My manager has banned all vests, skirts and shorts

In society as a whole, we have rules and laws for the few people who can't know what appropriate behaviour is, or who won't make sensible choices.
Speed limits
Drink driving

Rules exist to protect 99% of people from the 1% who want to do their own thing.

I know we can't equate drink driving and speeding with appropriate office wear, but the principle is the same.

When I was a student nurse, @Lievre - way back in the last century, our uniforms were grass green, thick cotton A-line dresses that zipped up the front, with starched collars that buttoned on - they looked atrocious - and I felt cheated because, in my mind, nurses wore blue. 😂

She's bonkers. Who cares what you wear in an office ?

If all this is true, I take it you and your colleagues have contacted your union?

Im unsure why so many posters seem to think
Shorts =
beachwear/scruffy/hotpants/swimming trunks etc
Smart shorts exist in the same way smart trousers exist.
....most people who work in an office are able to identify and wear appropriate trousers even though "trousers" could also include pjs, leggings, ripped jeans, joggers etc which are generally deemed unsuitable.

I think OP is exaggerating.
I'd like to see an image of the actual directive .
The bullet points she posted don't tie in with what she's said here so there must be another list (somewhere!)

Her title says no skirts then her other posts say not above the knee.
OR she's conflating 'no knee length shorts' with 'no knee length skirts'.

So she's not being very accurate.

This.
Wearing perfume despite it being banned, with no thought for anyone else because you want to "smell nice" ....
OP, you're coming across as selfish, entitled and your way or no way.
I highly doubt that the rules are so prescriptive for women, yet men can wear shorts, as you claim.
I also doubt that your boss has insisted on ankle length skirts only.
Presumably she meant they must be below the knee/mid calf and you've exaggerated to fit your agenda.
Sleeveless vests...an absolute no in the office, for men or women.
Shorts...I understand these being banned, as they could range from knee length to ultra short, so easier just to say no.

Please start a fashion thread but title it Nasty Poly Affairs!

Thank you 🪷 This is true.

Desk stretches. Major Hair Movements. Catching insects for lunch à la Renfield from Dracula.

A knee-length skirt has been standard office attire since the 1940s so I don't understand that rule at all.

If everyone in the office is as bolshie as OP (and as unironed), and if there is a cultural or religious or ethnic difference, the manager may have become controlling because the team is subjecting her to entitled behaviour and maybe indirect discrimination.

I am all for the right to bare arms (repeating an Obama joke from when Michelle was criticised for her looks; I know it is not the US 2nd amendment).

But as this thread continues, I am almost #TeamManager and I suspect she needs to shut her office door for some peace.

Oh good grief. Is your manager senior enough to actually unilaterally ‘ban’ anything? Is this underpinned by a specific dress code policy? If not, continue as you wish and your manager may pursue that however she sees fit but she is unlikely to get anywhere. Unless your work is extremely corporate and customer facing then I think smart casual is fine for work. Keep it modest and dignified, but that leaves a lot of options.

Yeah not unreasonable. Vest tops are not for work as my colleague found out when she turned up to work in one strappy primark vest top. It’s too low and too exposed.

sleeveless is fine but not a tight vest either strappy or thick strapped. Dress and skirts should be on the knee. I’m not a fan of seeing bare legs tbh 🤷‍♀️

we have to wear modest clothing so I guess I’m used to it. I wear barrel trousers and t shirt or a shirt dress to the calf.

Also, I hope you iron your clothes before going to work. As someone who sews you should know that garments need pressing at every stage, as they are made, including seams. They should have a final iron on completion and then hung on a hanger. After washing, clothes should be ironed before wearing.

Look on the bright side OP, you can sew, get yourself some cotton lawn and make some loose separates.

This top is great in the summer https://theassemblylineshop.com/products/cuff-top-sewing-pattern

I don’t wear strappy tops, vests or sleeveless dresses because I wouldn’t inflict my upper arms on an innocent public, but I still think that sleeveless tops/dresses can look professional and smart.

There are other people in the office who may have allergies or sensitivities. Certain scents have meant instant migraine for people I know. And do you walk through the building to get there?

Bloody hell is she from the Victorian era???

No it isn't cooler.

It's only in Blighty that people think you strip off when the sun emerges.

Anyway... by the time you have quit it will be raining again.

Just have a short sleeve in a thin muslin cotton or linen; it really won't be much less cool than a vest.

And long floaty wide legs in very light fabrics are everywhere right now.

Very hot countries tend to dress more like this as it is actually cooler to allow breeze in and keep the sun off you than to have tight fitting garments and let the sun hit the skin.

I’ve just walked through a crowd of commuters in London. The majority of women were wearing sleeveless tops/dresses, sandals, or both. They looked sensibly dressed and professional.

I think people are being pretty unfair about @itsjustthepricewepay‘s home made top - working with cotton jersey fabric is really not easy - I am a reasonable needle woman and I wouldn't try to make a top like that. And the colour may simply not be reproducing very well in the photo.

It is possible to do both