Playing dress-up July 11, 2013
Posted by mareserinitatis in career, engineering.Tags: cheetah, clothes, engineers, jeans, women in engineering
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A while back, I wrote a post on EngineerBlogs about how I could never find the right mix of clothes to make me look like an engineer. A lot of people had great advice, and a few months ago, I finally settled on what I call my ‘work uniform’. I looked at most of my male engineering colleagues, and I wore what I viewed to be the equivalent female for an outfit: a button down shirt, jeans, and flats. So far, I like it. We’ll see how I feel once I start teaching this fall.
Okay, I have to admit that one of the shirts has a cheetah pattern. I am amused when I wear this. I’m not sure why, but I think it’s hilarious.
This is totally me…if I were Asian and skinny.
On the other hand, there are days when I still need to step it up. I know a lot of women like to dress up, but it really makes me uncomfortable. Rather than feeling like I’m making a great impression, I feel more like I’m a five-year-old who is rummaging around in mom’s closet for the pumps and lipstick so I can play dress up. I suspect I’d be able to walk in heels better if they were twice the size of my feet but, sadly, I’m no longer able to find anything with same proportions to my adult feet that my five-year-old feet were used to. I probably look just fine, but somehow I feel goofy and just want my jeans back.
I also blog at Engineer Blogs, home away from home to some of the best engineering blogs.
Do you have any trips coming up to a city with a Nordstrom? They have excellent (free!) personal shopper/stylists that can help you find things that you’d be comfortable in. I’m setting up an appointment now, because I’m tired of wearing raggedy sweats all the time :)
I think maybe you just haven’t found the *right* dress up stuff that makes you feel comfortable yet. Maybe it’s pants, or a pant suit instead of a dress. Maybe it’s flats or boots. I think maybe it involves trying on a TON of stuff with a 3rd party who’s into that kind of thing and can offer help.
There’s one in Minneapolis, so maybe that’s something I should look at. Thanks for the suggestion! I’m definitely not comfortable at all in skirts/dresses.
It takes a while to find one’s look – and it evolves with age and with the particular positions in which one works. For some years, I wore tailored (skirted) suits with cotton shirts & silk “ties” – with small heels. In other years, when I had, on occasion, to crawl into/onto/through aircraft, I wore tailored, wool (usually tropical weight) pants with cotton shirt and cashmere sweater vest – with tie-on flats. Now, in retirement, I wear the same pants with dark cotton knit tank top and great shirt (with pockets, of course!) – when I’m leaving the house, that is. Pockets are essential as I’ve not carried a purse since the early 1970s when I started carrying a briefcase/office bag.