Semi-Formal Wedding in NYC- What?

[Tatum]

That is one thing I can say is NOT in my closet. lol

What, scary egotistical dudes with rock hard hair and too much orange fake tan? Good lord, I hope not!
:rofl:

 

[sheeplady]

What, scary egotistical dudes with rock hard hair and too much orange fake tan? Good lord, I hope not!
:rofl:

That is too much! I'm snorting I'm laughing so hard. :rofl:

I meant the clubwear, not Snooki and her companions!

 

[Idledame]

My daughter informed me that NO ONE wears flesh colored stockings/pantyhose any more, except real old women (like me). Bare legs is the "proper" look now, with all dresses, casual or dressy. On Millionaire Matchmaker (hey, it was just on while I was sewing, I swear!) the lady in charge made a girl applying to meet a man remove her stockings during the interview, and told her to never wear them again and that wearing stockings hasn't been the style since, like the civil war or something. It totally got my attention, I was in shock! It really is a fashion faux pas now. Apparently you can still wear black stockings with a black dress though.

 

[Drappa]

I'm pretty sure the fad for no stockings/hosiery is linked to the oh so modern and emancipated idea that women show off more and more of their bodies to prove their fitness and attraction. I read somewhere recently that wearing girdles and showing less of your body could be interpreted as kinder to women and more emancipated than modern ideals. Women in girdles didn't necessarily have to starve themselves to fit the ideal shape, they just bought shapewear, set their hair, etc. Now we need to diet, exercise to tone up, tan, and then show it all off in skimpy outfits to be considered desirable. All at the same time when men's clothing has gotten baggier and baggier and they show less of their bodies, even at the beach.

 

[kamikat]

Perhaps. But, not wishing to cause offense, I'd have to say that it has been my observation that ladies do wear hose when the occasion calls for it.

I think it depends on your social circle. I don't see hose at my church on Sundays and my parish is NOT a jeans-wearing group. Generally speaking, the women don't even wear pants to Divine Liturgy and the men all wear suits. I didn't see any hose at my husband's last Christmas party.

 

[kamikat]

I guess I'm old fashioned too, because I don't think short skirts above the knee and boobs falling out of your top is appropriate in church. I wish I would have taken more pictures of the last wedding I went to There used to be a no cleavage rule. Is that gone now?

My church has a lot of Russian immigrants. Russian women love their short skirts! It's not unusual to see them wearing a longer skirt under their short skirt and watch them slip off the long skirt as soon as the Liturgy is over.

 

[C-dot]

Are party dresses more like prom dresses?

Or maybe clubwear given some of these descriptions? lol

Yes! The difference is much more distinct with modern fashions. Are your dresses trashy? No? Then they are probably cocktail dresses The best rule of thumb is probably to decide how "young" the dress is ("young" meaning 19, give or take a few years.)

My daughter informed me that NO ONE wears flesh colored stockings/pantyhose any more, except real old women (like me). ...Apparently you can still wear black stockings with a black dress though.

Now I'm confused. Are *all* stockings out, or just flesh toned ones? I have always worn sheer black stockings, just because I prefer the look over flesh toned, so I figured I was one of the horribly out of date people too (though I choose to take that as a compliment )

 

[Tatum]

Ok, c-dot, I'm still confused. Maybe a visual would help.

Speaking of visuals, I now have visions of sheeplady chasing lots of little Snookis and Situations out her closet with a crook lol

 

[Juliet]

Now I'm confused. Are *all* stockings out, or just flesh toned ones? I have always worn sheer black stockings, just because I prefer the look over flesh toned, so I figured I was one of the horribly out of date people too (though I choose to take that as a compliment )

I guess one can always answer - Dita wears 'em, too. I don't think any other answer will get through.

 

[C-dot]

Ok, c-dot, I'm still confused. Maybe a visual would help.

Speaking of visuals, I now have visions of sheeplady chasing lots of little Snookis and Situations out her closet with a crook lol

That's a pretty funny visual lol

The difference is more apparent in 1950s dresses, before the lines were blurred. Cocktail parties don't much exist anymore, so cross-purposing and mishmashing of styles make the modern ones less distinctive, if at all. But generally, here is a modern party dress:

And here is a cocktail dress:

Here are their vintage (1950s) counterparts. A party dress:

And a cocktail dress:

 

[Tatum]

Thanks, c-dot! That makes more sense to my artistic brain

What about a black, floor-length velvet gown? I just picked up one that is probably 30s, it's gorgeous. But I think it would be more formal, yes?

 

[Juliet]

Tatum,

Unless you want to outshine absolutely everyone at a party

 

[Tatum]

Hahaha, Juliet! Good point. Unfortunately I think a lot of us do that without trying, just by dressing the way we do

 

[Gingerella72]

I can attest to the no pantyhose-among-the-young anymore; a few years ago a young co-worker of mine, she was 24, was complaining about being too cold in winter when she would wear a skirt. An older co-worker (late 40's) suggested she wear pantyhose when wearing skirts to be warmer. The 24 yr old looked horrified and stunned at the suggestion - she had never, ever, worn hose in her life and thought only little old ladies still wore them. That there may be a practical reason for wearing hose - warmth - never occurred to her. For me personally, (and this might be TMI), when I wear a skirt or dress I always wear hose, not for propriety sake or warmth but because it keeps my thighs from rubbing together! Friction is painful. :rofl:

I think the mindset among the young today - and I'll define that with an age range of 18 to 32 - is that if your legs don't look good enough to wear skirts or dresses without hose, then you shouldn't be wearing skirts or dresses.

 

[sheeplady]

Ok, so I think I have the difference sorted now that I have the visual.

I read online once (while searching for stockings) that apparently nude hose is out. There was a post in a discussion forum about somebody coming on Oprah and saying that nude hose made you look like a grandmother. Anything but nude hose is still ok. Just in case anybody needed Oprah's expert's validation.

Speaking of visuals, I now have visions of sheeplady chasing lots of little Snookis and Situations out her closet with a crook lol

I wouldn't be chasing them- I'm be snooki squishing! Although, that might make an orange mess all over my house. I would assume given her coloring that she bleeds day-glo orange.

 

[Miss sofia]

I love both those cocktail dresses!

I read somewhere that in Manhattan amongst the fashion pack it is considered deathly to wear sheer, flesh coloured tights or tights in general. Actually it was an article in Uk Vogue. Apparently even in the snow it is frowned upon for ladies to be wearing any kinds of tights at all! (To be sure these kind of women wouldn't be pounding the pavements like us mere mortals, obviously they would be daintily tripping the two steps from the limo to the restaurant door in their Jimmy Choos).

I think it is total piffle all of it! It is the just the fashion crowd making things more elitist, not only do they have the latest bag, shoes, whatever, but they also have gleaming, toned, cellulite-free legs that us riff-raff can only aspire to. As i said it's just elitist tosh. I see plenty of flesh toned tights and stockings for sale in fashionable enough shops and stores.

My sister in Italy sends me flesh and brown-toned fishnet stockings and patterned mesh stockings which are a nice alternative to plain flesh coloured tights. I have seen tights in similar patterns in the uk. I think they look great with a nice skirt or dress myself.

 

[Tatum]

sheeplady! :rofl:

I'll be unfashionable and keep my stockings, if that is the general opinion nowadays.

 

[Lily Powers]

I can attest to the no pantyhose-among-the-young anymore; a few years ago a young co-worker of mine, she was 24, was complaining about being too cold in winter when she would wear a skirt. An older co-worker (late 40's) suggested she wear pantyhose when wearing skirts to be warmer. The 24 yr old looked horrified and stunned at the suggestion - she had never, ever, worn hose in her life and thought only little old ladies still wore them. That there may be a practical reason for wearing hose - warmth - never occurred to her. For me personally, (and this might be TMI), when I wear a skirt or dress I always wear hose, not for propriety sake or warmth but because it keeps my thighs from rubbing together! Friction is painful. :rofl:

I think the mindset among the young today - and I'll define that with an age range of 18 to 32 - is that if your legs don't look good enough to wear skirts or dresses without hose, then you shouldn't be wearing skirts or dresses.

I think many young girls are of the mindset that bare legs, short skirts and tight clothes are sexy. Anything else is the road to the retirement home.

I live in a coastal town - sun, surf and a very casual way of living. Yet a little store opened up recently, it's decorated with vintage photos of the area and they sell only hosiery - patterned stockings and tights, fishnets, sheer thigh highs, seamed stockings and garters - and surprise! Lots of people are finding this alien legwear sexy and appealing. And when the days are cold, I'll gladly wear sheer stockings to work - my legs are warm, I like the feel of the silk & nylon against my skin and it's fun that no one else but me knows what garters lurk under the pencil skirt.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

What bothers me is that fashion and trends are two very divergent things....sometimes. In this instance I will ALWAYS opt for what is most FLATTERING and occasion-appropriate based upon tradition. I will not go bare-legged at age 50, 60, or if I have varicose veins.

 

[sheeplady]

So this is just something I've observed: Hose is out, but tights/ leggings without a skirt (just a long top or sweater) is in.