the dress doctors

I love a good read on the art of fashion and dress. So imagine my delight when I opened The Wall Street Journal on Saturday morning and found an article on what we can learn today on dressing well from the original “Dress Doctors” – the experts who educated American women about dress from the turn of the century into the 1960s. Although societal norms have changed quite a bit since then, much of their advice is applicable today. Read on as I provide some “Use It Now” tidbits from the article and related book by Dr. Linda Przybyszewski, “The Lost Art of Dress: The Women Who Once Made America Stylish.”

Dr. Przybyszewski doesn’t pull punches. On the whole, she believes we can and should dress better. In fact, she teaches a class as an Associate Professor at Notre Dame entitled “Nation of Slobs: The Art, Ethics and Economics of Dress in Modern America”. And while she looks fondly on the days of hats and gloves, her observations and suggestions based on our modern day lifestyles have merit. Just a few thoughtful ways we can all improve our wardrobes:

1) How we wear black clothing, especially next to our face
First a little history – one of my favorite memories is when my mother came into my room as a child to kiss me good-bye as she left for work. I always made sure to fully wake up and look at her so that I could admire her outfit choice for the day. She was always my fashion ideal and where much of my sense of style and fashion aesthetic originates. But she didn’t like to wear black next to her face. And I always wondered why.

One of the first points that jumped out at me in reading the article was Dr. Przybyszewski’s assertion that we should beware of black near our face. I immediately emailed my mother and asked her the question. Her response almost mirrors the article: “I just think that my skin, hair color and wrinkles don’t look as good with black. I used to love to wear black when I was younger. I get lots more compliments when I wear something in the pinkish colors. They just seem to make me look happier.”

According to the article, the Dress Doctors encouraged women who still wanted to wear black next to their face dress it up with a string of pearls to reflect a soft light back to their face. If pearls aren’t your thing, the same could be said for any bright accessories. I don’t know about you, but anything I can do to de-emphasize my wrinkles seems to be in my best interest. In the spirit of Mother’s Day this week, it is true that Moms do know best!

2) Consider our choices in footwear
As a high heel and stiletto lover, I had to cringe a little when I read this part of the article. The Dress Doctors were completely against my favorite shoes, saying that they destroy the grace and freedom of a woman’s stride. The quote that hit me the most was “If you can’t walk more than a city block in your shoes, they are not shoes; they are pretty sculptures attached to your feet.” Ouch.

But there are beautiful shoes that allow us to walk more than that city block AND still indulge our love of heels. When I was in Chicago a couple weeks ago, I walked over 10,000 steps (according to my trusty FitBit) in my heels. And really didn’t get tired until the plane ride home. And we recently shared an article with you on shoes that make our beautiful Alexandria cobblestone streets and brick sidewalks easily walkable. But I did have to pause – it is clear I should stop my obsession with owning a pair of Christian Louboutins and focus on shoes I can use.

3) Shop for the life you lead
This was one of my favorites. The author notes that we have overflowing closets yet we often pull out the same five things to wear every week. She urges us to look at those items we gravitate toward in our closets and determine what it is about them that works for us. Do we feel comfortable in them? Do they fit our sense of style at this stage in life? Do they fit? And do they give us the flexibility to mix and match them with other clothing and accessories in our wardrobe?

Her message is clear – don’t buy things that don’t fit your lifestyle and don’t be beholden to trends. Incorporate more items in the families that you inventory as your “Favorite Five” in your closet. If you are like me, you find certain brands that fall into this category and can build a comfortable, functional, and stylish wardrobe around those brands (and banish the cluttered closet for good).

While we are well beyond the home economics classes and 4-H clothing clubs that were the original audiences for the Dress Doctors’ publications, much of their wisdom would be well worth teaching today, no matter what our age.

• Author Details

Susan Gerock

susan.gerock@shopatzoe.com