What Is Fairbanks Formal? | High Latitude Style

Post author:Nicole Mölders
Reading time:4 mins read

For success in life and to feel comfortable in our skin, we want to dress our best for every situation. Even when it means changing the look several times a day. Here a dress code called Fairbanks Formal is explained.

Contents

Dress Codes Can Be Stressful
Fairbanks Formal Decoded
Further Readings on Dressing in Alaska

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Dress Codes Can Be Stressful

White Tie, Black Tie, Festive Business Casual, Corporate Style. Not getting the dress code right, is a fashion/style nightmare for many women ever since wearing the wrong attire at an event back in high school or college.

Back then in college, when I was an exchange graduate student at the State University of New York, Albany, my roommate invited me to join her going out for cocktails. I was wearing floral print pants, pumps and a silk blouse, i.e. a posh casual look. In Germany, you would wear the outfit in a casual work environment, but not for cocktails. Thus, I said that I first have to put my cocktail dress on. She looked at me and said “you are kidding. In your current outfit, you are already overdressed, but wearing a cocktail dress would be plain ridiculous. Put your old blue jeans on, and a clean shirt.”

Never worry again what to wear when. Just look it up in my style book How to Dress for Success in Midlife. Buy the book now.

fashion blogger in boxy leather coat with patent leather pumps — Outfit details: Leather coat with L.K. Bennett pumps, pantyhose, and snow leopard print scarf (all own)

Fairbanks Formal Decoded

Fairbanks Formal is exactly this for the gentlemen: Clean jeans and a clean shirt. The shoes don’t matter as in Fairbanks shoes are to be weather appropriate. You learn how to avoid getting cold feet at frigid temperatures in your first winter up here. Once indoors, people change the shoes and check the boots with the coat at the coat clerk’s.

blogger in denim and lace outfit with leopard print scarf — Outfit details: Highlands Jeans denim shirt with eShakti pencil skirt in black lace, L.K. Bennett pumps, Tissot blue stone watch, Hermes collier de chien bangle, blue topas ear studs, unbranded pantyhose, smoky quartz flower statement belt, and unbranded leopard print scarf (all own)

Fairbanks Formal means for the lady that she can show up as mentioned for the guys. However, she can also wear a cocktail dress or dress up otherwise or wear something like I do in today’s post.

What would you wear when the dress code would be Fairbanks Formal?