What's your work dress code?

[Amor de Cosmos]

Isn't it illegal to put anything in a pocket of a suit jacket? I'm sure I've been told it is.

True. It's why they're stitched closed when you buy them

[DCI Harry Batt]

Isn't it illegal to put anything in a pocket of a suit jacket? I'm sure I've been told it is.

[San Bernardhinault]

Ties are just bizarre. Jackets can look good, are a removable layer in changing temperatures, and at least have a lot of practical pockets. I can see why people wear jackets. But ties are just ridiculous, and make no more sense than powdered wigs.

[Guy Profumo]

Ties?

Cravats, surely?

(and matching handkerchief)

[WOM]

Fucking ties. Why not spats, too? Walking sticks? Beaver pelt top hats?

[DCI Harry Batt]

I guess I don't get the suit-no-tie thing partly because I hate wearing a suit jacket too. And a tie you can take off and stuff in a pocket once the interview is over, whereas you're kinda stuck with the jacket until you get home.

[Guy Profumo]

I expect you are right but a hat can, at least, be practical. Even though I don't mind wearing ties on occasion, they are never practical unless you count covering buttons.

Or curry stains


Mmmm. Curry.

[Bored Of Education]

Chastened by Tonton's incredulity I'm wearing a tie today. I do feel much smarter but I don't think I'll stick with it. It's the 21st century man, ties are going the way of the hat.

I expect you are right but a hat can, at least, be practical. Even though I don't mind wearing ties on occasion, they are never practical unless you count covering buttons.

[Bored Of Education]

That was a decade ago. The reason I know that is because that was the suit I had made for my wedding. It was a nice suit.
It was a very nice suit.
It was still constricting and uncomfortable to wear and although it made me look less of a bellend than most suits, it was still very much not me.

Bloody hell, time flies.

[Toby Gymshorts]

I always felt that ties were the rare opportunity for a corporate drone to express some sartorial individuality (the socks thing hadn't happened yet, but I still think that ties provide for more range).

Well that backhander certainly stung.

<winkything>

[Gangster Octopus]

I'm wearing a particularly nice flowery shirt today.

[ursus arctos]

I always felt that ties were the rare opportunity for a corporate drone to express some sartorial individuality (the socks thing hadn't happened yet, but I still think that ties provide for more range).

[3 Colours Red]

Ever since I left school, I only wear ties for funerals. Simple explanation - I can't knot them.

[Levin]

Chastened by Tonton's incredulity I'm wearing a tie today. I do feel much smarter but I don't think I'll stick with it. It's the 21st century man, ties are going the way of the hat.

[MonkeyHarris]

My manager reckons there's no dress code in our office. After she mentioned this, I came to work in a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a tracksuit top (not matching but similar colours, tasteful and that) and got a few snarky comments about being Sporty Spice, one of which was from her. There's a woman in another department (some sort of Finance) who comes in everyday wearing yoga pants and tops I imagine are also for the gym. Nobody says a thing, though maybe they used to but it's been so long that now they don't bother. Very few men here wear shoes instead of trainers, even the managing director dresses fairly casual, though I work for a film & tv distribution company (blockbusters and other bankable titles, seldom anything interesting) rather than say, an insurance firm.

My girlfriend also gets to wear what she wants at work so never wears heels there (but likes wearing them when we're going out for suitable occasions despite the lack of comfort) and doesn't really have an issue with her range of sneakers to wedges that she busses in the office on an everyday basis.

When I was a lad I enjoyed wearing a suit and tie to work. Made me feel like an adult. Now I'm happy to wear a polo and cardigan or an unironed shirt with a v-neck jumper covering the creases, jeans and shoes, mostly suede, usually Clarks Weavers or Wallabees. Which is pretty much what I wear outside the house. Seldom wear trainers though when I do that's a sort of dress-down Friday thing, when nobody ever does any work, as stated upthread, and to one person's annoyance.

[ursus arctos]

As it so happens, my feet are also wide and flat, and the fact that there a wide range of styles produced that I can wear happily just makes the gender imbalance more obvious and infuriating.

Those trainers are really taking the piss.

[Balderdasha]

Yeah, I think I was doing too much of presenting my personal experience with shoes as the experience of all women, which is clearly not the case.

Despite being tiny and having tiny feet (I recently had to go on a special trip to buy women's steel toe-cap trainers because nowhere nearby sold them small enough and I didn't want to order online because I wasn't sure which size I needed. I'm usually a UK size 4, but I had to go down to a size 3 in these because they over-estimate how much extra room you need for work socks. The only available shoes were black with lots of neon pink detailing which really wound me up. Why, if I'm wearing steel toe-cap trainers would I need or want pink go faster stripes??? Anyway, I digress) my feet are actually very wide and flat, which is why all the pumps / ballet flats don't work for me. It would be great if they did.

[ursus arctos]

Sorry.

It really wasn't meant that way, but I took your insistence on the absolute inappropriateness of tuxedo pumps for walking as a challenge to the reality of ms ursus' experience and that of lots of women like her (including dglh's Tory Burch-shod colleagues).

I now see it was inartful at best and apologise.

I do think that there is a larger discussion to be had about how the fashion industrial complex seems incapable of producing shoes that work for a large number of women.

[Balderdasha]

Women's feet and styles of walking differ.

Film at 11.

Probably I am being too sensitive here, or reading the tone wrong, but I find this post a bit arsey.

You guys can spend days discussing trainers but the minute me and fussbudget exchange a couple of posts on women's shoes, we get a comment like this suggesting that our discussion is dull or predictable. What's that about?

[ursus arctos]

I've never given a monkey's, which has episodically caused some of my colleagues to complain that I "don't take the issue seriously".

[Sporting]

Does anyone who has posted on this thread who has to wear a tie feel that he should be able to force (or that it should be obligatory) the wearing of one, via a dress code, on anyone who doesn't?

[Ginger Yellow]

I don't understand why the go-to look for "I'm here for business, but also a man of the people" is jacket with no tie or even suit with no tie. I prefer a proper shirt with tie, but no jacket.

Because I fucking hate ties.

[Sporting]

For low-level ones, perhaps just maybe?

[Gangster Octopus]

Never, ever feel sorry for bankers...

[Sporting]

I really feel sorry for the bankers etc here who in near 40º temperatures are still forced to wear suits. They're bad enough in colder climates.