# Do you like getting all dressed up? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 21, 2016, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518 "2016-08-21T17:42:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/41 "2016-08-22T10:12:46Z")
I haven’t worn skirts or dresses since I quit my corporate job in 2000. But I often wear clothes that are a step up from business casual. Dressier tunic tops and flowy pants. Black jeans, embroidered jeans, and capris. Also renaissance style and a little gothic, bell sleeves and such. Once I discovered second hand clothes, I haven’t looked back. I dress on the cheap without looking like a slob. I have stuff in my closet for any occasion (all either cropped or full length palazzo type slacks/pants, though, I refuse to wear skirts/dresses any more), including beads and sequins and slinky materials. Comfortable shoes - but those don’t have to be athletic shoes, either. Silver and patent sandals, plus good shoes for dress by either Dansko or Vionic in patent or suede. I’m set for anything. I enjoy a full face of makeup. On a day I feel like doing all of it, I’ll wash and do my hair plus makeup and take a zen-like hour to do it. Feels kind of meditative. Otherwise I have a simple go-to makeup that just takes a few minutes and pull my hair back if I’m feeling lazy or like not washing it. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/42 "2016-08-22T10:17:24Z")
I strongly dislike dressing up, because it’s pointless for me. I am basically [Pigpen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig-Pen) from the Charlie Brown comics. No matter how neat and pressed I am, in 5 minutes my clothes will be wrinkled, torn and in dirty disarray. The only clothing that can survive a full day on me is made by Carhartt (the stuff I used to wear on the oil rigs). ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/43 "2016-08-22T11:34:41Z")
> [@lorene](#): > > Why would you assume the other cruise guests are pretentious? Why assume anything about them at all? Two years ago, my mom and I did a 4-week cruise on Princess and we took the “Anytime Dining” preference. Each evening, we were seated with different random people, and only one time were we cursed with a couple of jerks. They demanded their food be brought before the rest of the table even placed our orders. They went wildly off-menu, because they were special snowflakes, after all. They talked about themselves constantly, bullied the waiters, and left the table before most of us were done eating. But the other 20-some dinners we had, our dining companions were friendly, chatty, and a pleasure to be with. I think it’s safe to say that in cruising, as in most other situations, you meet a cross-section of the population. Some are great, some are OK, some suck swampwater. That’s life. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/44 "2016-08-22T11:48:14Z")
I did a few cruises years ago, but since that time I’ve thrown out all my suits and ties. I haven’t missed them yet. My kids both know that when/if they marry, my Hawaiian shirt will likely have cost more than a tux rental. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/45 "2016-08-22T12:05:22Z")
Speaking of weddings - I bought a dress for my daughter’s short-lived wedding. I wore it that one day. Two years later, it went to Goodwill. I did keep the shoes and wore them last year for my niece’s wedding… for which I bought another dress. But I like that one - I might actually wear it again some time. Maybe. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/46 "2016-08-22T12:09:32Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > There are different kinds of dressing up. I don’t like formal dress, on me or anyone else. It’s antiquated nonsense, and looks weird on most people. However, if I was a Cosplayer (and I’ve acted on stage where this is true too) I would love to dress up in formal attire, putting on a deliberate display, inhabiting a particular character, or evoking an era. It still feels weird, but it’s fun. Whereas in regular formal occasions I just feel self-conscious and want to leave. I hate formal occasions, but I think part of it comes from having had so much negative feedback as a teen and young adult. But dressing up for theater is fun! Nobody ever remarked on me wearing “the wrong earrings for that bodice” when I was one of the Wenches of the South Florida Renaissance Society 😛 ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/47 "2016-08-22T12:29:23Z")
You people are the reason we can never get a reservation at Daniel. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/48 "2016-08-22T13:32:48Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > I have a pearl colored dinner jacket for formal nights on cruises. I usually wear a bow tie or a long tie with a novelty pattern for the casual evenings. I look spiffing. I bet you do. And every girl crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man! I like dressing up and feeling pretty in high heels and makeup, so I do almost daily. You can tell I’m really putting on the ritz if I wear jewelry. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/49 "2016-08-22T13:51:00Z")
One thing I feel compelled to mention - I’m finding it difficult to think of any man I’ve seen in a tux who didn’t look good. I’m sure it happens and it’s not like I spend a lot of time around men in formal garb, but personally, I don’t think I’ve seen a man in a well-tailored tuxedo who couldn’t carry it off. On the other hand, I’ve seen women in truly hideous gowns. Whether it’s the style, the color, the accessories, the fit - there are soooooooooo many ways to make bad choices compared to a basic black suit with a satin stripe down the leg. Doesn’t seem fair, does it? ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/50 "2016-08-22T13:56:13Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > One thing I feel compelled to mention - I’m finding it difficult to think of any man I’ve seen in a tux who didn’t look good. I’m sure it happens and it’s not like I spend a lot of time around men in formal garb, but personally, I don’t think I’ve seen a man in a well-tailored tuxedo who couldn’t carry it off. The “well-tailored” part you’d originally left out is key. One of my classmates carried extra weight and the one time he came in a suit that was actually his size he was getting compliments left and right. He was handsome enough, but for some reason his mother refused to buy clothing the size he actually was; most of the time, he looked like he’d exploded out of his trousers. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/51 "2016-08-22T13:56:59Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > One thing I feel compelled to mention - I’m finding it difficult to think of any man I’ve seen in a tux who didn’t look good. You’ve never seen me and I believe I’ve destroyed the few remaining pictures that exist. I always had this problem; to the point that I made it a rule in life. A friend asked me to be his Best Man and I explained that basically I wouldn’t wear a tux. He begged and groveled and I relented. We went in for the fitting and he saw me in the different options and decided I was right - no tux; I could go with my normal Holy Day church suit. It was that bad. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Jumpbass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jumpbass/32/147_2.png) [@Jumpbass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jumpbass)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/52 "2016-08-22T15:05:54Z")
I enjoy dressing well. I very seldom will even wear shorts in public. I don’t mind ties, suits or jackets because I look damn good in them. Makes me stand a bit straighter, gives me more confidence and I get called “sir” more often.😃 Thing is, you have to wear the clothes, it seems like the clothes are wearing the person sometimes. And they have to fit. Luckily, I’m a very average size except for my long arms. I can usually wear off the rack with no alteration. In fact, I recently scored a tuxedo including shirt from Goodwill ($15!!!) that fits perfectly. I’m a musician, so I have to wear an assortment of things including a tux on a regular basis. When I do, I wear the whole thing home after work, because my wife thinks I’m sexy as hell in a tux. ---
**Author:** ![Me\_Billy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e480ec/32.png) [@Me\_Billy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Me_Billy)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/53 "2016-08-22T15:24:05Z")
> [@lorene](#): > > Why would you assume the other cruise guests are pretentious? Why assume anything about them at all? I am not assuming… I have been on cruises and talked with the people who go to the “get dressed up restaurants” on board. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/54 "2016-08-22T15:45:07Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Cruises today are not 1930s musicals with music by Cole Porter, after all. That is a cruise I’d go on! ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/55 "2016-08-22T17:14:00Z")
I enjoy the heck out of dressing up. It’s nice to have a variety of looks rather than the same ol’ same ol’. Not just formalwear, but always enjoyed Halloween, too, so I guess they’re related kinks. Over the years I’ve picked up a tux, white dinner jacket, Red Sea rig, tails, and full Scottish Levee dress. However, as I type this I am wearing cargo shorts and a _Health Care for all Oregon_ T-shirt. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/56 "2016-08-22T17:18:28Z")
> [@Me\_Billy](#): > > I am not assuming… I have been on cruises and talked with the people who go to the “get dressed up restaurants” on board. Well, that would definitely include all of them then. ---
**Author:** ![notquitekarpov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@notquitekarpov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notquitekarpov)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/57 "2016-08-22T17:35:59Z")
Never considered going on a cruise but have no issues with more formal dress. Work from home mostly now so casual obviously (although rarely shorts and tee-shirt - but mostly as Scotland is a bit too cool and damp for that). When I go into the office therefore I put the suit and tie on, it is not actually required but I find it easier to wear a uniform as less to think about and it makes packing easier. Understandably the guys down in London, who do not have the benefit for mostly working from home, take full advantage and rarely wear a tie unless clients et al are visiting or they have external meetings. Personally I regret that the City (financial centre of London) is now as casual as it is. I don’t suggest we go back to bowler hats (a retired friend use to wear one, and did still if we met up for ‘lunch at his Club’ but now all he gets is stopped by Japanese and Chinese tourists for selfies so he has sadly stopped wearing it). I will put a dinner jacket and bow tie for charity dinners, special events, Hogmanay etc and still will take a jacket and tie with me on holidays should we need to dress up. I guess it helps that my wife like getting dressed up, jewellery etc and would like to do more of it I suspect. A kilt would be good - but I am English and also have terrible legs so I won’t ever go there. I don’t believe in adopting the traditional dress of others - I have a ‘nauff’ London accent - it would be ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/58 "2016-08-22T17:38:58Z")
I love it and don’t get to do it often enough. Why? Like \*\*Dung Beetle \*\*said, it’s because “every girl’s crazy for a sharp-dressed man”, of course. 🙂 But really; I look good and feel confident when I’m dressed-up. Additionally, I feel you get more respect when you’re well-dressed. If it didn’t get so sticky hot here in NC (not complaining; just mentioning), I’d always wear a button-up, long-sleeved shirt with a collar. I’d probably have the sleeves rolled-up a bit, though. That being said, my most-days summer style is a T-shirt (w/ pocket) and shorts with hiking boots or sneakers. ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/59 "2016-08-22T17:43:48Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > You people are the reason we can never get a reservation at Daniel. No reservations needed, no fancy clothes either…just bring some good beer or wine! I am home after 11 every night. tsfr…aka Daniel ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2016, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518/60 "2016-08-22T17:49:03Z")
I dress for comfort. Formal attire is never comfortable, so no, I hate dressing up. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-like-getting-all-dressed-up/763518.md?page=4)