If you are a man, do you dress to impress other women, or do you want cred from your mates? Same goes for women – are you dressing up to impress men, or will the ladies better appreciate your $1200 Chanel bag?…

If you ask people this question directly, they will usually answer that they dress for themselves – after all, that is the only self-respecting, dignified answer to give right?

I don’t buy it, I don’t. There are only a few people I can think of that this would truly apply to.

I think we all dress for others. Otherwise, why would you change into trackpants and a comfortable hoodie the moment you get home from a day out or from the office? If you truly dressed for yourself, you would wear in public what you wear on the weekend when you know you’re not going to be seen in public for the day. Now this logic may seem harsh and uncompromising, however I am using it to illustrate that we take into account many factors in how we dress.

If we dressed for ourselves, then why do labels matter? Sure, you pay a price for quality. But quality can only take you so far, and then the $500 price tag starts to look a bit ridiculous. I often wonder at those fashion houses (think Gucci or Versace) – do they sit around a table and say ‘ok, this dress cost $100 in total to make, including materials and labour. Since we are a high-end fashion label, we will need to charge $2100 for it, so it keeps with the rest of the price range.’ – Ok I’m sure they don’t exactly spell it out like that each time. But you get the point.

Something I have been seeing a lot of lately as I drive to work through the city, is women wearing running shoes, such as Nike and Adidas sneakers to work with their suits and panty hose, with their 3-inch heels being carried in one of those enviro shopping bags.
At first I thought, 1. It just looks ugly. 2. It’s admitting self defeat – that the shoes are too difficult for you to wear, even to work. So it makes you look like you shouldn’t be wearing them at all.

However, upon thinking about it a bit more. I started to give these women a bit more credit. They are walking to work, looking a bit silly – but they don’t care. They would rather be more comfortable getting there than putting up with unnecessary pain.
Perhaps they are not wearing the sneakers to work purely for comfort, but perhaps their high heels cost a lot more than some Uni student’s cars are worth, and they don’t see the financial sense in wearing their aesthetic investment out on the pavements, or through rain, snow etc.
Although having said that, I would take a punt that at least 80% wear them for comfort. Fair enough. I don’t think I could do it, but I guess I must be vain enough to care what people think. I can admit that.

So back to others – does that mean these women are dressing for their work colleagues, or clients? That is fair enough, as the professional world, particularly when dealing with clients, demands competitiveness. Who after all would feel comfortable handing over a $4000 cheque for two days work to some legal firm with a lawyer who barely cares to dress themselves appropriately? The dollars are paying for the image as well. The image is that of quality, assuredness, confidence. No Danny Danuto grey suits swimming about.

My friend who works for an accounting firm told me that their boss told them that they have to wear their suit jacket on while they travel to work. Just in case a client sees them step out of their car at the petrol station or walk to the front door. Even in summer. Once they are in their offices and are not seeing clients, this rule no longer applies.

The other weekend I went nice and early, 8am to be exact, to the Farmers Market, which is hosted at the exhibition grounds. I was driving through the fog and being guided by a security team (which isn’t usual at the farmers market).. and I saw herds of families dressed as if they were going to church. In what appeared to be their best gear.. at 8am in the morning at what was essentially the show grounds. They were all heading to one building. The women had that religious sect type hair that is long, un-coloured and either braided or in a high pony tail with an old fashion scrunchie. They were wearing either long dresses or skirts that were to the ground. The men wearing suits.
I thought perhaps I stumbled across some mass-baptism ceremony or a cheaply located wedding.. bit at 8am?..

As I drove away from the farmers market (which I eventually found). I noticed at the corner near the intersection a massive electronic bill board. It read: “GIVING GODS WORD TO THE WORD: Jehovah Witness Convention Sat & Sun”.. It shouldn’t have taken a rocket scientist to figure that one out.

Which brings me back to the original question – do these women really want to dress like this? Who is telling them to do so? God? Their sisterhood? Their husband, pastor or priest? They seem to happily walk around in public dressed slightly old-fashioned.. so perhaps they are dressing for themselves? Is it what they feel comfortable with?

This is nothing new, nothing earth shattering. Just some simple truths.. If we are truly honest with ourselves – who is it we are dressing for? Our husband or wife? That cute guy who works down the hall from you? Your boss so you can get promoted?

For your friends, your colleagues? Or are there a few people out there who honestly dress for themselves and proudly wear the curious looks passers by will give you as you strut around in your 1990s doc martins that are still perfectly good?
Bless them. If nothing else, they make the rest of us look better. There I said it!