Although these expenses may be related to her job, expenses that are inherently personal are nondeductible personal expenses.
A television morning news anchor cannot deduct the cost of her business clothing that she wore only on TV, the Tax Court says, even though she felt the clothes were too conservative to be suitable for everyday wear. It also voided write-offs she took for the cost of makeup, manicures, contact lenses, news magazines, teeth whitening, cable TV and a gym membership as nondeductible personal expenses. It doesn’t matter that her employer required her
to maintain a professional appearance and to keep abreast of breaking news events.
The court did accept real business expenses as deductions, just no personal deductions. These need to be reviewed on an individual basis.
Hamper vs Commissioner, Tax Court Summary Opinion 2011-17