Here’s why female meteorologists across the country all wear the exact same dress
We all remember “The Dress” that totally blew the Internet’s collective mind (and created wars and alliances and general confusion). But now, we’re wide-eyed over a new dress. . . one that’s not only taking over the Internet, but our TV screens. Thousands are wondering why they’ve noticed dozens of meteorologists wearing the same (very cute) dress. Is it a prank? Nope, it’s for the sake of practicality.
But let’s back up. For many female meteorologists, wardrobes are an incredibly tricky affair. They’re subject to various dress codes, including print (can’t be too busy), sleeve length, style, and color. “Many stations even have consultants that come in and tell you colors you should and shouldn’t wear,” Oklahoman KOCO meteorologist Shelby Hays told Tech Insider, noting that she’s been told to stay away from green and white.
It can be difficult to find affordable-yet-chic clothes that are flattering, suit the wearer’s tastes, and don’t break any of the codes. On top of all that, they can’t re-wear outfits too often, or viewers notice. That’s exactly why Hays and dozens of other meteorologists belong to a Facebook group where members can post fashion advice and links. And last month, one of the members posted a link to a cute, classy sheath dress on Amazon.
“Someone stumbled onto ‘the dress’ and a few of us ordered it and shared pics of it on air in our group. Everyone saw how great it looked,” Hays told Tech Insider. “At $23 we could buy a handful of these dresses for what we normally pay for just one.”
It wasn’t intended as one, but soon became an inside joke between the meteorologists that the Internet gradually caught on to over time. “It really caught on,” Hays told ABC News. “It became a joke: ‘The sisterhood of the traveling dress.’”
Jennifer Myers, another meteorologist in the group, has been taking snapshots of women wearing the dress on the air and compiling them into a brilliant (and mind-blowing) collage.
The brand has many meteorologist-friendly dresses for sale on their Amazon account, Myers explained on Reddit — quite a feat, considering how many dress codes they have to follow. “Distracting prints are a no-no. . .Cleavage angers viewers over 40 something fierce, so we stay away from that,” Myers wrote. “. . . For some reason lace is still SUPER frowned upon.”
If you want to buy one of the dresses, sorry, they’re sold out — except for the green, which would have clashed with the green screen on air. “They would literally disappear,” Hays said. “A few people do it on Halloween and they just look like floating heads!”
Oh, Internet. You’ll never fail to keep us on our toes.
(Images via Twitter, Imgur, Amazon.)
