Who wants to help a fashion-challenged parent?

[creekland]

My oldest has just been invited to 3 days of scholarship interviews and fellowship at his first choice college - a Christian College. As parents, we're also going along since the place is 11 hours from home. I'm thrilled - and hopeful.

 

BUT... we live in an area where people DON'T dress up. Studies have shown that people in a tie tend to be distrusted in areas like ours, so even though hubby is an engineer, he NEVER wears ties or anything more than Dockers and a nice shirt to township meetings, etc. He wears jeans to ordinary meetings. Only older folks wear suits to church - and even then, only a couple of older folks. Just as many are in jeans. When I teach at school I'm just in a nice pair of colored jeans (blue on Fridays) and a nice shirt or sweater. Our boys wear khakis and polo or rugby shirts to church - most teens wear tee-shirts. They don't even have good shoes - everyone wears sneakers - and I suppose hiking boots won't get across the message they're looking for either!

 

Now, even though I absolutely love living in an area where no one but the undertakers dress up, I KNOW life outside our area is different - especially, say, for scholarship interviews and dinners. Suffice it to say we don't have the attire I'm certain we need.

 

What do I buy for clothing? What's in style? What's not? Dark, Light, Pinstripes? Thin or Wide ties? Sweaters? Suits? Sports coats? I'm guessing khaki pants are still ok with any of the above except suits?

 

Due to our personal economy (REALLY hit hard in this recession) I'd like to check out local thrift shops before pulling out the credit cards to Sears, Penneys, or Bon Ton, but I seriously need to know what NOT to buy just because it's there and fits.

 

Some of you out there are bound to be more up to date than we are - a website with pics could also be helpful. What would you send your son in (assuming you were truly praying he'd GET one of the scholarships he's qualified to try for)? What would you and your hubby wear? It might not be possible for us adults to change during the day. Our son is staying on campus, so should be able to.

 

Another thought we've had is should I just stay home (to save money buying outfits) and send him with dad? However, I'd really like to see what they say/do since we are not very familiar with this college... it mainly has a major he's supremely interested in and seems decent with all other online research + we visited last April - hence, it's a major consideration IF we can afford it.

[sixglides]

Being a fashion challenged person myself, a few of my strategies, are...looking on what the mannequin's are wearing in the stores & taking notes, photos in magazines, I'll watch a few daytime talk shows to see what they are wearing. If I'm still having trouble, I ask a girlfriend to go shopping with me & help me.

[creekland]

Being a fashion challenged person myself, a few of my strategies, are...looking on what the mannequin's are wearing in the stores & taking notes, photos in magazines, I'll watch a few daytime talk shows to see what they are wearing. If I'm still having trouble, I ask a girlfriend to go shopping with me & help me.

 

Thanks. We took a short look in Goodwill today and they have quite a few suit and blazer options at really good prices ($10/suit!), so we'll go back when we have time for him to try things on. They also had a nice selection of sweaters and nicer looking pants. I guess the benefit of living in a place where so few people wear those types of clothes is that they are essentially pristine when people send them to Goodwill. Those prices suit our budget quite nicely too.

[newbie]

I would get some nice pleated khakis and v neck sweater to go under the blazer w/ crisp wt. collared shirt or something of a lite color.

[Cammie]

I would think your son would make a very nice impression in Khakis and a navy blue blazer. You need a few dress shirts that he can change under the blazer and the matching ties. You can change it up with a v-neck sweater over the shirts for a more casual appearance. For shoes, a pair of loafers or lace up dress schoes would be great.

 

For you - I would invest in a nice pair of black dress pants. Then you can wear them with anything. As long as you change the top you will be fine. Just a few dress tops or nice sweaters should do fine.

 

For dad - Kakis with button down shirts and sweaters really should be fine. Do you anticipate being taken out to a very nice restaurant - if so he might need a jacket. Otherwise I wouldn't think he would.

 

Have fun!

[Starr]

I'm not sure you need a white shirt. Look around on line and get a feel for what the guys are wearing. You know the kids are in jeans for classes so I would take some more casual clothes just in case. He might want to change in the evening in the dorm while hanging out with the other students.

[Marylou]

Did you go to the college's website and check out the photos of their students? That might give you some ideas.

[mom2abcd]

We just did this a couple of years ago!

 

Unless it's a very conservative-type school, I don't think suit jackets are necessary or helpful. Dockers-type pants and a sweater with a collared shirt under it would be plenty dressy, IMHO. Even a dress shirt with slacks should be fine. (Ties are optional now as you can see in the photos below). You should be able to find khaki, navy, and black cotton blend pants at a thrift store, but you may have to look elsewhere for a shirt or sweater that isn't too dated. Shoes... a good pair of brown ones will work with khaki and navy.

 

Do go with them if you can. No one can advise like a mom:o) And if he does end up going there, you'll feel more comfortable knowing something about the college and town. (Do dress warmly if the college is in a cold part of the country. I remember spending lots of time outdoors on tours, etc. in bitterly cold winter weather!)

 

http://www.eddiebauer.com/EB/Men/Business-Casual/index.cat

http://www.bodenusa.com/en-US/Mens-Shirts.html#nav

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/mens.jsp

http://www.eddiebauer.com/EB/Men/Pants-by-Fit/index.cat

 

http://www.ehow.com/how_41_dress-business-casual.html

 

Here's a site that suggests something dressier for job interviews.

http://www.askandyaboutclothes.com/WWW/WWW/Job%20Interviewing.htm

 

For shoes, I would choose something similar to these:

http://www.zappos.com/clarks-xsara-brown-oily-leather

http://www.amazon.com/Red-Tape-Mens-Palisades-Brown/dp/B001N0LLWM/ref=sr_1_34?ie=UTF8&s=shoes&qid=1262928746&sr=1-34

 

I hope the thrift stores or resale shops have just what you need! Have fun!

Edited January 8, 2010 by mom2abcd

[creekland]

Many thanks for all the great specific advice and pics! And yes, I have been on the college's website looking at pics. I found some from last year's scholarship weekend, so feel fairly confident with the basics for that, but they didn't have any for the actual interviews or good ones from dinner. In general, men/students associated with the college were in suits or blazers. Prospective students were dressed as y'all suggested with anything from just a shirt/slacks to sweaters from the few photos I saw that included young men. I know there's no dress code for regular classes, so we'll remember to send him with 'basic' clothes too. He can change before important stuff.

 

I'm assuming whatever we buy should be able to go with him to college for times he'd need to dress up a little. Hopefully he's done with his major growth spurts. Time will tell. Hmm, that gets me wondering. Gettysburg College is only 25 minutes from here. Perhaps it's worth it to head to thrift shops near the college in case students there outgrew what their parents sent them with?

[mom2abcd]

Perhaps it's worth it to head to thrift shops near the college in case students there outgrew what their parents sent them with?

 

Ds loves thrift stores and I've been to two of them in his college town. I don't think there are any more college-type clothes there than at most other thrift stores. It's worth a try, though.