“Real” Washington Style: Democrats

In the 13 years we have lived in the Washington area, never have we seen as much popular focus on the city as we have seen in the past few years. While Washington is the capital city of the entire United States and one of the larger metropolitan areas in the country, it has never acquired a reputation for being an “in” city. People come to Washington to do important, challenging work, primarily for the federal government. Most people’s jobs are ultimately accountable to the taxpayers of the country and it just wouldn’t look right to be living large or partying hard.

Despite popular stereotypes that people in the government are not intelligent or hardworking, most people I know in Washington have quite a bit of a nerdy side to them. Demographics show that the Washington area has one of the highest concentrations of highly educated people in the nation, including the highest concentration of lawyers and the highest per capita concentration of Ph.Ds. Washingtonians are also known for their book reading habits and publishers nearly always include a D.C. stop on most book tours.

In the last few years, perhaps due to the impact of the recession and the fact that the Washington area is one of the most economically vibrant areas of the country, more and more popular attention is coming to Washington.  The White House Correspondents Dinner, which used to be reserved for journalists covering The White House, is now a star-studded Hollywood affair.  After years of shunning the city for more party-friendly locales, MTV finally held a Real World cast house here in 2009. The current season of Top Chef is held in Washington and last week, “The Real Housewives of Washington D.C.” premiered.

The region is not quite sure what to do with all of this attention or whether all of this attention will change the general character of Washington. The Washington Post has been quick to dismiss any part of “real” of the “Real Housewives,” fact-checking and exposing every error in anything these housewives do, wear or say.

I watched some of the first episode of “The Real Housewives of D.C.” (as I think nearly everyone in Washington did) and have to say that nothing “feels” real about these housewives. Spray tans, bleach blonde hair and plunging necklines are not really a Washington thing–at least for the “old,” pre-Hollywood invasion Washington.

So, what is the “real” Washington look? This week, we will take a look at current fashion trends in Washington—a city that has never really been known for its fashion sense. Since there are always two sides to everything in Washington, we will begin today on the Democratic side and move tomorrow to Republicans.

We will start at the apex of the Washington power chain, the President. President Obama is one of the most fashionable presidents we have ever had and is undoubtedly the best-dressed man in Washington. He is a fashion designer’s dream, with a tall, slender frame and a photogenic face. I have never seen a bad photo of the President and he is always dressed in a way that conveys authority, respect and good taste.

The President, who recently turned 49, sticks to tried and true fashion choices. It is hard to find a photo of the President where he is not dressed in either a dark suit, white shirt and tie or (his casual look) dress pants and a collared long-sleeved shirt. If he takes any fashion risks, it is typically in his tie color choices. He is so reserved and polished that he didn’t take the slightest hit to his image even when photographed shirtless on vacation in Hawaii.

So, if you are taking fashion tips from the President, they would probably be: 1) Maintain your physical fitness and stay trim and slender. 2) Dress formally in a consistent uniform for nearly every occasion. A suit and tie is required for nearly every function. “Casual wear” is a collared shirt and dress pants. 3) Blend in but stand out for the quality of your appearance.

For the female perspective on Washington fashion, we turn to two powerful women, Secretary of State Hilary Rodham Clinton, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

Secretary Clinton, age 62, has been in politics for most of her life. Her style is an interesting combination of classic and fashionable elements. She seems to favor pantsuits and jewel tones along with simple jewelry. In a number of her photos, she definitely stands out from whatever group she is meeting with. She seems to embrace her role as a groundbreaking woman of power in Washington and doesn’t feel the need to conceal herself into the background. She makes occasional bold fashion choices like the dress she wore to her daughter Chelsea’s recent wedding rehearsal dinner.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, age 70 (who is also a mother of five and grandmother of eight!), takes a slightly different approach. While she, like Secretary Clinton, favors pantsuits and occasionally wears bright colors, her standard uniform is primarily darker suits (black, gray, dark plum, etc.) and her “brights” are typically more muted tones of lavender and mint.

Both women are alike in their choice of hair and makeup. They don’t wear much makeup, except for an occasional darker lipstick tone and the “uniform” part of their look is definitely their hair. They wear the same hairstyle with every outfit and both have a similar hair length, between earlobe and shoulder.

If you are taking fashion tips from Secretary Clinton and Speaker Pelosi, they would probably be:  1) Same head, different pantsuit.  (i.e. keep your hairstyle and make-up consistent but change up the clothes you wear) 2) Limit your use of Botox and embrace your wrinkles. and 3) Own at least one red suit.

As you can see, Washington style is quite a bit different from “high fashion.” It is a restrained fashion balancing the need to look polished and current with the need to look recognizable, credible and relatable to a wide variety of people. It is likely a bit of a burden having to dress this way all the time and I am sure that even President Obama, Secretary Clinton and Speaker Pelosi want to relax and wear jeans and T-shirts or a comfy jogging suit sometimes.

What do you think of Washington fashion?  Which Democrats would you nominate as best dressed?  Please share in the comments.