Alex Goes Off!

Uniformity Has Its Rewards

by Alexandra R. Yaremko

Some people have it and some people don't. A great deal of people wear one to work. All in all, having one for work makes laundry easier. And having one for play makes laundry twice as easy. What we're talking about here is a uniform, the rewards of which go beyond easier laundry dispensation, although that's a biggy.

If you're one of the countless millions among us who has to wear what would traditionally be referred to as a uniform to work ( a fireman, nurse, police officer, what-have-you ( the last thing you probably want to do is wear a uniform in your off hours. For those of you who think you don't wear a uniform to work, you may be surprised to find out that you probably do. The truth is most of us wear uniforms to work, we just don't call them that. Think college campuses full of grey T-shirts and khakis, or AE T-shirts and denim.

Lawyers wear suits, administrative assistants wear business appropriate attire. I once heard of an accountant who got so tired of wearing his work "uniform," that during his off-hours he liked to wear things like a Superman tee and yellow plaid pants (TOGETHER). I have no idea if his superhero preferences went as far as Underroos...In short, his off-hours uniform was the antithesis of his work uniform.

But your off-hours uniform doesn't have to be quite so bold. Think James Dean's white T-shirt and jeans. The whole point of the uniform is to simplify. Find something that works for you and run with it. If v-necks work for you, go with v-necks. Button down, go with button down. Buy in different colors. Buy every article of clothing in three basic colors. Buy duplicates, buy things in multiples. Although my uniform purchases did go a little awry this past summer with a particular T-shirt of which I now have seven in three different colors, but five of which are the same color.

Free up your "what am I going to wear time." Sleep an extra 20 or 30 minutes, or even an hour in the morning. Stop trying the same things on from your closet that don't work, and then putting them back, only to try them on again next time. They won't work later either.

When you find your uniform, you'll actually end up looking more put together, do I dare say, even polished. Why do you think the idea of a work uniform was invented in the first place? To convey certain representational qualities. Not so that everyone will look alike. We already all look alike. We shop in the same stores! I'm not saying dress like everyone else. I'm saying stop dressing like everyone else.

The uniform is the difference between having a style of your own and fashion. Fashion has no hang-time, it's cyclical. Yes, it will come back, eventually. If you have 20 to 30 years to spare. But your style has hang-time for you because it works for you.

When you find your uniform you'll stop looking like a store mannequin gone wrong. Maybe a rule of thumb in the uniform search should be, "If it's on a mannequin in a mall, don't buy it." The store may have had too many of the fusia thing with the princess neckline and feathers and that's why it's on display. Live a little; dare not to buy what someone else thinks looks good.

Buying off the mannequin shows. There's just something off about it. Something trying too hard about it. Buying off the mannequin is the equivalent of walking around with your buttons in the wrong holes or with your bra strap showing.

Once you find your uniform, get rid of everything else. Or in essence, get rid of everything that doesn't work for you, has never worked for you, and you don't wear anyway. I'm not talking about the 10lbs rule here. You can keep anything and everything within the boundaries of uniform guidelines. So keep the pants that you wear when you gain or loose the 10lbs. As long as they are uniform quality.

Free up the closet space so your clothes don't wrinkle and you have to iron them not once, but twice. Closets are for your clothes, not for storing Smithsonian-grade bridesmaid dresses, or "outfits" that look more like Halloween costumes. Use your newfound space to buy more clothes you'll actually wear. Or better yet, more shoes. Free up your hard-earned cash from things that just look wrong.

When you find your uniform, a conversation over lunch will go something like this: You, "I found the perfect purse today." Your friend, "What does it look like?" You, "It's black." In the above, change up whatever you found that day. Insert a reply from you that has an attribute of your uniform. Some examples, "It has 3/4 length sleeves," or, "No pleats!" Or better yet, "It's silk." You get the point. Uniformity, in this case, works.

Yes, yes, traditionally the idea of a uniform has been associated with work. It probably actually began with the armed forces. But that's okay, I'm personally a big proponent of red coats ... Work and the army not usually being associated with the ideas of freeing or expressive.

Like other things that are now must haves in your off time, pagers and cell phones began with work related endeavors and are now a standard for the night. Just like your cell phone on the table during dinner, let your uniform speak for you.