There is much more to our dressing than we might imagine. Our dressing says a great deal about who we are and influences all kinds of impressions. People make snap judgments about us from the clothes we wear. They draw conclusions about our personality from the way we look. So if you think “opinions” don’t matter, “impressions” might do which is why “dressing” most certainly matters.
Dressing is an art obviously, the art of knowing how to carry ourselves during various occasions we partake in. The occasions dictate how we should dress to suit the mood of the events. Dressing for any occasion is about paying respect to the occasion and the people around you. Here below we present to you an easy guide to dress codes for every occasion.
A wedding
A wedding usually is a black-tie or a white-tie event unless the bride and the groom have decided to theme it to some movie they love.
Women should always keep in mind to steer clear of the white dresses in weddings as the color white is just for the bride. Put on the best gowns you have. It is floor-length gowns for weddings but the etiquette rules are softening, knee-length dress is equally fine. Accessorize according to the mood of the event.
For men, it’s always a tuxedo. Dark suit never does wrong in such formal events with dark party shoes. Choose the colors suitable for the time and the season.
A cocktail party
A cocktail party is largely an informal social gathering where you dress almost-formally; so the dress code for a cocktail party is “dressy-casual” i.e. semi-formal.
Tuxedos for men and evening dresses for women are the dress to sport in these parties. Black color has the evening vibe of the cocktail parties but also any dark color would do as long as you keep it inconspicuous.
Men’s cocktail attire accommodates suit, coat and tie while women’s attire is a knee-length dress with some frill. It’s acceptable if your dress is a little above your knee but you should always keep in mind that there’s a thin line between being sexy and being vulgar.
A dinner party
Suit up in your cocktail attire if it is a formal dinner party. It is always wiser to ask the host for advice. You don’t want to offend your host at their own table, do you? So, don’t overdress. Also you risk offending your dinner companions if you underdress.
It always pays off taking out a little time to make a call to your host before you show up at their doorsteps. If it’s a festive event, dress up like you are there to celebrate, little glitz and color won’t hurt.
A business dinner or a company party
Don’t dress up an outfit that is too provocative during business dinner party. You want to be taken seriously when it comes to job promotions and dressing provocatively on any of the company occasions would not play to your benefit. The dress code is “smart-casual” i.e. casual but work appropriate. When it is about work, you should always keep it professional.
Style gurus suggest that women can wear dress pants, a casual dress or a skirt with a nice blouse to a company party. Men are advised to stick to khakis or dress pants with a collared shirt and loafers. Look sharp, look professional. That’s the mantra.
