To think that spaghetti strap dresses/tops are not appropriaye/professional office wear no matter how hot it is?

[SerenDippitty]

Except perhaps on a dress down Friday and perhaps not even then.

I also don't get why people assume that hot weather means you absolutely have to wear a vest top or you'll expire. In properly hot countries people wear long sleeves/trousers etc to work and seem not to be passing out from the heat all over the place.

Only on matters of taste - very , VERY few women look good in spaghetti straps . Most are in too tight vests showing flabby arms, burnt shoulders and a grubby bra strap.

The British generally dress appallingly in hot weather. A light shirt, cap sleeve, shift dress etc is far cooler and far more flattering.

Yeah, but they also have air con. We don't, I'm 5 months pregnant, and I shall enjoy my lovely cool black maxi dress today.

Can I put in a word about giving due regard to underwear when the weather is hot and you are are wearing little strappy dresses. I work in a shop and, whilst I support every woman's right to wear exactly what she likes, there's an awful lot of 'strappy top, no bra' going on at the moment. When you bend forward to pick up your bag, I can see right down your front.

Doesn't so much bother me, but there's a lot of male till people getting a right eyeful of nipple! So, before you wear it, maybe check what it looks like when you are going about your daily business?

Completely inappropriate, and they are usually banned in all handbooks I have seen.

People can be happy, it's a generic ban and it's inappropriate and banned for both men and women equally. If you are in a work place, how difficult can it be to wear appropriate clothing!

I agree that spaghetti straps would breach a "professional" or "business" dress code.

However I think it's slightly daft that we have these dress codes. As long as clothing is comfortable, practical and not distracting others then I don't see the problem with it for work. I think spaghetti straps are fine on this basis.

I agree with you. And yes it does affect me when a colleague comes to work in an outfit more suitable for beach or night club. They are forcing me to get more intimately acquainted with them than I have chosen to, as I would normally expect not to see bare backs, shoulders and cleavage in my office, and this makes me uncomfortable. The same feeling you get when someone is standing too close or touching/hugging you when you don't want to.
I'm no prude and have no issues with nakedness, but it has a time and place. Wouldn't you feel odd sitting in a meeting with bare shoulders and hot pants amongst fully suited colleagues?

Jeans and a t shirt are perfectly appropriate for the office and the work I do, ikee. Ditto strappy tops, shorts and flip flops. Doesn’t make a jot of difference to anything. How difficult can it be to understand that?

the British generally dress appallingly in hot weather oh my, don’t you just love these blanket statements. 😂

I no longer work in an office but when I did and it was absolutely boiling, I wore sleeveless shirts. In other words just like regular buttoned shirts, but no sleeves. Got them all in M&S as I recall.

I can't see how spaghetti straps would be much cooler.

But I hate spaghetti strap tops on most people. All bra straps and cleavage. It's just not for me in a professional environment.

Is it a customer-facing role ?

If not then I wouldn't care in the least what anyone else wears. Now I might feel uncomfortable myself if i was in shorts & flip-flops and everyone else was suited & booted, but it depends on the atmosphere of the office

Right now I'm in crop pants and high necked sleeveless top and sandals, and pretty much everyone else is in similar ... I don't think the proliferation of bare arms is reducing performance in the office :D

Why are shoulders and backs more inappropriate than knees and thighs? Nobody questions above the knee skirts and dresses. In hot weather I wear halter neck, collar neck, spaghetti strap dresses and so forth in the office all the time and have no problem with the team I lead doing likewise - I'd rather we were cool, comfortable and calm and thus able to concentrate on work than sweaty and fractious. All my dresses are either midi or maxi so I'm probably showing less skin overall than most others. Equally, I'd be happy for the men in my team to wear shorts if they so wished.

However I think it's slightly daft that we have these dress codes.

you should see what some people are trying to get away with! There's a reason why so many companies have very strict dress code, because of some idiot who made it necessary to write it down when it's pretty obvious to any normal adult.

Sometimes you even have to remember some people to wear their shoes in the office. I bet you some would even turn up in their pyjamas or onesie if they could get away with it. Some workers are idiots, others are just gross.

The general rule of thumb is not to bare parts of the body that a male colleague wouldn’t. So if you work in a place where men wear sandals, then it’s fine to bare your feet. But otherwise, wear closed shoes.
Ditto strappy top - would a man wear a vest top?
Cleavage - would a man wear a v low cut / unbuttoned shirt ?
Etc

If they feel confident and comfortable in spaghetti straps, then I have no problem with it. We're all there to do a job not to worry about the clothing choices of others. The only time I would ever make a negative comment on someone's appearance would be if they had poor personal hygiene and were emitting a bad odour.

@Sugarhunnyicedtea if you could let me know the precise number of millimetres wide my shoulder strap should be to take it from unacceptable to totally professional, that would be very handy.

Depends on the company dress code

At my last job they were banned in the company handbook - well you could wear a strappy vest too but were expected to wear a cardigan or something over it

DH and I now run a business and we’re very casual as long as clothing is appropriate for the job they’re doing, for example, we have some machinery that floaty sleeves and stuff like that could get caught in, or if they’re customer facing I’d have a word if they rocked up in dirty, ripped, scruffy clothes.

Beyond that I couldn’t care less.

I agree. I don't particularly want to see bra straps and underarms at work.

I think the issue with spaghetti strap tops is less the amount of flesh on show than the visible underwear.

@JennyHolzersGhost that is clearly not the 'general rule'. It would mean nobody would ever wear a skirt that wasn't full length

As long as it’s not PJs onsies and with shoes who cares as long as the job is done well.

Again seems to me it’s women getting a bashing here.

Sphagetti tops!! Dear lord tell it to the church elders it will be ankle showing next

They are forcing me to get more intimately acquainted with them than I have chosen to, as I would normally expect not to see bare backs, shoulders and cleavage in my office
But you can see shoulders with wide straps and cleavage in anything. Lots of spaghetti straps things have high backs

Totally dependent on the industry, office culture and environment.

Last time I worked in an office it was “anything goes”.

When I worked in a solicitors it was “smart for client facing”, but anything goes in your office so I would wear a skirt with a slip top in summer and add a jacket/shirt for meetings.

What is the dress code in your office? Company dress codes have been relaxed where dh works and he no longer wears suits and ties. Just a shirt and trousers. In this case, I think spaghetti straps are ok. But not in the city for example.

JennyHolzersGhost so you think qomen should be in ankle length skirts or, trousers and long sleeves or half sleeve, high collar to be inappropriate in most office based jobs?