How to Pick the Perfect Graduation Outfit

I GRADUATE IN A WEEK!!!!! Okay so a week + a day, but still! I've had my graduation dress picked out since Easter because obviously I'm excited, and my sweet boyfriend's mom bought my graduation shoes for me as a grad gift while we were out shopping together last month. So I'm pretty much all set and I'm so excited!

Related: Graduation preparation checklist

Anyways, so whether you're graduating law school along with me (heyyyy) or you're attending a friend's graduation, or you're graduating college, I have some ideas and inspiration for you.

Related: Law school bound graduation caps for college grads

The Dress

Okay so obviously this is the biggie! Most importantly, make sure your dress is comfortable because remember that we're going to be in big heavy (likely itchy) robes and sitting for a couple of hours. I actually got my dress back when I bought my Easter dress because I loved how light and breezy it was. One other thing to be mindful is exactly how much your robe will close. If your robe flashes your dress when you walk, you're going to want to keep that in mind and color-coordinate. How can you do this before you get your robe in? Either ask any of your friends who graduated last year or just creep on Instagram to see how it turned out in their pictures. 

Also, CHECK THE WEATHER! And often, because it changes. If a cold front or heat wave is coming in, adjust accordingly. Even if your ceremony is indoors, you'll likely take a lot of photos with friends and family outside so you don't want to be miserably shivering or dripping sweat. Also keep in mind the changes between if your ceremony started in the morning but you'll get done right at noon with a burning sun overhead or if it's starting while the sun's up but ending after it's set and cooled off a bit.

Now as to the style of the dress, that's completely up to you. I originally had planned on a more professional looking dress before I found the one that I'll be wearing. Personally I think sheath dresses are super flattering and look so dang polished. Pencil skirts with a top also look really classy but just realize that if your skirt starts to scooch up to your bra and show extra leg, you can't exactly pull it down without having to go all the way up your robe. And editor pants look nice too but just be mindful of how they'll look peeking out from under your robe. But the good thing about getting a professional dress for graduation is that you can wear it to your new big kid job!

But if you don't care about your dress screaming "I'm a lawyer," then you can definitely go with something more casual. The reason why I picked my dress is because I knew how cute and confident I'd feel in it at my graduation party, when that would be all that you can see. I just figured it doesn't really matter what you wear to the ceremony as long as you're comfortable because you really won't see it until after for pictures. Since graduation season is right at the start of wedding season, you can still get a lot of use out of a more "cute" option for the rest of the summer.

The Shoes

These are just as important, if not more important, as the dress because while the robe will cover your dress, your shoes are always there. Personally, I think black or nude heels are the best because they coordinate with the robe best. But if there's a lot of people graduating at once, a really colorful shoe can help your family find you in a crowd (it's how we always found my sister during cross country meets!). The shoes you pick out should be comfortable enough that you can gracefully walk without looking like a newborn giraffe, comfortable enough so that you don't die while standing up waiting in line to cross the stage, and manageable enough that you can easily tackle stairs and squat in (because remember you have to squat down a little so they can hood you). I also will warn you about getting too pointy of a heel. My best friend got a pair of those super cute studded Valentino heels for graduation, but sadly they got ruined as she walked across the parking lot to get inside for the ceremony because it was a hot day so the asphalt was melting and she ended up getting tar and rocks all stuck to the heel.

Definitely break in a new pair of shoes so that you don't get blisters. And a tip from my younger pageant days (hahaha true story), take your shoes outside to the gravel street and scuff up the bottoms (so probably not Loubs) so that there is some traction to help you not slip around on the stage. Or a quick spritz of hairspray at the last minute will help too if you don't want to ruin the bottoms.

The Accessories

Okay so personally I like to wear a necklace just so that when your robe is open your chest/neck doesn't look empty, but this is another thing you're going to want to check with your robe on. Just because it can either look really weird poking up out of the robe or might be right wear the collar is and rub, so just double check.

I feel like graduation is the time for statement earrings because it's a special occasion. Just make sure that whatever you pick will compliment your hair style for the day and won't be too distracting because remember you'll also be wearing a tam so you don't want to have too much going on up top.

Okay so that about wraps up my thoughts on what you should consider when planning what to wear either to your own graduation or to someone else's. If you have any additional tips, please share below!

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Rainy Day Professional Workwear

Hello lovelies! I’m back with another work wear Wednesday! In case you haven’t noticed, it’s May. And May had to follow the April showers that brought the May flowers, of course but I'm a month behind haha. Coincidentally, right now it’s actually drizzling haha so I’m already in the mood. Growing up a farm girl, I do always love the rain but to be honest I dread rainy days during the work week. It can actually be tricky to make sure you’re covered up while still looking professional! And if we’re being honest, I still have a relatively small work wardrobe so I only have about 3 rainy day appropriate outfits which means I’m up a creek on outfit ideas if it rains every single day in a work week. But at least I do have something, right?

Anyways, why I wanted to talk about this today is because when I was a 1L looking to get work clothes, I was focused on pencil skirts and blouses and “work appropriate rain boots” weren’t exactly high up on my list. But basically no matter where you live, you’re probably going to have to deal with getting to work without getting drenched at some point in your career. This post is just to help you keep those days in the back of your mind as you get ready to adult so that you’re prepared. So, here’s some basics…

Rain coat

Woah, didn’t expect to see that coming did you? In undergrad and most of law school, I was perfectly protected on my way to class with a DG pullover rain jacket. It kept me warm, it kept me dry, and it was comfortable to sit through class in. But then I got a job my 3L year and it rained one day and I realized that a windbreaker jacket couldn’t even be business causal, much less business professional. So I went jacket-less and just prayed my umbrella would be enough. Spoiler: it wasn’t. First off, usually when it’s raining it’s a colder day so not having a jacket at all was a freezing idea. Second, there was wind which not only made me more aware of how cold I was without a jacket but also made the rain blow sideways so my umbrella couldn’t protect both my head and my outfit so decisions had to be made. So yeah, rain jacket, v important. I shared the trench that I have in my outerwear post already so I won’t bore you with the same paragraph twice, but real quick here’s a tip. If you don’t necessarily need a rain coat right now, wait and try to buy one at the end of summer because they’ll likely be on sale then. You’re welcome.

Related: Professional Outerwear

 

Umbrella

Shocker, I know. But I do have some overthinker-type thoughts for this as well. If you can, I highly recommend a big dome umbrella. The little bell shape usually does a really good job of keeping everything covered and dry. Most of these tend to be clear because you can even pull them down over your face but then can still see, which I think is really smart. I have two big umbrellas that I love to use because I have a pretty big and very expensive purse that I want to keep dry at all costs, so I need to know my umbrella is big enough for the both of us.

But these umbrella’s biggest pro is also its biggest con. I have to keep my giant umbrella in my trunk because it’s just too big to fit anywhere else in my car. And it takes up a lot of space in my small work area. And it looks a little too extra if I have to carry it out leaving work after the storm has passed and it’s a sunny day. So the other alternative is a travel umbrella. I got one of these for study abroad and they are amazing. They made some that fold up into the size of your hand!! So it easily fits in your purse and you can keep it on hand at all times just in case (#mompurse) and don’t have to worry about accidentally poking people with your umbrella in the elevator. Just keep in mind that usually these don’t cover near as much so you are taking a pretty big risk. For sure always wear a rain coat when you use an umbrella to make sure that you’re staying as covered as possible. Okay I’m going to stop talking about umbrella’s because Rihanna is currently stuck in my head (and I’m sure now it’s stuck in yours too). 

 

Rain boots

Ooh another surprise! But there’s some thought that you might want to put into these. I have tall rain boots which are great because they completely cover up my legs up to my knees so are perfect for dresses and skirts. If you have narrow enough pants (that won’t wrinkle too terribly), you can also tuck your pants into these and keep your pants protected. This is really important for me because I’m too lazy to walk all the way around puddles so I need to be able to just plow right through them and not have to worry about splashes getting everywhere. And because my trench coat is down almost to my knees, that means my coat + boots = an almost completely protected outfit, which is the main goal.

On the other hand, is short boots. Tall boots scream “not professional” so I always bring a small tote bag (like a reusable grocery bag) with me and a pair of flats in my purse and then will change out of my boots and into my flats once I get to work. If it’s still raining at 5, I can change back but if it’s not I do feel a tad ridiculous carrying a purse, a lunch bag, and a boot bag. But if your office is on the business casual side of life, you can probably get away with wearing short rain boots all day. The tradeoff is not having your pants quite as protected, but you only have to wear one pair of shoes all day. And short rain boots are usually designed a little more to look like regular shoes than big ol’ traditional rain boots. If you want to go this route, my advice is to definitely get a pair of black rain boots.

Related: My rain boots and other law school shoes

 

Clothes

Okay I actually don’t have much on this because basically my rainy day clothes are just my normal warmer clothes but just covered up with the above items. I do have just a few considerations for this, though. For your pants, you’re going to want to make sure you have them all hemmed to a perfect length. If it’s only lightly raining or just started raining you might not need rain boots yet, but if you have pants that brush the ground then the edges are probably going to get damp and gross. 

If you do wear your rain boots with a skirt/dress, my recommendations to you would be to wear panty hose and/or get boot socks. Just because again, rainy days are usually colder days and you’ll want to be warm. Boots socks in general are a great investment because rubber shoes keep in basically no warmth so your toes will probably get a little cold. Bonus use for if it’s really snowy, you can also wear your rain boots as snow boots.

Rain hat

This is last because I think it’s the least necessary. When it rains, I typically will put my hair up because the frizz is real so there’s no point in me wasting my time to straighten my hair and the humidity always makes my curls fall. However, sometimes you have things like an interview or a presentation on a rainy day and need to feel on point and having your hair down does that. So a rain hat will do double duty with your umbrella to keep your hair dry (because oddly a lot of professional looking rain coats don’t have hoods). And if you are cursed with the frizz like me, an umbrella will only protect you against the rain pouring down on your head but not the moisture in the air that’s attacking your hair. I’m not saying a rain hat will give you blow-out luscious hair, but I am saying that the extra layer of protection will help.

Okay I’m done rambling for today! I will give a caveat for this post and warn y’all that I’m from the Texas panhandle which isn’t exactly known for getting rain (we actually have “pray for rain” on my churches prayer request list) so I don’t have just a ton of experience or tips for dealing with the rain (I’m sure you gathered that from my novel list of umbrella and rain boots haha). All this to say, if you’re from a rainy area or just have a consideration for how to stay dry while looking Rachel Zane, please leave a comment with your thoughts!!

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