An Ode to Dresses (while wearing pants)

I wore a dress or skirt to work for seven days in a row. This is a new Cora-record!

No one would guess I was wearing superhero underwear...

I had a love-hate relationship with dresses throughout my life. For example, I wore a dress every single day in kindergarten. Then I flatly refused to wear anything but pants for the next 10 years (The only exception was wearing a dress to church. Because God shall smite women for wearing slacks. It’s the 11^th Baptist Commandment).  By high school, I resigned myself to the fact that dresses were required for graduations, weddings, and the occasional funeral. Sorority events in college also demanded that I buy more than one little black dress.

Then I moved to Boston. My daily uniform (jeans, tank top, cardigan, Converse low-tops) just didn’t fit in. Girls layered their summer dresses and shorts with leggings in the fall. Walking through rain and snow is miserable when you’re wearing jeans because it takes forever to dry. And frankly, guys notice you more.

In an office setting, I find dresses to be comfortable, professional, and feminine. When networking, I was certainly noticed and approached more when wearing a black dress and beaded cardigan.  The Russian kept insisting that “pencil skirts are the epitome of feminine power in a male-dominated profession”.  (Umm…yeah, about that...I disagree. When I see a girl wearing a pencil skirt suit, my first thought is “Damn, I wish I was that skinny” followed by “I bet she’s a witch with a broom stuck up her bum.”) I do think that dressing a bit more feminine and delicate made me more approachable. The Southern accent certainly helped.

Twirling isn't half as fun in pants either.

In all honesty, my sudden pro-dress stance has more to do with my pro-sleep philosophy. Anything that gains another 15 minutes of sleep always gets my vote! A dress is an entire outfit...in ONE article of clothing! I don’t have to worry about matching shirts and pants! The only thing I have to coordinate is dress to shoes, which is simple because black or silver heels go with basically everything I own. And a wrinkled dress looks more put together than a pair of wrinkled pants and an unironed button-up shirt. Go figure.

Considering the forthcoming heat wave (102*F on Friday), wearing a dress certainly makes life a little more bearable and less sweaty.

The downside of wearing dresses to work…can’t prop my feet up on the desk. Something about being “unladylike”…whatever that means.