I’ll be frank, I spent the first few months of quarantine in loungewear. Working from home means that 80% of the time I do not have to interact with anyone else. The other 20% they will only see my blouse (unless, of course, the camera function is toggled off). So, there was no harm in wearing sweatpants all the time. But around September 2020, I slowly began to opt for dresses. By November, I was wearing slacks and a steamed blouse for the daily zoom meetings at my job with a health PR agency. January 2021, I was waking up early to put on a full face of makeup and incorporating shoes into my outfit. As an industry, fashion took a notable hit during this pandemic. Unsurprisingly so, considering that many people no longer had reasons to buy that head-turning dress or a new pair of oxfords. Although loungewear unofficially became the global uniform in the early days of the pandemic, over the past few months I’ve realized fashion serves a greater purpose than functionality. In the midst of quarantine, for me fashion served as a symbol of optimism.
I know that there are many who were more than glad to cast aside their button ups, their high heels, their tight pants and opt for cozy loungewear in the beginning of the pandemic. Don’t get me wrong, the main purpose of loungewear is comfort which we all needed more of in 2020. Despite the unwavering support for loungewear over the past year, I believe its days are numbered in the public sphere. As restrictions loosen throughout the world and people are invited to socialize in-person once again, the casual loungewear will be replaced by our more expressive and less comfortable pieces. This change in clothing will help us reintegrate back into in-person living.
Loungewear is typically considered as clothing for the home or relaxing. Over the past year we have begun to associate loungewear with something else--quarantine. Many of us invested in new loungewear pieces. Like me, I added a few sweatpants to my previously sweatpants-less wardrobe. As we begin to shift back to a new normalcy, it will be difficult to take our loungewear out into the world with us. Those warm sweatpants or that loose t-shirt that brought us a ton of comfort over the past year will now just remind us of endless days stuck in the house. Our more stylish pieces that have been relegated to the back of the closet will be a physical representation of the shift from isolating at home to going out and experiencing all the world has to offer.
Another con for sticking to our cozy lounge pants might be the way they affect our productivity. Our comfortable loungewear begs us to snuggle up on the couch and binge Netflix all day, taking a nap break or two in between. Wearing more dressed-up pieces will help us be more productive as our minds recognize that we are no longer in a resting state, increasing our productivity and energy.
The past year has been a year of growth. Time in solitude has caused people’s identities to evolve. Whether that be minor lifestyle changes or major personal evolutions, a lot of us are not coming out of this quarantine the same way we entered it. Fashion will help us to communicate those evolutions to people without ever opening our mouths. It will help us embrace those personal changes better than loungewear can. Like a debutante ball, the more creative pieces that we wear will allow us to enter into society with our evolved identities.
What I believe to be the most important reason for fashion, and the reason people will opt to wear more chic pieces after isolation, is that storing the loungewear to the back of the closet will help spur optimism. By this we will demonstrate to ourselves and others that we have more hope for the future. After more than a year indoors, investing in a more elaborate wardrobe will show that we are optimistic that we will have ample opportunities to wear the clothing to various locations.
Loungewear has successfully provided plenty of comfort over the past year of quarantine. While I am grateful to it for that, I am more than ready to have an excuse to buy a new designer dress. I cannot wait to come up with a fancy outfit to wear to the office. I am patiently waiting for the moment when I can wear a slightly over-the-top brunch outfit. More than anything I can’t wait until wearing my sweatpants is a rare treat and not a routine.
Written by Victoria Hall