What’s Acceptable, What’s Not

The consensus on acceptable fashions in the office:

Sheer fabrics: No.

Retro hippie clothes: No.

Floppy poet’s blouses: Yes, but only if sleeves do not cover the hands.

Grunge hair or clothes: Acceptable only in entertainment-industry offices.

Layered, unconstructed separates: OK, except in the most conservative offices.

Long jackets: Yes.

Long skirts: Yes, unless they’re so long you trip over them.

Short skirts: Yes, but standards vary from office to office. Merrill Lynch allows skirts no higher than one inch above the knee. Most others find the standard 18-inch skirt preferable. In offices that allow creative dress, the sky’s the limit as long as underwear doesn’t show.

Slits in longer skirts: Yes, but only to the point where a miniskirt would stop. See above.

Hats: In general, no.

Pants and pantsuits: Yes in all offices, though some discourage them.

Jeans: Acceptable in entertainment-industry offices.

Bare midriff blouses: No.

Leather: Yes, in many offices, if tailored and seen as a fashion item.

Wrinkled linen: Yes in summer.

Sleeveless clothes: OK for summer except at Merrill Lynch.