What to wear to work

[aris]

same here!!
that collection totally WAS perfect!!

Dolce Gabbana still produce similar work suits, you need to ask for a business suit as it's not usually in display. I have many suits like this from different years:
http://www.bergdorfgoodman.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?itemId=prod13640004&parentId=cat223200&masterId=cat20053&index=7&cmCat=cat000000cat000002cat000008cat30005cat20053cat223200

Gucci and YSL also have similar suits.
Paul Smith also have nice suits.
Valentino - although they are more towards "ladies who do lunch"

 

[Vicious Vaness]

I work with high level executives. I usually work at home. I can wear whatever I want when I'm at home. However, when I have a meeting, I dress professional; which usually means a pant suit. I won't wear skirts to work. I wore a skirt on the first day of my old job. I had guys in the parking lot staring and whistling at me. I've NEVER worn a skirt to any job since. When I'm at work, I don't dress to impress... I dress to demand resepect. I'm sure people in other positions or industries, especially fashion, would disagree with me. But I guess it depends on where you work.

 

[Mascha]

I'm a secretary at a law firm. Everybody at my firm mostly dresses very casual, so jeans and a nice blouse is what i usually wear. I would like to dress up though but I don't want to upstage my boss.

 

[exdesigner]

The only thing I miss about working in fashion is that I was allowed to wear jeans, as long as they weren't ripped.

Now that I work in a corporate atmosphere, its dress pants for me. I stopped wearing skirts because skirts = high heels and I can't wear heels all day long. So now I buy Banana Republic martin pants on sale (they fit great!) in black, grey, brown and then when its warm out, I'll pair those with a cotton cardigan and shell from J. Crew. In the winter, I might wear a full pant suit or just the dress pants and a cashmere sweater. I have to be comfortable, I can't wear stuff that I'm going to pull at all day.

 

[JATE]

I work in the Legal department of a commercial restaurant corporation. Its sounds kinda serious but its not. Everyone just dresses nice business casual. I wear A-line skirts often in black and white...even prints with solid blouses long or short sleeve. I never wear anything see thru even if I layer something under it and I never wear anything sleeveless. I don't think that is very tasteful to wear inside a work office that is highly corporate

 

[softgrey]

comfy and cute is my motto...
and what i tell all the girls who work for me...

i work in fashion....

 

[mini me]

I work with computers/software, and you know what these people look like...

I'm always casual, I practically always wear jeans/trousers with some kind of wool/cashmere sweaters. For summer, cotton instead of wool, as well as linen shirts.

almost same as you! I'm working with laser head... always casual, jeans, cotton, linen, ballet flats... not a fashionable environment at all!

 

[Aimeeeee]

I work in a clothes shop, I don't have a dress code but have to look like I made an effort obviously! I just wear whatever I feel like wearing on that particular day and according to the weather (don't wanna be wearing jeans in the heat :s)

 

[maiden voyage]

"Work Clothes" for women!

I'm curious how many tFS people have jobs where they have to look sort of semi-"professional".
(and I know a lot of people here work in more creative/laid-back kinds of jobs, so this probably isn't as much of a dilemma for them.)

I'm just transitioning from graduate school to a more professional role -
and before that I worked in jobs where I could wear whatever I wanted.
So I'm basically starting from scratch...
(I still have a lot of leeway with what I wear -
I certainly don't have to wear a suit or anything.)

But even so, over the past 6 months of looking for work clothes, I've been very unispired by what I've seen.
And not just unispired, but confused about how to proceed!

So I'm curious about ways others have found around the kinds of awful 'business clothes' that a lot of women seem to wear.
And please share any kind of 'inspiration' - women you know who manage this with flare, clothing lines or movies to check out, or pictures!!

 

[maiden voyage]

here's something i did like recently -
(comptoirdescotonniers.com)

 

[dreamecho]

I am a professional myself . Although I do work in a conservative and male-dominated organization, I actually don't worry much about what to wear (partially because my place is somewhat flexible, but also because I kind of ignore the workplace status quo and dress to please myself)....though I hope I can help anyway.

I think what a lot of women on tfs do is use well-tailored basics like blazers, pencil skirts, trousers & boots to tone down fun stuff like standout blouses, bright prints, unusual jewelery and funky shoes.

My normal work outfit consists of a bold top (sparkles, stripes, bright colors, ruffles, bows, metallics, deconstructed, etc.), a fitted cardigan or blazer, and skinny jeans. I either wear classic ballet flats or really funky/bright pumps. Another possibility is to wear a feminine skirt (like a floral circle skirt) with a blazer and a basic blouse underneath. I don't do this much myself, but I think it works very well.

I also like to have an distinctive haircut, so that even when I'm wearing a suit or something "proper" for important days, I feel like I am still expressing myself visually. This is just my personal taste, but I actually like the almost violent clash of masculinity and feminity from the austerity of a suit on a sexy and confident woman.

Depending on how formal your workplace is, you can vary the degree of how adventurous you are. The more flexible your workplace is, the more "fun" pieces you can get away with on any given outfit.

Lucky magazine would probably be a good resource for your dilemma.

The key thing is to mix it up! I think that's the mantra of many a tfs-er. As far as clothes go, if you have excellent fitting professional basics, you might even be able to get away with some of your going out/party pieces. The "mix it up" philosophy ALSO applies to your attitude and how you carry out your work. If you strut your stuff with confidence and give your best effort on the job....you will sparkle from the inside out, no matter what you are wearing!

I will look for pics to post. Hope this helps!

(BTW, I think there is a thread for this topic already...you may want to do some digging around .)

 

[dreamecho]

I don't know if you can wear this kind of stuff to work or if it's even up your style alley, but here's some pics:

kakakamikaze's stylediary

 

[dreamecho]

more of a springtime look.
very crisp looking.

kokopuff's stylediary

 

[dreamecho]

Stella McCartney!

from the stella thread. it was not credited there, but i think it's from style.com

 

[dreamecho]

maiden_voyage, do you read Lucky mag? If not, I can scan some relevant pics in from past issues for you.

I like the pic you posted, btw.

 

[maiden voyage]

thanks for the photos and all the ideas dreamecho, you're good!
and so encouraging as well

it's fun and helpful to hear how you deal with dressing for work! i agree, mix is a good keyword to keep in mind.
i've searched for other similar threads, and only found a few that were too specific or related to men's clothes .

and i realize that i probably made this topic sound more like a personal cry for help than i intended - i think i am also just wondering what other people make of this thing of presenting yourself in a 'professional' way with clothes... and not totally losing your aesthetic sense and personal style - which is what seems to happen to so many people.

 

[dreamecho]

first of all, i can't believe i didn't say this earlier, but

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR DEGREE!

a graduate degree requires a great commitment, and i have a lot of respect for the hard work and discipline that goes into it.

you rock!

sorry for any confusion, i didn't interpret your thread as solely a personal cry for help....you sounded very friendly and all-inclusive . of course, i would like to help you specifically, but like you, i am also hoping to hear about other women's experiences in dressing semi-professionally while still expressing individuality!

i think you were right about there not being another thread like this. (oops! .)

you might like the "defending your fashion interest" thread (it's a fave of mine

http://www.thefashionspot.com/forums/f58/defending-your-fashion-interest-26761.html

i don't know if you've come across it yet; it's a general discussion, but there are some specific and eloquent posts from charlottesometimes, AsYouLikeIt, tinuvielberen & PrincessImp among others that address self-expression with regards to workplace culture and attire. i am especially fond of this line from tinuvielberen:

I dress in a way that suits me and suits my job, but is unabashedly and unapologetically feminine.

i love the strength of that statement!

 

[shedonnia]

Career Wear

Please post pictures of yourself wearing "business wear" or post stock photos. I am looking for inspiration. I have tons of clothes, but I am not sure I do them justice with the styling. My style has become sorta BLAH . I usually wear tailored pant suits. However, I have lots of skirt suits, dresses, sweaters, jackets, jeans... You name it and I most likely own it, but I don't know how to wear it.

PLEASE HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[criticsdarling]

Sorry I don't have any pictures of me wearing these outfits, but perhaps try looking at Lucky magazine. It seems they often have career wear styling ideas in there! good luck!

 

[Curious]

Check out the What are you wearing today? thread. Lots of members post work outfits there