It doesn’t take rocket science to understand the importance of dressing appropriately. It goes without saying, that the way you dress can have a great impact on your life in general. And needless to mention, there is more to it on clothing than just covering your nakedness. The way you dress (and accessorize) can affect your physical, emotional, and mental well-being. As a matter of fact, it can also affect your spiritual wellness in a way. In a nutshell, every single piece of attire or clothing is created to serve a specific purpose and function. While some clothes are more appropriate for workplaces and formal gatherings, some are more suitable for the beach and sporting. On the same note, others are designed to be used for specific sporting activities. This is why we have casual, ceremonial, informal, and formal types of clothing.
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In a nutshell, how you look from outside can define how you are from under the skin. It can define you. It can determine other people’s perspective of what you are like. It can affect your attractiveness and likeability as well, not forgetting that it can also define how you carry yourself. It can also provide an outlook of your social status and in some cases, someone can even tell your age, tribe, nationality, or character from how you’re dressed.
Also, different clothes have different functions. For instance, you cannot wear a coat under a cardigan and you can not use your pants in the swimming pool. On the same note, as RibbedTee wrote a post about it here, T-shirts and undershirts, are different in a number of ways even though they’re sometimes confused to serve the same purposes. In this case, the major differences lie in the sleeve length, collar, fabric thickness, and shirt length, among others. But clearly, one of them is outerwear, whereas the other is innerwear. It is imperative to always choose what you put on carefully, understand its function, and know how to properly accessorize it. Doing this will allow you to ensure that each and every piece of clothing in your closet serves its proper purpose. But really, what is the importance of knowing your outfit’s function? Here are some pointers to help you decipher this.
Why it’s important to know your outfit’s function
1. Fashion and Style
Fashion and style are two of the most important driving factors in the clothing industry. In layman’s terms, fashion simply refers to new and trendy forms of clothing that pop up seasonally or from time to time and are widely accepted in society. Without some knowledge about the latest clothing trends, it is easy for someone top mistake you for outdated, with lack of taste and style. The thing is, clothing manufacturers are always coming up with new innovations and in this particular juncture, the main function of clothing is fashion and staying updated can help you look current. After all, who doesn’t want to look cool, stylish, and trendy in this age and day?
2. Clothing Defines Modesty
Modesty is another common reason you should know your outfit’s function. In Islam, for instance, religion requires that a person covers the greater part of their body. Also, unmarried women are required to cover their heads and faces at particular times of the month and most of the time when they get married. Well, this is the definition of modesty in this particular culture. In Christianity, you will often see the clergy dressed in specific types of clothing such as robes and gowns, especially when in church. In the streets, however, it is not a new thing to meet a woman dressed half-naked or even exposing more than 75% of their bodies. Simply put, the definition of modesty may vary from one place to the other, which makes it even more important to understand the function of your outfit before rocking in one.
3. Beauty
Even though the definition of beauty is a wide subject, the outfit you rock in can play a huge role in determining your attractiveness. As a matter of fact, beauty is considered one of the most important purposes of dressing up. Simply put, you look more attractive when you’re smartly dressed, and let’s face it, we all want to look attractive, or do we? For the ladies, you don’t want to go out with a dress that looks so 1950s to a dinner date, even when you’re rocking the hottest hairstyle in town and you’re glowing like a KUWTK diva. As a matter of fact, how you’re dressed can also affect your self-esteem and confidence in a huge way.
4. Social Status and Identification
Needless to reiterate, how you dress can tell a lot about you. At the same time, it can send a message that will affiliate you with a particular social group or status in society. When you cite a young boy dressed in tattered clothes in a war-torn country or one of the poorest countries in Africa, you can clearly tell that he comes from a poor family and feel remorse for them. On the other hand, when you see a tall guy dressed in a well-pressed formal suit, properly accessorized, will give the impression that he’s a mentally smart, trustworthy, and most likely wealthy guy.
5. Ceremonies, Rituals, and Celebrations
Can you wear the same outfit you wore for Halloween in Christmas? Absolutely not… Neither can you wear a wedding gown to a funeral. In short, some outfits are preserved for certain occasions and having some knowledge about this will obviously prevent you from looking out of place in such ceremonies. This is perhaps the origin of the popular phrase, dress for the occasion.
In summary, beauty, social status, modesty, occasions, and attractiveness will all be affected by the kind of outfit you put on. Additionally, certain occupations and weather patterns require you to put on appropriate clothes to ensure your safety and well being as well as your comfort, and convenience. These are just some of the many reasons why it is important to know your outfit’s function.
Images by Lalo Torres for Design SCENE
