Fashion arbiters of workplace attire are all atwitter after yesterday's Masters Golf Tournament. Throw out those khakis! It's white pants and a pastel shirt for the cubicle in 2011.
Office attire for men was stuck in a white-on-white shirt with conservative tie, navy blue or gray dress pants rut through the 60s. It took a turn toward "Look at me. I'm funky" in the polyester shirt, wide tie, bell-bottom 70s. Even the top execs rebelled against Brooks Brothers with the Lee Iacocca white collar on colored dress shirt look. It was definitely an era of Fashion Rebellion.
The Reagan 80s put a stop to that. Greed is good, but only if you wear a conservative suit. The Regis Philbin shiny monochromatic shirt and tie had a brief run in those sweet corner offices, but only lasted as long as the prime-time run of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire".
With the 90s came Casual Fridays which led to Casual Summers and finally grew into Corporate Casual all the time. The accepted look for men was khakis and a golf shirt, preferably one with a logo from a course that wouldn't allow the wearer on its hallowed grounds. "Wow, Kevin. What is Augusta National / St Andrews / Pebble Beach really like?" is a great ice-breaker at those monthly budget status meetings.
The Corporate Casual look has remained stagnant for over 20 years now. Two young Australians changed all that yesterday. Jason Day and Adam Scott fell a stroke short of winning the Masters, but their white pants revolutionized golf course and therefore cubicle attire. Adam Scott pushed the envelope by wearing a matching white golf shirt leading to kids asking, "Dad, what is the ice cream guy doing with a golf club in his hand?" Surely, corporate casual officeworkers will soon resemble hospital staff in white pants and colorful tops.
It's the next step in the constant evolution of office wear. Get with it, Dockers.
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