Hello pigeons!! Help a gal out here, will you? This came by e-mail the other day and I responded that while I don’t wear a collar and don’t have to fit it into my outfit on a daily basis, many of my readers do and will be able to offer advice. So advise away! Favorite tips? Combinations? Lead this newbie by the hand. Help her find her way…
The only profound observations I have on the subject are:
1. Don’t get all wackadoodle with the colors of your clericals. Black or shades of blue should be it. Purple is apparently for bishops and other colors send mixed messages. You either wear clericals, or you don’t. Wearing clericals with a cute graphic on them or in lemon yellow or bright pink communicate identity confusion, like, “I’m a clergy person claiming authority but I still wanna be CUTE and non-threatening!”
2. Do not wear clericals over corduroy jumpers. Because corduroy jumpers are of Satan.
3. A collar is a strong garment. So you want the rest of your look to be similarly strong, if you know what I mean. Nothing tiny and delicate in scale. No small florals. Nothing lacy and flowy. Think elegant, powerful, striking garments. A beautiful belted jacket. An ethnic textile shawl around a simple V-neck dress with a slim belt and boots. Not a fleece pullover. As a young woman, you will have your clerical authority questioned all the time so it’s best to err on the side of formality for awhile.
4. Well-made accessories and jewelry. Nothing too whimsical or super trendy that it will look like a jarring disconnect between the gravitas of the collar and the silliness of your details. Again, that sends mixed messages (“I’m not ready for this responsibility”).
READERS? Looking forward to your thoughts!
I am going to be ordained in a few days. I’ve followed your blog with interest, but I notice that you don’t have much to say about clerical collars and how to style them. Given how … dowdy the womens’ style clerical collars tend to be, this is a challenge for me as a thirty-year-old Lutheran soon-to-be-pastor. Particularly given that I’m slightly baby-faced–I was mistaken for a teenager two years ago, which is a bit of a problem when you’re trying to project professional competence “I am someone you can take your troubles to.” (I mention this, and everyone’s all, “but you should be glad you look younger than you are!” Well, twenty years from now I’ll probably love it, if I still look fifteen years younger than I am. Right now? Not helpful.) But given the babyface, I do feel it’s important to wear the collar for that little extra bit of gravitas, but I don’t want to look dowdy, you know?
I have a few clerical shirts already and two clerical “janies” and would like some advice.
I am 35, Lutheran, and also have a baby face 🙂 I’ve been in ministry almost 8 years, and wear a collar 2-3 times a week. I find that, for me, well-fitting jackets are an important part of using the collar to convey authority. Because of this, I prefer shells to button-down shirts, and hardly ever wear a plain button-up clergy shirt without something over it. I can mix up the pants/skirt/shoes/accessories/hair depending on the season, mood, event etc., but now that I’ve built up a good group of jackets (I’ve become very picky), I find I always have something that will work in any given situation. Oh, and I’m with Peacebang, I only wear black shirts, except for one royal blue shirt I wear with my black suit. I bought some others, but I could never figure out what to do with them.
Although I do have a couple of clerical shirts in other colours (grey and bottle green), I find that I wear black about 90% of the time (and I wear a collar 6 days out of 7.) Quite apart from everything else, when your clothing budget is tight, better to spend money on shirts that are always ‘right’ rather than ones which are sometimes ‘right’. Black works for funerals, for very formal occasions as well as for the visiting/office/school/hospital/whatever that you’ll be spending most time on. And if you’re in a tradition that wears black cassocks, a touch of pink floral shirt at the neck just looks – silly.
With the shirt? Jackets and cardigans can give a long ‘V’ at the neckline which helps me (I think!) I tend to go with lots of black, white and grey with a splash of colour from a scarf. Mind you, if I really knew anything about fashion, I would call it a ‘pop’ of colour, wouldn’t I?
I’ve also got into a bit of a coloured shoes thing (red or green mostly) which means I have to have black shoes available with my robes in church.
I’ve just taken a look at what I’m wearing today. My plan is for a mostly office day, but with a Eucharist and a home visit included – and it’s cold out. Black shirt, dress trousers, fleece top and embroidered silk/wool scarf. And green shoes. Fleece top is warm but not really Peacebang-worthy, but I’ve got a black jacket on the back of my chair if I need to smarten up.
I’m not sure how much help this all is, but probably the most important thing is that when you are setting out after ordination, you need dressing in the morning to be simple. You’ll have enough to think about, so a few black shirts, a decent pair of dress trousers and a jacket or two will take you a long way. Spend a bit of time and work out what suits you before you buy, so that in the morning you can just dress.
Oh, and if you are at all big busted, be really careful about gapey, stretched buttons on your shirts.
But what I should have said first is, Every blessing on your ordination and your future ministry. May we all learn and grow everyday as we seek to minister and serve.
anne
I saw a young Episcopal priest at a conference last weekend who looked terrific in her clericals. For the record, she didn’t have an official role at the conference and about half the conference attendees were trendy young adults under 30 (although the other half were middle-aged and older like me). She wore black clericals with dark skinny jeans, hip leather flats, and a structured dark red blazer the first day and the next day, she wore black clericals with a striped cardigan, lighter jeans and a different pair of colored canvas flats. She was engaged, greeting people warmly, and projected an air of ministerial confidence and energy, which is probably why I noticed her. Neither of those outfits would have been appropriate for hospital visitation or official duties as a celebrant (and I assume she knows that) but they were perfect for this setting and really identified her both as part of that younger group and a confident leader.
**quietly pines for the days when people guessed I was much younger**
Happy not to have to work so hard at projecting authority, pleased with the confidence and wisdom of years in ministry, but sometimes…
**quietly pines for the days when people guessed I was much younger**
Happy not to have to work so hard at projecting authority, pleased with the confidence and wisdom of years in ministry, but sometimes…
Advice from one Lutheran to another:
We’re pretty casual here in South Dakota, so I don’t wear clericals except when leading worship – Sundays, funerals and such – and any place where I think a female leader needs the clerical to project authority. Although I started out thinking I would have liturgically colored clericals, I find that I actually wear black the most. I do have a white and a taupe clerical that I wear with lighter suits. I’m older and can get away with the occasionally pastel jacket in spring and summer. I also started out with the short sleeved clerical, but now I prefer janies or shells because I never wear a clerical alone – alway under a jacket or dress.
I think a lot of it is finding your professional style. During internship, I started out trying to wear clericals with dress pants or skirts, sometimes with a jacket and sometimes not. It wasn’t me. When I started looking at how I could wear my preferred ‘dressy’ wardrobe with the clerical, not only did I feel more comfortable, but my ‘pastoral presence’ increased. I stated getting very postive feedback from the congregation about how I looked and how comfortable I was leading worship.
I’d also advise you to have both the tab and full collar clericals. I personally think the round collar looks much dressier. Some of my dresses or suits just don’t work with the tab collar. I also prefer the solid front to the button up front – again, I think it looks dressier. My current clerical wardrobe is: black – tab janie, full collar janie, tab shirt, full collar shirt; white full collar janie, taupe full collar janie.
You’re just starting out so finances are tight. It’s pretty easy to turn a regular clerical into a janie. My janies started out as used clericals or ones from a wearhouse clearance sale – the shirt doesn’t even have to fit as long as the neckline is big enough. And where you are serving will make a HUGE difference in how often you’ll wear the clerical. Just get a couple of black ones until you see how much you’re going to wear it.
Blessings on your new ministry!
This is still something I’m working on, too. But my one must-have is a nice, well-fitted gray pinstripe suit. Looks nice and professional with almost any color shirt underneath, and especially with clericals!
I am an Episcopal priest teaching at a Lutheran seminary. I wear white or black clerics. That’s it. I advocate staying away from other colors as well, whether they are pastels or brights. I wear them with suits: skirt suits, pantsuits or dress suits. In the winter I wear a sweater over the shirt with a jacket. I only wear smooth front clerics with full collars.
This is just anecdotal, but as the first woman pastor in a very historical Lutheran church, I’ve been fascinated to find that when I wear my (one) white clerical shirt with the full round collar, no one notices the collar–and I am not then easily identified by visitors as the pastor. They evidently look for the black shirt and white collar. Of course, the other humorous anecdotes come when people who grew up here return to the village to visit the church. They stop by the parsonage to introduce themselves and make clear their connection, and to a person, they ask to talk to my husband since they assume he is the pastor. When I tell them I’m not married, (and count to 2), their eyes widen; they get it, and grin!
Black tab collar with a fitted black cardigan and dress pants worked great for me – but we only wear collars for funerals and off-site weddings! Personally I think there are other ways to project authority – but Lutheran settings vary widely.
One of the more helpful things I’ve had done recently with my clerical shirts was get darts added (diagonal ones from the side seams toward the centre of the boob). I have one of Women’s Spirit’s sleeveless plain front shirts which worked ok, but having my mom add darts has decreased my sense of dowdy (I assume a tailor could do the same thing). I think it fits more like the professional clothing I see on other women in their 30s and less like a box. I use that sleeveless shirt like a Janie under sweaters, jackets, etc.
Basically, I find I feel less dowdy if I pay attention to having things fit in a modern way – including hem lengths – nothing makes me feel less cool than pants that are just a little too short or a skirt at that awkward length. And I sacrifice a little shoe comfort for style – and tote flats for when I’m just in the office as needed.
Although a lot of it is outside of my price point and more formal than my Pacific Northwest parish ministry life requires, I find http://corporette.com/ a helpful resource in thinking about what professional women wear these days…
I live and serve in North Texas and so one thing I found invaluable over the summer were several short-sleeved fitted jackets in three basic colors: black, white, and khaki. They look great with clericals and black pants, or on days I’m more clerical-casual, nice jeans. Also have three-quarter sleeve jackets in black, khaki, and a lovely red.
Now that we’re cooling off here, I have some pullover sweaters which look good with a shell or janie underneath, and a couple of cardigans. For our outdoor Animal Blessing service recently, I wore nice jeans and a black hooded jackets – again on the casual side, but the black jacket pulled it together in spite of the casualness. Many of my folks are casual and are comfortable seeing me in non-Sunday morning settings in a more casual look.
All that being said, I make sure I always look professional and put together whenever I go to church or church events or community events. Professional doesn’t always mean fancy. And inner confidence will suit you well, no matter what your wardrobe. Stand up straight, smile, and look people in the eye…you’ll be great! Blessings.
All that and forgot to say…I almost always wear black clerical shirts with a full collar. Also have a blue/white cotton shirt which is great in hot summer weather. Wear sleeveless shells under most things on Sundays when I take off the jacket/sweater to vest. Other days I have a black janie. Have one tab collar shirt in black but it’s not my favorite, fit-wise.
I’m new to this ordained thing too, and I wear clericals about twice a week. I have a black janie, a light blue 3/4 sleeve linen shirt from women’s spirit, and a blue oxford I altered myself into a clerical shirt. I always rock the full collar, as I I find the tabbed a bit too catholic for my tradition.
I agree, that the collar adds a bit of gravitas. However, I’ve noticed the strength of the collar and use it sparingly. There are times that wearing it is necessary (Sunday morning in a large congregation where I could be mistaken for a wayward college student on study-break), when I an extra dose of confidence and persuasion might be helpful navigating a hospital, etc. But generally I find the best way to convey seriousness and maturity in the church is to dress professionally both in style and poise, be-clericked or not (is be-clericked a word!?).
Blessings on your ministry
–a fellow 15-year-old-look-alike in the pulpit
I am also a 30 year old female lutheran pastor (4 years in….) and am also mistaken for one of the youth at various events. Black, black, black. I serve in a synod where black is the norm, and I where a collar almost every working day, unless i’m sure i’m just going to hole up in my office and write or clean or something.
Sunday mornings = grey or black trousers with black shirt and cardigan or sweater if cold. I’m tall and have broader shoulders and while I wear suits sometimes for funerals, it tends to look very serious, and I think imposing…
Weekdays = black shirt with dark denim trousers, black boots or basic black shoes and sweater. Or black shirt with corderoys and funky earrings and my favorite boots. Or black shirt with dark jean skirt and sweater tights and boots. I’m getting a lot of wear out of these amazing (and waaay expensive) Nordstroms boots.
I’ll chime in. I recall that I first started following this blog when I was ordained about five years ago and looking for similar counsel. I’m an Episcopal priest and chaplain at a school. Since my students are in uniform every day, I wear a collar most days. I agree that the best investment is the black sleeveless shell – works with everything and the cheapest option to buy ready-made. I also prefer plain front and try to avoid front buttons. I never wear the tab collar. I did buy a white shirt this summer from the Womenspirit clearance sale, and I wore it all summer and thought it worked well with summer colors. I have no idea why they discontinued it. In winter, I wear a lot of black and charcoal gray, and I recently started wearing more scarves for variety. I also occasionally wear the shell under a print blouse of some kind, with or without a jacket.
I have some clergywomen acquaintances from South America, and I noticed while visiting that they all had shirts in interesting fabrics and textures. I asked how to order them, and they said that they had them custom made by a seamstress. I’m not that handy with a needle, but I am thinking about taking one of my old Almy sleeveless shells to a tailor to use as a pattern so that I can get something in a more interesting fabric (probably dark solids, not prints). If anyone has had success with a similar venture, I would welcome advice.