THE DEVIL WEARS PANTSUITS

Excerpt from a firm-wide email...

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 16:12:27 -0500

A friend of mine at the Firm, call him Ebenezer, requested/suggested this PS:

As a somewhat-related aside, please remember that, except for Fridays and special occasions like tomorrow, the period for permitted business casual attire ended Labor Day.

One year later...

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 16:09:53 -0500

Okay then, let’s start again. One year ago I was a boring law student. Today, as promised, I’m a boring corporate lawyer.

I refuse, however, to let the boringness infiltrate my wardrobe. Faux fur is appropriate in a business casual environment, no? (No, it isn’t. But I’m not stopping until someone awkwardly confronts me.)

Keep me honest, keep me fashionable, keep me fabulous.

Love this look. Longer dress, closed toe shoes of course. Damn...

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 10:42:01 -0500

Love this look. Longer dress, closed toe shoes of course. Damn business formal.

musingsinfemininity:

i love mixing black with navy blue.

Photo

Mon, 03 Jan 2011 19:23:41 -0500

Yummy.

Mon, 03 Jan 2011 18:20:21 -0500

Yummy.

Simple and elegant. Will definitely recreate this look.

Mon, 03 Jan 2011 13:20:43 -0500

Simple and elegant. Will definitely recreate this look.

Okay one last reblog from the fab Documenting the Ordinary. I...

Sun, 02 Jan 2011 23:44:21 -0500

Okay one last reblog from the fab Documenting the Ordinary. I adore this…it would be perfect for the summer months when I could wear business casual. Adding a navy schoolboy blazer and perhaps a crisper oxford shirt could bring it into business formal territory. But to be totally honest, I’m not entirely sure what is expected for business formal at this firm. If it is boring suits every day then I will die. DIE. (Okay not really. But I’ll be bummed.) I’m crossing my fingers that suit-like attire qualifies.

Perfection.

Sun, 02 Jan 2011 23:39:07 -0500

Perfection.

Another lovely possibility for the fall. I don’t think it...

Sun, 02 Jan 2011 23:36:03 -0500

Another lovely possibility for the fall. I don’t think it would be difficult to make this business formal-appropriate. Perhaps take the camel coat here and replace it with a camel blazer. I’m also feeling a cropped black jacket, but I’m wondering if you need something more structured on top to compensate for the feminine skirt? Hmm.

The shoes are fabulous. And I don’t even like modest heels.

How fantastic is this outfit? Definitely what I’m...

Sun, 02 Jan 2011 16:53:59 -0500

How fantastic is this outfit? Definitely what I’m envisioning for myself this fall. Only with a longer skirt (just above the knee seems to be appropriate but of course make sure that you aren’t exposed when you sit down) and closed toe shoes. Absolutely keeping the leopard clutch.

Lovely find from Simply Seductive, via I Love Wildfox.

How wonderful is this project? (Though I will probably just buy...

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 23:13:18 -0500

How wonderful is this project? (Though I will probably just buy a feather skirt instead…I’m not good with scissors, glue, or anything crafty. Hence law school!)

From the always fabulous Who What Wear Daily (12/22/10 edition).

“EVERY MOMENT OF YOUR LIFE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR FASHION.” -Kurt Hummel, Glee...

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 23:08:04 -0500

“EVERY MOMENT OF YOUR LIFE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR FASHION.”

-Kurt Hummel, Glee Fashionista

Love.

So all you fashionistas, let’s discuss law school style — or lack thereof. Do you...

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:21:58 -0500

So all you fashionistas, let’s discuss law school style — or lack thereof. Do you remember walking into the library on a cold night right before winter finals? All of the girls wore dumpy hoodies, ill-fitting jeans or terribly tight leggins, and — horror of horrors — Uggs. All of the guys wore the exact same black North Face jacket, often with navy sweats.

Things haven’t changed much here. Same outfits, only now their wearers have gained 20 pounds through examtime and job hunting stress eating. Suddenly those ill-fitting jeans are ill-fitting in a different way and are digging into beer bellies. And the leggings? Are so tight that you can see cellulite. VISIBLE CELLULITE, PEOPLE.

And have you heard of the girls who go to law school to find a husband? (Don’t EVEN get me started on that one. You’re at a top-ten law school, you don’t need a JD-MRS!) Well those eligible bachelors are strutting their stuff in bright orange Crocs.

The sloppiness is excusable, to a point. What is inexcusable, to me, is the lack of personal style. Law students have almost no creative outlet. Even our written work must follow a prescribed style of writing and must reference particular cases and arguments to be effective. We have precious little space to express ourselves.

Fashion could serve as an ideal outlet for the creative energy that seems to go to waste in these three years. Not everyone is a fashionista, of course, but everyone should have some sense of personal style, even if it is more high street than haute couture. Instead, law students tend to roll out of bed and into class with little attention to their appearance. (And two summers at a firm suggest that things don’t improve after graduation…think Ann Taylor — the frumpy years.)

Can I convince my classmates that they’re squandering an important creative outlet? Well, two and a half years of trying says no. Hence, THE DEVIL WEARS PANTSUITS. After all, I need a creative outlet too…

I’m a boring law student, soon to be a boring corporate lawyer. I firmly believe that The...

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 21:38:16 -0500

I’m a boring law student, soon to be a boring corporate lawyer. I firmly believe that The Devil Wears Pantsuits so this is my effort to escape that fate for as long as I can.