I think the article's main points are important, but I do not want to forget that yogajournal makes its money from its sponsors, many of which are clothing sales. You can achieve what the article is stating without buying or doing anything special.

Yoga marketing is good for some people, I honestly think some folks have that mindset where picking out all new clothes and stuff really will inspire them to practice, and thats great.

Well, I think that caring at all about what you look like (not saying 'you' as in you precisely, just using the term generally) takes away greatly from the Philisophical aspect of what Yoga IS. That's something that moves us more and more extrenally, though I won't deny that our look, via clothing, makeup or lack of, effects how our students view us. It's up to us to put the judgements of our students aside and teach what we teach.

I've always felt a little off with some folks at conferences that are dressed up to the max. I think if we're looking to attract more people, especially from the mainstream, one 'tool' we could use is our appearance and I don't think that's bad but I do think, as teachers, we should understand the "why" behind attracting more people? Do we 'need' to have more people in the class to feel better as a teacher, to feel adored or looked up to or are we looking only and gracefully to share what we've learned. In that case, worrying about the clothing can be beneficial or detrimental. Just depends on which seat of the table your viewing from.

I generally look something inbetween the Yogi hobos and princesses : ) (though I'm sure there are days where I look more like a tree hugger than I'd like.. the el'natural look)

Katrina

I think it's important, as a teacher, that our clothing doesn't distract from our teaching. As a young female teacher, I definitely take into consideration the fact that tighter clothing, though great for my own practice, might not be appropriate when I teach. I wear clothes that fit, and that are clean and in good condition, and that aren't too "sexy". I don't hide my body, but I don't flaunt it, either.

I have gone to workshops where the teacher was wearing clothing that was too tight, or too short (in the case of men's shorts), and I found that to be distracting. Not that I was arroused, just that I was aware of the fact that their clothing seemed inappropriate. I've also seen teachers who wear really ratty clothing, and again, I find that to be a bit distracting -- I feel that it shows a lack of professionalism. You don't need to be in head-to-toe Lululemon, but your shirt shouldn't have holes in it, either.