Uniforms: good, bad or just ugly?

The word uniform has different meanings for different people. While one person might have negative memories of a lack of individuality in school, another person might be proud of the firefighter, police officer, soldier or, dare I say, mail carrier that they know and what displaying that uniform represents.

What pops into your mind when you think of uniforms?

But when it comes to actual uniforms, it seems that they can usually be classified into good, bad or just ugly. The four that I mentioned above? Good. They're practical, effective and not all that hard on the eyes.

As for the other end of the spectrum, just about anyone that has ever worked in any sort of restaurant most likely can tell you about the bad uniform that they had to wear at some point. Take me, for example. When I was in college, I took a job as a waitress at a chain family restaurant to help pay the bills and ended up spending four long years squarely in the ugly uniform category (although not nearly as ugly as some fast food uniforms, as seen as right).

Picture black polyester pants that were long enough to drag on the ground accompanied by a thick, non-fitted button up bright blue shirt. Top it off with a mangy apron and I was set to feed the masses. Even better, after I had worked there for a certain amount of time, I was allowed the option of swapping out my much-too-warm unflattering shirt for an embroidered polo instead.

Sounds like a good idea, right? That's because you're thinking of a normal polo shirt, not an in-your-face red, wide-enough-to-share-with-a-friend, just-try-to-tuck-this-amount-of-extra-fabric-in polo shirt. Adding that to the pants that now were ripped and torn along the bottom and I was clearly not making my way out of the ugly category anytime soon.

On the contrary to the ugly outfits that I had to wear, one uniform that I wouldn't mind putting on every day would be nursing scrubs. From the various colors and prints to some of the new, flattering silhouettes to the plain comfort of how they fit, I don't see why I would ever want to change my clothes.

Not ever having worked in a profession where scrubs were necessary, I never really realized the wide selection of styles available. Who knew that there were designer nursing scrubs? Brands like Katherine Heigl, Izzy Scrubs and Peaches Uniforms ensure that the wearer will not only be comfortable, but fashionable as well.

Keeping in mind the various uniforms that I have worn over the years, I would consider myself lucky to have worn scrubs instead. With the way that they look professional while still being functional and chic, I think would consider scrubs in the category of good uniforms. What do you think?

So, do you wear a uniform? Did you in the past? Was it good, bad or just ugly?

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