Love this but with a twist: what's not in my closet...any more.
I went for one of my first professional job interviews in NYC after grad school in 1979 (yes, I am a troglodyte!) These were the days of John T. Molloy's Dress for Success: women wearing a variation of a businessman's wool suit.
I went to Lord & Taylor on Fifth Ave searching for something that was dark, conservative, but not too man-ish. Style-ish, but in my not-yet professional budget.
I found it: navy blue, round-collared jacket with one big button, pencil skirt just below the knees but with a kick-pleat in back. Was sure I looked the part.
A classic, I trotted out that suit for every work occasion. Dressed up with pearls. Found a new blouse or shell to spruce it up a bit. Even had it taken in over the years. It hung demurely in my closet, not making noise or taking up too much space. A perfectly timeless bit of apparel.
Fast-forward to around 2020 (how could it be possible that much time has passed!). Covid. NO ONE is wearing suits. Dress for success has loosened to include casual Fridays, piercings, tattoos, and come as you are. IF you even work in an office anymore.
In a fit of closet cleaning, I took it for dry cleaning and then gave it away. To an organization that helps provide low-income women with professional clothes.
It felt good!
BUT. There are moments when I miss having that perfect little blue suit, and all the worry about appropriate business attire it saved me. Dress for success, indeed!
Love this but with a twist: what's not in my closet...any more.
I went for one of my first professional job interviews in NYC after grad school in 1979 (yes, I am a troglodyte!) These were the days of John T. Molloy's Dress for Success: women wearing a variation of a businessman's wool suit.
I went to Lord & Taylor on Fifth Ave searching for something that was dark, conservative, but not too man-ish. Style-ish, but in my not-yet professional budget.
I found it: navy blue, round-collared jacket with one big button, pencil skirt just below the knees but with a kick-pleat in back. Was sure I looked the part.
A classic, I trotted out that suit for every work occasion. Dressed up with pearls. Found a new blouse or shell to spruce it up a bit. Even had it taken in over the years. It hung demurely in my closet, not making noise or taking up too much space. A perfectly timeless bit of apparel.
Fast-forward to around 2020 (how could it be possible that much time has passed!). Covid. NO ONE is wearing suits. Dress for success has loosened to include casual Fridays, piercings, tattoos, and come as you are. IF you even work in an office anymore.
In a fit of closet cleaning, I took it for dry cleaning and then gave it away. To an organization that helps provide low-income women with professional clothes.
It felt good!
BUT. There are moments when I miss having that perfect little blue suit, and all the worry about appropriate business attire it saved me. Dress for success, indeed!
This is like a time capsule piece--I remember those suits! Those pearls! Love how this suit gets to live a full life ... and some! Love, love, Robin!