When I first started my blog, I knew all the things that were working against me - my job really limits what I can wear, I live in a smaller city, and I have a small budget to work with. I was contacted by Whitney over at Along the Lines of Style to be featured in her weekly Women Who Work column, and I'm so glad she did because I fell in love with her blog. She is in a similar situation I am (job dictates what she wears, smaller budget) but she wears the cutest outfits. I seriously want to steal all of skirts. Since I'm being featured this week (Thanks again Whitney!), I wanted to feature her back! Make sure you visit her blog and follow along!
1.
What is
your job?
I teach
Middle School Social Studies and coach the Middle School cheer squad. My job
requires that I take on all kinds of roles. In my classroom alone, I’m the CEO,
mentor, cheerleader, therapist, lecturer, researcher, creative director, head
of marketing and finance, party planner, organizer, actress, presenter,
scheduler, tech department, supplier, human resources department,
communications specialist, and counselor. On
occasion, I’m a singer and dancer, but I will spare you those visuals.
Do you
have a dress code? How does that define how you dress to work?
The
school where I work has a fairly formal dress code. The men are required to
wear ties and shirts with collars. Women have a little less restriction (it’s a
little harder to “pin down” an equivalent to ties and dress shirts), but we are
required to dress nicely. This means no jeans, sweatshirts, or flip flops.
What
challenges do you face (from your job) in terms of style?
Teachers
are expected to dress appropriately and professionally, but also have the
challenge of dressing comfortably. Also, teachers aren’t making bank, so they have a budget to consider. I think that all of
these factors cause many teachers to fall into what has best been described as
the teacher frump. You know what I’m
talking about—we’ve all had those teachers.
When I became a teacher, I made a vow to never
fall victim to those awful vests, ill-fitting-high-rise linen pants, and
orthotics sandals. I promised myself that I would work hard to reflect my
individual style, no matter how tempting the grandma chic trend became.
What are
your closet staples?
- Skirts! They are so versatile and I wear them year ‘round. A-Line skirts are so comfortable—and I can easily transition from walking around my classroom all day to sitting for hours at a basketball tournament. Pencil skirts are the very definition of classy professional—and they are easy to dress down or dress up.
- Tank tops/dressy tanks. These are definite musts for any teacher. I wear my tanks in every season—they work well with skirts, dress pants, jeans, and shorts. In cooler weather, all you have to do is throw on
- Cardigans. I’m a self-declared cardigan-aholic. For real. Toss one over a dress shirt, tank top, or even a dress and voila outfit!
- Bold Jewelry. I am a firm believer that jewelry can completely change the look of an outfit. I have been slightly obsessed with my bubble necklaces I bought on eBay, but my collection of statement jewelry has grown quite a bit since I became a teacher.
There you have it! Thank
you, Franziska, for having me on your blog!
