The term “dress to impress” has many connotations.
These days the younger generation, and especially the generation that sees gaming as a potential career, will point to the video game “Dress to Impress”.
Reportedly invented by a Roblox user named “Gigi”. For the uninitiated, the game is a multi-player video experience that was released in November of last year and has already garnered a billion hits.
Impressive! In the game, players are given just five minutes to put together outfits for their avatar based on a theme. These creations are then judged by other players before the most popular are revealed. And it’s not just kids using it either; Dress to Impress’s phenomenal success has developed a strong adult user base crediting Roblox with bringing more older gamers to the platform.
A similar term was first used by the author John T. Molloy in his 1975 bestseller “Dress to Impress” in which he outlined the effect that clothing has on a person’s success in business or personal life. Today the term is ingrained in the English language almost as much as some Shakespearean quotes.
At a recent summer music festival in the UK – you can guess which one – we were most impressed by many ladies in particular who had made an enormous effort with their festival outfits. Mini skirts, crop tops, bodysuits, sleeve tops, playsuits – you name it – all showed that fashion sense and a willingness to dress for the occasion was alive and kicking.
Talking to some of those suitably attired it also showed that such online outfits that look a million dollars can easily be bought for little more than a hundred.
Be that as it may, my own claim to fame when it came to dressing to impress came while working at a school in South London.
Now our headmaster was a likeable fellow but was a practical joker who delighted in playing tricks on his staff, especially newbies. Now this was all in good humour and helped to generate a good spirit at the school but I felt that it was important that the head was taken down a notch.
Then the opportunity arose. I was holding a party at my house and all the staff and teaching assistants were invited. My email invite, mentioning my clothing design background before training as a teacher in passing, stressed the need for everyone to “dress to impress” – essentially to impress me.
The theme for the party was “Romans in Togas” – not too tough – and everyone was told to come appropriately attired as Octavius and Mrs Claudius.
In a subsequent internal email, I told everyone to ignore the togas request and come dressed in what they were wearing, casual jeans and t-shirts but NOT to tell the head.
Seeing the headmaster and his wife arrive was a highlight of my time at the school.
Fortunately, I kept my job and the head and I remain friends to this day – always remembering to dress to impress.
