Image of a wooden vintage shoe stretcher on a weathered dresser.

Special thanks to all of the people who took the time to answer my questions, including David Dolff, Samantha Cutrara, Tina Adcock, Sarah Van Vugt, Danielle Lorenz, Catherine Ulmer, Michelle-Kelly Hogan, Tarisa Dawn Little, Gillian Leitch, Krista McCracken, Claire Campbell, Maddie Knickerbocker, Wendy McElroy, Carol Lynn, Crystal Fraser, Ling Ling Ang, Anne Dance, Krystl Raven, Danielle Robinson, Vanessa McLeod, Shannon Stettner, Anne Marie Lane Jonah, Tarah Brookfield, Erin Millions, Aisha Wynter, Michelle Desveaux, Anne Janhunen, Mary Chaktsiris, Stephanie Pettigrew, Beth A. Robertson, Shirley Tillotson, Janis Thiessen, Linda Steer, Tracey Kinney, Blair Stein, Christine Corcos, Kesia Kvill, Jenny Leigh Smith, Katy Kole de Peralta, Elise Chenier, Caroline Durand, Laura Ishiguro, and Jennifer Hoyt. Extra special thanks to Sarah Van Vugt, Krystl Raven, Erin Millions, Kesia Kvill, Laura Ishiguro, Caroline Durand, and Krista McCracken for feedback on an earlier draft of this paper!

I recently put out a call on my Facebook page asking for recommendations for comfortable black dress shoes for someone who hates heels. Long story short, my old reliable black flats were dead, and the cobbler said they were too decrepit to even repair. Since I was going to be in Ottawa soon (more on this later), however, I needed to find something. I received a ton of awesome recommendations from friends of mine. They were so good in fact that I thought they deserved their own blog post.

When many of us first start teaching, clothing can be a fraught issue. We struggle to look professional while also still being comfortable. Lecturing involves a great deal more physical activity than many of us realize – standing on your feet for one to three hours takes its toll. Most classes also tend to be taught in older buildings, which don’t necessarily have air conditioning or heating, or even windows that open. So, in today’s blog post, I’m going to give you some great recommendations for teaching in comfort and style, from me and an awesome group of other educators. This isn’t necessarily a very original idea,  and there have even been some great blogs on the subject (RIP Academichic). However, most of these are American, and don’t really help us Canadians. Not only do we have different stores here, but Canadian classrooms have their own norms regarding dress. One important note: while most blog posts of this nature target women specifically (something I’ll deal with further on), I wanted to make sure that this specific post was inclusive of any and all genders. That is why I have divided it into clothing categories, rather than breaking things down by gender. And most importantly, while these are just some recommendations, I think it’s important to emphasize that you should wear what makes YOU feel comfortable and stylish. Enjoy!

As usual, one quick caveat: There continue to be significant variations by field and by country in what is considered appropriate dress. In my experience, Canada tends to be much more casual than the United States, particularly in the Humanities and Social Sciences. I can’t remember ever seeing a professor wearing a suit to class. For the most part, people tend to go with variations on business casual. Those in Fine Arts tend to have more leeway in terms of creativity, while those in Law tend to dress more conservatively in suits or dresses. However, this will of course vary from institution to institution, and depend to a large extent on campus culture.

Finally, as one commentator noted, in the vast majority of cases, it is important to remember that it is never ok to talk about another person’s body, appearance, or clothing choices, no matter the circumstances. Even well-intentioned and seemingly-innocent remarks can be problematic, misread, and can make folks feel uncomfortable. It is equally important not to police other people’s clothing choices according to what you feel is acceptable. We could all use a little more kindness in our world, and it’s always ok to compliment someone on a nice outfit. But it is also our responsibility to do the work necessary to make everyone feel included and safe. Or, in the immortal words of Etsy, be kind, be brave, and be strong.

 

The Politics of Respectability and Clothing as Protection

Before I get into specific advice, I wanted to address the fact that clothing can be a very fraught issue for professors. – there are several deal of systemic issues here to unpack. Spend five minutes doing a Google image search for the word “professor” and can you can see why. The culturally dominant image of the professor in much of the Western world is that of a white, heterosexual, cis-gendered man. As such, a very specific image of what it means to be “professional” has entered the cultural consciousness, and anyone who does not fit into this very narrow image often faces serious challenges to their credibility and authority. Folks who do not fit into these categories are often advised to dress in a manner that is not “distracting” and will demonstrate “authority.” In practice this often means wearing dark colours, structured clothing, minimal accessories,  and, for women-identified professors, wearing makeup (though not too much!). In general, folks are told to err on the side of more professional, since, as one expert put it, “women trade off more power than men when they dress down, so need to dress up to gain the same level of respect.” While in this case the expert was speaking about women-identified professionals, I think the same applies to all marginalized scholars.

Eric Anthony Grollman refers to this style as “professional boy drag,” in his fantastic piece about authority and authenticity in academic dress. In the piece, Grollman discusses the challenges of being a fat, queer, and brown boy and how it has become necessary for him to demonstrate his competence and qualifications through his physical appearance, specifically by dressing in a “professional” manner. Doing so is a strategic decision that is often necessary for protection, even though it is physically and emotionally uncomfortable. As he notes,

sometimes the joke is on me because bias cannot be reasoned with; you cannot win a logical argument with ignorance, after all.  I may only be fooling myself by thinking that I can hide behind the master’s clothes to gain status in the master’s house.  But, so long as I see others’ bodies policed for being “unprofessional,” too feminine, too masculine, too queer, too poor, too fat, too “urban,” — too anything other than white middle-class heterosexual cisgender masculine man — I worry looking too much like an Outsider will eventually lead me to be pushed out for good.[…] I am trading authenticity on this front to avoid threatening my success on other fronts.  As a marginalized academic, my only option seems to be which poison to drink; I have chosen the cocktail of success, inauthenticity, discomfort, and delusion.  That is, in hopes that my work will prevent future generations from having to make this choice.

Speaking personally, as a cis-gendered, straight, white-coded, Jewish, and young-looking scholar with a zaftig figure, I have often struggled to ensure that my appearance is sufficiently “professional” when I am teaching. I cannot tell you how many times I have been mistaken for a student, even sometimes in my own classroom. But I’ve also learned that when it comes to students, you have to project authority and confidence in order to be taken seriously. So I taught myself how to dress professionally from the ground up, relying on blogs and YouTube tutorials to teach me what to do. I never appear in a classroom unless I am wearing business-casual style clothing and full makeup, even though at home I am a sweatpant-devotee who can’t be bothered to brush her hair some days. Over the years I have softened a bit, better able to balance my desire to look professional, while still being “me.” But it has not been an easy road.

And I know that my experiences are far from unique. For instance, Sarah Van Vugt commented: “When I was actually teaching, I was always uncomfortable. I felt like I had to have a certain look to be taken seriously (I am very short and “cute” 😬) so I wore stuff I hated. In later years I figured out professional clothes that I find comfortable AND that make me feel confident and powerful, which I now think I is WAY more key than any specific look.” Blair Stein also commented that: “I (young, white, cis woman in the humanities) have learned to dress like myself instead of what a “professor” is supposed to look like. My whole first year of teaching i felt like I was wearing a costume, and correcting that involves training both my wardrobe and my brain.”

While thus far I have focused mostly on gender and age, as usual, the stakes are much higher for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour, gender non-conforming folks, trans folks, queer folks, fat folks, people with disabilities, and people from religious faiths with clothing restrictions. For instance, for trans folk, choosing to wear feminine or male clothing can result in critical scrutiny of their gender identity and expression.  Black women-identified professors can be criticized and even shamed for wearing natural hair, and in some cases natural hair styles are even banned. Professors with disabilities can struggle to even find fashionable clothing that works for them. Fatphobia continues to be a significant issue, in both academia and society generally, and some fat professors have even faced death threats. Dressing while “plus sized” also raises multiple issues. As one respondent who would like to remain anonymous noted:

“Plus size” clothing is more expensive and harder to access, which makes it more difficult on emotional and practical levels for fat academics (well, fat people, in general) to buy clothing that fits, is stylish, isn’t entirely polyester, and is work-appropriate.
For example, none of the brands mentioned [have] plus size ranges. The two department stores (The Bay, Nordstroms) have extremely limited plus size options, and Modcloth also has “plus size” ranges, but it isn’t ideal for anyone, since it’s an online retailer and you can’t try things on. Some popular clothes stores mentioned above have a history of explicit fatphobia (Lululemon).
I also hope the post can avoid terms like “standard” and “average” that normalize certain body types and ideals that change arbitrarily over time, especially when the actual most common clothing size (for “women’s” clothing) is now quoted at 14, 16, or 18 (ie – it’s almost in the “plus size” range).

Another anonymous commenter added,

Fat  people are judged at a higher level of ‘laziness’ and ‘taking care of themselves.’ Which means that me lecturing in ‘non-professional’ clothes going to elicit different reactions than someone who is slim or more average size lecturing in ‘non-professional’ clothing.
Basically this means that I always have to present a higher standard of personal care to be evaluated at the same of competency as others. And of course this translates into more time & money spent on personal appearance.

One final note, and that is the issue of cost. Good quality shoes and clothing can be extremely expensive. This is a big problem for first-generation scholars, graduate students and sessional instructors, who often have to live from paycheque to paycheque, and don’t have extra funds for anything. Several of my respondents commented on this problem, and the pressure they’ve felt to dress “professionally.” In response to this pressure, some of my women-identified respondents chose to start teaching in jeans, since they are comfortable, and you can find pairs that are relatively inexpensive. As one of my respondents noted, “if there’s a dress code or certain expectations, there definitely needs to be a clothing allowance.”

I do want to emphasize here that dressing “professionally” isn’t in and of itself a problem. There are many folks who enjoy dressing in this manner. The problem arises from the fact that many professors feel obligated to do so in order to be taken seriously. What’s more, it’s important to emphasize that while some people may feel that a focus on clothing is shallow and trivial, we are still very much judged on our appearance. Marginalized people are particularly subject to what is called the “halo effect,”explained by Emma Rees as “groundless inferences [made] in the blink of an eye (if she’s fat she must be lazy; if she wears heels she must be slutty; if she’s pierced in the “wrong” places she must be a slob), and the female lecturer’s body becomes home to numerous intersecting assumptions.” These inferences can have lasting consequences for the careers of marginalized scholars, as you can see from my Active History Post, “She’s Hot: Female Sessional Instructors, Gender Bias, and Student Evaluations.”

 General Advice:

  • Quality over quantity: Buy the highest-quality basics that you can afford. This is especially the case for shoes and bras.
  • Focus on the basics: Especially when you are starting out. Good options include a well-fitting blazer, black flat shoes, and black dress pants, as well as cardigans and skirts.
  • Shop sales: Sales can be great options for purchasing clothing at more expensive places for fairly reasonable prices. Sales tend to happen at the end-of-season, so definitely keep an eye out. And who doesn’t like a good deal?
  • Don’t be afraid to shop on both sides of the store: It’s regrettably hard to find stores that don’t divide their clothing by gender. However, that doesn’t mean you need to confine yourself to one side!
  • Don’t overlook thrift stores: Thrift stores are great options for purchasing high-quality expensive items for a fraction of the price. Not only are you saving money, but you’re also helping the environment! If you’re like me and don’t like going outside, there are even online thrift stores, like ThredUp, which Claire Campbell highly recommends. Danielle Lorenz also recommended Preloved, which reuses old clothing and fabric to make new items! If you’re in Ottawa, Blair Stein also recommended Rikochet Resale for great options.
  • Go to a tailor/seamstress: Clothing is often made to a set of standard sizes that fit nobody. Tailors and seamstresses can be fantastic options for modifying clothing to fit you perfectly, whether you are hemming pants or taking in a blazer waist. But do be careful about factoring in the cost of tailoring when purchasing items!
  • Read the care directions: Dry-cleaning is expensive, so it’s often a good idea to skip items that are dry-clean only. However, clothing labelled hand-wash only can generally be washed in your washing machine on the delicate or handwash setting with no problems.

 

Shoes

First and foremost, in my opinion, educators need to find a good pair of shoes.  These can make a break a person. Sometimes literally. Generally speaking, people tend to fall into one of two camps: running shoes or dress shoes.

To those who regularly wear running shoes, you have my greatest admiration. I hate heels with a passion, and would happily walk around in running shoes most of the time. But while I will occasionally wear running shoes to teach in, this is usually only when my feet are extremely tired or I forget to change my shoes (btw, my favourite brand is Asics).

Expert Tip: If you’re like me and commute via public transit, I would highly recommend wearing running shoes for the commute, and changing into a pair of dress shoes once you’ve gotten to campus. I usually leave a pair in my office for the entire semester. If you don’t have an office, dress shoes tend to be fairly slim and can easily fit in your bag instead.

Like most of the people I spoke with, I prefer to teach in dress shoes (see reasons above). The universal go-to for teaching, appears to be black flat or low-heeled shoes. Everyone has their own unique style – some people preferred ballet flats, while others liked mary-janes, and still others loved loafers. Really, there are endless style options to choose from. People are divided on the heel issue. While many people recommended flats, some people also believe that low heels, especially platform and wedge shoes, can be comfortable as well. But there was a great deal of agreement on recommended brands for the most comfortable shoes:

Other recommended brands included

Many of these brands are available online and in stores at The Bay, Brown’s, Ronsons, Softmocs, Zulilly, and Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW). You can even find some on Amazon.

There were some fascinating geographic variations: People who lived in the Lower Mainland recommended Birkenstocks (insert Vancouver joke here), while apparently the rest of the country wears Blundstones. (Kesia Kvill also claims wooden clogs are comfortable, but I am highly skeptical.) For those of you who love vintage reproductions, Kesia also recommended American Duchess and Royal Vintage.

Expert Tip: Since I’m focused more on teaching than anything else, I didn’t really ask for boot recommendations. However, both Teva and Blundstone boots were recommended. Knee-high or thigh-high boots are particularly helpful, and you can now purchase them in a range of leg sizes. I’ve personally had good success with Hush Puppies out here, but keep in mind that I’ve lived in the Lower Mainland since 2006.

 

Clothing

Tops

Do you know how to identify a Canadian historian? One key tip: look for people wearing ModCloth’s Charter School cardigan. No joke, Kesia, Maddie, and I all have the exact same one in the same colour (Honey). And they were all purchased long before we knew each other. Now, I haven’t purchased anything from ModCloth since they were bought by Walmart, but these cardigans were the absolute best. They are lightweight, with three-quarter length sleeves, perfect for layering, and they come in a ton of colours. I personally have one each in Honey, Peacock, and Navy. The best clothing advice my mom gave me was that if you find something you like, buy it in every colour. But in general, cardigans are big hits in the Canadian historical community, likely because they are great options for dealing with inconsistent room temperatures. Of course, it’s entirely likely that we’re all just trying to recreate an updated version of the grumpy old professor with the ratty old cardigan, so who knows. In addition to cardigans, blazers are also a popular option. Jenny Leigh Smith pointed out that blazers and cardigans are great for situations when you will be mic’d, since they have a place to clip the mic itself and pockets for the battery packs.

In terms of shirts, there are lots of options. Like several of my respondents, I tend to prefer short-sleeved or sleeveless shirts/tank tops, again because they are really flexible in terms of temperature variations. I may or may not have Old Navy tank tops in over ten colours…. I also tend to get really hot when I’m teaching, so a lack of sleeves definitely helps.  Other folks preferred button-up shirts, while others preferred regular t-shirts.

 

Dresses

Neither tops nor bottoms, but both at once! Something that I found curious was that, like me, many of my respondents preferred wearing skirts and dresses instead of pants. Personally, I’ve always found skirts and dresses easier and more comfortable. As Claire Campbell said of sweater dresses, they are “feminine, forgiving, comfortable, and you can get dressed in ten seconds and with your eyes closed.” That pretty much sums up my attitude. Dresses are cost-efficient, and if you purchase ones that have short-sleeves or are sleeveless, they can be worn alone or layered, depending on the weather! Wrap dresses are always in style, and you can get them in any style and at any price point; they tend to be my go-to. Old Navy was a particularly popular choice for dresses. Samantha Cutrara in particular recommended this one,  while Erin Millions recommended their swing dresses.

 

Bottoms

When it comes to skirts, pencil skirts were a particular favourite. These tend to go with everything and look really flattering. A-line skirts are also really flattering and easy to wear. Prior to being bought by Walmart, I had great experiences with ModCloth’s skirts. I have their Just This Sway A-Line skirt in both green and navy, and I love them. Super comfy and very swishy. They used to have this amazing stretchy pencil skirt, but I don’t remember what it’s called (maybe this one?).

For those who choose to wear pants, black or dark slacks are pretty universal. These days we are pretty lucky because it is possible to find black dress pants that look professional, but feel like you’re wearing yoga pants. I have a pair of these from Le Chateau, and I love them. These kinds of dress pants tend to have a fair amount of stretch, and an elasticized waistband (as opposed to zippers or buttons). Tarisa Dawn Little also noted that she wears the street to studio line of clothes from Lululemon. Blair Stein recommended Lysse pants from Nordstrom Rack, since they make really comfortable thick leggings that behave like regular pants (and pull-on jeans!)

The issue of jeans is somewhat controversial. Personally, I’ve never found a pair that I like. But several people commented that they do teach in dark-wash denim. These days it is also possible to get jeans in a dress-pant style, and skinny jeans continue to be popular.

 

Shopping Recommendations

In terms of stores, there are lots of options to choose from. My one and only suit is from Le Chateau, as are my more professional-looking dresses. Finally, I get all my tank tops and camisoles from Old Navy – cheap and cheerful. Tina Adcock recommended Banana Republic for trousers, pencil skirts, tops, cardigans and black denim and Artizia for good slouchy blazers, long cardigans, and trousers. Catherine Ulmer has been telling me for years that Banana Republic’s outlet has really great stuff, but I’ve never had to chance to visit one.

It’s also worth considering supporting local shops or those that stock Canadian-made products. Both Linda Steer and I are big fans of Smoking Lily, and she also recommended Fresh Collective.  It’s also worth looking around for small local boutiques, since they often have great options as well. Anne Marie Lane Jonah recommended Lillieth Boutique Clothing for great quality and comfortable clothes.

Here are the recommendations provided by my respondents:

Plus-size friendly (to varying degrees):

Others:

 

Accessories

Accessories can be extremely useful tools for those on a budget. As Samantha Cutrara noted, you can get a basic dress, and pair it with different scarves and jewelry. This is a great way to wear the same dress to the majority of lectures in a course, but have it look different each time!

Compared to clothing, there was considerably more variation with respect to the matter of accessories and academic dress. For instance, jewelry mostly seems to be a matter of personal taste. Some folks love huge dangly earrings, others prefer small studs, and and some don’t like wearing earrings at all. Some folks love costume jewelry, while others go for a minimalist look. Scarves were recommended by several people, since, like cardigans, they are good for classrooms with huge temperature fluctuations.

The subject of makeup and perfume, I think, probably deserves its own blog post, and The Professor Is In has a great series on makeup in the classroom. While a couple of folks mentioned wearing perfume, many others have a strict no-perfume policy, largely due to working in scent-free zones or because of allergies.

The general consensus on ties appears to be that they are good for first-impressions, but really uncomfortable when it comes to wearing them every day. However, how they are perceived depends to a large extent upon the gender identity of the person wearing the tie. On men-identified professors, it signals authority and professionalism. On women-identified and gender non-conforming folks, ties are generally seen as more playful.

I have a love-hate relationship with nylons – I love to hate them. However, some folks do like to wear them when wearing skirts and dresses, particularly when it’s cold out. Since nylons (or, as I call them, stockings), tend to wear out very quickly, most people opt to purchase them in Shoppers or at The Bay. However, Kesia Kvill recommended Swedish Stockings, and Tina Adcock has heard good things about Wolford. I prefer cotton leggings personally, and I get them at Old Navy.

It’s also worth investing in a good quality bag or backpack. You can find some great recommendations for these in our Christmas guide, which also works for other occasions!

 

I do want to emphasize again here that these are just some recommendations, and ultimately the most important thing is that you feel comfortable no matter what you are wearing, whether it is a suit and tie or a 1950s style red polka dot dress.

If you have any other tips or recommendations, please let us know in the comments! I hope you enjoyed this week’s blog post. I know I’ve found my new favourite pair of shoes! If you did, please consider sharing it on the social media platform of your choice. And don’t forget to check back on Sunday for a brand new Canadian History Roundup. See you then! And Happy Lunar New Year to all those celebrating!

Postscript: Just as I was finishing this blog post, the latest Pixar short, “Purl,” premiered. It is oddly fitting, so I include it here.

Liked this post? Please take a second to support Unwritten Histories on Patreon!