A short time ago we were invited to a fund raiser for the neighborhood hospital. The occasion was a formal dinner, silent auction and dance and was held at a area country club. My husband wore his best suit and I wore an evening dress that was royal blue. As we were mingling among the guests I saw that the majority of the women were in black gowns. There were countless styles among the black gowns, but the major thing you saw was the shade because there were so many of them. Initially I felt out of place in my blue gown. I was thinking to myself that I had two black gowns that I could have worn and wished I had chosen one of them – I felt like the blue was an uneccessary xs. Then my husband asked me to dance. As we were dancing he told me how beautiful I looked and that he was happy that I was wearing the blue gown. He said he gets tired of seeing women in black gowns all the time.
After he said this I started thinking about the amount of times that women hear that they have to have a little black gown to finalize their wardrobe. They hire an individual with a personal trainer certification just to make sure they fit into it! When you go shopping it is black dresses that are the most plentiful on the racks. The styles differ, but as I had experienced at the fund raiser, when you see so many people in the same color the styles do not stand out. The two black dresses that I own are very distinctive from each other in fabric and cut, yet I am certain that when I wear them most folks just see that I have on a black gown.
When I was young I was invited to the high school prom. There were so many issues to consider – how to do my hair, how to get rid of cold sores, how to put on my make up, and also what to wear. My mother and I went shopping for a gown for me. There were many types and colors, but the one I liked was in black. My mother would not allow me to get the dress. She said that women spend so many years wearing black dresses that I should wear a brighter color while I was young. I think my mother was ahead of her time in her way of thinking. I am sure that black dresses will continue to be the accepted norm for formal occasions, but women should not limit themselves to the one color.
Since the remark my husband made at the fund raising dinner, I am more elective in the colors that I prefer for my special occasion clothing. I still want to dress tastefully for an occasion, but I am no longer limiting myself to black dresses. It made me feel lovely that my husband thought I stood out from the other women in the room.