I have to now wear a 'uniform' for work please help me!

[Squitch]

Aside from being really fucked off (after spending about £500 so far this year on clothes for work) I have been told today that we will be required to wear a 'uniform'. I work in a school. Teaching staff wear their own clothes. All other staff wear a royal blue polo shirt with the school logo.

I work part time as music support (which basically means I play the piano, and teach music on a part time basis and from a clothing point of view classed as a teacher) as of September I will be working in the office as well (admin).

Now here comes the shitty bit. The governers have decided that a polo shirt will not be smart enough for 'front of house' so have decided we should wear a royal blue shirt and trousers. I AM NOT WEARING POLYESTER WORK WEAR!!!! I never wear trousers so will need to buy some (probably black) or black skirts. I have been told I can source my own blouses within reason (this will not happen as I suspect that the price limit from the school is about £12) so I will buy my own

I am tempted to either a) buy a couple of really nice blouses so that I still feel nice or b) buy something really stupidly disgusting, but no so disgusting that they don't just think I'm taking the piss.

I am ranting a bit so excuse the lack of coherance (sp?)

Can you clever people help me? I have had a quick look but royal blue blouses are not really 'in' at the moment (unless you want to spend about £300). I guess my price range would be about £40 - 50 as I will need a minimum of 3 I guess (this is so out of my comfort zone, I wear dresses all the time). I will need to buy 5 pairs of trousers. I couldn't wear trousers more than one day. Thanks in advance (and in hope)

[Bonsoir]

Poor you to have to dress in such unflattering horrors!

Could you buy some nicely cut white cotton blouses/tops and dye them royal blue?

[piji]

try

www.workwearhouse.co.uk/acatalog/Kustom-Kit-Ladies-Long-Sleeve-Oxford-Blouse-KK702.html

and they'll embroider 'Skool Uniform Sucks' on it for free.

[Itsjustafleshwound]

Does it have to be totally royal blue or can it be patterned?

Seems really unfair to impose such a strict dress code ...

[Squitch]

I could have 'Skool Uniform Sucks' in latin, then they'd never know! I am really pissed off. It's not as if we all go in dressed in clubbing gear or anything. I've spent a lot of money on clothes for work so that I look approriate. Before this I worked in a tiny little office and taught the piano so I could pretty much wear what I liked. I really hate the idea as well that a shitty horrible polyester workwear blouse and cheap shitty black trousers will look smarter than what I wear now.

And as I'm winding myself up, I've just realised as well that I will need to buy shoes as well as I don't have any that I would wear with trousers (well I do, but I am on a roll of anger now!)

Dying...hmmm could work, but then I've never dyed anything and it's worked before tbh

[zipzap]

Have the school got any suggested blouses from places like M&S or JL to give an idea of what they are expecting you to wear - and also maybe alert them to the fact there are very few blue blouses out there and the actual cost of reasonable blouses...

I'd also be tempted to look at nice smart work tops - as I hate wearing blouses.

And if they do show you something dreadful as an expected smart 'ideal' then make sure you have a good line in 'very funny, they said front of house smart not sweat bag polyester granny nightmare, where's the proper sort of thing they want us to wear' and then do a very good line in oh. oh. ooooh. when it dawns on you what they want. and see them try to justify their choice

I'd also ask them if they are going to reimburse you for all the clothes that they have made useless - or if they are going to phase in the polo shirts so you can continue to wear your work wear out before switching over to the new stuff...

[trifling]

Gap Oxford shirts come in bright blue ATM. Agree it is idiotic of them and foul though!

[homeaway]

dye will work on cotton or polycotton . I just dyed a pink duvet cover blue and it came out ok. The only thing with polycotton is that the stitching might be a ligher shade of blue. Have a look in zara, h and m for a cotton white blouse or even m and s. You could buy some linen black trousers from m and s for the summer months and then warmer ones for the winter. For the winter i would wear ankle boots and in the summer some pumps or a kitten heel. Good luck

[zipzap]

Is there any way that you can get them to reclassify you as a teacher when you are in class, so at least you get to wear your own clothes then?

[Squitch]

Been swimming and relaxed a bit now, but the rage is still bubbling away. I don't think i've got a cat in hells chance of being reimbersed for any clothes. They seem to be of the opinion that people only buy cheap shitty clothes for work.

I wish they would reclassify me, but unfortunately its not set hours like that. For instance tomorrow I will be doing singing with the year groups, have an hour in the office then lunch and then in the afternoon I should be in the office all afternoon, but will actually be rehearsing for an assembly. Then after school it will be recorders. It just seems really really stupid. I suspect someone somewhere is on some sort of power trip. I didn't think clothes would bother me so much. Im actually tempted to tell them to stuff the admin job and I'll survive on the p/t teaching wage

[Squitch]

Zipzap - I like your idea, I think I can pull off the 'ha ha, that's horrible! oh, that's the one you've chosen?' line. If not hey ho!

[GrendelsMum]

So are they actually expecting you to change out of your 'teaching clothes' into your 'admin clothes'? Because I would just wear my teaching clothes all day, and say firmly that I was not going to change clothes every time I sat down at a desk.

Having said that, presumably your teaching clothes are actually quite smart, rather than being the sort that primary teachers sometime find themselves wearing, i.e. it doesn't matter if another child wipes a snotty hand down the front.