Would you wear a sleeveless top in the office?

[kitkatkaytie]

Looking for new workwear this week, and I was struck by how many smart sleeveless tops there are out there. Some of them are lovely but as I get older I just don't want to have my arms on show in the office. I'm 45, size 10, my arms are ok but definitely a little bit of wobble and not perfect in texture!!

I don't know if I'd feel differently if my arms were sleek, toned and tanned, ha ha.......or if there's just something about getting older that makes me think no-one in a professional environment wants to see too much flesh!

I would. I am 51 and have great arms (I do a lot of sport). I have a small chest and the style looks good on me.

Yes, they are just arms.

yes

That's interesting. I'm obviously not as confident as I thought. I think it's partly as men can't wear all the stuff we can in summer. I always feel sorry for them jn their shirts!

Perfect arm texture? I am not sure I have ever considered, or indeed noticed, anybody's arm texture.

Personal i never liked armpits or bare feet in the office. Also never really liked men wearing shirts without a t shirt underneath, not want to see their chest hairs or sweat.

No. My upper arms aren't great and last time I checked our office dress code had a "no shoulders, no toes" provision.

They are arms. This isn't Saudi Arabia!

Sleeveless yes, spaghetti strap vest top no.

Yes and my upper arms are presentable despite being nearly 62. I also wear birkie style shoes to the office. However I work in a very casual environment and am considered smart by my organisation's standards. I wouldn’t have done it 40 years ago in the City.

Lol. Not all sleeveless tops have huge arm holes. Unless people are lifting boxes up high or something, why would you see their armpits? It's an office. People talk or sit at computers, they don't generally wave their arms in the air like they're at a rave.

Who has bare feet in an office? Never seen this. Ever.

Why would anybody wear two layers in summer if they are hot? You should not be able to see chest hair through a shirt, or sweat. 🤮 If this is happening - especially as offices are almost all freezing cold - then the men involved must be overweight or have the opposite medical issue to Prince Andrew.

I'm 41 and plus size. Couldn't give a fuck what other people think of my flabby arms, if I'm hot I'll wear what I like and within the dress code.

Sleeveless dresses including suit dresses are common enough.

I think sleeveless is fine, but not strappy vest tops.

I thought following the pandemic that even in the corporate world these "rules" had pretty much gone out of the window. Nobody's prepared to put up with it anymore so people generally wear something smart/ casual and comfortable and as long as it's not outrageous nobody cares. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Yes, as long as it’s not low cut, then sleeveless is fine. I actually always wear sleeveless and a cardigan in winter. My arms look a better shape than stupid cap or half sleeves that stop at the widest part of my upper arm and accentuates it, so sleeveless, but not spaghetti straps actually make my arms look thinner! I don’t believe capped sleeves look good on many women and think most would look better in sleeveless than a sleeve halfway down their biceps

No, mainly as the air con is ferocious. I'm not keen on my upper arms so only wear sleeveless when I'm abroad.

I think sleeveless tops are fine as long as theyre not tight or low cut. Something like Reece's silk fronted shell tops are perfect. I buy one every couple of years.

I am genuinely baffled that people are worried that it might be offensive for other people to see their arms.

I suspect it depends upon 'the office'. When I was younger I worked somewhere with quite a strict (implied!) dress code, and I don't think anyone would have worn a sleeveless top; women mostly wore suits (this was a while ago) or very formal dresses. OTOH my DP works in an office where jeans and t-shirts are fine unless there are client meetings, in which case you might wear jeans and a button-up shirt. It's a world apart.

Arms are fine. Armpits are not (I think my work code's "shoulders" is code for armpits).

Arms are fine. Armpits are not (I think my work code's "shoulders" is code for armpits.

Please explain. I genuinely mean it.

What have shoulders got to do with armpits? Many tops that show more of one would show less of the other.

And none of them would show armpits in an office unless someone was reaching up for a box on a high shelf or something? It just wouldn't come up. People don't sit in offices waving their arms in the air.

Also - what is this weird issue with armpits? I mean, provided deordorant is used, I've never heard anybody having a specific issue about them as some part of the body that should be kept hidden like breasts or genitals?

I'm rather confused by these posts. I've been working in offices for decades and can't say I've ever noticed another colleague's armpits. 🤣🤣

The AC is set to Baltic so no. however if we had normal ambient temperature then yes I would.

You go and wear whatever you find comfortable and please do not feel sorry for the poor menz! Wearing pretty much whatever we like - within reason - is still pretty much the only privilege women have in the workplace.

If you feel a need to do something about those floppy bits, Caroline Girvan is who you want:

😎😁

No, I'm not keen on my arms, they are flabby on the undersides.

I only ever wear sleeveless at home or obviously when as a swimming costume.

I also don't understand the comments from women saying they don't like their arms. Surely we all dress from personal preference about what suits our body type and of course some posters may not feel sleeveless tops suit them which is fine, obviously. Just like some women don't like to wear skirts as they don't like their legs. But we wouldn't then extrapolate from that, that skirts were inappropriate office attire? Just because some people didn't feel comfortable in them because of their own bodies/ self-perception?

I think these two things are getting confused in the thread maybe? Question 1 being: would you personally wear this in the office? To which the answer may well be no because of specific body issues/ it not suiting them etc.

And 2) is this appropriate to wear in the office? If you do feel comfortable in it.

Obviously the answer to Q1 is nobody should wear anything they don't feel good in.

The answer to Q2 is of course it's totally fine and not "unprofessional" for colleagues to see your arms. 🤷🏻‍♀️