posted Aug 26, 2010 in Dress & Image / by Joanne Blake / 0 comments

Wardrobe Malfunction Horror Stories

Just recently, I was chatting with the CEO of a large corporation who shared her wardrobe malfunction.  She attends many gala events and at one particular function she wore a brand new slim fitting, sleek ‘mermaid’ style dress.  She was feeling pretty glamorous right up until the malfunction.

Uh-oh I feel a breeze

While seated for dinner she suddenly felt cold. She reached around to touch the back of her dress and instead her finger tips touched skin. Uh-oh! To her horror, her zipper hadn’t just come unzipped, it had broken and no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t do it up. She couldn’t leave her seat to fix it as this would expose her entire backside to the room.

Quick thinking

Thinking quickly she wrote a note to her male colleague sitting across from her explaining the situation.  She asked if she could borrow his jacket to make her escape and then slipped away, she hoped, unnoticed. She wasn’t looking at anyone in the eye so it’s hard to say. Lesson learned: now she  always brings a shawl or pashmina wrap with her. 

Me too

Something like that happened to me with a new oh-so-soft cashmere knit skirt. I wore it proudly to deliver a presentation at my professional speakers meeting. But following the meeting, I decided to go furniture shopping. As I walking around the show room, I felt a draft on my behind.  When I turned around to see if the door had been left open, I noticed this woman’s face register a look of shock.

Around my knees

I looked down and my skirt was down around my knees. I turned beet red and swiftly hiked my skirt back up to my waist and I didn’t let go of it until I got home. I examined the skirt waistband and because it was made of knitted material, it didn’t have enough structure to stay in place. Lesson learned: try new garments on at home for a while before venturing out. Thank goodness it didn't happen while on stage delivering my presentation or end up on YouTube.

Stuff happens

Wardrobe malfunctions happen to all of us, they rarely kill you... but they sure can embarrass you. What’s more important is how you recover from them and learn from them so you don’t repeat them (hopefully). My motto is expect the unexpected, but like the scouts, be prepared.

So what about you? Feel free to share your experiences and tips with us so we can all have a laugh and know we’re all human.

Posted by Joanne Blake