We have all done it. We have made judgment calls about people based on their clothing, their outfit, their costume.
As much as we use the phrase ‘You can’t judge a book by its cover’ – we do.
Most often, our judgments fall into the following categories. She is dressing too young or too old, the clothing is dirty, sloppy, too tight, too revealing, out of style and on and on.
We have been trained to make these calls, to have these opinions, to be judge and jury. Let’s face it, on any given night as we scroll through the TV offerings we see shows such as Project Runway with Heidi Klum, Fashionably Late with Rachel Zoe, Fashion Star with Nicole Richie, The Fashion Police with the late & great Joan Rivers and What Not To Wear with Stacy London.
All of these shows, some tongue-in-cheek, share the common theme of presenting style options for the fashionably conscious. Looks that we, the plebeians, are supposed to lust over and pray will magically show up in our closet (or even better yet, be something we could either fit in or afford).
I personally have always been interested in fashion and was raised by neat, tidy, professional parents (Dad is a former Marine – neat and tidy is an understatement). Perhaps my current profession as an Image Consultant is a result of my upbringing and my undying love of fashion. Long story short, not a day goes by that I am not consciously aware of how I present myself. We are not talking glamathon here because that is not my style, but I guarantee that you will never see me at the grocery store in pajama bottoms, Uggs and uncombed hair. Ever.
Despite my proficiency at dressing with purpose, I, like most women, have certainly found myself struggling with what to wear. A recent class reunion (age peer pressure) and a professional women’s networking event with Arianna Huffington (success peer pressure) come to mind.
Yesterday however, the coin was flipped and it occurred to me that I was consciously dressing down to go to Walmart! Now, there are no shortage of clips, videos and late-night fodder about the sites that are seen at Walmart, so perhaps you can cut me some slack here on this article.
But honestly, every time I shop in Walmart, I feel overdressed and uncomfortable. I find myself on the other side of the coin where people are looking at me as if I am from some other fashion planet.
So yesterday I consciously took the time to I change out my dark wash jeans for my faded roll-ups, my favorite heeled Munro’s for my flat Merrell thongs, my fitted Vince sweater for my loose schmatta and I left my necklace on the dresser.
WHAT? Seriously…did I just do that? Did I just bow to fashion peer pressure? Yes I did and it bothered me the whole way to Walmart.
Hmmm – did I however, feel more comfortable at Walmart? Yes I did. What’s with that!
Perhaps there is a TV show in my future – Project Unstyled, Unfashionably Late, Fashion Mess, The Fashion Train Wreck or What To Wear To Walmart.
Pretty sure this spin (coin flip) might rub a few the wrong way, but come on admit it, you have all felt both under dressed and over dressed on occasion!
Bottom line here – you are granted permission to dress down for Walmart!
Need more actionable style advice? Check out my recently published book
Confidence Is Always In Style.
And remember Walmart girl – you are pretty!
Need convincing? Let’s spend some time on the phone.
Complimentary Style Consult
Dressing Down For Walmart
As much as we use the phrase ‘You can’t judge a book by its cover’ – we do.
Most often, our judgments fall into the following categories. She is dressing too young or too old, the clothing is dirty, sloppy, too tight, too revealing, out of style and on and on.
We have been trained to make these calls, to have these opinions, to be judge and jury. Let’s face it, on any given night as we scroll through the TV offerings we see shows such as Project Runway with Heidi Klum, Fashionably Late with Rachel Zoe, Fashion Star with Nicole Richie, The Fashion Police with the late & great Joan Rivers and What Not To Wear with Stacy London.
All of these shows, some tongue-in-cheek, share the common theme of presenting style options for the fashionably conscious. Looks that we, the plebeians, are supposed to lust over and pray will magically show up in our closet (or even better yet, be something we could either fit in or afford).
I personally have always been interested in fashion and was raised by neat, tidy, professional parents (Dad is a former Marine – neat and tidy is an understatement). Perhaps my current profession as an Image Consultant is a result of my upbringing and my undying love of fashion. Long story short, not a day goes by that I am not consciously aware of how I present myself. We are not talking glamathon here because that is not my style, but I guarantee that you will never see me at the grocery store in pajama bottoms, Uggs and uncombed hair. Ever.
Despite my proficiency at dressing with purpose, I, like most women, have certainly found myself struggling with what to wear. A recent class reunion (age peer pressure) and a professional women’s networking event with Arianna Huffington (success peer pressure) come to mind.
But honestly, every time I shop in Walmart, I feel overdressed and uncomfortable. I find myself on the other side of the coin where people are looking at me as if I am from some other fashion planet.
So yesterday I consciously took the time to I change out my dark wash jeans for my faded roll-ups, my favorite heeled Munro’s for my flat Merrell thongs, my fitted Vince sweater for my loose schmatta and I left my necklace on the dresser.
WHAT? Seriously…did I just do that? Did I just bow to fashion peer pressure? Yes I did and it bothered me the whole way to Walmart.
Hmmm – did I however, feel more comfortable at Walmart? Yes I did. What’s with that!
Perhaps there is a TV show in my future – Project Unstyled, Unfashionably Late, Fashion Mess, The Fashion Train Wreck or What To Wear To Walmart.
Bottom line here – you are granted permission to dress down for Walmart!
Need more actionable style advice? Check out my recently published book
Confidence Is Always In Style.
And remember Walmart girl – you are pretty!
Need convincing? Let’s spend some time on the phone.
Complimentary Style Consult