Holiday Parties and Holiday Photos in the New Normal

Thanksgiving is here, and Christmas is just around the corner. While in years past this was a time for large holiday gatherings across the country, this year is bound to be a little different with the ongoing pandemic still in full swing. However, this does not mean that all gatherings need to be foregone. There are still ways to get together with friends and family safely, and even if your holiday gatherings plan on being on the smaller side, there will likely be tons of opportunities to capture those precious moments on camera. In this article, we'll touch on the several ways you can dress your best for holiday photo opportunities, no matter what dress codes your family or friends decide to run with.

One thing we can't stress enough is that you should be prepared to plan your holiday itinerary in advance. With the new normal dictating appropriate health and safety measures, it's much less likely that you'll be invited to spur-of-the-moment last-minute holiday parties. While all of us might lament over the endless free food and open bars that we were once accustomed to, this is actually a good thing, as smaller planned gatherings will reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19, influenza, and other common ailments associated with the winter months.

Common traditions tell us that it's also appropriate to dress up, rather than dress down, for the holidays, but this notion isn't universal. This year, smaller family gatherings might opt for something a bit less formal in terms of implied or expected dress code, but that doesn't mean you have to show up with your standard remote-work just-rolled-out-of-bed look, either. Even if your plans don't require a full suit and tie, a nice dress shirt and a pair of slacks can go a long way.

In any event, larger gatherings may still take place even though they're likely to be way less common than last year. Given the current circumstances, you shouldn't feel afraid to decline an invitation if you don't feel comfortable around large groups of people; in all likelihood, your potential party hosts will understand if you decide to sit their gathering out. But if you choose to venture out, there are certain steps you can take to ensure a safer holiday experience, and these tips apply to both the party guests as well as the hosts.

--Outside vs. Inside--

If you plan on hosting a holiday event this year, consider keeping your guests outdoors whenever possible. They'll feel more comfortable if they're not confined to an indoor space, and proper social distancing protocols can be more easily followed. While we understand this isn't always possible depending on the weather in your particular area, if it's not too cold consider renting heaters to scatter throughout your yard or patio to keep your guests comfortable.

--Food and Drink--

It's not quite a holiday party without a vast assortment of hors d'oeuvres and beverages, but this year, you may want to rethink how you serve them, especially if your guest list goes beyond your immediate family or extended households. For starters, it's best to keep all beverages including wine, beer, soda, and spirits in sealed containers meant for individual servings rather than keeping a bar open for the taking; think small bottles and cans rather than bottle spouts and ice buckets. This reduces the risk of any potential cross-contamination and as a result will ease any apprehension your guests might have. If you do plan on serving ice with your

beverages, consider using an ice machine or at the very least tongs or an ice scoop to prevent your guests from touching the ice directly.

--Masks--

As a courtesy, offer your guests extra masks, hand sanitizer, and sanitation wipes. Many masks are sold in sealed individual containers rather than boxes in bulk, so for holiday gatherings the former is the preferred option. Also, if you're a guest rather than a host, bring an extra mask or two just in case. Hosts' rules about keeping them on or requiring them for entry may vary.

--Dress Codes--

Now that all of the social etiquette is out of the way, it's time to get into the fun part, which is figuring out your style and what to wear when you decide to venture out for the holidays.

For large corporations and their holiday events, it's certainly customary to dress up rather than dress down, and depending on the particular corporate culture, a full suit might be expected if not required. Considering that many large companies have foregone their holiday events or at the very least scaled them down quite a bit, there might be less of an overall formal expectation. But if you're set on going to any traditional or corporate holiday events, especially one where there are plenty of photo opportunities, don't feel bashful about donning a full suit. A little style can go a long way.

If you go the suit route, subtlety will always be on your side. Consider opting for more traditional colors like black, navy blue, or tightly woven grey crosshatch patterns paired with a white or blue shirt. But in order to bring out that extra

holiday spirit, you might want to get a little more creative with your ties and accessories than you normally would for standard office attire. A rule of thumb is that you can never really have too many ties in your wardrobe, so if you can fish one out that's been buried in your closet for several years, whether it's solid red or intertwined with small Christmas tree patterns, now would be the time to lay it out and see how it pairs with your overall outfit. Ties, no matter how crazy or ostentatious, tend to be a better option than the dreaded ugly Christmas sweater, as it allows you to be fun and creative without drawing too much unwanted attention to yourself. Unless of course, that's the goal of the party to begin with. Then by all means, go with the sweater you would never wear in public otherwise.

Whether you decide to pair them with a full suit or feel like your dress shirt and slacks are missing something, a vest is yet another way to spruce up your attire. In comparison to your tie, your best option is to keep your vests on the subtler side; you want your vest to provide an accent to your overall outfit, not detract from it by drawing too much attention to loud colors or crazy patterns. But because it's the holidays, you can get away with a little more than you otherwise would be able to.

--Photo Opportunities--

These days, you have to worry less about what colors or patterns you decide to wear whether you're in front of a still or moving camera, thanks to technological advancements. But it wasn't that long ago when certain colors and patterns were best avoided. In spite of advancing technology, there's still a chance that pinstripes that contrast too sharply or colors that don't pair well could throw off the camera's ability to capture a moment's realism. A dark violet tie, for example, might appear

much lighter in a photo than its true hue, and this is a result of the limitations of a camera lens to reproduce certain color wavelengths. In another instance, sharply contrasting pinstripe suits on a moving camera lens might actually make the suit appear that it is moving around, even if the person wearing it is standing still. To avoid these aforementioned problems, make sure you have plenty of light (but not too much) and try not to wear anything that might be too loud for a camera lens, even if it passes the test of the human eye with flying colors. When it comes to taking holiday photos, there's always going to be a little bit of trial and error involved, so you have to weigh in what works and what doesn't from time to time. If your suit jacket is a little too loud for the camera being used to take the photo, consider removing it. If there isn't enough light in your living room, try the kitchen or move everyone outside before you snap the photo first.

While there aren't too many rules set in stone as absolutes for holiday photos, one that we would say is important above all else is to do your best to take them in the afternoon rather than at night. Nighttime photos can be a great opportunity to capture the ambience of any event, but you might occasionally run into problems with color contrast and overuse of flash settings, leading to things like red eyes or navy blue suits that look much lighter on camera than they would in person. If you opt for nighttime photos of your holiday events, be sure to take plenty of pictures during the day as well to offset any errors you might encounter later with limited lighting.

From all of us at Enzo Custom, we wish you a happy and safe holiday season, no matter how you decide to celebrate. Remember that even if you plan on staying home for the holidays, be sure to check out our custom suit offerings so you can start off the new year with a wardrobe update, especially if your company plans on reopening their offices at some point in the future. Stop into one of our showrooms where we can offer you a private appointment to get you measured, or feel free to schedule an appointment with one of our clothiers via videoconference.