Casual
Encyclopedia
In the European tradition, casual is the dress code that emphasizes comfort and personal expression over presentation and uniformity. It includes a very wide variety of costume
, so it is perhaps better defined by what it isn't than what it is. The following are not considered casual wear:
Blue jeans
and a T-shirt
have been described as the "casual uniform". With the popularity of spectator sports in the late 20th century, a good deal of athletic gear has influenced casual wear. Clothing worn for manual labor
also falls into casual wear.
While utilitarian costume comes to mind first for casual dress, however, there is also a wide range of flamboyance and theatricality. Punk
costume is a striking example. Madonna
introduced a great deal of lace
, jewelry, and cosmetics
into casual wear during the 1980s. More recently, hip hop fashion
has played up elaborate jewelry and luxurious materials worn in conjunction with athletic gear and the clothing of manual labor.
Casual wear is typically the dress code in which new forms of gender expression are attempted before being accepted into semi-casual or semi-formal situations. An obvious example is masculine
jewelry, which was once considered shocking or titillating even in casual circles, and is now hardly noteworthy in semi-formal situations. Amelia Bloomer
introduced trousers (of a sort) for women as a casual alternative to formal hoops and skirts. In a recent mirror image, sarong
s and other skirts have been embraced by a few men of the European tradition as a casual alternative to formal trousers. Both of these innovations caused great embarrassment in formal circles.
Skin exposure is most pronounced in casual wear, since it includes all swimwear, but the trend toward female exposure in the 20th century has also pushed the necklines of formal gowns ever lower and the skirts of cocktail dress
es ever higher. For men, the exposure of shoulders, thighs, and backs is still limited to casual wear.
Costume
The term costume can refer to wardrobe and dress in general, or to the distinctive style of dress of a particular people, class, or period. Costume may also refer to the artistic arrangement of accessories in a picture, statue, poem, or play, appropriate to the time, place, or other circumstances...
, so it is perhaps better defined by what it isn't than what it is. The following are not considered casual wear:
- Ceremonial dressCeremonial dressCeremonial dress is the clothing worn for very special occasions, such as coronations, graduations, parades, religious rites, and trials. In the hierarchy of dress codes , ceremonial dress is the most formal and offers almost no room for personal expression...
such as royal robes and full dressFull dressFull dress is a category dress codes that refers to most formal clothing available in Western society.-Civilian:For a civilian, during the Victorian and Edwardian period, this corresponded to a frock coat in the day, and white tie at night...
military costume - Formal wearFormal wearFormal wear and formal dress are the general terms for clothing suitable for formal social events, such as a wedding, formal garden party or dinner, débutante cotillion, dance, or race...
such as white tieWhite tieWhite tie is the most formal evening dress code in Western fashion. It is worn to ceremonial occasions such as state dinners in some countries, as well as to very formal balls and evening weddings...
and black tieBlack tieBlack tie is a dress code for evening events and social functions. For a man, the main component is a usually black jacket, known as a dinner jacket or tuxedo... - SuitsSuit (clothing)In clothing, a suit is a set of garments made from the same cloth, consisting of at least a jacket and trousers. Lounge suits are the most common style of Western suit, originating in the United Kingdom as country wear...
Blue jeans
Blue Jeans
"Blue Jeans" is a sentimental popular song written by Harry D. Kerr and Lou Traveller in 1920. In the song, the singer is reminiscing about a long-ago young love that happened somewhere in the "hills of the old Cumberland." The chorus echoes the singer's longing:* The Parlor Songs Collection.* by...
and a T-shirt
T-shirt
A T-shirt is a style of shirt. A T-shirt is buttonless and collarless, with short sleeves and frequently a round neck line....
have been described as the "casual uniform". With the popularity of spectator sports in the late 20th century, a good deal of athletic gear has influenced casual wear. Clothing worn for manual labor
Manual labour
Manual labour , manual or manual work is physical work done by people, most especially in contrast to that done by machines, and also to that done by working animals...
also falls into casual wear.
While utilitarian costume comes to mind first for casual dress, however, there is also a wide range of flamboyance and theatricality. Punk
Punk fashion
Punk fashion is the clothing, hairstyles, cosmetics, jewelry, and body modifications of the punk subculture. Punk fashion varies widely, ranging from Vivienne Westwood designs to styles modeled on bands like The Exploited. The distinct social dress of other subcultures and art movements, including...
costume is a striking example. Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
introduced a great deal of lace
Lace
Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric. Lace-making is an ancient craft. True lace was...
, jewelry, and cosmetics
Cosmetics
Cosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, towelettes, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, hair sprays and...
into casual wear during the 1980s. More recently, hip hop fashion
Hip hop fashion
Hip hop fashion is a distinctive style of dress originating with African American youth on the scene of New York City, Los Angeles, Orlando, Chicago, Philadelphia, the San Francisco Bay Area, Detroit, Memphis, Atlanta, St. Louis, Jersey City, Miami, Toronto and Vancouver among others. Each city...
has played up elaborate jewelry and luxurious materials worn in conjunction with athletic gear and the clothing of manual labor.
Casual wear is typically the dress code in which new forms of gender expression are attempted before being accepted into semi-casual or semi-formal situations. An obvious example is masculine
Masculinity
Masculinity is possessing qualities or characteristics considered typical of or appropriate to a man. The term can be used to describe any human, animal or object that has the quality of being masculine...
jewelry, which was once considered shocking or titillating even in casual circles, and is now hardly noteworthy in semi-formal situations. Amelia Bloomer
Amelia Bloomer
Amelia Jenks Bloomer was an American women's rights and temperance advocate. Even though she did not create the women's clothing reform style known as bloomers, her name became associated with it because of her early and strong advocacy.-Early life:Bloomer came from a family of modest means and...
introduced trousers (of a sort) for women as a casual alternative to formal hoops and skirts. In a recent mirror image, sarong
Sarong
A sarong or sarung is a large tube or length of fabric, often wrapped around the waist and worn as a kilt by men and as a skirt by women throughout much of South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, the Horn of Africa, and on many Pacific islands. The fabric most often has woven plaid or...
s and other skirts have been embraced by a few men of the European tradition as a casual alternative to formal trousers. Both of these innovations caused great embarrassment in formal circles.
Skin exposure is most pronounced in casual wear, since it includes all swimwear, but the trend toward female exposure in the 20th century has also pushed the necklines of formal gowns ever lower and the skirts of cocktail dress
Cocktail dress
A cocktail dress or cocktail gown is a woman's dress worn at cocktail parties, and semi-formal, or "black tie" occasions.The length of cocktail dresses varies depending on fashion and local custom. The length ranges from just above the knee to touching the ankle...
es ever higher. For men, the exposure of shoulders, thighs, and backs is still limited to casual wear.