Favorite Post: In Honor of Operation #boothbabe

The folks hitting the conference sessions down here at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center today and tomorrow have already stepped it up a notch or two from the government folks and contractors I met at a Large Meeting in Aberdeen, Maryland, in early 2011, but...

We've still got a looooong way to go, baby.

Maybe it's that we're in the city instead of essentially rural Maryland. Maybe it's that there's a much higher proportion of women in government accounting than there is in Army IT support, but there is a smidgen of style here and there.

There are at least a few LV purses - whether they're real or bought on a Georgetown side street - there's an attempt at purchased style. There are a few dashing gentlemen with crisp white hair and interesting specs (as befit an accountant, naturally), and a few who can hang with their decently (but not perfectly, mind you) pinstripe suits.

But there is still a proliferation of ill-fitting, double-breasted, horrendously patterned separates. Ladies, really? It's 2012. Gentlemen? You can buy a new tie. And do we really need to talk about the sportcoats again?

I said it in 2011, and I'll say it now: Style Counts. Honest.

I originally posted this in March 2011, after attending a huge meeting up at Aberdeen Proving Ground. While the govvies presenting certainly knew their stuff, and the contractors in the room were honestly a bastion of experts, well, they didn't know their style. But that's what we bloggers are for, right?

Memo to Government Workers: Style Counts. Honest.

When I started this blog, way back when, I was wading through the stereotypical sea of Government Worker Style. It was awful. It was part of the reason - part, mind you - I started to write. I knew there was more style here than met the eye, and oila! in the last few years, I've been proven right. The DC Style World is alive and kickin' - kickin' hard

[strains of "We're not gonna take it...no, we're not gonna take it...we're not gonna take it, anymooooooore" play in the background]

I've been more than encouraged.

And then, I go to a Big Government Meeting. And I lose all hope. Well, most of it. Granted, the Meeting was in Aberdeen, Maryland, and it was mostly men, but still. So, Government Workers, here's my memo to you.

To Whom It Should Concern, but Doesn't, so That's Why I'm Writing This Memo:

From: DC Celine, who has lived and worked in your midst for the better part of a decade, and understands, so listen to her

Re: Style Counts

If you don't understand what that means, here's a few pointers. Yes, they're "Don'ts," which are harder to follow than one might think, but please. Don't.

• If you dress up (i.e. put on a suit), wear your one nice coat and a scarf. Do not wear your ski jacket over your suit. If you don't own a nice coat, go buy one. Hang it in your closet next to your Funeral Suit.
• Do. Not. Wear. Stockings. Wear tights.
• Gentlemen? Buy and wear one suit. The jacket + slacks thing works on 1% of grown men. And they're European.
• Hair gel - if you need it, you need a haircut. If you must use product, gentlemen, use pomade.
• Ladies? I'm all for a fun, statement, fashion piece of jewelry, but cheap jewelry looks cheap 75% of the time. Learn Coco's rule, now, and abide by it religiously.
• Tie clips = N. O.
• Have to take notes at your Big Government Meeting? Get a nice one. For heaven's sake, they hand those suckers out at every convention known to man. Swipe one. Or spend the money and buy one for these occasions. A sprial notebook you borrowed from your tween daughter or a stack of papers falling all over the floor? Yeah. Doesn't work.

There are, I'm sure, other guidelines I could give you (like don't go all matchy-matchy on us, or no sneakers and skirts for the commute), but a) you've heard them all before, and b) you haven't listened. So I'm trying these first. Then we'll tackle the Reeboks with your Liz Claiborne knock-off.

Cc: The World. Because they think we don't do style here in DC, and you're helping to prove them right.

Breaking News: Work Gets in Way of Social Life (and Blog)

That whole federal contractor, saving the world, serving our country thing? Well, so not a fan today.

The Government decided to release an RFP we were awaiting - yesterday. Deadline end of May. Translation? MUCHO work for yours truly.

Now, I was waaaaaaaaaay behind on paper (it's all very cemented in my head, really!), and bossman and H (yup, we work together occasionally) would really like to see more progress. But I lost any chance I had of swinging my evening at the DC Scout B-day fest tonight when the Government actually did their job.

Pooey.

So I'll just have to settle for finally getting my hair cut (about 2 months overdue), getting to the doc (5 months overdue), and getting to Erwin (hmmm...probably pushing 6 months - at least).

Then I'll go home, all gussied up, with only my laptop and Big Binder o' Government Documents to keep me company.

Oh, and H. He'll be right next to me with his, though he won't be quite as pretty as I.

Style Dilemma: A Man's World of Color

D writes: When is it appropriate to start wearing light colors again? I'm tired of wearing dark suits and clothes, but don't want to perpetuate my So Cal stereotype of "its sunny all the time so I can wear any color I want"...

Knowing precisely where D works, I pick up the phone and dial. (In addition to his fashion question, he also had an announcement to make: Congrats, D! on popping - and her saying yes - to the big question!)

He commented that he gets "ragged on" for wearing light colored suits of the tan, taupe, beige variety when it's cold out.

1) I asked him who rags on him (not expecting the answer: "H." We'll take care of that separately.).
2) I told him there are no "rules" anymore.

D, really, what it comes down to is wearing what you feel like in the season. I certainly wouldn't run around wearing linen during a snowstorm (although I'm sure someone could make a layered argument for it). But what you can do is wear any of your "lighter" colored (read in DC: not navy, brown, black or charcoal) haberdashery in a season-appropriate fabric. Since most men's suits are cut from a halfway decent wool gabardine, perfect for any season, you should be good to go.

We went further in the conversation. It's starting to be party season (i.e. baby, engagement, wedding shower-type events for friends), and he wants to be appropriate and dashing, all at the same time.

I will say that, though I'm a huge proponent of breaking the rules, I generally recommend men stick to the 5 o'clock dealio. For weddings or other more formal events after 5pm, go for a darker suit. If it's gotten balmy, or you want to keep it a little more hip without being disrespectful to your friend's grandma, go tie-less. It's dashing, a teensy bit daring, and, well, all the stars are doing it (that must make it right). I was thrilled when several of our friends sported the tie-less look for our June nuptuals.

Lastly, please, please, please don't wear a tie and go jacketless. That'll put you smack in the Government Worker Style realm, and, I know you don't want to go there.