Raising the Bar

I realised something this week. When I am out and about out of years of habit I tend to zone in on all the styling mistakes before me, using them as case studies to work out how I would help overcome my subject’s style challenges. And so the good tends to get lost in amongst all the not so good. 

But what has been catching my eye and putting a smile of approval on my face this week are some simple but very well put together work ensembles.

To see some great outfits standing out from the crowd surely means that there are more of them, which is something that fills me with optimism as well as relief. How much nicer the journey to work becomes when you can see fellow commuters with the energy and positive attitude that dressing well exudes and in turn creates!

And pretty much all of these outfits have also been proof that you don’t have to dress like you just stepped off the catwalk or bought a completely new outfit to look stylish and contemporary at work or indeed at play. Because pretty much all of them could also be worn after work at a bar or restaurant, as well as by people that don’t work in offices.

Casual Friday came and went with the best outfit of the day going to a jeans and stretch blue and white striped shirt ensemble, with brown leather peep-toe heels and a tan single-breasted fitted blazer. The wearer was European so she also had the nerve to complete the outfit with a small floral silk scarf around the neck in complementary tones. Super chic and also very classic.

Another day a girl returning from lunch looked neat but sophisticated in a black button-through cotton blouse with sheer gathered short sleeves, worn back with a black straight knee-length skirt sitting on the waist. It had a medium width buckled belt in the same fabric holding it all together. All black I know, but the details and different textures broke up the darkness and potential harshness. This really is the way to wear all black, especially during the day. And the cute pale pink embroidered chinese slippers that she had popped on to go out for her break were the perfect feminine touch!

Heading downstairs on another afternoon, on a mission to find the source of the takeaway Grinders coffee cup I had spotted on a co-worker’s desk that morning, a guy stepped into the lifts in a red and white thick striped shirt, a red tie with yellow crests, and the darkest of navy trousers. His dark and brooding colouring carried off this statement and created a striking but laid back look. Sharp and confident, rounded off by dark black sunglasses. Today he had the same shirt on with a diagonally striped red and pink tie and black pants. I think I will be taking a trip up to Level 13 tomorrow to see if I can find out where he works! 

And lastly, waiting for the bus at the end of the day a girl came out of a high-rise in white knee-length shorts, a jewel purple top (very current and flattering to pretty much all but the ruddiest of complexions), small mustard-green handbag over her shoulder and a straw basket in the other smartly holding used lunchboxes and the like. Tan and beige fabric open-toe heels completed the outfit. And I should definitely point out that this was not a size 10 wearing white shorts to such smart and sassy effect! She was looking crisp and smart and such a welcome contrast to the beige knit brigade.

So I have to say that my spirits have lifted enormously after spotting all this fashion consciousness, and I don’t think it is just because the style bar’s undercover work in corporatedom is drawing to a close!! So to all the style supporters out there, keep up the good work!

Rubi

Casual Encounters

If you spend your working days somewhere that feels the need to make a distinction between what is “corporate” and what is “casual” attire, and then assumes that Friday is the day that you want to express your casual self, then you would be well within your rights to find yourself in a bit of a quandary come Thursday night when planning your outfit for what should be the most relaxed day of the working week.

Because in fact Friday is often the day that you actually feel like getting a little more dressed up than usual so that you can go out straight after work. You may not want come in to the office looking like you slept through the alarm and then realised it was not Saturday morning after all but had no time to change back out of your brunch clothes.

I have come to realise that the key to successful Friday dressing all lies in that little c-word. Casual as we generally know it i.e. what you wear when you are not at work, and the Casual used by employers when pretending that they want you to be relaxed in the office is quite a different thing. And the trick lies in the fact that it is not really casual dressing at all, just their interpretation of the term.

It really is just a matter of mixing the dressy with the casual: most often simply changing one item of clothing to a more relaxed fabric or style and keeping the rest a notch up in the corporate stakes.

So here are some ideas to get you started;

For the Guys (ladies, feel free to pass on to anyone in your office in need of some sartorial suggestions)

• Wear a shirt with your jeans or coloured denim pants instead of the ubiquitous printed tee. This keeps things clean and crisp without worrying about blurring the line between Silicon Valley geek chic and the graphic designer that you secretly wish you were
• If wearing a tee then wear a jacket over it. This is quite a sexy look if you do it right, as you are sending business like signals with the jacket but playful ones with the tee. Now depending on your desk demands this could be uncomfortable to sit in all day so make sure the tee is immaculate so you can remove it, and then you will need a cardigan or vest to keep it smart and not too revealing or sloppy. Last week in the office that I am currently working in one of the young guns wore a slim cut white tee with subtle logos and designer jeans. Great look for catching up for coffee on the weekend, but to be honest the muscular torso was a little too distracting!! Needless to say I will be watching his choices this week with some interest…
• If you wear sneakers or runners they should be the kind you don’t actually do any sport in – you want the Italian espresso in the piazza look rather than the Seinfeld bottomless cup of coffee vibe

For the Girls

• If wearing denim of any shade then wear heels. It looks smart and is easy to go out in afterwards – flat open toe slip-ons and Camper-copy horrors with cropped jeans are too mumsy and do no one any favours. Ballet flats are the only real alternative if you can’t do high
• As far as denim goes keep it fairly dark, not too low on the waist, and I would strongly counsel against pale shades, distressed or dirty washes, studded or cropped.
• A satin blouse with more casual bottoms i.e. jeans, cotton pants or skirts is also a great look and perfect for going from day to night
• Blazers finish off a casual jeans and heels outfit like chic icing on the proverbial. Throw it on if you have a meeting or get chilly and your casual top is hidden away instantly

Once you have a grasp on this, then it becomes so much easier to work out what to wear on a Friday as you are not actually completely dressing down, just one part of your outfit. The “smart” in smart casual is the operative word – you can be relaxed but still need to keep the professional edge, After all, you are still at work and have to be productive and focused on the day’s tasks  - well, until lunchtime at the very least…

Happy Friday

Rubi

A Fitting Issue

There are not many redeeming features about travel on peak-hour public transport. In fact, the only saving grace the style bar can glean from the experience is the valuable research that can be done hiding out amongst the walking wounded as they pile onto station escalators and spill out into the daylight on their way to the towers beyond. (Where else in the civilized world do people entering and exiting the platforms have to use the same stairs and barriers? Crushing madness. But I digress).

The thing that strikes me the most, apart from the overwhelming sea of washed out and monotone colour palettes merging into one – pale grey, beige, black, blue and pink stripes so pale they almost do not warrant their names so close are they to white – is the fact that on an alarming 90% of commuters the clothes actually do not fit them properly.

Crumpled and clinging shirts hanging out over pants in an attempt to hide waistlines, but only succeeding in accentuating flesh that otherwise could be nicely camouflaged; Pants that are too tight, pulling in all the wrong places, and worse, that do not quite reach the ankles; stretched, sagging and pilling knits that leave a gap between the wearer’s top and bottom half, and so often in the same shade as their skin tone so that it is hard to see where their face ends and their body begins.

Now I am sure that you style bar aficionados are not even close to falling into this tragic worker bee category, but in case you do experience mild feelings of  panic of a morning when faced with getting creative about your work gear, here are a few do’s and don’ts to help you along your merry way…

DO

• Plan ahead – why not work out what you are going to wear the night before? If for example it needs ironing you can get it out of the way before the late night news
• Invest in fresh basics once a year – well-cut singlets and tees can be a really smart modern combo with suit pants or skirts – if the colour is good and the fabric natural they are comfortable alternative to shirts which can be restrictive to sit down in for long periods and severely limit your styling options; PLUS they are a must have layering item for creating a smooth line over your bra and under your top layer (as discussed in Wardrobe Essentials Part 1 – The Singlet)
• Have a good quality cotton cardigan or woolen shawl for layering all year round – essential for when the bus or train is overly icy, and likewise supremely handy slung over your chair for those artic breezes that invariably spring up in the office of an afternoon
• If your work environment does not encourage colour in your work separates, express yourself in your accessories! Coloured shoes, scarves, cardigans and bags are the simplest way to spark up the sombre and give you the power dressing edge. Just look at Condoleezza Rice’s array of sexy stilettos that she travelled with when visiting Australia – the perfect example of a women in a top but conservative position showing her individual feminine side in the only way she can. Men do it through their ties, socks and cufflinks, so why not you too?

DON’T

• If it does not quite fit at the moment, don’t wear it. A shirt whose buttons are fighting to stay done up over your cleavage? Wear a singlet underneath and you can leave an extra button undone and breathe easy. Hot tip – not tucking your shirt in does not in fact make you look any slimmer. It just cuts you off at the hips shortening your torso and making you look less groomed. Unless it is purposely made that way and therefore it needs to be very fitted, ending before the hips and curved at the hem. And in a very good quality fabric.
• Wear all black all the time. It drains colour from the face and adds age, especially in unforgiving office lighting. Or wear it with a touch of colour to soften the harsh effect
• Getting a bit past it? Repair it or replace it. It’s that simple.
• No animal prints. It may be a jungle out there, but there is no place for them during daylight hours…
• Never be tempted to pull something out of the dirty clothes basket. That’s what planning ahead is for…

So I am embracing my undercover time in corporate officedom; shaking off the initial feelings of despair and angst that fighting through the crowds brings on so easily, I have decided to take a style bar approach and hope that you do too: lead by example, and be a beacon of light standing out from the maddening crowd in colour and innovative outfit combinations; let’s show them how it can be done with style!!

Let’s just hope someone is watching out from under the free newspaper and morning coffee…now bring on Casual Friday!!!

Rubi