In my closet

This subject has come up time and time again. For a wonderful cover on the topic, check out Dr. Bik's blog post in DeepSeaNews. But I thought I'd give my personal perspective on......fashion in the lab.

I grew up in DC, where my idea of a successful adult was largely molded by the suits and lavish two-piece outfits on Capitol Hill. I knew that when I grew up, I too would wear beautiful blouse, tailored pants, cute skirts, and heels....heels for days! However, my love of science began early, and soon my dreams of cute outfits diminished to socially acceptable duds that wouldn't get destroyed in the field or around chemicals in a lab. The more I feel like an adult though, the more I start to wonder why I can't still be the fashionista I envisioned - just the scientist edition.

By all means, if you're most comfortable in jeans and a tee, go for it, especially in my environment. I definitely wouldn't dress up for the field - that's beyond impractical. In that case I'll break out my Keens! But I'm very much a "dress to impress" type of gal. I try to look pulled together for classes and work (OK, so sometimes I get lazy, like on weekends when I'm the only person in the lab or going in for a final). I was taught to dress properly when visiting the house of the Lord, and while I've downgraded to jeans for church, I still feel a need to dress them up so it looks like I put some sort of effort into my appearance. I see a bit of this in my lab, but more often than not it's jeans or shorts and a tee. But I encourage anyone else who likes to put together outfits on a daily basis to go ahead, build up a cute wardrobe and share it with the world! Even if half the time I just end up sharing my growing sense of style with baby clams :/

As a random example, I would love this top:

Old Navy....hey, I'm on a RA salary here.

and a white sweater in case it's chilly, with black trousers or my dark wash trouser jeans.

Old Navy

Maybe finish off the look with some sparkle?

Payless.

Anyways, that's my goal. As I'm now halfway through my program and am starting to think seriously about conferences and jobs, not only will I be armed with awesome interview/first impression attire, but I'll feel comfortable and invincible in them :)

Fact of the Post: A Science article I recently read for my seminar concluded that the beloved Triceratops is actually the juvenile of another dinosaur species.

Goo goo gah gah