The Working Closet
with Susan Wagner
The Working Closet is your source for the best of what's hip and fresh in fashion and beauty. Susan Wagner keeps you up-to-date on trends and offers tips and tricks for making everything in your closet truly work for you.
You can also catch Susan over at Friday Playdate.
I work as a computer programmer in a biology lab. The environment is quite casual. Everyone in my immediate office is male, youngish, and generally wears t-shirts and jeans. (My boss frequently wears shorts and loafers in the summertime!) The people outside my immediate office sometimes look a little more put together, but they also have to wear lab coats, so it’s hard to tell. The *only* dress code at my workplace is that I am not allowed to wear open toed shoes (being a lab and all, it’s not very wise).
Anyway, lately I have been feeling like I blend in too much with the guys around me and dress sort of schlubby. Most days I wear jeans and a fitted t-shirt or polo, plus my comfortable (non-ratty) converse sneakers. How can I brighten up my wardrobe without looking like the odd one out? It’s weird enough being the only girl around here, I don’t want to draw a lot of attention to myself by looking too formal and business-y.
Aside from what I’ve mentioned above, my primary concern is comfort, especially for shoes (I walk about a mile each day to catch the bus).
I’m 26 now. Is there some magical age when I will stop feeling like I’m playing dress-up any time I wear business attire?
Amy, I’m 39 and i still feel like I’m playing dress up some days. Anyway!
Amy wants to start with a really fantastic pair of jeans, in a dark wash. Dark rinse jeans are both more flattering and a little dressier (and thus more grown up than a ripped or faded pair). She should look for a mid-rise, with a waistband high enough to keep her covered when she sits and low enough to make her backside look fantastic. She can also look for mid-rise chinos or corduroys, or a great denim skirt, if she’s comfortable doing that. More casual fabrics in darker colors and slightly more tailored shapes will help her bridge her office’s very casual vibe without looking too dressed up.
Next she wants to look for some pretty tops, something a little more exciting than a tee or polo, but not necessarily a button-down collar shirt.
pleated bib top, Gap, $44.50
Amy can look for knit or woven tops with cool detailing (the pleating on the one pictured here, for example, from the Gap) which will give her look a little polish without necessarily making her look like she’s on her way to a job interview or lunch at the White House. Ann Taylor Loft is a great source for pretty-yet-casual tops and sweaters, and their prices are very reasonable.
Amy also wants to invest in at least one great jacket, something that she can wear with jeans and skirts, and pair with a tee or a nice blouse. She could go with an outerwear piece like a trench, which is practical, or a blazer type jacket, which is a little dressier but still not suit-like. Again, she wants to look at more casual fabrics like corduroy or tweed, rather than anything that really looks like a suit jacket.
boiled wool pea coat, Gap, $88.00
Finally, Amy can think about spiffing up her shoes a little bit, and replacing her sneakers with some comfortable driving mocs or ballet flats, or even a cute pair of skimmers (Keds has some great ones). A pretty pair of flat shoes will keep her toes safe and her feet comfortable on her walk from the bus, but will dress up her basic jeans-and-top uniform just a little. Shoes are also a great way to add a punch of color to an outfit; I’m all about a great pair of red flats or a funky patterned skimmer.
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This letter exactly describes my former workplaces in the SoCal software industry — mostly guys wearing jeans and shorts. I even noticed a subtle gradation in dressiness, with t-shirts being at the bottom, followed by polo shirts, then button-down shirts in plaid or a color. Pants went shorts, jeans, dark jeans, courderoys, khaki’s.
Boots are another good footware option.
Button-down shirts in feminine colors like a yellow and orange plaid work well.
I would suggest Talbots as another good store to find office casual clothes that look bright and still feminine.
And don’t forget your hair — I found that short short hair with polo’s looked too masculine, and found that growing my hair to a medium length softened the look.
SoftwareMom | October 30th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
Finally, this is my area!
I’m a software engineer and you’ve described my office dress situation almost exactly (except here there are no! rules! at! all!) When the higher-ups are in town, usually all the men wear long pants. My manager is still wearing top siders and a v-neck sweater over a polo with his cut-just-above-the-ankle acid-wash jeans.
No, I am not EVEN exaggerating.
If you’re not too curvy (and here I don’t mean ‘curvy’ as a euphemism for ‘big’, but as a description for the more hourglass, hips bigger than waist, body), I highly recommend the old standby Levi’s for jeans. I love the 515 — they come in a nice dark-but-still-casual wash and are affordable.
I’d definitely go for a fitted jean jacket. Denim is casual, but if it’s fitted, it’ll look more pulled together, even if it’s just over a plain white T. I also have a great brown suede fitted jacket that feels a bit dressier, but is still great with jeans.
For shoes, I have two different pair of slip-on somethings (clogs?that seems too 70s, but I think that’s what they are) that I love. I could definitely walk a mile in them, but some people find the slip-on-ness uncomfortable for walking and/or not so good in inclement weather. I got some Keds in a basic beige, but with some pretty embroidery-flowery detailing that make me feel a teensy bit feminine without having to worry about catching an earring on something while I’m climbing around under my desk after hardware cables. I love my clogs (that’s what I’m calling them) and I’ve got some just-above-the-ankle boots that are great for winter. Both have just a low heel, enough to make me feel a little dressed up but not so much as to bother me if I’m spending a lot of time on my feet.
Even just a bit of accessorizing can really make a difference. Try layering a more fitted T over a tank, tucking the tank in and wearing a nice belt. Throw on a chunky bracelet or pin your grandmother’s brooch to your jacket. If you usually wear your hair up, try it down with a cute headband.
Look on the bright side, Amy — you can totally take your time figuring it all out, because your co-workers probably won’t notice any change and wouldn’t care even if they did.
Jan | October 30th, 2007 at 8:41 pm
This is great! Pretty much my situation exactly with co-workers, only my boss wears Brooks Brothers suit pants and dress shirts daily.
As you know from my working closet pics, I tend to vary wildly, but for the most part, I save my whole collection of fantastic sneakers for the weekends. I feel like I pretty much just notched each activity to a slightly higher level of dress. So, cute sneakers now go to Home Depot and PetSmart, but rarely to work.
I know I feel better and more confident when dressed up a little more, so why not do that ALL the time?
erin rae | October 31st, 2007 at 11:39 am
Jan, those acid washed jeans made my head hurt.
You girls are all right on: the smallest changes — color, detail, shoes — can make the most casual outfit both more feminine and more work appropriate.
Susan | October 31st, 2007 at 11:45 am
Thanks for the advice! It’s great to hear from other people in similar office environments. I think I have a Plan now, or at least part of one.
1) Get a pair or two of nicer, more dressy looking jeans. Unfortunately, Jan, Levis have never fit me very well, since I am (noneuphemistically) curvy. I don’t have any standby brand of jeans to go to when I need more. It’s hard for me to find any that fit well without gaping open in the back when I sit. (If anyone on here has that problem, can you recommend a brand for me to try?)
2) Work on my shoe wardrobe, starting with replacing my worn out black boots, and adding a few other things that can replace my sneakers.
3) Put AWAY all of my plain boring tshirts and fill in instead with nicer ones along the lines of gap one (Too bad that one only comes in brown! It’s cute but I don’t wear brown very often.)
4) Get a few cardigans in cute colors and banish hoodies to the weekend.
“I know I feel better and more confident when dressed up a little more, so why not do that ALL the time?” –erin rae
Yes, exactly! I just feel so BORING when I’m wearing a plain tshirt and jeans and my hair is in a ponytail for the 83rd day in a row.
Thanks again everyone, I appreciate the help.
Amy | October 31st, 2007 at 8:26 pm
I just treated myself to a pretty, but casual, jacket from Lane Bryant that I can wear with jeans, khakis, and at least two other items (pants and skirts) in my closet. That’s a good feeling for this “casual” mom, too. Thanks for the advice! It crosses many boundaries.
Daisy | October 31st, 2007 at 11:35 pm
Oh, such great advice - this was my life for many, many years. Every day the guys would wear the SAME outfit - khaki pants, button down shirt (either white, yellow, blue, or striped) - and when cold, a sweater over it. Like a uniform. I couldn’t dress too girly because then they’d just give me a hard time - so most of the time I wore pretty plain clothes. Love that first top!
Nataly | November 1st, 2007 at 12:28 am
I can relate to this topic, too! My office has no dress code whatsoever, so we’ve got a mix of slacks, khakis, jeans and shorts - needless to say, the engineers lean more toward the jeans and short category. I about lost it when I went on my interview for this job in my pinstripe suit and all three people I interviewed with were wearing shorts, “freetees” (this is what I call the Microsoft/Linux/whatever t-shirts that every guy has) and flip-flops! It’s hard to strike a balanced look, that’s for sure. My daily outfit is usually nice jeans or cords (dark, bootcut) and a knit top or sweater (I find button downs too fussy; but that’s probably because I’m nursing, a little busty to begin with, and constantly checking to make sure the buttons aren’t going to pop off when I do wear one). I “girl” it up with color (and sometimes a little understated sparkle) and low heels. We have another gal here who rocks the jeans/cute top/fitted blazer look really well.
Oh, and I love Jan’s comment, “Look on the bright side, Amy — you can totally take your time figuring it all out, because your co-workers probably won’t notice any change and wouldn’t care even if they did.” So true!
corinneyb | November 2nd, 2007 at 6:00 pm