Could Jumpsuits Be the Perfect Uniform?
This week on the Cut we’re exploring how to get your act together when it comes to personal style — from organizing your closet, to finding your signature scent, to figuring out your work uniform.
Molly Fischer: Allison, please tell us about your many jumpsuits.
Allison Davis: At current count I have nine, including one VERY FANCY Marc Jacobs one that is sequined and weighs 100 million pounds. Most are vintage. My favorite is a vintage DVF that makes me look like I am a sexy garage worker.
Molly: HOT.
Allison: Jumpsuits are my winter going-out wear. Also for when I feel bloated, because they hide all my shapewear. I haven’t figured out how to make a jumpsuit office-appropriate.
Ella Cerón: I mean this sincerely: How do you pee in a jumpsuit?
Kathleen Hou: You just get naked in the bathroom and shiver.
Isabel Wilkinson: I feel like the office jumpsuit is awkward for a few reasons — chief among them the stall nudity.
Kathleen: I think I’ve worn the only one I’ve bought to the office several times. Oops.
Isabel: There are like three inches between stall and door here! How did you do it?
Kathleen: I swear, every time I almost dislocate a shoulder.
Lauren Leibowitz: I have a great jumpsuit my mom wore to weddings in the ‘80s. It’s low-cut, so I wear a camisole underneath, which also guards against nakedness.
Kathleen: Right, it’s winter, so I’ve been trying to layer my jumpsuit. Basically, I spent too much on a jumpsuit at Reformation over the summer so I’ve been trying to “transition” it.
Stella Bugbee: I wore a Cynthia Rowley jumpsuit to my prom. I am a big fan of jumpsuits as long as they’re tailored. It’s like wearing a dress, but you don’t have to worry about showing your underwear when you bend over.
Allison: Exactly. All the effortlessness of a dress without the fear of exposing yer bits.
Isabel: My main problem with jumpsuits — and the reason I’ve worn only one in my life — is that they have a way of tugging up on your butt. They are not flattering for butts. It is a very exposed feeling!
Allison: I don’t know. I have a huge butt and I think I look amazing in jumpsuits.
Stella: Me too, and I love them.
Véronique Hyland: Resident penny-pincher here: Cheap jumpsuits don’t look as obvious as cheap dresses (though maybe I am deluding myself). I wore a Kohls one to a party at the Plaza and I don’t think anyone could tell.
Molly: Interesting. Why is that?
Véronique: Maybe because they hang more flatteringly than dresses?
Ella: Yeah, I have a Forever 21 jumpsuit that people always think cost way more than it really did. Though someone did ask me if it was Kardashian Kollection. I took it as a compliment, TBH.
Kat Stoeffel: I’m really longing for a jumpsuit, but I’m still waiting to find the right one.
Allison: There are so many different cuts of jumpsuit.
Kathleen: Very key: The waist seam needs to hit high so you don’t look like you have short legs.
Ella: Oh, that’s a good point. Like, if you have a short torso or a long torso, Lord help you.
Kathleen: And the crotch needs to be short, if the waist is high.
Kat: I think what we’re saying is there are a lot more fit variables when it comes to jumpsuits compared to dresses and separates, but that it’s worth it if you find the one? Or the nine? If you’re Allison.
Molly: If you’re Allison, it’s worth it.
Kat: Allison is like the inverse of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. All jumpsuits fit her.
Click through our slideshow for 20 jumpsuits worth trying out even if your name isn’t Allison P. Davis.
