Clothes that might get you that job

COURTESY VOGUE, JANE, AND ELLE Ralph Lauren and Marc Jacobs envision fresh, modern, office-appropriate apparel.

While no self-respecting lady would mistake Melanie Griffith for a harbinger of '90s fashion, her Working Girl character, the ambitious Tess McGill, sure swept Harrison Ford off his feet. And why? Certainly not the flesh-colored pantyhose two shades too orange. No; according to Ford, Tess knew how to dress like a woman. He noticed that Tess, unlike the other business ladies present at the company gathering, "dresses like a woman. Not the way a woman thinks a man would dress if he were a woman." Translation: she wasn't wearing a suit.

Not that a woman's suit is a sin, but it is, at best, an imitation. And though stylish alternatives exist, most working women choose to play it safe with badly cut navy blue skirts and box-shaped jackets, hiding their femininity behind a male uniform. But what shows less self-confidence and creative vision (desirable in a potential employee) than looking in the mirror and being satisfied with the generic Ann Taylor two-piece? Feminism's drive for workplace equality instilled a fear of objectification in modern women who often mistake being on par with their male collegues with being their male collegues. Successful people don't accept arbitrary standards, they invent their own, and yet working women are often afraid that looking stylish and beautiful somehow nullifies their intelligence or their creative ability.

Two years ago I had my first grown-up fashion dilemma--what to wear to my interview at the New Haven Advocate. I tried a white blouse, ironed and pleated at the waist, untucked over pin-striped black pencil pants. Nothing fancy, but stylish, and slightly hip. I felt good and my outfit said something about myself that I couldn't put into words without sounding like a personal ad: youthful, organized, a little daring, but respectful. I modeled it for my already-employed roommate who promptly negged it. So I tried again--this time an A-line navy blue skirt, a fitted eggshell cashmere sweater, tucked in, off-white tights, and heeled loafers. I felt stilted in the short skirt and the top tucked in so close to my waist. Plus I hate white tights. I looked like my mother. But my mother has a job and so did my roommate, so I teetered awkwardly into the interview. I turned out to be completely overdressed, and I was a wreck at the interview because I felt hopelessly self-conscious.

Fortunately, the options are limitless as current fashion is exploding with beautiful fabrics and unique cuts that make the power suit only one of hundreds of professional options. Fall lines from Ralph Lauren and Bill Blass are full of interesting takes on workplace classics like the blazer and overcoat, skirts, blouses, and slacks; and Donna Karan is finally making a foray into colors, designing rich red, slouchy, turtleneck sweaters to go with her classic black wool skirts. If pants are more your style, try Marc Jacobs' straight gray wool slacks worn with this year's darling, the paper-thin white cashmere by Ralph Lauren. By moving the top button on a daintily checkered jacket up a few inches, and keeping shoulder padding to a minimum, Ellen Tracy keeps a uniform essential from being uniform. Jill Stuart is also doing beautiful mohair sweaters and embroidered skirts, and has a fresh, modern take on even the standard cardigan, turtleneck, and skinny black jacket.

For the more daring, Ellen Tracy also has a knee-length straight skirt with a six-inch slit, advertised with either sheer black nylons and black leather knee-high heeled boots, or with fishnets and sleek, pointed-toe heels, bringing a glimpse of costume couture into the workaday world. Speaking of shoes, flats are back in everything from iridescent earth tones to red patent leather--though unless you have Christy Turlington's legs, be wary of flats with anything but a slim, well-cut pair of pants or long skirt. Of course, the tiny "Sabrina" heel was everywhere this summer and has skipped happily into fall, though the look has yet to be picked up by many moderately priced designers, so unless you're willing to drop a few hundred dollars for a pair of Manolo's, I'd let this trend pass by.

Print media, advertising, television, radio, fashion, galleries, retail and graphic design firms all usually encourage employees to dress in a way that reflects their personality. Knowing yourself is as important as knowing your employer. If you're comfortable, and the company is flexible, don't let a misguided sense of feminism stifle your vision of yourself.

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