Poll: When Do Miniskirts Become a Don’t, Even Outside the Office?
Hopefully, no one thinks that miniskirts are a DO for the office. (See our prior poll on this here and here.) But a reader posed this question in comments, and we think it's a good one: does a time come in a woman's life — a serious, professional woman's life — at which it is no longer acceptable to wear miniskirts at ALL? We thought we'd run a poll and see.
For our $.02: As long as we're not wearing it to the office, we think a woman should be able to wear whatever she wants. We recognize that a woman may feel too “old” for certain things — we're almost starting to feel that way about our beloved Converse sneakers on the weekends, and we haven't had our hair in pigtails in at least five years — but we're not sure that's a good feeling to give in to. Still, what are other people's thoughts?
Photo credit: Juicy Couture Basic Cashmere Sweater Dress, available at ShopBop on sale for $230 (was $328).
As for our reader's question on how short a miniskirt is — our answer would be that it changes with age. We remember at our first job out of college, a colleague suggested we not wear skirts that were shorter than our fingertips. But look at the model, above! She's wearing a skirt that short! Honestly, we look at the picture and wonder what sort of pants she'll put on when she finishes getting dressed. (Jeans and cute boots, we hope.) At this point (we're in our early 30s), to us a mini-dress is anything we wouldn't wear to the office because it's too short. Readers, please weigh in — how short does a skirt have to be to qualify as a “mini”?
I don’t think it’s an age thing as much as an optics thing – while we like to assume that weekends means not seeing anyone from work (or related to our professional lives – ie a professional colleague at another firm) and being able to wear whatever we want, the sad truth is that some of us have a high likelihood of seeing someone from our professional sphere. I am all for authenticity etc, but it’s something to bear in mind.
I think “mini” is relative to the person’s body – but I tend to think that unacceptable starts at higher than about the length of a credit card above the knee.
Eh, clothes are singling mechanisms and it’s useful for us to think about what we’re singling. That said, I really see no reason to tell a woman she’s too old or not “hot” enough to wear a miniskirt on her own time; women are under no obligation to ensure they’re sufficiently aesthetically pleasing for the people around them.
@ City Girl – I’m with you. I constantly see people from my office around town. Not going to wear business casual on the weekend, but knowing I could very well see my boss at brunch keeps me away from things on the bare side (yes, I’ll still wear a cute tank, but I’ll pick a higher-neckline one).
“Mini” to me is a skirt that I have to be careful in… I suppose it’s possible to pull an accidental Basic Instinct in a pencil skirt, but if you have to make sure to smooth the skirt behind you when you sit down or otherwise actively monitor what’s going on, it’s short. More objectively, a mini to me is about at the halfway point on my thigh when I’m seated. I’m in my mid-20s and would feel comfortable running into anyone in that length on the weekend (with either flat sandals or with tights and flats – heels with a mini is too much during the day).
I would call anything that hits more than an an inch or so above the top of the knee “too short for the workplace” but I wouldn’t necesscerily call it “mini.” I usually think of a miniskirt as hitting mid-thigh.
What about a related post on skirts that are too LONG for the office – either because they hit mid-calf and make your legs look stumpy and awful, or because they are truly long and flowy, and thus, too casual or feminine for the office?
I guess it probably depends on what you define as mini-skirt but I don’t think it’s an age thing so much as a “look” thing. For example, after the point where you’ve graduate from college a mini-skirt needs to be tempered by a full-coverage top or leggings or something. Also, no mini-skirts while you’re lugging kids around, it’s asking for people to judge you poorly.
I’m very interested to see what the consensus is on what constitutes a mini-skirt. I doubt I’ve ever owned anything that truly counts as a mini by fashion standards but I’m pushing 30 and beginning to wonder if my beloved jean skirt looks too short now? Must all my skirts fall to just above the knee or is a few inches above the knee okay? I definitely think the pic of the model qualifies as mini, I would wear jeans with that for sure!
Being in your 30s is not too old to wear converse sneaks. This from a mommy lawyer also in her 30s who will not part with her converse any time in the foreseeable future but who has not worn a mini skirt in years. Even with tights.
It’s relative. I’m a tall, leggy girl and I go with the “If you got it, flaunt it!” (not at work!) mentality. I will never have cleavage–I’m a leg girl. That’s what the boys like!
I know how to keep everything “important” covered in a mini, so there’s NO reason why I can’t wear one out.
It’s no different than wearing a clingy top. In fact, I think, as long as you follow the “bare on the bottom, cover on top” rule of balance in fashion, you can pull off a mini with a bat-wing top easily and still look completely classy. (Thing Cameron Diaz!) It’s when you push the envelope of streetwalker that things get dicey.
I also find that flats or wedges make a mini more classy/playful and less hooker. At 5’11” with a 36inch inseam, I don’t need the height of heels all the time…and when I am wearing a mini and do high heels, it can border on trashy if I don’t plan my outfit carefully. Thus the flats or low, low heels.
@Cat – I am so glad I am not the only one who runs into professional colleagues all the time. Like you said, it does not mean you have to wear business casual, but it does mean thinking about some clothing choices.
@R.S. – so true on the long skirts. I used to work in-house in NYC and there were two fairly senior lawyers who wore flowy skirts and little knit tops (very AT, you know the style) about 9 months of the year. It wasn’t even close to business casual, not to mention completely perplexing in mid-November NYC temperatures.
When I was in college, mini meant a skirt just a few inches below my back-side. I see catalogs and magazines call those micro-minis now though. That length should not be worn past college (unless maybe its a weekend in Vegas).
Mini to me now (30ish) means mid-thigh. I agree with R.S. that there are to-short-for-work lengths that still arent mini. In fact, that length is where most of my casual weekend skirts fall now.
I think wearing a mini (which, to me, is any skirt shorter than your fingertips when you’re standing up) has more to do with the individual than their age.
I’ve seen women in their 50’s pull it off beautifully because they had shapely, toned legs and the confidence to sport the style, and I’ve seen teenagers look ridiculous because the mini didn’t suit their body type or they kept tugging it down in a self-conscious manner.
Just as with all fashion, it’s less about clothing and more about style.
Let’s re-think the mini for 2010. There are some great new mini looks, some of which may be office looks before long (no pun intended).