Wraps with suit pants or skirts make a great work outfit for casual friday. Wearing a wrap on a day when you’re supposed to be in your snazy proffessional attire won’t do though. A wrap would definately be considered business casual, and not formal business attire. But if the work situation allows, a wrap is a great item that you can be really comfortable in, and it looks a little bit dressed up if you wear it with pearls or semi-precious stone necklace. We ought to have at least one good wrap in our work wardobe. If you wear your wrap with jeans it really makes the whole work outfit much more casual, and you ought to think through which degree of casualness you want to go to. Usually, the best way to create a casual friday outfit is by choosing one item from your formal business attire wardobe, and then mixing it with one casual item. For example, a casual top (e.g. a wrap) with a pair of slacks from one of your business suits. Or a formal top (e.g. a suit jacket) with a pair of jeans. If you wear casual garments both top and bottom, then it is really no longer a work outfit. Mix one formal item with one casual item, and then you have a good casual friday outfit.
This post was contributed by Cafe La Moda, the social space for fashion tips and beauty advice.
So Career Fashion Blog has posted a few times about bags that help accessorize your work outfit, and bring a touch of colour to your working day, but what about when your bag needs to mean business? Whether it’s client meetings, an interview, or business travel, sometimes the bag you carry with you is taken as part of your business attire, and it needs to be absolutely as well-thought-out as the rest of your outfit. You might just need a discrete clutch bag to stash your keys and cellphone, or you might also have to take a laptop, notebook or iPad with you, and dumping those things into any old laptop bag could ruin your carefully tailored look.
However, there’s no reason to worry, since bag makers are more than aware of the need for bags for business, and there is a huge range of sophisticated, businesslike bags available to you.
Covers and sleeves for iPads
If you’re lucky enough to have a work tablet that you take to meetings, don’t run the risk of it getting battered and don’t risk looking unprofessional with a shabby cover. Invest in a good black leather cover, perhaps picked out in an accent colour that matches your outfit: like this beautiful black leather sleeve with red leaf detail. Go to product
Laptop Tote Bags
If it’s a laptop you’re taking to your meeting, invest in a good quality laptop tote. Gone are the days when all laptop bags looked like school bags or briefcases, now it’s possible to choose a high quality laptop tote that’s beautifully designed to not only look elegant but also to make carrying a laptop a bit less of a chore: like this stylish Kerri Mack Albina Design bag. Go to product
Shoulder Bags
If you’ve only got to stash your cellphone and your keys somewhere that doesn’t ruin the line of your suit jacket, choose a small shoulder bag which doesn’t draw attention to itself. Go for a classic style if your bag needs to mean business, leave the tassles, zebra-print and flowers for another day, and pick something like this Guess Lina Top Handle Half-Flap bag, which is the perfect balance of elegant and businesslike. Go to product
Carry-on Bags
If you’re going further afield on business, the chances are you’ll need a travel or carry-on bag, and if you’re being met at the airport or at the hotel when you arrive, you might need to invest in a travel-size bag that’s all business. You don’t want to rumple your suit with a hefty shoulder bag, so go for a stylish rolling bag like this Glen Ellyn two-in-one. The rolling frame disconnects from the bag once you’ve arrived at your destination, leaving a stylish tote. Go to product
Wearing a beige woman’s business suit is a good choice for spring. I think it is a very good option to the white or off-white business suit, because it gives a similar impression of lightness, but it’s easier to keep clean. You don’t have to be quite as careful where you sit, and you can wear it a couple of more times before you have to dry clean it. Having several dark suits in your business attire is good, is good, but it’s good to also have at least one light one. But what top to wear with it?
The most obvious choice is a white blouse, which I have omitted because I am trying to look at it from a less classic viewpoint. The least obvious choice is beige-on-beige as in the first photo, creating a mono chromatic look (one color) with a beige top in a very similar shade of beige. Wearing a top in the same color as the business suit is not common, but it works with certain colors. The more common choices would be something with a contrasting color like the two tops in pinks and reds. The pink top against the beige business suit gives pop, and ideally could be followed up with accessories and jewelry with a pink hue (adding a pink scarf I think would be overdoing it). The last photo has a black top with the beige business suit and this bold contrast creates a dramatic look. This would be well accessorized with large gold pieces, perhaps large gold bangles. What statement are you in the mood to make with your business look today? Do you feel like subtly blending in and not drawing attention to yourself (and that’s not necessarily a bad thing), or do you feel like being bold and dramatic, getting people’s attention at a meeting?
Piping on a suit jacket (or on any other garment) is a thin strip of fabric inserted into a seam so that it sticks out a little bit. The piping fabric can be of the same color, or a different color for contrast. It can be of a different texture, it can be leather or even lace. Piping sewn into a seam on a garment creates sharper lines, and gives dimension to the garment. It can be a great design detail that makes a garment more interesting and less plain. It also shows that more effort and care was put into creating it.
Venture away from the standard woman’s business suit by selecting a suit jacket that has piping. This looks very conservative and business like, but it also makes your own business look seem a bit more personal when it has small design details, that make it a little different than the classic woman’s business suit that you would wear for business attire. The suit jacket you select could be part of a full business suit, or it can be a suit separates jacket wich you can combine with slacks or skirts from other suits you already have. Always keep in mind to ask yourself when you shop, if you already have pants or skirts that this will go with. Otherwise, it’s best to buy some on the same shopping trip, to avoid now having a great suit jacket in your wardrobe that you can’t wear due to lack of matching pants. The goal is to aqcuire at least two basic business suits first, and then venture out to find jackets and other pieces that are different – a professional business look that expresses your own personality.
