Dressy V Casual

Just as the world is made of up people with vastly differing ideas about what is/isn't fashionable, so too do our standards of what is 'smart' and what is 'casual' considerably vary; thus the creation of that increasingly ambiguous clothing category 'smart/casual.' While some believe that anything goes in work and play, surely the line between home and public wear should not be so blurred to become invisible? Yet how can we define the line between casual and dressy? And should there even be a line?

Firstly, let's try and establish a few categories. Technically these are Casual, Business Casual, Smart Casual, Formal, Very Formal [Black Tie] and 'not available for public consumption' frump. The first and last groups are isolated as the clothing you wear around home and away from the work environment. Apart from the odd 'casual Friday,' there should be a distinct boundary separating the clothes you wear here from those on the other side of your weekend. 'Dressy' denotes anything from the clothes you wear to the theatre, to cocktail parties or even within a formal work environment where everyone dresses to the nines. 

Smart and business casual generally forbids the donning of jeans or any form of denim, shorts, sporting/athletic brands, caps or branded hats and open-toed shoes such as flip-flops – or 'casual' wear. The basic rule of Business casual for women is either tailored trousers or skirts, shirts with a collar and footwear with socks or hosiery. Formal generally requires special outfits – 'dressy' skirts, dresses or tailored trousers with well-made tops. Very Formal suggests rarely-worn dry-clean only wear – a tuxedo for the men and a dress for the ladies. However, like any great guideline, these rules were made to be broken – and often are with a bit of ingenuity. 

A friend of mine worked with a woman with a particularly 'casual' dress code – despite the fact they both worked in a Government department, her idea of appropriate work attire was a day-glo matching waterproof jogging suit with pull-apart tabs at the side [for extra ventilation] and a stone-wash denim jacket with diamante details. Very Classy. But I guess this reinforces the way the work environment and business wear in general has changed since the heralding of feminism.

Gender politics have evolved so that it is less about a 'woman in a man's world' and now [well, theoretically at least] about who can get the job done. No longer do women have to be masculine-ised in a figure-hiding power suit with grid-iron shoulder pads, shirts starched to the quality of armour, muted palettes and sensible Kumf pumps. Workplace equality now means that women can be fierce and feminine, powerful and comfortable and - like their male peers who experiment with salmon shirts and funky ties - can express their unique style through their day-to-day attire. Gone are the days when work wear had to be ultra conservative and entirely sensible. 

There are a few general indicators that separate casual and dressy attire and the importance of these varies from person to person. These require taking into account style, cut/tailoring, fabric or fibre, intended use, instructions for laundering, comfort, colour, branding and, significantly, the price. Many of these aspects make sense – for instance, you would rarely wear a 'hand wash only' garment for casual wear or a ball-dress to a parent-teacher interview. Additionally, the income you generate and your work environment has a lot to do with raising the bar between casual and dressy. Those who are high-paid generally spend more on work wear, with extra detail paid to the tailoring and quality of the garments.

Yet only those with keen fashion eyes may be able to tell the difference between a Country Road shirt and one found in the formal corner of your local Cotton On. Some folks can look a million dollars on a budget, taking advantage of DFOs and sale seasons – while some can make a $700 dress look like a dirty old sack.

There is a traditional belief that, while you can cut corners with other parts of your outfit, you should never take liberties with casual shoes in a dressy environment. My father was a stickler to that old Protestant ethic of always having clean, polished shoes – if you make the effort to iron your shirt, you should make sure you clean the sick off your shoe. Shoes can really predict the classification of an outfit – flip-flops or trainers for casual, sensible heels for smart or business casual and sleeker, detailed, dainty or decorated shoes for formal occasions. This is somewhere I find myself blurring the lines – My staple shoe is a ballet flat, with a quirky red pair for casual, a metallic structured pair for work and a sequinned pair for formal wear. Again, breaking the rules with a little flair can substitute a night of pain in spiky heels.    

Then there are some people who really don’t know how to be casual. You know the sort of people that take hair-dryers on camping trips and have heels on their slippers. For these types, it is often difficult to top their everyday smart and business wear with a spectacular formal outfit. Yet, these people have a habit of always stealing the show, much like my friend Emma. At a party once, an obnoxious guy came up to our group of friends and announced that Emma was the only one of us that ever made an effort. Unbeknownst to him, we had all in fact tried to make a concerted effort to look better then usual, but how could we compete with Emma in her Gucci heels and shimmering cleavage? 

Going back to breaking the rules, there are a few other items that pose a challenge to the casual/dressy distinction. Shorts, for example have evolved a lot particularly in the last few years. I’m not talking Billabong boardies either – but tailored styles in quality fabrics, with starched cuffs and belt loops. I have witnessed (and myself worn) many pairs of structured shorts teamed with pattered stockings and heels striding down the business end of town. While we are on the topic of stockings, there really are times when wearing hosiery is as practical as tying a fish to your head. On those 40 degree days, the last thing you want to add to your outfit is a pair of pantyhose that will undoubtedly stick to your legs like the strongest adhesive before you’ve passed through the front gate.

'Shirts' have also developed from the mannish white beasts of the 1980s, into patterned puzzles with ruffles and superfluous buttons. Ranging from military chic to the see-through cleavage-baring numbers, many shirts may be deemed inappropriate in some dressy environments. Particularly if you are thinking of doing a Britney, sans-underwear.      

In another article I wrote about appropriate clothing choices, I applied the 'look around you' test – if you look like the frumpy black sheep in a herd of sleek thoroughbreds then perhaps you have merged the smart/casual lines too far. Most workplaces have certain policies about what employees should/should not wear, made not only for propriety, but also often for safety and practicality. As for ‘dressy occasions,’ some people may find if difficult to enjoy a situation if they are completely out of their ‘literal’ comfort zone. No amount of magic party tape can put you at ease if you a wearing something that makes you feel like a Diana Ross drag act.  

Here are a few extra tips when trying dress up or down:

1. Accessorise: wear your best quality platinum and diamonds for dressy occasions, statement pieces for smart/business and funky plastic beads for casual.
2. Hair: Generally the rules are put up for dressy, clean and tidy and out of your face for smart/business and wild and woolly between home and the grocery store
3. Make-up: As dramatic [without looking like an extra for Priscilla the musical] as you desire for dressy, Subdued and defining for smart/business and eau naturale for everywhere else.  

Does Anything Go? Our friend in the day-glo jumpsuit would say yes, but basically there are certain guidelines that should be followed to avoid standing out for the wrong reasons. If you wear the same outfit to a job interview and a Friday night DVD session, then perhaps you may want to reassess just why you never got that job. Ask Bronny for more advice on how to stay away from the dark side in your wardrobe.