Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There I said it.

But why is it so?! The men look great. DC is literally the last place in the US where men were jackets and ties normally.

But the women??? Talbots + Flats, old lady sandales, or worse.. just sneakers. Dresses that not only DON’T flatter their form but also go down to the ankles and athleisure athleisure athleisure.

What gives?

Is there something about conservative DC culture that also means you can’t be sexy AT ALL?
The worst dressed women are in San Francisco. They are the absolute worst. But DC??

This is bad.

Sexy is a bit much but people do look terrible I will agree. It's something to do with "I am smart so I don't have to look good" and "if I look good people won't think I am smart and capable." You would think smart people would know that you can be both smart and attractive, they aren't mutually exclusive.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There I said it.

But why is it so?! The men look great. DC is literally the last place in the US where men were jackets and ties normally.

But the women??? Talbots + Flats, old lady sandales, or worse.. just sneakers. Dresses that not only DON’T flatter their form but also go down to the ankles and athleisure athleisure athleisure.

What gives?

Is there something about conservative DC culture that also means you can’t be sexy AT ALL?
The worst dressed women are in San Francisco. They are the absolute worst. But DC??

This is bad.

Okay, let's start with the OP. Post a picture of yourself, we'd be happy to critique your fashion choices.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't care what others wear, but the notion that a well-educated, intelligent woman makes herself look less so by dressing up makes me seethe. This attitude is so prevalent here on DCUM (see posts throughout this thread).

Guess what? Smart and successful women can look nice and that doesn't detract from their intellect.

It's prevalent because it's real. None of us thinks looking nice actually makes you dumb. But we all know from experience that it gets you treated like you're dumb - or worse, like you are looking to flirt/sleep your way up.

The people I'm talking about who criticize women who look attractive/well put together are other women - not men. We see this all the time here on DCUM - women attacking other women because (god forbid) those other women choose to look nice at work. There's clearly a huge element of jealousy going on here and it's very transparent. Dress however you want - and I'll do the same.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Fashion here isn’t GLAMOROUS. This isn’t Miami or New York.

DC is “preppy”

Preppy clothing is mainly part of
the body language among women who
are married or who do not need to
establish themselves with an appearance
that has instant impact.

Preppy clothing says "I am not a
threat. I am sexless and safe. I am a
woman's woman."

Glamorous clothing says "I am a threat. I like men, sex, and me. I am serious about
relationships and if you do not take care of yourself to keep your man interested, I
may get him.”

We prefer to be preppy here.

I'm an immigrant from one of the looks-focused countries, but I've lived here for 25+ years. Here's my observation, not a judgment, take it for what it's worse. I think DC professional women dress mostly to be inoffensive. They are fearful of attracting attention based on their appearance. And to my eye, this has nothing to do with excess makeup, logos or tight/revealing clothing. I find that professional women here are afraid of bolder lines and properly cut silhouettes. You can wear the same two-piece suit but a suit made of good fabrics cut to fit your figure (not encase it like a sausage but, like, really FIT - the right skim, the right length, the right shoulder and waistline, etc.) will look completely different from a suit whose main purpose is merely to cover parts of your body with fabric. That's the best I can describe it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Different priorities and different budgets. Not everyone spends large chunk of time and money on superficial stuff.

This is true, and caring too much about fashion and appearance is vain and shallow. People in DC have more important things to care about - like the future of the nation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Different priorities and different budgets. Not everyone spends large chunk of time and money on superficial stuff.

This is true, and caring too much about fashion and appearance is vain and shallow. People in DC have more important things to care about - like the future of the nation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only the gay men look great

Not true. But to be fair, it doesn't take much to make a man look great. A nice suit, nice leather shoes a nice tie. He can wear the same thing daily and the styles rarely change.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There I said it.

But why is it so?! The men look great. DC is literally the last place in the US where men were jackets and ties normally.

But the women??? Talbots + Flats, old lady sandales, or worse.. just sneakers. Dresses that not only DON’T flatter their form but also go down to the ankles and athleisure athleisure athleisure.

What gives?

Is there something about conservative DC culture that also means you can’t be sexy AT ALL?
The worst dressed women are in San Francisco. They are the absolute worst. But DC??

This is bad.

They don't need to look like sex objects always needing to wear make up, heels and skimpy clothes to prove their worth.

Anonymous wrote:There I said it.

But why is it so?! The men look great. DC is literally the last place in the US where men were jackets and ties normally.

But the women??? Talbots + Flats, old lady sandales, or worse.. just sneakers. Dresses that not only DON’T flatter their form but also go down to the ankles and athleisure athleisure athleisure.

What gives?

Is there something about conservative DC culture that also means you can’t be sexy AT ALL?
The worst dressed women are in San Francisco. They are the absolute worst. But DC??

This is bad.

Anonymous wrote:DC fashion is bad for the way too many women who don't know how to dress themselves and want to blend in with others who also can't dress themselves. They all hide behind the lie that because of their education or profession or busy lifes that they couldn't possibly be taken seriously if they looked even remotely put together which is a whole lie.
I was fortunate enough to work abroad in 4 different countries on and off for a decade and the attitude towards appearance was night and day compared to here. Even my kids's teacher looked amazing. It definitely made me re-think clothing and up my closet game.
No one is saying wear an entire sephora aisle on your face and dress like a saks mannequin everyday but there is space between that and wearing wrinkled capris, a tunic top and a scrunchi in a business casual office.

Anonymous wrote:DC fashion is bad for the way too many women who don't know how to dress themselves and want to blend in with others who also can't dress themselves. They all hide behind the lie that because of their education or profession or busy lifes that they couldn't possibly be taken seriously if they looked even remotely put together which is a whole lie.
I was fortunate enough to work abroad in 4 different countries on and off for a decade and the attitude towards appearance was night and day compared to here. Even my kids's teacher looked amazing. It definitely made me re-think clothing and up my closet game.
No one is saying wear an entire sephora aisle on your face and dress like a saks mannequin everyday but there is space between that and wearing wrinkled capris, a tunic top and a scrunchi in a business casual office.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only the gay men look great

I don't think so at all. There's a very fussy, "done" look that many guys go for (cropped or rolled up skinny pants, no socks, loafers) and it's so off-putting. A lot of gay men dress like that.

Out-putting for whom? I don't think those men are dressing for you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have worked with many women over the years who were put together and intentional about how they dressed. Consultants, hill staffers, all kinds of women in senior or visible roles. If you're not seeing that, it's because you think put together and sexy/very made-up are the same thing.

I love looking elegant and chic, and I avoid looking sexy.

The former communicates power. The latter communicates an invitation to flirt, which I do not want, and frankly, can be dangerous in some places.

Can you show us examples of the differences?

NP. You can't see the difference between elegant/chic and sexy?

I am not particularly good on celebrities, but:

Amal Clooney, Huma Abedin. Reese Witherspoon=elegant/chic

Kardashians, most starlets of the moment=sexy

But no one would ever come close to dressy like a Kardashian at work in DC. It’s not a good example.