With temperatures threatening to reach a scorching 37C in London this week, I thought it was high time I wrote a post about summer workwear. Summer in the workplace doesn’t necessarily mean you should be digging out your holiday clothes from the back of your wardrobe, but there’s still a lot we can do to summer-proof our office style.
When I first interviewed for my current graduate job, I scoured online for advice on what I should wear, questions I should ask and expect, every fact about my interviewing company. The usual pre-interview preparation. One thing I was sure of was that I needed a killer outfit. Dress to Impress the saying goes. Whilst the advice and sales message of my interviewing company was that I should ‘bring my whole self to work’, and logically therefore to my interview, the advice I found online was that I should essentially dress in black and white, maybe navy at a push and avoid “[experimentation] with bold patterns, clashing colours, hats or dramatic jewellery”.
How many new items of clothing do you buy in a year? How long do you keep your clothes for before throwing away? Do you get at least thirty wears out of all of your clothes?
I am imagining, like me, you don’t know the answer to those questions, at best you could give me a rough estimate. That’s fair enough! We love our clothes and for many of us being able to switch up our looks regularly is important.
I spent February on a budget. £100 for my wardrobe, that’s all! My assumptions before I started were that I was going to be challenged, I’d buy up to 4 items, that I would spend loads of time hunting down bargains.
As a student, I was used to not having a lot of money and not being able to spend as freely as I would have liked. I couldn’t afford to save, and the few treats I did occasionally buy I felt guilty about because I was usually in my overdraft (sorry mum!). Thankfully I now have a job and I can afford to pick up a few new pieces for my wardrobe.
January is a month of new beginnings and refreshed hopefulness about what the new year has in store for us all. But by the time the third week of January sets in, we’re wishing away the days until the long awaited payday and often breaking our Dry Jan/Veganuary/gym five times a week resolutions. It can all get you feeling a little blue.
When I first started work in October, top of my wishlist was a smart coat. I had been essentially living in my well-loved Barbour jacket for three years, it had served me well in my student days but times were changing and my coat needed to as well. So, my quest for the perfect coat began.
Now that there is a definite chill in the air, the only thing I am looking for in my wardrobe is knitwear.
From October to February you will find me almost exclusively wearing polo necks as I desperately try to stay warm, or failing that a jumper and a blanket scarf.
This week I went to the most colourful place I could think of in London, Notting Hill
One of the reasons so many people enjoy Autumn, myself included, is the changing colours that the season brings. It is also the season to switch up the colours in your wardrobe, or is it? Whilst I love neutrals, and I believe that the basis to any good capsule wardrobe should include simple shades of white, black and navy, don’t be afraid to incorporate some bold colours into your workwear outfits.
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room, or should I say leopard, or zebra, or snake. Animal prints are in, and I’m hoping here to stay!
Long gone are the days where leopard print was exclusively reserved for the likes of Kat Slater. This Autumn almost everyone is dressed in some variety of animal print, and there is no reason why it can’t be worn in the office too. The season’s hottest trends are classy and chic, and ready to wear to work.
The Graduate Wardrobe 