, TRINIDAD MUNICIPAL COLLEGE

Poblacion, Trinidad, Bohol

Bachelor of Science in Office Administration
SEMI-FINAL MODULE IN PDPR
(Personality Development and Public Relation)

CHAPTER 6: THE BASIC WARDROBE

Clothing is for protection, comfort, modesty, and enhancement of your beauty. To put
anything that is in appropriate, gaudy, vulgar, or otherwise offensive to others detracts from your
appearance.

Appropriateness above all- the best rule is always to dress within the bounds of classic good
taste. Good materials and lines embellished with elegance- rather than flamboyance or modish
extremes-are the unfailing guidelines that will insure you comfort and ease. Fashion is serious.
What you wear reveals a significant message about you and your world. Even if you do not care
about your clothes, they communicate much about your attitudes toward the occasion, your
company, and yourself.

TAKING STOCK:
Ask yourself the following questions:
Has my body size, weight, height, proportion changed?
Has my lifestyle changed?
Has my attitude changed?
Have my friends, school or workplace changed?
What amount of time do I have to devote to the upkeep of my wardrobe?
What are my monetary limitations?
What impression do I want to make?
Do I want to make any changes in my current style?
How can I express my adaptation of the season’s trends without sacrificing my fashion
statement?
Is there a role, or roles, I would enjoy acting out through dressing as I seek to discover
varied facets of my nature?

Whenever people meet you, they form an instant judgment, even if it’s on a
subconscious level. This is what is called “first impression”. This is on a visual level and it
crystallizes even before you even open your mouth. The second impression is formed after
you utter your first sentence which forms the 10% of the first impression. The viewer is
forming that impression and making decision concerning the following factors:
1. Economic level
2. Educational level
3. Social position
4. Level of sophistication
5. Family background
6. Successfulness
7. Moral Character.

ASSEMBLING BASIC A WARDROBE

The Basic
 Basics are the mainstays of your wardrobe, the treasures upon which to
sprinkle the sugar and spice of the season’s trends. A good basic wardrobe is money
in the bank, a wonderful resource for unexpected invitations.

1. Clean up your closet- go through your clothes in your closet and cabinets. It is
impossible to have a well-planned, successful look when your closet is full of odds
and ends that you have bought through the years. Start with a pile of “if only”
items. These are items that you could wear “if only”- I were thinner, “if only” it
were not out of style
‘if only” there are no missing buttons, etc.
2. Know your figure- Look for yourself over in front of a full-length mirror,- do you
have a short figure, a thin frame, small bones, large bones; are you tall, fat short,
slim?- Know your type before you start on your shopping trip.
3. Shop wisely and well- Since your clothing needs are determined by your lifestyle,
ask yourself where you spend 75% of your time. Is it home. Work, school, socials,
travel or sport? You should also take your budget into consideration. If you are still
a student, from now on, do not buy informal clothes.

YOUR CLOSET
Think of your closet as a resource for your lifestyle. Your closet should be set up exactly like
a fine specialty shop. It must be scrupulously clean and free of junk.m Blouses, shirts, skirts or
pants, sweaters, dresses should be grouped together. Colors should be stored in marked boxes at
eye level for quick selection. Robes and evening clothes should be hung so that they do not touch
the floor. One section of the closet might be double-racked to hang pants, skirts, blouses.

YOUR SEARCH FOR STYLE

To achieve true style your clothing and accessories must complement and complaint your
body and be an expression of your body and be an expression of your individuality. This does not
mean that you can ignore style and fashion, which, incidentally are not synonymous. Style is
timeless and fashion is changing, current, even trendy. Style is lasting and durable while fashion is
fickle and commercial. Style is the best of all past fashion- the features that have proven to be the
most flattering, the most comfortable, and the most practical.

DRESSING FOR THE OCCASION

Dressing for the occassion not only upgrades manners, it also enhances the poise and
personality of the host/hostless and her guests and sparks their spirits. There are too many
temptations to misbehave in dress as there are in conduct. To avoid them, let good taste be your
motto. In dressing to present yourself properly to others, and to pass the test of the first impression-
to try to:
 Dress properly to befit the occasion
 Interpret the season’s fashion’s based upon the timeless qualities of past traditions
 Incorporate individual flair and style
 Keep a keen sense of appropriateness not only to the occasion but also to your figure, lifestyle,
and age.

Remember: It is more important to adhere to the rules of appropriates than to the dictates of
fashion.

SHOPPING RULES
Good shopping alone- or with a single friend whose taste you trust. Avoid a pack of people.
Many serious mistakes are made through impulse buying under pressure of a vocal group. Be sure
that you are attractively dressed and groomed, wearing the proper undergarments for the kinds of
clothes you will be trying on. Find a sales -person and tell him what you are looking for. Listen to
his suggestions if he impresses you as knowledgeable and sincere.
When searching for items to add to the clothes you already have, consider versatility. Do
not choose a costly blouse/skirt that goes with nothing in your closet, or that complements a
skirt/pants that may have only a few months of wear left. Choose what you feel has the staying
power to become a tradition and what works well with your on-hand wardrobe inventory. Do not
overlook underclothing. Not only are the right undergarments important in achieving a finished
look, but fresh and pretty ones make you feel lovely and sexy.

SHOPPING STRATEGIES
Preshopping or window shopping recommended before actual buying. Clothes are expensive
and mistakes are both expensive and time-consuming. After you have locked over your closet and
have removed clothes that you will no longer use, look at styles in various magazines and stores.
Determine what you need for work and make sure you try on clothes before buying them to see if
they actually fit you.

Dressing for a shopping trip- Wear make up. It will give you a better idea of how the
garment will actually look when you wear it for that particular occasion.

SHOPPING TRAPS TO AVOID:

1. Think twice before shopping with a friend. A friend is a distraction and may keep you from
focusing on what you came for.
2. A friend’s taste and aims may be different from yours.
3. A friend may choose clothes which he/she would choose for himself/herself, but not appropriate
for you.
4. Avoid shopping out of loneliness. Bake a cake or take up some sport instead. Shopping for the
wrong reasons brings out wrong results.
5. Don’t shop for bargins. Don’t judge a merchandise by its price.

LINES IN THE CLOTHES

The ideal look is the slim look. Your choice of clothes then should be aimed at achieving this look.
You should take stock of your good and bad points and select only those outfits whose lines will do
the most for you. A line can be created by a row of buttons, lace, a seam, fancy stitches, etc. A line
must not emphasize a figure fault but draw the eye away from it.
 The vertical line- the line which runs lengthwise from head to toe. It creates an illusion of height
and makes a person look taller, it is ideal for the plump person.
 The horizontal line- a line cutting across from side to side is a horizontal line. It cuts height and
adds width. Contrasting colors in two-piece outfits create horizontal lines and minimize height.
The tunic style or a waist length jacket shortens a person much more.

COLOR : THE LINK IN THE TOTAL LOOK

The first principle in decorating yourself is understanding not only what colors are right for
you, but which shades and clarities of those colors you should wear. There are advancing colors or
warm colors that make an object appear larger. The retreating colors make a person appear
smaller and far away. The advancing colors are reds, yellows, and oranges. The retreating colors
are greens, blues, and violets.
Clarity refers to the clearness or purity of a color.

YOUR COLOR SPECTRUM

Combinations of colors are:
1. Monochromatic- this color combination results in the use of the same color, but different shades.
(brown, light brown, beige)
2. Complementary- this results in the use of two colors, opposite each other in the color wheel. (red
and green, blue and yellow, etc.
3. Analogous- this combination uses two colors beside each other in the color wheel. (blue and
green, yellow and orange, red and purple, etc.)
4. Triadric - this combination is made up of three colors that form an equidistant triangle on the
color wheel. These are purple, green, and yellow; red, blue and green, etc.

Your best colors are found in your body’s natural color scheme- your skin, hair, eyes, and
lips. The rest of your best colors complement, or go with, all of your body colors and are equally
flattering to wear. Example:
1. BEIGE- your best beige is the color of your skin, match it exactly.
2. BROWN- your best brown is your hair color.
3. GRAY- if you have reached gray-hair stage of life, your best gray is the color of your gray hair.
4. WHITE OR OFF-WHITES- your best white should not be whiter or brighter than your teeth.
Almost everyone should avoid grayish whites.
5. RED- your body’s natural blood color. It’s when you blush or flush.
6. BLUE- If blue is your eye color, match it. If it isn’t in your eyes, it is a complementary color of
you.
7. GREEN- just like blue, the green of your eye color is your best green. The best green is one with
a clear tone or closest to a jade or emerald.
8. YELLOW- most people have yellow in their eyes. The best yellow to use is one that is not too
bright for your coloring.
9. BLACK- some look good in black. Others, the best shade would be a brown black or blue black.
If your hair is black, black will be a very effective color for you.
10. NAVY- Navy’s can be nautical blue, bright navy, or royal navy.

FACTORS AFFECTING CHOICE OF COLORS

A person should know how to use colors more effectively to enhance her personality. Choice
of color is not expensive, but it can add a lot to achieve that smart look.
1. Color of skin, eyes, and hair- The Filipino’s “kayumangi” complexion looks best in shades of
coral, orange-reds, browns, greenish blues.
2. Personality-is an important factor in the choice of colors. The colors should make you feel right.
A bright, red dress may disturb you if you are shy and retiring.
3. Occasion-office clothes should not be as bright as sports clothes. Evening clothes should be
dramatic than daytime clothes. As whole, office clothes should be more conservative, more subdued
than clothes for social.

SKIRTS
Skirts are a working woman’s chief means of multiplying her wardrobe. She should have at
least one straight style, with a split or pleat. A- line skirts are also basic and figure flattering.
Pleated styles, on the other hand, generally require a taller, thinner figure to look most attractive.
Two solid skirts, a third in a plaid, and fourth in a print in the styles mentioned.

Blouses- The most popular blouse is the man-tailored blouse with sports collar and front
buttons. This is popularly called the “trubenized” shirt, only a few basic colors are needed to have a
variety of uses- beige, cream and white. Blouses with pleats and tucks or shirring
 Suits- for junior executives to the executive level, suits are a must. The basic linen or light
wool suit is an invaluable fashion must for the working man/woman. A dress with a jacket could be
an attractive alternative to a suit.

Dresses- A basic daytime dress should be chosen for versatility. The most common office
dress is the shirtwaist which looks like a “trubenized” man-tailored bodice with front buttons,
usually all the way down the skirt. This is worn with a loosely fitting belt made of the same
material. The sheath style dress has no waist, but is also tied loosely with a belt to give it that casual
look.

Blazers- Blazers and jackets are very much a part of today’s look. The combination of a
jacket’s style and fabric determines how dressy it is. You might start with a black or gray blazer,
pairing it with a slightly a-lines or slim skirt. The blazer can also be worn over some dresses.

Evening wear- This falls into three categories: formal, informal, and leisure. Formal is
usually a long evening dress.This hould be as simple and elegant if it is meant to be worn for many
occasions. Informal could be a two-piece outfit like a long skirt or wideleg pants, blouses, scarves
and probably velvet blazers. Dresses should be of soft fabrics like quiana, jersey or chippon.

Men Fashions- for the office, the most common attire is a polo barong or barong shirt for
formal meetings. Polo shirts with sports collar is acceptable for clerks and messengers. For evening
wear, the most acceptable dress for men is the barong in jusi or the suit or “coat and tie” and of
course the tuxedo in the most formal occasions.

MEN’S BUSINESS SUIT

Business wear for men is fairly uniform and differences depend on the individual and
differences depend on the individual’s nationality, profession, and location. The most formal
businessman’s outfit is a dark suit with a white or light blue skirt and conservative tie. There are
three main categories of suit cut: (1) The ivy league suit, (2) the updated Americam cut, and
(3)the,Continental suit. The latter is the most fashionable having large shoulders and more
exaggerated lapel. The native barong or polo barong, short sleeves for informal and long sleeves for
formal is also considered correct business dress.
“Black tie” which designates a tuxedo is one kind of formal evening wear. A black suit is
one kinf of formal evening wear. Formal business wear includes:

 Suits in wool or natural fibers in neutral or dark colors

 Light pastel or geometric-pattern long-sleeve shirts without button down collars
 Ties in stripes, conservative solid colors, or simple motifs
 Conservative accessories (shoes, belts, purses, etc)
 Combinations of solids and patterns, with no more than two patterns per outfit.
 Long-sleeved barong

Informal business wear is worn most often by people in creative professions, such as
advertising, publishing, entertainment, and fashion-oriented industries, like retailing and
manufacturing. Informal wear is often casual. A more casual combination of a dark blazer or
sports coat and slacks are acceptable. Informal business wear includes:
 Sports jacket with mix-and-match ensembles
 Softer,more comfortable pants and colors
 Less somber colors and men can add bolder patterns
 More fashion influences, bolder accessories
THE TERMS OF DRESS
Casual dress denotes sports or relaxed attire and is appropriate for barbecues, patio
and pool parties, casual suppers, and sporting events. A woman may choose slacks
or skirts. Skirts may be mini, shor, mid-caf or long, but only of daytime fabrics.
Informal dress- before six oclock signifies an afternoon dress for woman and for
man “coat and tie” (which before six in the evening may be a sports jacket or blazer
worn with a tie) or a dark or light business suit (depending upon the season and
geographical location).
Semiformal dress- connotes that the woman wears short or long cocktail, party, or
dinner dress or suit of a dressy to very dressy fabric; evening dress with jacket.
Before six o’clock the man wears a dark suit and after six may wear a dark suit or a
dinner jacket with a black silk bow tie (properly referred to as dinner jacket, “black
tie”, or le smoking, but commonly called “tuxedo” or “tux”)
Formal dress- means a woman wears a late afternoon dress and the man a dark suit
before six o’clock , formal dress falls into two categories :”black tie and white tie”
Black tie- denotes a double or single-breasted dinner jacket with satin or grosgrain
faille lapels; matching trousers without cuffs and with a narrow strip of faile or
satin down the sides to match the lapels of dinner jacket; starched white shirt with
tucked front and wing or folded collar and French cuffs, worn with studs and
cufflinks.
White tie- denotes full dress. The woman wears a ball gown and real jewelry if she
has. The man wears a long black tailcoat with satin lapels and matching trousers
with narrow braid stripe; black patent pumps and black silk stockings; white pique
waistcoat.