When you’re trying to pick the right outfit for the day, it feels like there are a million different things running through your head. You have to not only pick out the right color, but also the right style. But what situations call for what styles?
Picking out the right clothes for the situation
Work
Picking out the right outfit for your place of work is honestly going to depend on where you work. After all, some workplaces go as far as to require that employees wear uniforms, while others may allow people to dress how they want, even allowing something like wearing crop tops. Before you decide to pick out the kind of outfit or outfits you wear, make sure you are well-versed in the workplace dress code. The last thing you want to have happen is for you to get on the bad side of your employer and potentially get a write-up put on your record.
A work event
Regardless of what the dress code may be at your place of work, the way you dress at a work event may well be different from that. If you have a uniform at work, you are not likely to be expected to wear that at an event (unless you are representing the company as an employee instead of a guest, of course). And even if you are allowed to dress casually, depending on the setting of the event, you may be expected to dress up for the event.
A work meeting
Much like how it goes at a work event, you may be expected to dress in a certain way that you may not be expected to dress. Your employer may not care how you dress while you’re working for the most part, but there may be an expectation that you put your best foot forward in a meeting. In this setting, consider a well-fitted suit, something with colors that no one is going to consider garish. In a business casual meeting, women may consider wearing a chiffon shirt, a blouse with a simple pattern, or a blazer. For men, a comfortable (yet simple) sweater is an awesome choice.
Ultimately, one of the best things you can do in this situation is to take cues from the person in charge. Are you underdressed compared to them? Is the color scheme of your outfit more eye-catching than theirs (and others in the meeting, for that matter)? If so, tone it down in the future. The meeting should be focused on the presenters, but most importantly, the information they are presenting. Your outfits, reasonably speaking, should only serve to
Dining out
Eating out is a lot of fun, though what to wear is (once again!) going to vary by the classiness of the joint. No one is going to judge you too much if you decided to go to McDonald’s in sweatpants, tank top, and flip-flops, but if you try to go enjoy some fine dining in this kind of getup, you are going to face a lot of judgment at best (and exclusion from the restaurant at worst).
When you go out to a fine dining restaurant, this is the perfect opportunity for you to look good, and not have to worry about going too far (okay, maybe don’t go as far as you possibly can!). Fine dining restaurants usually have a specific dress code in mind, though some are not going to be as strict as others. Typically, fine dining restaurants expect either formal attire, business casual, or casual elegant. If you are unsure of what your fine dining restaurant of choice requires as far as dress code is, make sure to contact them, so you can plan for your time there.
Weddings
While weddings similarly have a certain expectation of what you wear on this important day to a fancy place, there is arguably much more social etiquette involved. A wedding can have as strict or as loose a dress code as the partners desire, both in terms of the type of clothes you wear and the colors. Figuring out what is okay to wear at a wedding will ultimately come down to preference of the hosts, but there are some things you should avoid in general.
Some colors are a faux pas to wear to a wedding. First, in no universe should you ever wear all white to a wedding, unless they explicitly say it’s okay. This is because white is the most common wedding dress color by a wide country margin, and a guest wearing white may be viewed as trying to steal the spotlight. On the other hand, if you are wearing all black, a lot of people interpret that as wishing death on the marriage. If you find yourself kicked out for wearing too much of either of these colors, you should not be surprised. Additionally, avoid anything standout in general, such as sparkly, glittery, or otherwise garish colors. Further, find out the predominant color of the bridesmaids’ dresses, and try to avoid matching that too much.