The most pattern-y pattern of all?

Senator Hutchison spoke on the Senate floor last week in support of the Cornyn amendment. She wore a black jacket with a pattern:

As you may recall, we have seen this problem with patterns on television before. But this one is particularly dizzying. And if you're one of my readers who doesn't usually click the "play" button on these posts, let me clarify that this jacket is black. There are no colors in this pattern.

It's difficult to tell from this footage, but I suspect this effect is the result of not just pattern but also texture, which can also bend light in a way that is confusing to a camera lens.

Print power

Last week, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers contributed to the Republican House leadership weekly press conference, as she often does. She wore a black and cream print jacket:

As we discussed before. prints can be challenging to wear simply because the print must be just right or it can go all wrong. Here's why this one works:

• The smooth edges of the print compliment the sleek, smooth lines of her bob hairstyle.
• The robust cream color (instead of more common stark white) warms up the color palette and takes the edge off the color contrast.
• The print is varied, abstract, and in proportion to her features, which keeps it from drawing too much attention.

Too sharp

Rep. Jan Schakowsky recorded a YouTube message on the economy this week. She wore a polka dot blazer:

This is a bold print, and there's nothing wrong with bold prints, but this is the wrong print for this woman. Polka dots can be very sharp and unforgiving, especially in the scale where each dot is about the size of your eye. They are perfectly round, perfectly defined (there are no soft edges on a dot) and in this case, they are the highest possible contrast of black and white. Comparing this print with Rep. Schakowsky's features, the dots don't compliment her. Her hair is softly framing her face, with many variations of color within it. Her eyebrows have soft edges. Her nose and her mouth are comprised of straight lines, not round ones.

It's also interesting to note that this was a planned appearance on camera - she wasn't in the middle of doing something else. So this is my opportunity to remind you that when you plan to go on camera, consider not just what your clothes look like on you, but also how they look in your surroundings. The size and contrast of the dots are in direct competition with the flag right behind her (and the flag wins). The black backdrop just absorbs the rest of it.

This is one instance where I definitely would have recommended a solid, maybe in a steel gray like this:

Animal prints on television

We've talked about prints on television quite a lot, and it may seem sort of arbitrary what "works" and what ends up all wavy looking. But consider what happened when Rep. Barbara Lee made remarks last week on the House floor in honor of Black History Month.  Here she is on c-span:




And now here she is again, with video uploaded to YouTube:



A dramatic difference, isn't it?  As the video quality breaks down, so does the pattern on her jacket.  She looks great in HD, but not in you average web video.  Same camera, same footage, different results.

Up around the neck

Senator Gillibrand spoke to State of Politics this week about Don't Ask Don't Tell. She wore a dark suit and a blue print blouse:

Although blue is a great color for the senator, the style of this blouse is all wrong. The business of the print and the fussiness of the ruffles don't harmonize with her overall look. It sort of looks like she's wearing someone else's clothes.

Remember, you can like a garment a lot and it can still be all wrong for you. Don't get so caught up on one element (like color) that you don't pay enough attention to the other elements, like silhouette and style.

Patterns on television, busy background edition

Rep. Jan Schakowsky was on PBS NewsHour last week to discuss the budget deficit. She wore magenta plaid:

This bold plaid and oversize collar might be distracting no matter what was behind the Congresswoman. But the bright city lights in this background are particularly problematic in combination with this print. The only place we're not looking is her face, unfortunately.

Her best choice for this program might have been a light gray jacket paired with a magenta blouse under it.

Competing elements

Hillary Clinton accepted the George McGovern Leadership Award last week. She wore a print blouse:

Secretary Clinton paired the blouse with a gold necklace that almost perfectly bisects the flower that is meant to be the visual focal point at the collar. It's so distracting! I would have recommended that she forgo a necklace entirely, given how much detail the blouse involves.

Down on the farm

The last time we saw Robin Carnahan shoot a campaign ad on her farm, we saw the wrong color and not quite the right style. But this time she got her outfit exactly right:

She took our advice, and this time went with a light, soft blue. And plaid! Now she looks like she belongs.

Ms. Carnahan also makes excellent use of the contrast in her style against her opponent in a sharp suit - a technique that we also saw Alex Sink use to great success in Florida. This time it's not about femininity per se, it's more about earthiness and the insider/outsider perception of Washington by the voters.

Go bold

We've seen before how prints can be challenging to wear. The scale has to be right. The style has to work for you. The colors and the contrast have to compliment your skin tone. Oh, but when it's right, it's so right. Have a look at State Department Special Representative to Muslim Communities Farah Pandith:

All the elements came together for her in this jacket. The earthy color palette is great for her. The style, shape and size of the print is gently echoed in the waves in her hair. The proportions of the jacket are in alignment with the proportions of her features. Clothes are rarely perfect, but this comes close.

Rice goes to print

UN Ambassador Susan E. Rice chose a jacket with a bold print for a recent press conference:

The scale and style of the print work for her, but the contrast between white and black is too stark for her.

Something like this might have worked better:

Pattern and piping

We know from many, many examples that patterns can be tricky to wear. Rep. Diana DeGette gave us a great example of how to do it right:

This blue pattern with ribbon piping trim is visually interesting and still works well on camera. This medium blue is a nice color on her, and the white in the pattern creates great contrast, complimenting the contrast between her dark hair and creamy skin. The trim is an unusual detail, making the jacket distinctive and giving it an air of higher quality.

Patterns on television, part 5

Rep. Candace Miller gives us a new twist on the patterns on television problem: a pattern that looks distorted, but isn't. This is what it looks like:

I'm willing to consider that this pattern might look better in person. But on television, these sharply contrasting colors mixed in an irregular way have become really distracting. The problem is not just the colors themselves, but the fact that this type of pattern makes us wonder, "Is it supposed to be like that? Or is it distorted?"

Patterns on television, part 4

By now you know not to wear houndstooth or chevron stripes on television, right? Right? Well if you're still not convinced, have a look at Rep. Chellie Pingree on MSNBC:

I have to say that I wouldn't recommend this jacket for the Congresswoman on any day, let alone a television day. The texture is rough and the contrast is too sharp for her. But on camera? My, look how the stripes dance.

Just don't do it.

Clinton adds a floral ruffled collar to the mix

Secretary Clinton's clothing choices tend to be very tailored and very precise, so it was unusual to see her pair her suit with a floral blouse with a ruffled collar for a recent diplomacy briefing:

This wasn't the most effective addition to her wardrobe. The blouse doesn't work for her, for a few reasons:
1. It adds a lot of volume around her neck, an area that she would probably prefer not to draw attention to.
2. It competes with her necklace for visual interest.
3. The pattern doesn't relate to her features at all. Nothing about her hair or the shapes in her face says "soft floral" to me.

I applaud her attempt at branching out, but she was much more successful with a subtle scarf than a prominent collar to use florals.

The Geometry of Lisa Murkowski

Senator Lisa Murkowski chose a boldly patterned dress for a speech to the Oceans Law Policy Conference last week (you might want to skip to minute 3:00 when she starts):

I like this dress on her a lot more than I thought I would. The reason it works is all in the geometry - of the print and of the senator's face. The rectangles in the print very nicely echo the shape of her face. I do think the contrast of the colors in the print is too strong for her, but in general she's doing better!

Patterns on television, part 3

Secretary Clinton ran in to some problems with the weave pattern of the jacket she wore for her Mother's Day address to State Department employees. She looks all wavy:


You may have noticed, though, that this is the same jacket she wore for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference press conference last week, with the collar unbuttoned:


She doesn't look all wavy here. Same jacket, so what's the difference?  The distance of the camera.  When the camera was close to her for her recorded Mother's Day message, it was able to pick up individual lines in the weave of the fabric, but not so finely that they don't run together as she moves.  For the press conference, the camera was further away, and even zoomed in to put her at approximately the same size in the frame, it doesn't pick up each of those individual lines - they blend together into a more uniform shade of gray.

I still wouldn't say you can wear a glen plaid with the cameras at the back of the room, but it does give you a little more flexibility.

Patterns on television, part 2

We already talked about the many ways in which patterns can be dangerous on television. But there are some patterns that do work. Have a look at Kay Hagan on the Senate floor last week:


This textural pattern works out just fine on camera. What I really like about this jacket is the fit. It stays close to her body without being form fitting, and the shoulders aren't too wide. The contrast seams on the torso also add subtle dimension while directing not-so-subtle attention up to her face. There's so much going on in the jacket, she smartly sticks to a very plain white shell underneath. Nice outfit, Senator Hagan.

Barbara Mikulski debates health care bill, nearly drowns in red jacket

Senator Barbara Mikulski gave remarks on the health care bill during the Senate reconciliation debate on Wednesday. She wore a red jacket with a black patterned blouse:

The Senator is so completely overwhelmed by these clothes, it's as if she's drowning in them. Two layers of voluminous, stiff fabric buttoned all the way up to her neck are doing her no favors. And the bold, sharp pattern on her blouse is distracting.

She would do so much better in something with an open neckline and more subtle pattern, like this Milly dress at Lee Lee's Valise.

Maria Otero on World Water Day

March 22 was World Water Day. Undersecretary of State Maria Otero gave a special briefing. She wore a printed, beaded jacket:

I can see how this jacket was a good idea in theory. Sort of. But there are a lot of problems with this. The pattern is just too large and there's too much space between the flowers to use it on a jacket - we never see an entire flower except on the side of the sleeve. It starts to look like a mistake, like the jacket was supposed to be made out of something else, but they used this fabric instead.

But even if the pattern were smaller, the color palette and the style of the print just aren't appropriate for business attire. At least not on a jacket. On a blouse, maybe. Or a scarf. Just not a jacket.

Nydia Velazquez encourages census participation with a bold look

Rep. Nydia Velazquez created a Spanish-language PSA on the 2010 Census. She wore a boldly patterned jacket:

This could be a lot of look for anyone, but she pulls it off because she keeps everything else very refined:

• A neutral color palette. The same jacket in red? Not such a good idea.
• Simple earrings and no necklace. Keeping the jewelry away from the jacket prevents the pieces from fighting with each other.
• A sleek hairstyle, for similar reasons as the jewelry.
• No collar or cuffs peeking out. The jacket remains the focal point of the outfit.