't mix metals. All gold (usually) or all silver tone. This includes handbag hardware. If I'm wearing colored pieces then they should coordinate with the rest of the outfit. For nicer occasions I'd also make sure my nails coordinate.

-Nails are short and should be polished only in light pinks, nudes, coral, red, or burgundy. I might do fuchsia for vacation. No brightly colored eyeshadow or flashy makeup. My grandmother is long dead but she strongly disapproved of red or burgundy lips or nails.

-I don't wear white after Labor Day. I do wear winter white frequently but winter white is a different color than true white.

-I don't mix brown and black. To be fair, I rarely wear brown anything.

-Foundation garments are crucial to looking put together. I wouldn't leave the house without a proper bra and I am evangelical about proper bra fitting. No visible bra straps or lace peeking through a thin shirt. No VPL. Slipshorts are great for under dresses to prevent VPL and for modesty if there is a sudden gust of wind.

-Sneakers should be worn for athletic activity or with athletic clothes. Skirts and dresses should be paired with a proper shoe or a sandal in the summer or spring. Sandals require pedicured toes so I don't wear them very often.

-I don't care about having styled hair. My hair is straight and I don't think it makes much of a difference if I blow dry it or air dry it. I don't dye it but I probably will when I start getting gray hairs.

-Synthetic sweaters are yuck. Real wool (merino, cashmere, etc) only. I would not wear fake leather shoes or bags. Of course cloth or woven shoes and bags are fine.

Writing this has kind of made me realize I might need some therapy.

I read this list and thought of course, all of this is common sense. Then I realized that I am also a WASP, just slightly younger.