Outfits that work

Or 'What to wear to work'

A lot of women have two different wardrobes: the working one and the off-the-hook one. Finding the right outfit to wear to work can be a hassle, especially if you're a fashion (possibly party) girl and work in a professional environment where you have to be taken seriously.

When I first started freelancing for magazines, the second title I found myself working for was an all-male one: pretty much the Alpha male glossy, full of 6 + feet tall trendy guys who roll their biceps and their eyeballs at any short skirt that passes by. The Art director's office was a glass cubicle in a corner of the editorial, and every inch of the two proper walls (well, the one really because the third one was a window) was covered in the hugest breasts you could imagine... He was so pretty and sweet though, the Art director himself, had he not been that obviously into Pamela Anderson type cups (and dating Noemie Lenoir and Cameron Diaz on his days off), I might have blushed when he proposed to and did carry my boxes full of press clothes to the mail room. I comfort myself by thinking my 32 BB breasts will long be firm, pirky and classy under a crisp shirt, nothing hanging around lavishly or vulgarly come the late 30's.

Anyway, usually I have no hesitation in terms of what to put on in the morning: the inspiration comes from a combination of weather appraisal, morning mood and weight on the scales (if I don't shove it back under the laundry bag to not know the damage). But in this kind of entourage, all flirty that I can be, I must confess I was not feeling all together confident about wearing 4 inches heel boots and body-con mini dresses.

Next thing I know (after a few more missions within the magazine industry, a lot simpler to dress for as mostly women's papers), I find myself working for an almost all girls' team with the most horrific schoolgirl-going-pink crush for the guy in the next office, to the point that I will actually look at his shirt's cuffs rather than at his eyes in case he casts an oh-so-dangerous smile at me. Aha!

All in all, I believe the same basic rules apply to all professional environments, at least if you are keen on making things happen career-wise: no matter how harsh the hungover, never show up looking dishevelled at work (actually, the worst the hungover, the classiest the outfit). Never wear plunging decolletes: if you're working with girls, they will always say you look sweet face-to-face but might well call you a slut in your back. If you like short skirts, make sure it doesn't show a bit of your back underwear every time you take a step; leather should remain on one single garment (no leather boot, leather trouser and leather jacket but or, or, or), and whatever happens, don't ever ever get into a relationship at work (believe me, it's never good news on the long term! unless you get married maybe...).

Alternatively, avoid girly outfits: big flowers and big bows will nourish the idea of a cheesy corny sweet girl that should not get away too far from the PA job. Headbands, kilts and dots will just make you look uptight if not accessorized right, but if you read us regularly, you already know that.

Think. The first person you don't want to be working with (or for) is the one who stays at work until 10pm every night and doesn't give a damn about their look, because no personal life means frustration means easy-snapping or down right screaming-at-you in front of the whole team... not cool. The second person you don't want to be, yourself, at work, is the sweet girl in a boring outfit in the corner who will never get anywhere.

The image you want to cultivate is 'understatedly sexy': social (sexy) life after-hours, but work means work. Think pencil skirts, high-waisted pants, think tight tops, voluminous but not too-low-under-the-knee dresses, think suggestive decolletes that 'just give a hint and loosely sensual wraparound silky skirts, think embellished rather than oversize accessories, think cinched jackets and quirky high (high because flat is so incredibly boring and do not give a good posture) heels, and think heels a lots, because you wear them in a place where you might need to keep your profile low -or rather elegant- and statement heels can give out a lot about your personality. Plus they are such a pick-up because they always fit and the thing you need at work is to look confident.

The point is: if you want to get somewhere in your job, on top of being good at it, your outfit shouldn't scream 'I am dressing short for a promotion', or 'I don't have a life therefore I don't care about what I look like', but it should not in any case be boring, especially considering you might not have the time to change clothes in the second floor's bathroom at 7pm.

And never ever ever should it help you seduce someone at work because work should be dating terra plana... Too messy could it become otherwise!

By Champagnista V