Guide to professional work clothing

A professional work wardrobe may take some time to curate, but once you get the jist of it, the techniques will stay with you for life. If you want to up your professional game, here are some useful tips for your workwear and business uniform.

Statement pieces

Every ideal work wardrobe has timeless pieces which everyone associates with professionalism. Think tailored pants, a blazer, a white shirt, loafers - to name a few. You don’t need to go out and spend your entire savings on clothes, nor do you need to always purchase fast fashion items to try "keep up with the style".

The reality is, classics never go out of fashion.

You can find really amazing pieces second hand or at sample sales. Ensure you have a classic black blazer to dress up any outfit, a nice pair of leather flats, a white professional shirt with a style that you adore, a wool coat, and some tailored pants of any neutral colour.

My advice is to find pieces with high quality fabric, and don’t shop at fast fashion stores. Not only are they low quality and bad for the environment, but you find these stores stock clothes that will go out of fashion. Check around your local thrift stores or wait for high quality fashion stores to have huge end of season sales, or sample sales. My best buys have been items with $300 price tags, and stunning fabric, which I was able to snap up for $40.

And, the great thing is, if you get sick of a specific piece, you can simply sell for an affluent price and rotate your wardrobe by purchasing a different version of the same piece. This way, each item has value in your life and you will feel professional every day at work.

Care for your clothes

You don’t need to iron every item, but the ones prone to creasing should be ironed or steamed. What is the first impression you want to give? Professional, right? If colleagues, customers or clients see a scrunched up blazer, it’ll give them the impression you have lack attention to detail.

Steamers are more convenient due to the fact you’re not required to take the clothing piece of the hanger. In addition, they are more gentle on clothing.

Ensuring you have ironed or steamed your outfits before the work week ahead will save the stress during the week when you’re tired. No more looking for outfits to wear last minute.

Those who adore knits and coats will benefit from a fabric shaver. Run it over your knitwear and coats, and more, to get rid of bobbles. It makes an old knit look brand new - saving you the need to repurchase!

It’s important to take delicate items to the dry cleaners to prolong their life. One wrong wash and you’ve ruined the item.

Minimalism

With minimalism documentary series sprayed across Netflix, viewers have become even more influenced to be content with what they own.

Essentially, the definition of minimalism is the act of only owning items that have purpose and will be used. This includes timeless items you can mix and match, that you love and will rest assured be worn instead of sitting there collecting dust. To be a minimalist, you have a small number of items for each season, and certainly aren’t addicted to shopping.

Minimalist wardrobes are curated to hold only items that bring joy, selling or donating unnecessary items - now famously labelled the Kon Mari method. Don’t worry, it’s not small enough to make you feel like you’re wearing your school uniform again.

With minimalism, a benefit is that life becomes more convenient. It’s easier to put outfits together, to organise, and means you can purchase higher quality pieces you love. As a result, you will turn up to work more professional than ever!

We hope these tips make you feel like a brand new professional - confident, and ready to take on whatever’s thrown your way, all while looking stylish!

Tony write about all kinds of business fashion tips. Learn more about business uniforms here https://www.uniform-centre.co.nz/