5 Must-Haves for Your Work Wardrobe

Oh, how I miss the days of wearing sweatpants every day and being comfortable. The days where my UGG moccasins were my best friend and a hoodie kept me comfy. Those were some really good days. Don’t get me wrong, the present and future isn’t looking too bad but I miss those carefree days of not caring what I look like. Now I’m in a business environment and my appearance is part of my brand. Your appearance becomes your brand as soon as you realize you want to be a brand or be part of a brand. How you represent yourself is how you are going to be viewed. 

Going
from a college atmosphere to a professional atmosphere is a quick switch-up
when you’re so used to wearing crop tops and ripped jeans. College was fun and
free, we didn’t have to worry about the length of our dresses nor did some of
us care. Who really dressed up for class? I can say that yoga pants and
leggings were my best friends paired off with a crewneck and comfy shoes. The
ultimate comfort look was what I went for in college. But in the professional
world, it’s a whole other level. You can’t be too casual especially when
running from meeting to meeting nor can you rock anything tight because
unfortunately, women can be sexualized by what they wear.

There’s
no perfect work wardrobe or rules, not when workplaces vary with their rules. I’ve
held two professional jobs – one where I wore dresses all the time and had to
keep the business savvy trend going while my current job, which is at a
corporate office, is business casual. It can get tedious to dress up sometimes
but if you really have select key pieces then you are winning. We’re still young and we want our style to represent us – trust me, there’s no way I’m passing up my skater dresses and gladiator sandals any time soon. 

It’s your time and your brand, dress to what represents you. Here’s my tips and the direction I’m going in with my work wardrobe. 

Shirt Dress

I
love dresses but they can only go so far when you’re trying to put together a
wardrobe for work.  There are so many
different types of dresses and they range from skater, body con, maxi, and
midi, the variations are endless. With a shirtdress, you can look casual and
make is business savvy with a blazer or cardigan. It’s my go-to I won’t ever
deny that. I have sweater dresses for the winter and shirt dresses for the
spring. There’s a variety from denim, plaid, t-shirt and I love them all.

Pencil Skirt

This
is the go-to. You can’t go wrong with a pencil skirt because it’s an
appropriate length and most of them are made for a business atmosphere. What I
like about pencil skirts is that they come in solid colors, printed patterns,
and they can have ruffles – basically they are unique in fashion because they
can end up looking like anything. Being a year out of post grad, Forever21 fits
into my affordable budget at the moment and they have tons of pencil skirts and
for cheap!

Printed Pants

You
can’t go wrong with pants, not when they fit right or are tailored right. I
have this impressive coral pair of pants that I love and then I have tons of
prints. Printed pants are definitely in right now – the white ones with black
polka dots are the go-to, very Kate Spade. These pants can easily be paired
with pumps or ballet flats and flats are my favorite. Plus printed jeans can easily pass off as printed pants if that makes life a little bit more easy for you. You can’t go wrong, my floral pants are a big hit at the office simply because htey bring spring on the gloomy Ohio days. 

Blazer

One
word, professional. Two words, classy. Blazers can really play up an outfit and
make those dark wash jeans look really dressed up. I am that person that will
pair a blazer with jeans, a skirt, and a dress. You can take an outfit to
different levels with a blazer. They come in multiple colors from what I know –
I have a red, blue, green, and gold ones so I can attest to this claim.
Forever21 blessed me with my blazers and that’s where I seem to do all my
shopping.

Pumps/Booties

With shoes, you can keep it classic with flats
or you can introduce yourself to some booties. Pumps are the thing around the
office and they come in neutral colors and can play up any outfit. Now booties,
those babies are the perfect edition to dress down or dress up an outfit. Every lady at my job has booties and they rock them – I’m trying to be like them, no lie. Booties are the It piece of the wardrobe; start with the booties and build your wardrobe from the bottom up.  

This is only the beginning of planning your work wardrobe. There’s so much that you can look  into like sheer tops and dark wash jeans, if your work environment supports it. It’s a learning process, that is for sure. I’m learning to this day what is appropriate and what is not. What is your go-to for work? What do you wear frequently? That’s definitely your go-to (;