Once upon a time, my boyfriend sent me a link to this blog post. Your eyes probably just glazed for half a second while you gagged at the idea of having to put even more effort into actually reading words, but you should read it, especially the young women reading this.
Have you read it yet? Cool. Moving forward.
Now, the point of view that I was reading the article under was initially a bit clouded. Cut me some slack. My boyfriend tells me to read an article to read an article advising the general female population to actually put effort into their appearance everyday. I didn't exactly take it kindly. But that's a different story. Anyways, once I was done pouting, I read the article again, trying to understand the point the author was making.
What I took away from the article was this: Because men are such visual creatures, it is an act of charity for us as women to take care of ourselves and dress nicely. When we choose not to do such, we lose the right to complain that we're single or our significant others don't love us or any of that.
On a whole, I completely agree. *braces self for onslaught of feminist criticism* But, I think it goes much farther than that. As much as we like to think that we're these nice virtuous creatures who give strangers the benefit of the doubt and don't judge, but new flash, we most definitely are not. What you wear and how you groom yourself is in the first three things any stranger will notice about you, if not the first. You could argue that you give the impression of being materialistic and self centered by dressing in a fashion-forward manner. Sure, dressing like Snooki probably isn't a good plan, but that only proves there's extremes on both ends of the spectrum.
Dressing like a hobo gives the impression you are too lazy to take care of yourself or invest in decent apparel. Or it people just think you're a hobo, also not a great plan.
Dressing like a whore gives the impression that you're easy, you don't understand the proper application of self tanner, and your boobs are probably fake.
Dressing out of your age group gives the impression of immaturity, even if you're dressing older than you actually are. Sure, ugly Christmas sweaters can be worked into a flattering look in the cold months and I've seen twenty-somethings rock pigtails, but dressing like your grandma or your 8 year old sister is a no-no.
It's really just common sense. You dress to support the image you are trying to project. You do so in an aesthetically pleasing manner as a courtesy to those around you.
Now, some of you are probably staring at the screen thinking, "Yeah, I'll look nice for school/work/church functions/important things, but surely she doesn't mean this has to be an everyday thing." Wrong. Ladies and gentlemen, please don't be the scary person wandering through the grocery store in bunny slippers, two day old make up, and no bra. Please, I beg of you. You are better than that. Plus, the odds of running in to someone you know/have to suck up to sky rockets when you decide to wear the burka-eqsue pajama pants to run your errands.
Again, I'm not saying you have to make a fashion show out of putting the gas in the car, but there are lines you don't cross outside of your living room.
If you get your boobs out (ex: form fitting, sleeveless, low cut, or detail top), you put your legs away.
If you get your legs or butt out (ex: form fitting or above-the-knee skirts and pants) you put your boobs away.
You shave your legs when wear a skirt without stockings.
You always wash your face, brush your teeth, apply deodorant, and brush your hair.
Makeup of some sort is kind of expected. No need to resemble a Mary Kay model, but some powder, some mascara, and some lip gloss covers all the bases.
No sweat pants, unless they're NICE sweat pants. Please differentiate between nice sweat pants and not nice sweatpants. I suggest investing in a pair of yoga pants and a pair of leggings and saving those for the days jeans and shaving seem like the end of the world.
Apply self tanner and blue eye shadow with extreme caution.
When in doubt, cover more skin.
If you show rolls of skin, it's too tight or you're not covering enough.
It shouldn't feel like you're following rules to gain acceptance, because that would be shallow and a waste of energy. Dressing decently is simply a a form of polite behavior demonstrated to those you interact with through the day. Nothing more, nothing less.
Okay, so maybe some days, it IS a little more, but you get my point.
Now, to prove my point, my outfit when I honestly didn't feel like looking nice at all.
I didn't do fancy make up. Just primer, eyeliner, mascara, and lip gloss. I didn't even bother to curl my hair, but I did make sure my bangs didn't dry in a strange manner.
I wore my "sexy" jeans. Sure, they aren't comfortable, but they compensate for the fact my boyfriend's hoodie, while extremely comfortable, is not the most flattering thing on me.
Have a made my point? Good.
Hoodie: Boyfriend. Duh.
Red Inspired T-Shirt (Not shown): Gap
Jeans: Miss Me
Socks: Smart Wool
