--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The cardinal sin is not being badly…" description: "\"The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.\" — Edith Head" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg" --- # The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing… ![“The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.” quote by Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg) > “The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.” [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True error lies not in clothing choice but in misplacing appropriate attire. **In simple terms:** Wrong context for right clothes is sinful. Key Takeaway Dress appropriately for the setting. Themes fashion ethics contextual awareness Mood reflective pragmatic Type advice observational When to use this quote - workplace - formal events - casual gatherings Key Concepts social norms identity Questions to Reflect On - When have you worn something right in the wrong place? - How can you better match attire to context? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Badly Dressed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/badly-dressed-324391/) [Cardinal Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cardinal-sin-1470697/) [Cardinals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cardinals/) [Clothes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clothes/) [Dressed Wearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dressed-wearing-1048269/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Right thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-thing/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) [Wearing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wearing/) [Wearing Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wearing-right-2587851/) [Wrong place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong-place/) ## Related quotes > [It is a cardinal sin to bore the reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-niven/it-is-a-cardinal-sin-to-bore-the-reader/) [Larry Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-niven/) > [If you call attention to yourself at the expense of the song, that's the cardinal sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benmont-tench/if-you-call-attention-to-yourself-at-the-expense-of-the-song-that-s/) [Benmont Tench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benmont-tench/) > [If I go up to Harlem or down to Sixth Street, and I'm not dressed up or I'm not wearing my jewelry, then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-astor/if-i-go-up-to-harlem-or-down-to-sixth-street-and-i-m-not-dressed-up/) [Brooke Astor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-astor/) > [The biggest cardinal sin is not being in the moment, whether in life or on-screen. You owe it to your fellow actor that if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romany-malco/the-biggest-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-in-the-moment-whether-in-life/) [Romany Malco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romany-malco/) > [“There is a reason pride is a cardinal sin”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-wrights/there-is-a-reason-pride-is-a-cardinal-sin/) [D.S. Wrights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-wrights/) > [When voting for the Pope, it's top secret. No one is to reveal who they voted for. If they do, it's considered a Cardinal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-s/when-voting-for-the-pope-it-s-top-secret-no-one-is-to-reveal-who-they/) [Laura S](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-s/) > [That was a sin: to consider yourself victimized or not able to control your destiny or your fate - that was the one cardinal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/that-was-a-sin-to-consider-yourself-victimized-or-not-able-to-control/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [If a foreign country doesn't look like a middle-class suburb of Dallas or Detroit, then obviously the natives must be dangerous as well as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham-2/if-a-foreign-country-doesn-t-look-like-a-middle-class-suburb-of/) [Lewis H Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham-2/) > [It's hard to describe how bloody awful music was, how desperately bad it was, how our 1960s heroes had become boring and useless. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-wilson/it-s-hard-to-describe-how-bloody-awful-music-was-how-desperately-bad/) [Tony Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-wilson/) > [I'm always in those tabloids where they show who's badly dressed. It's funny, because each time I'm getting my picture taken, I'm thinking, This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-silverman/i-m-always-in-those-tabloids-where-they-show-who-s-badly-dressed-it-s/) [Sarah Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-silverman/) > [It's always the badly dressed people who are the most interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-gaultier/it-s-always-the-badly-dressed-people-who-are-the-most-interesting/) [Jean Paul Gaultier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-gaultier/) > [It's terribly easy to be well dressed. It's much more difficult to be badly dressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-haslam/it-s-terribly-easy-to-be-well-dressed-it-s-much-more-difficult-to-be/) [Nicholas Haslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-haslam/) > [“Pretty, but badly dressed," breath of an oracle which had passed by her and vanished after depositing in her heart one of the two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/pretty-but-badly-dressed-breath-of-an-oracle-which-had-passed-by-her/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [I think the stereotype about footballers being badly dressed is unfair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-sturridge/i-think-the-stereotype-about-footballers-being-badly-dressed-is-unfair/) [Daniel Sturridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-sturridge/) > [I love fashion, but I don't come from a background of loving clothes, and I remember feeling badly dressed from a young age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-eclair/i-love-fashion-but-i-don-t-come-from-a-background-of-loving-clothes/) [Jenny Eclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-eclair/) ## More by Edith Head > [We don't make glamorous movies today. Everything now is very realistic, artistic - and depressing. When is the last time you you saw a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/we-don-t-make-glamorous-movies-today-everything-now-is-very-realistic/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Some people need sequins, others don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/some-people-need-sequins-others-don-t/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Couture has copied my things for years, in addition to countless other costume designers, claiming theirs were the original ideas. It's all part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/couture-has-copied-my-things-for-years-in-addition-to-countless-other/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [You can lead a horse to water and you can even make it drink, but you can't make actresses wear what they don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/you-can-lead-a-horse-to-water-and-you-can-even-make-it-drink-but-you/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [I always wear beige, black or white. For one thing I look good in them. For another, when I'm beside a star at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/i-always-wear-beige-black-or-white-for-one-thing-i-look-good-in-them/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Even the most beautiful legs - Marlene Dietrich's, for instance - look better when the kneecap is covered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/even-the-most-beautiful-legs-marlene-dietrich-s-for-instance-look/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [A designer is only as good as the star who wears her clothes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/a-designer-is-only-as-good-as-the-star-who-wears-her-clothes/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Many women have asked me if it is possible to have a well-built wardrobe on a limited budget. 'Money,' I tell them, 'is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/many-women-have-asked-me-if-it-is-possible-to-have-a-well-built/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [The subjective actress thinks of clothes only as they apply to her; the objective actress thinks of them only as they affect others, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/the-subjective-actress-thinks-of-clothes-only-as-they-apply-to-her/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Fashion is a language. Some know it, some learn it, some never will - like an instinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/fashion-is-a-language-some-know-it-some-learn-it-some-never-will-like/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [I assure you that even the most beautiful women are not pretty all over. They have merely learned to use clothes deftly enough to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/i-assure-you-that-even-the-most-beautiful-women-are-not-pretty-all/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [I have yet to see one completely unspoiled star, except for the animals-like Lassie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/i-have-yet-to-see-one-completely-unspoiled-star-except-for-the/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Building a proper wardrobe is like building a home. Indeed, you should think of it like a home, because it is something you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/building-a-proper-wardrobe-is-like-building-a-home-indeed-you-should/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [Before you are interviewed for the job you want, try on the complete outfit you intend to wear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/before-you-are-interviewed-for-the-job-you-want-try-on-the-complete/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) > [You can have whatever you want if you dress for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/you-can-have-whatever-you-want-if-you-dress-for-it/) [Edith Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) [Explore all 39 Edith Head quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/) ## More Cardinals quotes > [In the casino, the cardinal rule is to keep them playing and to keep them coming back. The longer they play, the more they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-de-niro/in-the-casino-the-cardinal-rule-is-to-keep-them-playing-and-to-keep/) [Robert De Niro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-de-niro/) > [The cardinal rule for hosting the Miss USA and Miss Universe beauty pageants is to expect the unexpected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-barker/the-cardinal-rule-for-hosting-the-miss-usa-and-miss-universe-beauty/) [Bob Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-barker/) > [A rhododendron bud lavender-tipped. Soon a glory of blooms to clash with the cardinals and gladden the hummingbirds!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-beard/a-rhododendron-bud-lavender-tipped-soon-a-glory-of-blooms-to-clash/) [Dave Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-beard/) > [These cardinals trifle with me; I abhor; This dilatory sloth and tricks of Rome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/these-cardinals-trifle-with-me-i-abhor-this-dilatory-sloth-and-tricks/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [The first thing I would like to tell you about death is that there is no bigger lie than death. And yet, death appears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-first-thing-i-would-like-to-tell-you-about-death-is-that-there-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I was very surprised when I heard that I had been chosen to receive the James Cardinal Gibbons Award.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-neville/i-was-very-surprised-when-i-heard-that-i-had-been-chosen-to-receive/) [Aaron Neville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-neville/) > [If self is a location, so is love: Bearings taken, markings, cardinal points, Options, obstinacies, dug heels, and distance, Here and there and now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/if-self-is-a-location-so-is-love-bearings-taken-markings-cardinal/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [You never know what's going to happen the rest of the way. You can't predict. You don't know what Montreal is going to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-hernandez/you-never-know-what-s-going-to-happen-the-rest-of-the-way-you-can-t/) [Keith Hernandez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-hernandez/) > [The Jackdaw sat in the Cardinal's chair! Bishop and Abbot and Prior were there, Many a monk and many a friar, Many a knight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-harris-barham/the-jackdaw-sat-in-the-cardinal-s-chair-bishop-and-abbot-and-prior/) [Richard Harris Barham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-harris-barham/) > [We fought a military war; our opponents fought a political one. We sought physical attrition; our opponents aimed for our psychological exhaustion. In the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-fought-a-military-war-our-opponents-fought-a-political-one-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In life and business, there are two cardinal sins. The first is to act precipitously without thought and the second is to not act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-icahn/in-life-and-business-there-are-two-cardinal-sins-the-first-is-to-act/) [Carl Icahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-icahn/) > [There are not more than five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard.There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/there-are-not-more-than-five-musical-notes-yet-the-combinations-of/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [Buddhism’s cardinal ethical principle is to avoid causing harm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-fronsdal/buddhism-s-cardinal-ethical-principle-is-to-avoid-causing-harm/) [Gil Fronsdal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-fronsdal/) > [Here's what I love: when a great writer turns me into a Jew from Chicago, a lesbian out of South Carolina, or a black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/here-s-what-i-love-when-a-great-writer-turns-me-into-a-jew-from/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [I made up my mind long ago to follow one cardinal rule in all my writing — to be clear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/i-made-up-my-mind-long-ago-to-follow-one-cardinal-rule-in-all-my/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) [Browse all 230 Cardinals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cardinals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edith Head" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dressed-but-wearing-the-right/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cardinals" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dressed-but-wearing-the-right/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e30/edith-head-16771_cardinals_the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dres_1060480.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The cardinal sin is not being badly dressed, but wearing the right thing in the wrong place.” — Edith Head", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Edith Head", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-head/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The cardinal sin is not being...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dressed-but-wearing-the-right/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-head/the-cardinal-sin-is-not-being-badly-dressed-but-wearing-the-right/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```