Heels vs. flat shoes: what's cooler, stilettos or ballet flats?
Showing your breasts, a new status symbol (and it is not the first time it has happened in history)
If you are
a millennial,
you have probably celebrated at some point in your life
the lack of dress code,
casual Fridays or the
jeans
and
blazer
combo as a lifesaver to long
days at the office.
However, if you are from a later generation, you may have debuted
a hybrid work format
or even
started your career remotely,
something that has meant a change of perspective that looks at the closet from scratch.
Given this, the office as a concept of yesteryear is not only forgotten, but also the 'dress code' guidelines on which we grew up (and aspire to be movie 'girl bosses') have been relegated to an almost fictional level. Women like
Melanie Griffith or Sigourney Weaver,
who inspired an entire generation in the late 80s on the big screen and set precedents on the importance of
not hiding (and desiring) power
in the workplace as men did, have today
some renewed codes
regarding the importance of this clothing.
The office look today according to TikTok
Thus, the most active generation on TikTok has created a trend rescued halfway between the heroines of 'rom-coms', the
'business casual'
outfits that their working mothers saw and also the
most rancid section
of any chain of fashion; all of this, rising in 2024 as one of the most sought-after styles of autumn-winter 2023/24. And it has a proper name:
Office Siren.
The reasons for this 'comeback'? Sensuality, a sense of
individuality and many pop culture references
(from
Rachel Green
to
Samantha Jones)
that are added to this combo that is already successful in street style but also has its origins on the catwalks.
Ralph Lauren, Dolce & Gabbana, Calvin Klein or
Tom Ford
's Gucci are some of the
90s
references
that precede what is already one of the most feminine trends of the season (along with the already very viral
coquette style).
This return
to the more conservative roots of businesswear
draws, in turn, from two other major trends:
Y2K and the 90s,
both with a shared aesthetic in terms of
minimalism, nostalgia
and "less is more." Thus, and with this maxim of creating their own
slightly outdated styles,
generation Z has not only found a trend on which to create new content, but is demonstrating (as has happened with
Old Money
or
Mob Wife)
more and more that
the old is susceptible to becoming new,
and vice versa.
Pencil skirt, shirt... Office Siren uniform.LAUNCHMETRICS SPOTLIGHT.
The Office Siren style in three keys
But what really is an Office Siren in 2024? To begin with, this term recovers a trend that involves
'dressing for work'
consciously and
embracing sobriety.
Despite this mimicry with the 90s and early 2000s styles already mentioned, the new Office Siren also rescues attributes (and a lot of inspiration in time-space) of the
'college core'
and, above all, the
'librarian core' .
Namely, three 'sine qua non' pieces:
dress skirts
(in this case, tube or pencil);
a fluid, basic and fitted shirt
(another 'must' that returns this season) or
a collared sweater,
and
cardigans or blazers.
Blazer and shirt, Office Siren combo.LAUNCHMETRICS SPOTLIGHT.
The novelty is that the
classic high heels
are exchanged for
sneakers,
in the same way that
the jacket is exchanged for a sweatshirt
or the tights for socks, in a
'sartorial totum revolutum'
halfway between all the trends that we see. has left street style lately. Thus, 'twists' are not only allowed, but
are necessary to deviate from the most strictly normative.
The truth is that not only TikTok fans have succumbed to the trend, the
Miu Miu
show has catapulted and helped shape a multitude of proposals from designers who embrace references halfway between a business world and a 'nerd' style. '. What's more, model
Bella Hadid
has been described as a precursor and absolute inspiration of this trend, especially for her 'off-duty' looks.
Bella Hadid, her glasses and her low-cut shirts, are a reference to the Office Siren.GETTY IMAGES
Not without controversy
Despite having been created from
the fantasy of entertainment
and the
icons of feminist liberation
elevated by the media (and capitalist culture), this trend has already generated
a few detractors.
Despite the vintage nature of its origin, the network has encountered reluctance to this style and has added to
the controversy
regarding what should or should not be worn in an office environment.
Consequently, many users of social platforms have called it
sexist or discriminatory,
while other people have highlighted an evident concern about wearing clothes to work such as
low-cut tops, eccentric stockings or corseted outfits
that can, in many cases, relegate the relaxed current 'dress code'. There is also no shortage of those who see
an apology for capitalism
(or its quintessential style of dress) in the era of teleworking after Covid or hybrid employment.
Low-cut or sexy shirts are the wardrobe staple of the TikTok trend.LAUNCHMETRICS SPTOLIGHT
Its defenders, however, consider it
another form of expression
under this new freedom of dress, which
does not need to be used strictly in the office
and which, even if this is the case, disdains to adapt purely to masculine codes. The focus is on
differentiation and inventiveness,
without forgetting that the outfit can also enhance the fact of
being respected and admired
in the corporate world as well (and not just on the red carpet).
In addition, many users claim the power to
make use of sensuality
and the absolute representation of
the feminine
also from an office outfit. "The woman who represents this has ambition, she likes to assume her femininity, and she doesn't mind being judged.
She proves herself through her actions,"
a TikTok user told WWW ( Who What Wear) recently.
Women's weapons, a little history
Contrary to current usage, in the 1940s 'dressing like a woman' involved wearing
skirts, heels and jewelery
as required attire in shops and offices. In the book
'Dress Like A Woman'
(Abrams, 2018) the American author, professor and commentator
Roxane Gay
assures that this expression involves "dressing in very prescribed ways that imply a rigid brand of femininity and satisfy the male gaze", suggesting that women are "simply
decorative elements
in the workplace" and ignoring their individuality under the various ideas of how they want to present themselves to the world.
'Woman's weapons', the 'power dressing' of the 80s.DR
Marlene Dietrich
was arrested in 1944 for wearing pants, another proof that
the men's wardrobe has been a subversive element for the women's
(and vice versa), empowering women with suits (courtesy of
Chanel and Dior),
blazers with impossible shoulder pads , shirts and even ties. After
Yves Saint Laurent
's revolutionary tuxedo
in 1966, the division between genders in workwear would continue until the 1970s and its sexual revolution, which banished the pants in favor of the
miniskirt
as a symbol of the fight for equality rights.
Finally, in the 80s and, specifically with
Giorgio Armani,
the women's uniform was transformed into a version of the men's uniform thanks to
pantsuits
in neutral tones and blazers that did not fit the body. Finally, the incorporation of heels (after switching to
sneakers
only for public transport) finishes cementing the concept of 'power dressing', which now translates into clothing and accessories as generational as fanny packs
or Adidas Gazelle.
Ultimately, today's Siren Office lives in a world of ephemeral, cyclical and, above all, increasingly
nostalgic trends,
whose challenge is
to serve to entertain without (of course) enslaving
or turning women into objects.
Gisele Bündchen in 'The Devil Wears Prada' is the inspiration for the Office Siren.DR
The truth is that, perhaps at first, it is difficult to imagine why a 22-year-old would want to dress like
Diane Keaton
in 'Who Called the Stork?', the protagonist of 'Legally Blonde' or the office clackers. from 'Runway' in
'The Devil Wears Prada'
but, didn't you want to do it too?
Fashion trends