Coffee Break: Large Banana Claw Clip

121 Comments

1. FWIW these never worked for my fine, thin hair, either. Just slid down my head about 5 minutes after I walked out the door.

   1. Same. While banana clips are nostalgic, this style also looks really sloppy to me — but I’m not big on hair accessories.

   2. I have thick straight hair and they never worked for me, either!

   3. Whenever I see a banana clip I think of Geordi LaForge.

      1. lol

   4. I have some clips with some kind or silicone or rubbery substance on the inside of the clip. It is not tacky and doesn’t stick to my hair but provides enough grip that the clip doesn’t slide out of my hair.

   5. I hate these, but I do like a good barrette that holds all of my hair.

   6. it doesn’t even work on the model– why would you want it sticking up like that?

   7. I don’t like this clip in particular, but this concept works well for me and I’m hanging onto my banana clips from the last time they were popular. Thick curly hair that hides the clip entirely and just makes it look like I have a very full curly pony without pulling too hard on my scalp.

   8. They’re good for curly girls but not for my slippery, mostly straight hair.

      Lots of us had perms in the 80s when we wore these!

2. So – we have managed 4 years without my having to get a suit for college-age sons – what is the best way/place for them to have a good experience with sizing and where we can also chat about better fabrics for our humid mid-atlantic home as well as a summer wedding in Houston. The suits will likely get a lot of occasional use, as friends are starting to marry, and interviews for Real Professional Jobs are on the horizon, and even having a go-to pants-and-shirt combo on short notice is a blessing. DH is feigning ignorance/amnesia, ugh.

   1. DH will have to ask around.

      Jos. A Bank exists for a reason–it’s great for short notice. Otherwise people tend to have a tailor nearby, or someone who comes to town a few times a year to take measurements, discuss fabrics, and have the finished product shipped.

   2. I’d take them to Suit Supply. Husband notoriously gets overheated in a suit (both temp + anxiety), and likes their suits for summers in Houston. Cuts are more modern than Men’s Warehouse or Jos A Banks. If you are only buying one suit, I’d lean towards a blue, blue, rather than dark navy.

   3. honestly, trying on suits from a few stores to see. Just like different brands fit different women’s shapes better. Jos A Banks *looks* more expensive on my husband than Brooks Brothers does because their fit model is just better for him.

   4. Honestly, for a first suit I’d just go to Macy’s.

      1. Ugh no. Go to a real menswear store with a tailor, buy a real wool suit, and have it fitted right.

         1. Ugh yes.

            “College aged sons” may never wear this suit again depending so spending that amount of money seems excessive for most people.

            1. They have job interviews. They are going to do much better in those job interviews with proper suits, not cheap ill-fitting polyester costumes from Macy’s.

            2. Yeah their size may change a lot soon too. Maybe if the tailor can leave room for adjustments.

   5. My college ago sons both have suits from mens wear house. there are certainly cheaper and also more expensive options, they have real people working there which i found useful. this is really only an option if they’re standard size.

   6. I’ve had good luck shopping at JCPenney for my young-adult son. Very basic but respectable coordinating jackets and pants.

   7. i took my son to Kohl’s for a suit for speech and debate, but i noticed Costco had affordable ones also. my husband last got a suit from Macy’s and we told the guy we were buying it for a wedding but would most likely only wear it for funerals after that. sigh.

   8. DH is a bit of a menswear nerd, and we’re also on a pretty serious budget. styleforum, ask andy about clothes, and Derek Guy/die workwear! are great rabbit holes to go down to get a sense of what tailoring can look like. He will also see some good illustrations of how to pair separates like pants and a sport coat in a way that makes sartorial sense.
      As far as recent excursions to outfit a teen in our house, Macy’s has been sad. The local menswear store’s core clientele is wedding suits, which tend to be lighter in color, and very slim cut. Neither are great choices for a suit which will see occasional use. That said, they will either have a couple of navy or dark gray option. Lightweight wool in a medium to dark gray will be the most versatile option, and if the store offers in-house tailoring, so much the better. Tailoring is usually included in the purchase price, so that can tip the in-person vs online calculus. If you’re in a mood to rummage, we’ve also had good luck at antique stores/Goodwill, but be prepared to pass on orphaned jackets. You will see some really nice jackets whose pants have worn out or somehow become separated, but are suit fabric and not meant to be worn as a sport coat. Final point… if son is done growing, and you go with a nicer suit, get a 2nd pair of pants, so that if he wears through the first, he’s not stuck with an orphaned jacket. Some guys wear through the crotch of pants like it’s nobody’s business.

      1. OP – totally with you on this, was planning for a second pair of pants. Oldest, at 21, might gain an inch in height (if he grows like me), youngest at 19 hasn’t changed much with height, and is now working out more so his waistline isn’t so shifty.

         Youngest can be a clothes hound, so those menswear links added some fun to our convo. Oldest might go for a thrift run – but he really has a classic slim physique so we will see what happens

   9. I feel like this is what J. Crew and Bonobos are for. Just caution them against getting the really tapered pants that catch on their calves when they sit down.

   10. Agreeing with Jos. A. Bank and Men’s Wearhouse. Both have their own tailors and professionals who can measure correctly. With a couple of shirts that he knows to wear only with the suit, a tie and appropriate shoes, expect to spend about $600. My now-graduating senior got a real suit two summers ago, before junior year, and has used it numerous times since, for a wedding, a couple of senior presentations, and either a Zoom interview or a job fair (I don’t remember which-I just remember hearing the announcement that the suit was coming out). It has been a good investment.

   11. Dillards. They have suiting and are merchandised for SEUS weather.

       1. My local Dillard’s has very attentive sales ladies in the women’s departments. I’ve never shopped the men’s, but if it’s the equivalent of the women’s, you’d find plenty of help there.

          1. I recently got my teenage son a suit from Dillards and they were very helpful. It probably depends on how knowledgeable your local employees are, but we had a good experience.

3. I know that the fashion discussions on this blog tend to skew either (1) overly conservative, (2) in favor of “soft pants” or other barely acceptable workwear or (3) towards nonsensical notions of what the latest “fresh” items are for the office, but I find the frequent pronouncements in the comments section that only interns wear high heels to be puzzling/not aligned with my experience. I’m an equity partner in NY Biglaw, and plenty of our equity partners are still wearing heels, especially for big meetings/events, and I get a lot of compliments on my shoes. Support staff and junior associates tend to be the ones wearing sneakers/flats, but if that’s the impression you want to give, more power to you.

   1. my takeaway from those comments would be that you work in an office that is dressier than the average US workplace.

      1. But this isn’t a place for the average US workplace.

         1. From a sample size of mid-to-late career women who work in legal and corporate offices downtown in a major city – not NYC though – stilettos are less common than upscale flats, block heels, loafers, and street sneakers. I know that on an average office day in 2019, at a lower level in my own corporate job, I typically wore 2-3″ stilettos all day, as did women execs I worked with. Same group of women today, all at either the same or higher titles, and it’s a different shoe wardrobe. Yes we occasionally pull them out, but there’s been a shift!

            1. I missed this morning’s discussion, but block heels are still heels!

            2. in the thread the OP referenced, people were calling out stilettos as less common now.

            3. Same in my corporate legal department. Honestly, I have a bit of side-eye when our outside counsel wear designer stilettos for routine meetings. It looks a bit out of touch or showy when, internally, we’re debating whether outside counsel is too expensive. Same for men in sheen-y sharkskin suits and luxury watches.

            4. I was also team stiletto for years, hiking around for miles in them. Now, I’m older and after not wearing them for a year in the pandemic, my feet can’t do them anymore. I replaced on the 3+ inch thinner stilettos with 2-3 inch thicker stilettos or block heels. So still decidedly heels, but they’ve gotten lower.

   2. Yes, I agree. I think there are a lot of posters who are not in NYC / Biglaw or other similar settings, with a disproportionate number who work from home.

      1. I’m in a similar setting and work in an office every day and completely disagree with the OP. Maybe there’s still a random person trying with the heels here and there but it’s absolutely a dated look.

   3. Yeah, some of the recent feedback has been strange to me given this board was so conservative on workwear for the longest time. Remember the discussions around water bottles and ponytails being professional?

      I asked last week about what to wear for interviews and was told a sheath dress was too prim and I should wear mismatched jacket + pants instead. Even in my business casual-ish world I don’t see that. There was also a recent comment recommending a Veronica beard blazer with hoodie attachment and sneakers for networking events, and while I’m all about work appropriate sneakers, that’s a huge no for me.

      1. Agree. I think the readership has been shifting here.

      2. Hmm, and I wear that exact look to network events with frequency. Lawyer, big city, it’s pretty common.

   4. I was surprised by that comment as well. I’m in upper midwest midsized market, and I see plenty of serious litigators rocking stilettos these days. I do think people start to move into somewhat lower, stacked heels in later 40’s and 50’s. The Venn diagram of that group and the more powerful women overlaps, but not completely.

   5. The only person in my office who wears heels on normal days is a 50 y/o partner and it ages her.

      1. agreed.

      2. How on earth are heels aging her? Maybe if they are classic boring pumps but otherwise, I can’t imagine anyone except you thinks they are aging. I see young women in court every day wearing block heels and higher heels as well. I wear wedges and flats to court only because I am 60 and my feet cannot wear higher heels anymore. If I could still rock a heel, I would!

         1. Because it’s very out of style. It reads like the person who’s still perming her hair or wearing blue eye shadow. When you fail to update your look to keep up with the times, it’s aging.

            1. This is the exact issue though – someone comes here and says: “heels are very out of style”, but take a look at what people wore on the red carpet this season (heels), what attendees at the various fashion weeks wore (heels), what the Princess of Wales wears (heels), etc. A quick Google search would show that any number of fashion magazines have published recent articles about the heels “we” are wearing this spring.

               Don’t misunderstand me. I do not wear heels because I have an old ankle injury that makes them impossible. And I certainly would recognize a 2000 nude-for-you platform pump as dated. But the idea that wearing heel is the equivalent of blue frosted eye shadow is honestly ridiculous.

            2. Anon at 8:18 – more than ridiculous! Absolutely nuts. I think she may be jealous of the women who can still walk in heels.

            3. thank you for the most entertaining bit of this thread! Lawyers looking to red carpet events for work wear guidance is wonderful.

      3. https://www.vogue.com/article/how-to-style-pumps
         discover why the everyday pump is back, with ten street style–approved outfit formulas that make the case. Consider this your cue to put your favorite flats on the back burner for now and slip into a pair of perfect pumps instead.

   6. I have this issue every time someone declares that “nobody is still wearing suits”. Until recently, I was in litigation and I promise I was not showing up to court in separates and sneakers. Now I am in-house and the difference between what our finance team wears vs our marketing team it striking – and that is the same office in the same company.

      People tend to assume that their industry/location is universal and make broad pronouncements based on that, which is not helped when people ask questions without specifying where they work or what industry they are in.

   7. Was your dig at people who choose to wear flats really necessary? What’s the point of making a snide comment like that?

   8. I’m so glad to see this! I’m about to return to my biglaw job from maternity leave and after reading the morning thread I worried that I need new shoes on top of trying to figure out what works for my postpartum body. I’m very short so I wear heels most days.

      1. You do actually need to update your shoes. This poster is out of touch.

   9. I’m a 50year old GC in a major city, albeit not NY, but I go there frequently and I hate to break it to you but stilettos are indeed a sign of being out of touch. I still wear a few gorgeous pairs for personal dressy occasions, but they are no longer a power look.

      1. Ok, this is your experience and I believe you. But I’m not going to pretend that any one person’s experience is a universal truth. Like anything, some people rock and own a look and some people do not. What “ages” one person looks great on another person. Why does this concept have to be explained over and over again?

         I don’t wear heels and if I did it would be ridiculous because I don’t have a good walk in them. An executive in our office is almost 6 feet tall and wears heels and is a BOSS lady. The heels add to her gravitas and they make me look foolish. It’s fine to acknowledge this. Just know yourself.

         1. Sorry but it is the very rare person who can wear something extremely dated and still look like they’re owning the room. Maybe they do in spite of the look. But it doesn’t help them at all. Looking like a fossil is a very bad idea if you want to be taken seriously.

            1. You have to be the same nonsense person responding up and down this thread. Accept your wrong-ness.

            2. Are we really describing *all heels* as extremely dated? That’s just ridiculous.

   10. Are what you’re interpreting as “compliments” more along the lines of “how do you walk in those things?”

       Stilettos are definitely not trending right now unless you’re a real housewife.

       1. Kate Middleton still wears heels so I think we’re in OK territory.

          1. I missed the part where anyone is an actual princess in this story.

             Clinging to something that is dated and then arguing with everyone else that they’re wrong is not a formula for staying up to date.

          2. I wouldn’t describe Kate Middleton as a trendsetter. She wears very dated clothes.

             1. Stylish is the word you keep neglecting to use. She is an international style icon. Who are you?

          3. I’m a big fan of Kate and love most of her looks but I don’t think the clothing of a literal princess is applicable to most women.

          4. Even Kate, whose styling is very classic if not deliberately a bit behind the times, tends to leave the high stilettos to evening events and the most formal day engagements these days. For a normal visit or appearance she’s more likely to be in flats or block heels.

4. If you are buying health insurance (my employer sponsored insurance is too expensive), for you, spouse, and dependents, where do you start? The exchanges? A broker? And do I look at classic insurance and also HDHPs? The dependents are two older teens, one of whom is still <18, who are either going off to college or will be soon, where the local options that work well here may not matter 9 months of the year. I assume that the whole family needs to be on the same plan HDHP / traditional plan (but maybe not?)? Have never done this before.

   DH had great and cheap coverage for a long time, so I never needed to look before. Looking for future years, not immediately, which is a relief.

   1. I do think you may have a hard time finding a cheaper option than your employer sponsored option unless you have a low income.

      1. This. Seems like an absolute fools errand.

         1. Agree. You cannot just abandon your expensive work options if you want a family plan that is cheaper, especially if both you and your husband have workplace options that satisfy the Federal requirements. I sense your income is moderate to substantial with two working parents. Your best option may turn out to be getting your college aged kids on their own individual plans when they hit 18 – either via their college or via the Marketplace or Medicaid. Eligibility will vary depending on where they go to school (and in what state).

   2. I’m interested in the answers you get back. I am curious as to whether the market can ever be less expensive than an employer plan.

   3. I’ve never heard of anyone getting less-expensive coverage if they have employer-sponsored available…

   4. The whole family does not have to be on the same plan. For years, my husband and daughter were on his employer plan and I was on my own employer plan because that actually ended up being less expensive overall. The math doesn’t always work out that way, though. It’s often cheaper to have the whole family on one plan, especially when you factor in the savings from having a single family deductible and OOP max.

      1. I think she means if the whole family gets coverage from the same source (e.g., employer) do they have to have the same plan, and I think the answer is generally yes. At least at my employer, you can’t have spouse +1 kid on one plan and other spouse and other kid on another plan. If you have “family” coverage, it’s all the same plan.

   5. you said not looking for immediately, in which case if both kids are off to college by the time you are actually looking, you might look into the school plans for the teens. i also find it unlikely you will find decent coverage that is less expensive than what is offered through your employer. Did DH get laid off? switch jobs? and no, the whole family does not need to be on the same plan

      1. Maybe, or maybe he wants to retire and her option is less generous.

         1. This. Our employer plan skews old and we pass on all costs except to very low paid employees, whom we subsidize. The cost of family plans would be about 4K per month unsubsidized. So we use my husband’s plan which has a lot of young employees who have a good risk experience and lower cost (that is subsidized for all employees).

            1. Yeah, this is a problem, and why many folks don’t retire as early as they would like. It may be cheaper once your husband retires for you to cover him alone on your plan, and the kids to buy their own plans (which you help them cover).

               If you make enough for your husband to retire with two kids in college, there will not be any way your whole family will be eligible for more affordable coverage on the Marketplace unfortunately.

            2. I’m not sure that last sentence needs an “unfortunately.” If you can comfortably retire with two kids in college, you make enough that you shouldn’t need a government-subsidized plan.

            3. I’m in California and I have a marketplace plan. I have no subsidy. What the marketplace gives me is eligibility, which I wouldn’t have without the marketplace due to my pre existing conditions.

            4. In my state there’s no income limit to purchasing coverage on the marketplace. You just don’t get any subsidy

      2. The school plans don’t cover as much as the corporate plans, and from what I see, dental for ages 18+ are minimal or nonexistent. The good news is the premiums are relatively low.

         1. I’m in my 40s and have never had dental insurance and I thought that wasn’t uncommon. You need health insurance mainly because you can get hit by a bus or get cancer, and your care could cost millions and bankrupt even a very wealthy person. But if you’re affluent you can easily save plenty to cover a dental emergency which is almost always <$10k. Dental insurance premiums are higher than the cost of 2 annual cleanings everywhere I've worked so it's never made sense to me to purchase it.

         2. The school plan I had as a grad student was way better (free primary visits; lower copays and deductibles; low oop max) than any of the increasingly shitty corporate plans work has offered. The network was pretty limited though to just the (extremely well regarded) academic hospital attached to the school (+ emergency only care when non local). It’s worth checking out, especially if they can’t afford the corporate plan

   6. For students at college, look at their school sponsored plans, which will have local coverage & are often lower cost bc college students are, on average, a low cost group to insure

      Check medicaid/chip eligibility for your <18 – many states have higher income cutoffs for kids than adults

      Other than that, make sure you're looking at the actual ACA marketplace for your state, to make sure you aren't hitting scams. But unfortunately, you are very unlikely to find anything cheaper than your employer sponsored plan – for yourself/the employee, essentially never, and for your spouse basically only if they are young & your employer doesn't subsidize spouses at all. If you do, it will certainly be hdhp, but tbh an hdhp is often the most cost effective plan anyway.

      Sorry, but health insurance in the US is an expensive hot dumpster fire

   7. School plans for college kids are usually a pretty good value. We are self-employed, so my son is on one, and it’s been perfectly fine. It was about $1500 and covers him for a full calendar year, including the summer after graduation.

      1. Man, my son’s was $1500 per QUARTER! We didn’t buy it. He just graduated this year and fortunately now has an employer sponsored plan.

         1. On the marketplace, $300/ month is going to be about the cheapest price for the worst plan (think 10k deductible) for the lowest age bracket though – $1500/quarter isn’t great but it’s not *terrible*

   8. Nothing in the marketplace is going to be cheaper than an employer-sponsored option.

   9. Maybe instead of retiring, your husband could work part time to cover the 50k health insurance cost?

      Is the 4K a month for the high deductible plan? That is the plan you want, and is most cost effective if you are generally healthy.

      1. This isn’t just retiring. It can be starting your own business or doing consulting. Small businesses often don’t offer coverage.

         1. It really is outrageous that we have to be chained to an employer until 65 for decent health care coverage.

            1. And that’s just the insurance. Many, many people with insurance coverage can’t actually afford to use said insurance. The deductibles themselves are a crippling cost for many.

   10. My husband and I both changed jobs recently and I’ve been so in the weeds comparing and shopping health insurances. I second that it will be next to impossible to find something cheaper than your employer sponsored plan unless you are getting government subsidies. My husband’s health insurance is way better than mine, but it requires that a spouse with access to their own employer health insurance be on that and will only be secondary (how they check I do not know, but I don’t want to test this). So I’m going to be on my expensive workplace plan while he and our children will be on his better/cheaper plan. So I wouldn’t rule out having separate plans, but unless there are weird loopholes or restrictions you’re working around, it’s better to be all on one plan. Some people hate HDHPs, but unless you’ve got a chronic illness with expensive medication, I find them to be perfectly adequate and more cost-effective most years.

       1. As a reply to your parenthetical, in my experience, they check it by denying your claims and insisting you must have primary coverage elsewhere. I don’t blame you for not wanting to deal with it!

       2. Most the people I know who use HDHPs have chronic illnesses with expensive medications (if you’re going to hit the out of pocket max on any plan, then you’re going to hit the deductible). I think it’s more in between with moderate costs where they can lead to a lot of unexpected spending.

          1. Agreed, you need to price it out but HDHP is often good even with moderate or higher healthcare costs. At my former government employer, the HDHP was cheaper in every scenario: zero healthcare costs, low, minimum, high, very high. I did the math and there was no level of spending for which the HDHP plan wasn’t the cheapest option. Basically they were taking the high deductible and forcing you to pay it upfront in premiums on the other plans, so you were always coming out ahead with the HDHP.

          2. This. My husband has a chronic illness with very expensive medication and we hit the deductible on our HDHP by February every year, and then we pay for nothing the rest of the year. The key is the co-insurance requirement after meeting the deductible. For us, we have no obligation but some plans continue to make you cover 10 or even 20 percent.

5. What would you wear for headshots in 2026 for a high net worth financial planning/wealth management firm? Would you go full suit or dress + non matching blazer? I’m mid-career so I want something that projects professionalism, experience and gravitas but nothing staid or boring.

   Also, I would need to purchase something most likely. Do we think the quality matters for photo outfits or does fit matter more? (Read: can I cheap out on this without it looking cheap?)

   1. a The Fold top, assuming you mean a traditional head shot that is waist or shoulders up. Structured, formal, not as stiff-looking as jackets can often be in pictures.

   2. Color. I don’t care what it is (jacket, dress, etc), but wear color. That’s what says you’re senior and experienced in my book. Wearing plain black, charcoal or navy says junior IMO. Examples of color from our firm photos I’m thinking of include cobalt eyeglasses, a jewel-toned scarf, a pine-colored dress, or a lime beaded necklace.

      1. Wear a solid colored top, yes. But any of these accessories scream “I’m eccentric.”

      2. Awful advice. No, navy doesn’t make you look junior, it makes you look professional. All your examples scream cuckoo bird. No one wants to be that. OP, yes, quality will show up but if something is new not as much (lower quality fabrics get shiny with too much dry cleaning). Focus on a neutral outfit, nothing memorable, and get your hair and makeup done.

      3. This seems higher risk – the pine colored dress no, but who wants to be stuck with a big lime necklace for their next 5+ years of corporate headshot?

      4. I feel like for all those “how to dress rich” stories out there everyone is wearing like a bun with a white blouse and they’re like “loooook how elllegaaant” when you’re like, ma’am, that’s a white blouse and a bun.

         but yeah I’d go minimal. think CBK. If your jewelry isn’t visibly expensive though I wouldn’t wear any (considering the HNW clientele). the fold is a good suggestion, or maybe the McQueen Leaf jacket? been around for ages.

         1. Except a white blouse and a bun is elegant? Please show me an example where this isn’t true.

            1. Sometimes it just isn’t your best look. Better to go with what suits you instead of copying someone else’s “elegant” look.

            2. Like seriously, show me someone who looks bad in that.

            3. I’m thinking of the sock buns we had to put up with 😂

            4. So SPECIFIC. Ok, googling “famous women wearing a bun and white shirt” took me to images with lots of ridiculous examples.

   3. Make sure your hair makes sense. I give extreme side eye to headshots with long “flowy tresses”—like ma’am, this is work, not brunch.

      1. I feel the same way, but this is so common now. Flowy tresses and sometimes fake lashes both! Especially in STEM careers.

   4. No, I do not think quality matters for head shots since you are only shown from shoulders up. When I worked at a law firm, I wore the standard navy or black blazer and a basic top (totally boring). When I left the law firm and went in-house, I wore a light collarless blazer in my next head shot because I was less concerned about looking formal and I much preferred not having a dark color in the photo. But I think your industry may be more formal fashion-wise.

      I suggest googling financial industry or wealth management head shots to get a sense of what outfits or looks you might like. Once you look at certain amount of photos, I bet you will gravitate towards a certain look or realize what you want to avoid.

   5. I wore a blazer and sweater shell in mine. No one can see the pants anyway so I don’t think it matters.

6. To start, I’m a huge royals fan. Queen Camilla and the state visit. Dressing more like Queen Elizabeth than usual, don’t you think? And mercy, I just want to get her a new bra and HOIST those girls up! 🤭

   1. oh man I totally agree with you. Was it Stacy London that always was saying “lock and load”…

   2. She is 78 years old, Maybe she does not care to hoist them up?

   3. She is who she is and not changing. I do feel like I’ve seen that outfit she wore to the WH before (or at least a very similar version).

   4. We must be looking at different photos because I don’t think there’s anything wrong with her bustline.

7. Can this polyester top really be worth 200? Is it well made? Does it hang nicely?

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