What the heck do I wear to work?
How much getting dressed for work has changed, and an inside look into what I've been wearing to my office (with an absolutely no inappropriate neck or hemlines guarantee!)
For those of us who work corporate/office jobs that we leave our homes for, threading the needle between expressing our personal style and remaining aligned with whatever the office dress code is, while also avoiding creating a “work” wardrobe and a “life” wardrobe can be a challenge.
It can also, let’s be honest, be freaking HARD to find the time to get ready do everything in the morning that you need and want to do and also get out the door. This is especially challenging given the changes to the way work and office culture has evolved over the past four years, and continues to evolve — some days you might be getting ready to get out the door for an early commute, other days you might just be sitting at a flat surface in your house and your day gets going at a different time (not to mention, if you’re getting kids ready for daycare/school/childcare handover of some kind!!)
What I’ve worn to work has changed a lot over the course of my career, and especially since COVID - and it’s not just because of the pandemic. Also in that time, I’ve had multiple pregnancies, gone from being a mom of one to a mom of three, and most recently, started a new job!
Like many, I shifted to working from home (for the first time in my career) in March of 2020. I bought more matching sweat sets than I had ever contemplated or been interested in. I spent the rest of 2020 pregnant, working from home and juggling childcare with my husband (whilst we both worked full time that was FUN!) - in other words I was EXHAUSTED and getting dressed fell to the bottom of my priority list - in a way that was bad for my mental health and eventually became a big reminder of why I feel so strongly about the power of getting dressed and feeling great.
In 2021 and 2022, I started getting dressed again, especially towards the tail end of my maternity leave and into my transition back to work, even though I continued to work primarily from home. I got into a nice groove of mostly casual work from home outfits but nevertheless fully dressed ones. In the second half of 2022 and through June of 2023 I was pregnant again- this time with a pregnancy that, although totally healthy, left me throwing up everyday for nine full months. In other words, I felt like a flaming garbage can. Luckily, I took my learnings from the pandemic seriously and getting dressed was a bright spot in my days (most of the time!) - including going into a business casual office once a week or so.
This summer, I started a new job where I am going into the office several days a week. While still casual, I prefer not to wear jeans to the office every single day, and so I have been getting dressed in an assortment of business casual outfits most days of the week. Plus, over the course of a normal month, I have a number of meetings and interactions that call for a more formal dress code.
At first, getting ready to go into an office, having a set time when I leave my house and a specific amount of time in which I need to get myself fully ready was challenging. Picking out an outfit, getting my hair and makeup done, getting all my stuff together while also getting kids up and fed and ready for the bus/the walk to preschool/the nanny handoff was a blur. But, like with anything, practice makes perfect and it now feels much easier.
I’ve got all sorts of tricks that have helped make it easier - the major one being getting my a$$ out of bed earlier (sorry to report that this works). But also, a few that are a little easier to implement - including actively seeking out office outfit ideas (specifically from people who work corporate jobs & actually have experience going into an office), as well as taking a few minutes at night to think through & develop a general plan for the next morning.
On the inspiration front, my Substack friend
shares a regular diary of her work outfits, her thought process and planning efforts behind creating them, and a critique of how they worked out- were they functional enough for the weather and commute, did they meet the form required for the day she had at work, and, most importantly, how she felt in the outfit.I’m obsessed with her series in
and it’s one I always read immediately when it hits my inbox. It’s inspired a desire for vintage Gucci loafers and copying her pairing of a nap dress with a crewneck sweater on a regular basis. Meighan’s practice of taking a few minutes to think about the next day’s outfit is what prompted me to get into this as well. It’s something I always did growing up— at my mom’s prompting, I would lay out my outfit for the next day every evening. I don’t know why exactly I stopped this practice, but man oh man is it a good one!And, so, inspired by
, I’m sharing a few outfits that have helped make getting dressed for work easy and left me feeling great! (From someone who also, actually has had a real corporate job for years and years — no inappropriate or borderline-inappropriate pieces here!!)Outfit 1: Kick Crops for the office
Worn for: a standard day in the office - several meetings - combo of in-person and remote, plus some heads-down work at my desk.
If you’ve been reading for awhile, you know I have a deep passion for the Donni Rib Kick Flare Pants. I bought them about a year ago (my first purchase from the brand), finding myself convinced to buy them via their cult-like support in the substack chats. I wear them all the time. The standard length is the perfect length on my 5’6” body. They just came out with a longer inseam!! They’re a great pair of pants because I can dress them up or down. To make them work appropriate - I added a button-down, a cardigan just buttoned at the top, and a favorite pair of ballet flats.
Outfit #2: Corduroys are a Fall Staple
Worn for: A morning visiting potential new office spaces, then an afternoon of meetings and some heads down work.
These corduroys are a new addition to my closet this season - I love their softness, the subtlety of the barrel leg, and the fact that I can wear them with a flat. They are very easy to style for work, for a night out, or for the weekends. I paired with a fun flat, a simple white-tee and a navy cardigan/lady jacket sweater (no longer available, but many similar options here). These are a more casual pant, so I have been leaning towards pairing with structured cardigans to make them feel office appropriate. If a barrel leg feels too casual for your office - try a wide-leg - these corduroys are a great alternative, as are these!
I’ve been wearing these on the weekends with simple tees and sneakers - they’re the perfect pair of pants to pull on for a morning of soccer games and practice. I plan to wear them for a date night sometime soon with a silky tank top, big hoop earrings and either boots or kitten heels.
Outfit #3: Silk Pants
Worn for: A morning of meetings, a lunch meeting, then an early evening networking event.
I love a silky pant - an elastic-waist, straight or wide-leg slinky pant has become such an essential to me because they look great and feel amazing - the styling options are really versatile and work for weekend family things, evenings out, and work. Here, I wore the pants (a great less $$ option - size down!) with a structured cardigan worn as a shirt (alternatives to this style are also here), and burgundy ballet flats (out of stock, but sign up for a restock notification!)
Outfit #4: The No Think “Business Special”
Worn For: A morning at the office, an afternoon QBR with a major partner, and out-to-dinner with some people from both teams.
This is my formula when I need to be more dressed up but I also need to not think. Black kick flares (this pair from Spanx is SO good, I love them so much they are also usually my work-travel pant of choice!), boxy-ish cardigan worn as a shirt, a great pair of shoes (usually flats!) I left my house around 7:30 on this day, didn’t get home until around 9:30PM, and still felt great!
I wear these on the weekends with sneakers, t-shirts, and button down shirts, plus sneakers and/or loafers. I often pull them on for a no-think night-out outfit with whatever monochromatic top I am into at the moment.
Outfit #5: More Kick Crops
Worn for: An all day workshop in my office.
These kick crops work for a more casual office-vibe just as well - I can dress these up or down, which I love. On this day I wanted to feel comfortable as I was on my feet for a lot of the day, and feel polished, without needing to be “dressed up.” I opted for a slightly oversize sweater that I knew I would feel comfortable in.
Outfit #6: More Silky Pants, this time with a button-down
Worn For: A day of heads down work and meetings in my office.
The love affair with Donni and Silky pants continues. I’ve probably worn these Donni pants once a week since I got them - they are so fabulous. My SINGLE complaint is that they are dry-clean only. The color makes that OKAY, but I still have gotten a few marks on them, and because it’s viscose, I’ve been nervous to wash them, although I could probably spot clean with cold water and be just fine.
Anyways, my winter uniform will include silky pants like this with various large sweaters to stay warm while wearing, but for now I love to wear them with a button down. This Alex Mill one is a favorite. Over all, this is a more casual look, especially with the jean jacket, but I also could have easily dressed it up with a blazer or even just a non-jean jacket.
I wear these pants on the weekend with a sweatshirt or casual sweater (love this one!), often tucked, in, and sneakers. I wear it for date night or a night out with a little heel and a more fitted top, plus earrings and a fun bag.
I hope this peek into what I’m wearing into work not only gives some outfit inspiration or ideas, makes you think, “oh I totally forgot about that piece I have that’s really similar to X, Y or Z, and also shows you you how much/often I rewear things. In the past month, I’ve reworn most of these pieces multiple times, in different ways. When you have pieces that fit great and that you love - this is what happens. AND, I’m excited to wear the pieces! It feels good to re-wear them - it’s validation of my shopping habits being in-tune with my personal style - I get that, “oh yeah, this feels good” feeling in my body when I put them on. This is validation of my number one shopping priority over the past 1.5 years — only keep things that I absolutely love. I love these pieces. I feel great in them. I get (mostly, I am human, there are days when I don’t feel good about anything, or am sick of what I have, or just feel low energy and nothing is working) a full body “YES” when I put them on.
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I loved this post so much. You influenced me to buy the Donni pants which look amazing on me. Work pants never fit me! I also bought the Spanx ones, fingers crossed. And the Gaspard cardigan looks incredible. I’d love more work posts. And ideas for going out outfits!
I’m feeling allll the silk pants at work this fall!