Miranda and C. want to know why PeaceBang advises against A-line skirts.
In a word, sweeties: frump.
Or should I say, “POTENTIAL frump.”
Skirts are a really tricky thing to fit, as are pants, and much more complicated than they first appear. If you obsess about finding a skirt that does the right things for you, you are not alone — they’re the devil to find and to wear confidently for women of all sizes and shapes.
Petite women have to make sure they’re not being overwhelmed by fabric or made to look too little girlish in shorter styles.
Pencil skirts are the go-to look for professional women, but really need to not be too tight. Even slim gals need to make sure they check themselves walking from the rear and sitting down before they purchase a pencil skirt.
Full-style knee-length skirts can make any of us look too June Cleaver, but check the archives under keyword “skirt” to see good styling ideas.
Gypsy Boho/Mother Goddess skirts are mostly dated and awful and should be avoided — unless you’re young and have a good eye for proportion and balance the gypsy skirt with clean, tailored pieces on top.
A-line skirts that are stiff and stand out from the body are always frumpy. They just are. If they have buttons down the front, you will communicate warm domesticity and not authority. Warm domesticity is very nice if you’re in that position in life, but you are not. You are a leader in your community and you need to look like someone who has something important to say, not like the most serious responsibility you have at this time is getting fresh cookies out of the oven.
If you’re a woman with a lot of shape, think about something like this style.
Or how about a nice longer pencil skirt? (The next items are all from J Jill):
This classic A-line, to me, is just ugh. I also hate the color for being so aggressively boring:
And… Good Golly, Rev. Miss Molly, who needs the pleats to add bulk to yer girth? Not me.
If you’re a tall gal, I think this is a very clean, handsome look. Not for me, though, as I’m short and have lots of curves n’ swerves:
This can work very nicely for a hippy chick, and by “hippy” I mean “possessing of hips.” I love a skirt with a bit of flare and some movement. This is a nice crepe skirt. Being short, though, I would hesitate to order this in case shortening the skirt would ruin the line of the swingy hem:
These should be outlawed by every nation in the civilized world:
Pencils can make people think “belly bump” on me – which at 51 is kind of amusing. They also hug my butt, which is fabulous for a Saturday night date, but not so much for work. No one dreams of her congregants saying, “Look, it’s Rev. Cute Butt”.
I do think a-line skirts can work if the proportions are right and everything else is looking sharp: shoes, top, bag, etc. But I realize that’s asking a lot from most clergy! [All of these look great, but 3 out of 4 of them are SHORT A-line skirts, and I'm pretty sure most of my readers are talking about below-the-knee A-lines. Thanks for collating some really nice looks! - PB]
Exhibit A: http://www.polyvore.com/bananarepublic.com_women_cotton_chino_skirt/thing?id=23623
Exhibit B: http://jjiraffe.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/alineskirt.jpg
Exhibit C: http://www.larkieatlarge.com/wp-content/gallery/fashion/bs-work2.jpg
Exhibit D: http://www.nycupcake.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/tweed-a-line-skirt.jpg
Thank you! This is helpful. Though I did mostly have longer A-lines in mind – they are, after all, coterminous with femininity in the Southern evangelical tradition of my up-bringing – one of my favorite skirts is one almost exactly like JBC’s Exhibit D. And as I am rather shapeless (average height and thin with no curves) pencil skirts sometimes make me seem rather two-dimensional. So I like skirts with a bit of flare or swing. But I promise no long A-lines with buttons down the front. And certainly no long DENIM A-line with buttons down the front! [ATTA GIRL! - PB]
For reasons that other people have cited, I rely more on slacks than I used to. Now that I’m 55, I’m thicker through the middle than I used to be and pencil skirts don’t look as good without a lot of “architecture” underneath. I bought this skirt when I needed something black for choir, but I really like the way it moves. Also, I’m 5’4″ tall and the length doesn’t overwhelm me:
http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=6P1E
[I have one almost exactly like that. It's not the most thrilling item in my wardrobe but it gets the job done!Thanks for the link, 'cause mine is almost all worn out. - PB]
I’m taking PB’s exhibit B as a fashion challenge, because I actually like that “aggressively boring” soft navy blue – in my closet, where the accent colors are things like fuchsia, plum and teal, soft navy lives in the neutrals corner with all the shades of gray.
I agree that skirt is frump-tastic as pictured, with the “nude white lady” colored shoes and hose, and it’s a modest but totally boring length.
However. On a shorter person (or one with shorter legs) that skirt starts approaching maxi-skirt territory, which is a little more interesting. And while it’s nominally A-line it has a narrow enough flare that it’s almost cylindrical. I would pair it with a jacket with some detail – nothing too plain, the skirt is plain enough – or a bright shell with a colorful scarf, and some interesting boots or shoes. Not perfect, but in that context I think a boring skirt would let the observer’s eye be easily drawn elsewhere.
Fear not, Gracious hostess, I’m not going out and buying the thing. I already have a froofy skirt that color that will stay in my non-professional wardrobe until it disintegrates.
[I agree with all your thoughts + suggestions -- and applaud your stylin' sense. You gotta know how to werq a garment, and you obviously do. - PB]
One thing to consider, for the short-legged among us who want a skirt that flares at the hem – it’s possible to find a tailor who will shorten from the waistband, rather than the hem. I realize that tailoring ain’t cheap – but if you fall in love with a tulip skirt and don’t want to drown in it, it’s worth a few extra bucks to have a nicely-shaped skirt that’s the right length. Also, the Orvis skirt that I recommended takes on a new life with a snazzy jacket and ankle boots.