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Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
Dear New CEO Of The Gap: A Few Tips From People Who Wear Clothes
Where Wal-Mart Went Wrong In Fashion (Hint: All That Cheap Junk Food Didn't Help)
Business Casual, Schmizness Casual

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PrettyPrettyPrincess
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
Juicy!! My company used to be owned by Ernst and Young, and they are still a client of ours. I LOVED the annual 'dress code' reminders they sent out every spring. You know - just cause it's gettin hot, don't dress like a hootchie! Women are required (REQUIRED) to wear hose. No open toed shoes, etc. The dress code outlines the minimum so you won't get sent home to change. Because we were a remote office in freaking TEXAS, us rebellious female types balked at the hose and we wore strappy sandals in the summer. As a tech company we had a few years where jeans were ok, but some corporate type noticed and raised a fuss.

But yes - the code (HOSE!!!) was a little silly, but some of the suggestions are useful, especially if you are young and cute and want to be taken seriously. Career ladies who want to get ahead can strike a nice balance of still expressing themselves but in a way that commands respect. Corporate EY, unfortunately that means the uniform of grey or black skirt or pantsuit. With business casual (as my company is now) any of the Ann-Taylor style work outfits are great; when you wear a belted dress and heels, or slacks and a sweater/shirt combo, people subconsciously respond to the image you project. I spent a few years just enjoying my role and i dressed average, sometimes taking it up or down a notch. When i decided i wanted to play with the big dogs I started gradually stepping up my wardrobe to make my move, and it's worked well. And YES, the cami to hide the girls is a GODSEND - I am short and my shirts are LOW on me, the cami keeps my coworkers looking at my face.

But when I meet with the EY client I gotta bust out the suit :)
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Le Kangourou de Kataroo
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
My office is suuuper casual, but even the douche bag who wears the most terrible outfits feels the need to say something to me about my outfits, even when I am completely appropriate. In my boss's words, "Are you KIDDING me?! He wears shorter shorts than you'd ever THINK of wearing. Even when you're super casual you're still appropriate."
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cwisto moweina has got yer goat
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
ahhh...a dress code is just one less stress I have working on a farm. I only have to dress for the weather. And wear clothes I can get dirty and wet. And clothes I don't mind the goats chewing on.

Ok so I have a few clothing issues to consider, but at least I just bought my entire winter wardrobe for $25 at Goodwill. you can be jealous.
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recidivicious
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
I think the fragrance thing could apply to men too, I do not want to be gassed by aftershave fumes either.
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PrettyPrettyPrincess
11/03/08

@recidivicious: You are totally correct - strong fragrance, regardless of gender, is a bit offensive in confined quarters. I've heard this advice given equally to men and women.
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DinosaurDanceParty
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
You know for some people not wearing a low-cut top to work ISN'T common sense. My lovely old roommate used to wear things to work that made the grandmother in me shake my head. It was like what she thought a "sexy secretary" would dress like. Along with flirting with her boss and male coworkers.

And since this is KIND of related...I'm starting a new job next week, (in accounting) and in the interview the boss wore jeans and it seemed really casual. So do you think I could wear jeans to work? Not on the first day or anything..but in general? So complicated.
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rollergirl76
11/03/08

@DinosaurDanceParty: This reminds me of the Curb Your Enthusiasm where Larry's lawyer wears jeans and a jean jacket on casual Fridays. "If you don't like casual Fridays, then you should come by the office on naked Tuesdays."
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Etoiles
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
I'm actually a huge fan of "DO NOT WEAR HEAVY PERFUME." There was a woman -- I never met her -- who worked in my old office building who could have killed a wooly mammoth with hers. You could follow the scent into the bathroom, tell which stall she'd used, and identify which sink she had stood at to apply more. Once I went in there probably within 5 minutes after she left and it triggered an asthma attack.

As for the rest, though... rubbish and shenanigans.
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la.donna.pietra
11/03/08

@EtoilePB: There's a woman in my building who is much the same way. She leaves scent trails everywhere she goes. On the plus side, if anything ever happens to her, we won't need bloodhounds for a search :)
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Brigit
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
There are some people that might have not gotten the memo about proper work attire. When I worked in a department of education's accounting department I saw constantly colleagues with tight mini-skirts, very deep V-neck tops (sans cami), and blazer. I saw men in t-shirts+jeans+sneakers. Reaggeton style, ultra-mega-baggy for men and super tight-low-cut-skimpy for women, was all the rage for those my age.

I think some places will need something akin to my HS's uniform guide. Seriously.
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Ms. Pants
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
I work for one of the other "big four" accounting firms and our office should have a meeting about appropriate work attire.

While I have big boobs and will always appear "busty" whether I like it or not, I learned the magic of the cami. I have eleventyhundred of them hanging in my closet ROYGBIV-style.

We have women who wear 5inch, platform, lucite heels. To work. At an accounting firm.
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Brigit
11/03/08

@Ms. Pants: Didn't you know that crunching numbers is a lot easier when you are wearing lucite?
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Ratinski
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
You know, my brother the accountant started out his career at Arthur Andersen, and they had a seminar like this. The difference is it was for ALL employees, and some of the guys definitely needed the reminder that the cargo pants were NOT work appropriate.

AA also had a class on how to pack for a week long business trip in a carry on suitcase (this was pre-9/11) and basic business dinner etiquette.
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Devonna
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
I'm fortunate to work in an environment that the dress code for women in my job is "no spaghetti straps or tank tops", "no open-toed shoes" and "no shorts". Thus, I live in jeans, t-shirts, tennies, and hoodies. It absolutely kills me that I'm in my 30s and still get to dress like a high school student every day.
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haguenite
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
One of my housemates works for Ernst and Young and she has to wear a uniform. But she's a wage-slave (also known as receptionist) and they don't have the options the ladies who are higher up have.

As for me, I'd probably jump off a bridge if I had to wear a business uniform. The boobs, they don't fit into anything.

I will always look cleavagy. And if SOME people don't like that then SOME people should just divert their gaze upwards.
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Samanthrax
11/03/08

@haguenite: I hear that on the cleavage- a woman I work with says something about my knockers practically everyday. Short of wearing duct tape under a turtleneck, there is nothing to stop this cleavage. I'm clearly not trying to bust out the hookerwear, here... so offensive and frustrating.
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Brigit
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
Also, the perfum/cologne thing should be stated to all employees. I bet I'm not the only one that has to deal with males that bathe in their cologne before coming in to work. :/
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sportz.star
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
Men certainly need this too: 1. an undershirt is necessary to prevent us from having to look at your chest hair, 2. button your shirt so that we don't have to see said undershirt, 3. polo shirts in the summer scream "golf" not "work" so, no.

I'm all for going back to business at my law firm. So much easier. Save fun clothes for after work and weekends.
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RainbowBrite
11/03/08

@girlz.like.sportz: YES to the undershirts! WTF is up with no undershirts? That is SO gross and unprofessional.
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Jessi Ramsey
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
If I ever change jobs I'm screwed. I went from barista to working for a website where I wear hoodies, jeans, and converse everyday. The last time I put on western business attire was in high school for Model UN and JSA conferences.
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ceejeemcbeegee is not here
11/03/08

In reply to Accounting Firm Tells Its Female Employees What Not To Wear
Remember when women used to "layer" their perfume by using the fragranced body wash, moisture lotion and a few sprays of perfume? Yeah, it made me nauseated too.
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CrankyOldBroad
11/03/08

@ceejeemcbeegee: I remember that vividly. I used to be crammed in a elevator with them daily. I'm all for a spritz or a dab of perfume, but marinating in the damned stuff before going out the door is just wrong.
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HokeyPokey
11/03/08

@CrankyOldBroad: Remember that vile deforesting agent called Giorgio's? Or that bottled vomit called Poison? Those made me feel like my lungs were going to break.
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CrankyOldBroad
11/03/08

@HokeyPokey: Oscar was one of the worst offenders at the time. And Claiborne for Her and Him...try being stuck in an elevator for 18 floors with that particular combo. I had a bff who switched from Opium to Poison for a while. I begged her to stop.
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ceejeemcbeegee is not here
11/03/08

@CrankyOldBroad: My stomach still quivers when I recall being squeezed between my mother's Opium and my aunt's Red Door perfume in church.
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cocobanal
11/03/08

@ceejeemcbeegee: Ah, yes, Jean Nate had that whole bath oil, dusting powder, cologne and perfume thing going on. Ugh.
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CrankyOldBroad
11/03/08

@cocobanal: Oh dear God, Jean Nate!!! I could never figure out wth that scent was supposed to be. Sweet? Citrus? Spice? One of the very first perfumes I ever selected for myself was Charlie by Revlon...mostly because I had a HUGE girl crush on Lauren Hutton.
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cocobanal
11/03/08

@CrankyOldBroad: I remember Charlie! I had a bottle of that. Also popular was Love's Baby Soft and something with lemon . . . can't remember what it was called.
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CrankyOldBroad
11/03/08

@cocobanal: Love's Fresh Lemon, I think. I remember Love's having a whole line. I thought the Fresh Lemon was very hippiesque at the time I used it. Which probably really meant I smelled like fresh laundry.
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Ascendo_tuum
11/03/08

@ceejeemcbeegee: Remember when the Vanilla scents were huge? It seemed like every woman I worked with was doused in vanilla. Which blew, because I used to actually dab a little bit of real vanilla once in a while. Smelling all that fake-flowery-vanilla perfume for months on end was torture.
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