Wearing different clothes every day -- necessary?

Gold Member Joined: Jul 30 2009 Posts: 1704

If you (or DH) don't have a uniform or dress code (scrubs, charedi-penguin-look, Best Buy blue shirt and khakis, a black t-shirt and jeans for actors, etc.), do you feel obligated to wear something different every day?

Of course, I'm only talking outer clothes -- I certainly hope everybody changes their underwear and socks! Smile

It always felt obvious not to wear the same thing two days in a row, even if the first day's outfit was still clean at the end of the day. I may wear the skirt and shoes and even the same tichel the next day, but I always change my shirt.

DH recently switched from the penguin look to wearing colored shirts and slacks at school and work, and sometimes he'll wear the same exact ensemble two or three days in a row. I can't quite put my finger on why that doesn't feel "right".

Wearing the same white shirt and pair of black pants 2 or 3 days in a row doesn't stick out when all you EVER wear is black and white -- most people won't notice the details of your clothes and remember when your white shirt had a flat weave vs. a slightly textured weave. But if you wear the blue shirt and grey pants 3 days in a row, and then wear the pale yellow shirt with brown slacks 2 days in a row... again, as long as they're clean, I can't quite put my finger on why it feels unprofessional...

Is this a fashion thing? A hygiene thing? A males vs. females thing?
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Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48159

I understand from Rabbi Falk that it's a tsnius issue for women; that it shouldn't be a thing that a man (coworker or the like) shouldn't be subject to the same woman with a different look every day. (I don't think I'm stating it correctly, either).

When I grew up, we DID buy separates and had a different look for each day, mixing and matching different tops to different bottoms. But as a middle aged married woman, I don't do that much anymore; if I like a shirt I buy it in several colors and zehu.

Gold Member Joined: Jul 30 2009 Posts: 1704

I'm not talking about changing one's "look" every day (ie a t shirt one day, a button-down the next) - I'm just talking about wearing something that makes it slightly obvious you changed your clothes. For most people, that would probably be their shirt.

And I *totally* do the thing where once I find a shirt that fits me well I buy it in 3 different colors. My students even joked about it once (my relationship with some of them is more big sister/camp counselor than Teacher) -- "Hey, you wore that exact shirt in turquoise yesterday! The pink is cute, too! Do you have it in any other colors? Smile

".

I once hired a receptionist who wore the same outfit to work all five days of her first week. It was honestly the strangest thing I had ever seen. It's hard to imagine anyone so poor that they don't have even 2 decent outfits to alternate, or a friend they could borrow from. (And it was maybe even extra strange because I worked in a fashion industry). I felt so bad how everyone in the office whispered about her and laughed. B"H over time she expanded her wardrobe, was a good worker and eventually fit in.

As far as men wearing the same thing over and over - now I'm used to it because I'm so used to the "penguin look" as you called it. But back when I was in fashion and more attuned to it, I think a man wearing the same thing two or more days in a row would have also struck me as odd. The variation will be more subtle then with a woman, but there should be some change, just enough that people don't think you're returning to work in your dirty clothes.

I change my shirt every day because otherwise, I would stink Embarassed

. Not that bad, but I sweat in the summer and besides my shirts smell like deoderant and even though it's clean, it's not a clean, clean smell like nothing Wink

or detergent. I try not to wear clothing that look too similar from the day before if I'm going to be the same place. I don't work, so it's not often that happens. If I worked, I for sure wouldn't. My skirts, I absolutely wear more than one day in a row, except when I or my kids get it dirty Evil or Very Mad

. My black skirt I never could wear two days in a row because it ALWAYS gets dirty.
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Diamond Member Joined: Nov 30 2009 Posts: 4688

my dh who wears the "penguin" look wears his shirts 2 days at a time except on hot days....

I change my shirt every day- tho often wear the same skirt for a week. sometimes if my shirt is still clean esp if for whatever reason I only wore it for a few hours or if we cant do laundry, I will wear it again- just a few days later not 2 days in a row.

I once worked in an office where the secretary wore the same outfit for 2 days in a row. then she would wear a different outfit for the next 2 days. It was odd.

Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48159

I think it depends. Some of the chassidische women I work with have many outfits, others just have a few suits and rotate them. I know that they are really costly and some need to be dry cleaned.

Executive Member Joined: Apr 25 2006 Posts: 404

When my DH switched from the penguin look to wearing colored shirts he was working in a job where he traveled to different parts of the city through the week and could keep track of what days which groups overlapped- he then could make it through the week on 2 or 3 shirts- especially in the winter when you factor in a sweater!! In those days we had less money (not that we have much now) and he was basically starting a wardrobe from scratch- going from wearing a suit and white shirt each day to business slacks and "colored" shirts... It always just struck me as funny that he put so much energy into figuring out his "outfit"

I've never thought about it too much, but I would never wear the same thing 2 days in a row. I don't even wear the same shirt twice in one week (though skirts are a different story). I can't say I pay incredible attention to what everyone around me wears, but if I noticed that someone else was wearing the same thing as they were the day before, I would think it's weird. Even the men in my office, since they don't do the "penguin" thing (I don't work for a Jewish company).

I wear skirts a bunch of times in a row, sometimes 3 or 4 days in a row if its jean skirt that goes with a lot of different tops. I never wear the same shirt two days in a row, but I will often wear it a few days later without washing, especially if it was a layered shirt that was worn on top of something else.

Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48159

I know that some girls will wear a jean skirt like a whole summer and not wash it. They are lucky that they don't get scabies.

Diamond Member Joined: Aug 03 2007 Posts: 4448

Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48159

I'm sorry you find it funny.

There are green monsters that go around with digital cameras to keep track of what you wear every day.

If you wear something two days in a row, your name gets highlighted in a special book reserved for this purpose.
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Platinum Member Joined: Feb 20 2009 Posts: 7675

I'm not going to say that you need lots of clothing, or even that you necessarily need to wash a shirt after wearing it once. But don't you think it's nice to let it air out for longer than overnight before putting it on again?

I had a teacher who didn't have much money and also was not very fashionable. She had only two outfits that she wore, but she alternated them- Monday blue, Tuesday green, Wednesday blue, Thursday green. From a fashion perspective, I think that is preferable to wearing the same two days in a row.

Gold Member Joined: Jul 09 2006 Posts: 1940

I work 4 days a week and often wear the same black skirt a whole week but always a dif shirt. (and yes I change my socks, underwear and shower too!) As limited as my wardrobe is, I manage to find 4 different shirts. On Fridays I just pick something cleanish from the pile and sometimes I enjoy to dafka wear the same thing as Thursday because noone from work will see me.

Platinum Member Joined: Mar 12 2009 Posts: 13203

Having just read a Reader's Digest article on things HR people feel the velt should know (it has Dilbert on the cover), I suspect they might say, don't wear the exact same clothes two days in a row. People will feel weird. I might be wrong, or neurotic. Though playing devil's advocate, if someone does the penguin thing, will they notice the different patterns, or that today's shirt is oxford and yesterday's wasn't? So maybe it doesn't really matter.
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Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

Almost shabbos here so w/o reading rest of thread, it feels wrong b/c it gives impression that dh has only 1 outfit and is wearing it 3 days straight w/o washing. In a uniform nobody can tell but with a varied wardrobe they can. So even if dh has three each of three different shirts and slacks, he should rotate. When ppl see a blue and white stripe shirt three days in a row and then a solid blue three days and then a beige stripe, the assumption is dh wears the same shirt till it's too dirty, then changes. Not the impression he wants to give, even if he washes, dries and iron the shirt every night. Pants you can get away with a few days in a row if you change the shirt and if the pants are very generic with no distinguishing features.