Can I Wear White After Labor Day? Absolutely. Here’s Why.
September 7, 2020 - San Antonio
Are those white shoes you’re wearing, ma’am? Actress Kathleen Turner (right) is about to have a fit over Patty Hearst’s white shoes in the 1994 black comedy Serial Mom. Screenshot: YouTube.
By Jade Esteban Estrada - Culture Writer, San Antonio Sentinel
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- In the early twentieth century, the color white represented a look of leisure for wealthy people during the summer
- Today, most fashion editors around the world encourage individuals to find apparel that is comfortable to wear and feels good, regardless of color or the time of year
I will always remember the time my mother told me that wearing white after Labor Day was a perennial fashion faux pas. I was an eight-year-old rebel getting ready for the first day of school in my totally awesome white pants. After some pleading, she let me wear them. The curious stares I received from the other students - and teachers - still play out vividly in my mind. Even now, I will take a long, hard look at any white ensemble before deciding whether I’m courageous enough to rock the pure and chaste look post-summer.
Twentieth-century thinking is a hard habit to break.
When did this sacred tradition of storing our white apparel in the attic after Labor Day begin and why do some Americans still abide by it? I did some digging and here’s what I found.
Labor Day itself became a federal holiday in 1894 under President Grover Cleveland, the only president in American history to serve two non-consecutive terms. Created by the labor movement to pay tribute to the contributions and achievements of U.S. workers, the day off is traditionally observed on the first Monday of September.
There are three reasons for the no-white-after-Labor-Day rule.
The first reason is the practicality of the notion; during the summer, wearing white is a cooler, lighter choice. In the fall, when the temperature drops, there’s more of an inclination to reach for darker, heavier clothing.
In an interview with Time, author Charlie Scheips explained that the color white represented a “look of leisure” for higher ranking members of society. When wealthy families would return from their summer holidays, putting the white clothing away until next year was a time-honored ritual. Purchasing the latest fall fashions was the accepted manner of enjoying September in the big city. These dictates handed down by celebrated taste makers set the tone for the entire country.
Some historians believe that the rule was more symbolic. As many old-money families began the task of keeping the nouveau riche out of polite society, not wearing white after Labor Day was equal to metaphorical secret handshakes like which plates to showcase on certain occasions and what fork to use and when. If one wasn’t a member of the club, it would be immediately obvious by their missteps in fashion and etiquette.
“It [was] insiders trying to keep other people out,” Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, told Time, “and outsiders trying to climb in by proving they know the rules.”
According to Reader’s Digest, this rule started circulating in national women’s magazines during the 1950s. In contrast, badass women of the time, like Coco Chanel, had long since been protesting such conformity by wearing white year round.
RELATED: Cafecito with Azul Barrientos: Searching for the Limit
The rule has also appeared in popular culture. In John Waters’ 1994 Serial Mom, Kathleen Turner’s title character, Beverly Sutphin, loses her mind after seeing a juror, played by Patty Hearst, wearing white shoes after Labor Day.
“You can’t wear white shoes after Labor Day,” Beverly says calmly.
“That’s not true anymore,” replies her optimistic victim.
“Yes, it is!” she screams. “Didn’t your mother tell you?” Beverly then assaults her in the face with the phone she’s holding. “Now you know.”
“No! Please! Fashion has changed!” the victim pleads. Blood is dripping from her forehead.
“No. It hasn’t,” she says, hitting her a second time. In the final moment of the scene, there’s a close-up shot of the juror’s white shoe, it’s splattered with blood.
Happily, Hearst has survived worse.
Views have become more relaxed in regards to excluding white from the style menu, and most fashion editors around the globe agree that individuals should find apparel that is both comfortable to wear and looks good, regardless of the time of year.
The message is clear: Wear whatever makes you feel great, whenever you feel like wearing it.
As Beverly Sutphin would say, “Now you know.”
Jade Esteban Estrada is a staff writer at the San Antonio Sentinel, where he covers pop culture and entertainment. He can be reached at jade@sasentinel.com.