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Perhaps the daytime heat this month was the fact that it actually melted the glue that kept the sandals together. Nonetheless, I stepped into the office from the tube, but maybe toast. Or the decision to wear a three-piece suit with Green Ireland tweed was odd along with his creepy face and reading questions. The book he embraced was titled snowballed in hell. Just sitting near him melted.
I plunged into the cauldron, the red line to the city during London’s heat wave, and whatever moment I really snapped, made me question the summer job choices of capital commuters.
In this heat, neither Londoners nor our transport networks are really prepared, we tend to literally hang out all of it. I’ve seen people who don’t even bother to put on too secret jean fasteners. Less muffins tops and more bakeries at the show.
But hopefully Grayson Perry can be blessed with Hello! Should magazines to “sway” his airy crocodile at a reception hosted by the King, think it’s okay to sway with espa drills and shorts?
Obviously, our friends in tweed suits are rare exceptions to stick to something clever if they’re uncomfortable. The other day I praised another gentleman in his formal attire, and he was a Freemason. He told me that even the young men at his lodge enjoy dressing wisely. “When it became smart casual, it was a nightmare,” he complained. “Jeans? Chino?”
To me, men’s work outfits look like nightmares that sweat all year round. They also need some swirling options. Chaps looks great in the salon, and will help you revisit David Beckham’s experiments in the 1990s using this classic piece. But others alk at such a laid back look – we all paint red, sweaty lines. Sensing disapproval limits observations to women’s clothing, as they adapt to London’s extraordinary heat waves.
Personally, I hate shorts at work. I know that other cities around the world consider shorts and jackets to be objects. But we are too far from the coast to make this reasonable here. Are you an actual lifeguard? Then stop.
Perhaps the answer is to reconstruct what lies behind your wardrobe. Even sandals of all kinds, elevated flip-flops (leather, flatform, or decorative in some way) have been adopted by many Londoners to dress up office occasion clothes. This means that, for example, smart but floating dresses purchased for weddings or big parties can be repositioned as broadcast daywear. He’s smart. When I adopt this device myself, I worry that it’s a little too close to the aesthetic of a “wife” person. However, if you can concentrate more on your work due to less suffering in your body, you may be able to make temporary exceptions due to frills and fur.
Therefore, ultra-feminine attires get a summer office corridor pass (except for the strap heels and charmers obviously). But the most elegant option for women I’ve ever seen is the adaptation of that swelling gentleman’s suit. Although it is a male vest, I wore a cotton or linen and a sun shirt and tie. It’s a bit of an action movie heroine and a bit of a tongue Gordon Gecko. It’s attractive and has plenty of ventilation.
The old saying was that you had to dress for the job you wanted, not for the job you wanted. It’s fine and very dandy. But what do we make from commuters who abandon all standards in this extreme heat?
I would still argue that it is a symbolic device of ambition – not just a kind. They are in and out of jobs they want to leave on the beach or back garden barbecue. And it certainly gives a reality check on every headline regarding shoulder pad return.
The only thing I say is that this outward expression of seasonal “quiet stop” should not extend to personal hygiene. You are being warned.
miranda.green@ft.com
