DRESS FOR SUCCESS

Getting ready for work does not mean you have to be boring or leave your fashion style behind. It only requires you to find out which look gives you a polished professional look and which fashion style can be a career killer. Whether you’ve landed your first office job or you’re just at a point in your career where you want to rethink the impressions you make on coworkers, dressing for success is not a cliché, it’s a necessity. Professionalism is the look you should be going for when you are getting ready for work, competent imagine regardless of your employment level or career path. As awkward has it may sound, the styles, colors, lengths and fit of your fashion choices will speak volumes about your ability to do your job. If you are concerned about your career, you'll be more concerned with looking professional than looking cute or trendy.

 

  

Color plays a big part in a professional image. When it comes to color you would want to keep this few pointers in mind: Traditional career colors include red (aggressive), navy (trustworthy), gray (conservative) and black (chic). Most of these colors work well in pantsuits, skirts and shoes, although most organizations maintain a strict dress code especially when it comes to footwear. You can also mix these colors with softer feminine colors that are appropriate like ice blue, lilac, soft pink. Loud colors like hot pink and wild prints are much riskier in the office, but some creative types can still pull them off.


Now we all love the designer handbags and they can almost never go wrong but trendsetters’ advice that for a professional image there are structured styles that project an organized image, slouchy handbags just gives you a sloppy lookand ivory. Loud colors like hot pink and wild prints are much riskier in the office, but some creative types can still pull them off. 

VIctoria Beckham's fall /winter 2011 handbagcollection

 

VIctoria Beckham's fall /winter 2011 handbag collection

 




VIctoria Beckham's fall /winter 2011 handbag collection

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Most of what constitutes a polished image is in the details: manicured nails, run-free hose, scuff-free shoes, neat hair. Now when it comes to jewelries for the work environment it shouldn’t jiggle way too much, infact not at all. Jewelry that jangles (chandelier earrings, stacks of bangles) is distracting. Best advice is to stick to stud earrings or single bracelets. It doesn’t have to call too much attention to be called fashionable or trendy.

 

Fit is everything when you are talking about tailored work clothes. Pants should be fitted, but free of visible panty lines. Skirts, especially straight styles like pencil skirts, should be loose enough to sit down in comfortably. Jackets should be able to be buttoned. And blouses shouldn't gap between buttonholes. Designer labels are great, but heavy clothing and accessories look cluttered and frivolous in the work place.

 Jennifer Aniston in tailored penciled skirt

Corporate clothing for men specifies a proper office wear but this trend has undergone a major transformation. Traditionally the man's office work clothes was formal consisting of the conservative tie, particular suit style, shirt color and many more. For men if you can afford to shop at the Armani Emporium, then by all means step out looking trendy and stylish at work but it doesn’t mean you can’t still be as trendy and stylish if you don’t, you can actually get that impressive look for less. Stay away from casual trousers like chinos or Dockers. It’s an immature and lazy look in the office. Don't look rumpled or wrinkled. Dry clean, or at least wash the clothes yourself and then bring them to the dry cleaner for professional pressing at about half the cost of dry cleaning. So what gives you that edge to the “I can get it done” office responsibility? Trust looking it is one of the first criteria.

The style of your suit matters, like it or not. You can get away with trendy cuts and four or five-button styles but the point is wearing a less conservative suit may be "cool," but it doesn’t serve your main purpose  which is to look like you’re on the team and moving up. Of course the suits should be clean, wrinkle-free, and well-fitting. An expensive suit that is not properly tailored looks less expensive, and less professional. Match up your wool suit with a conservative cotton dress shirt, we’re talking long sleeves in blue or in white most of the time for high corporate organizations. Truly experienced business formal men have been known to pull off pink and red shirts, but those men are few and far between, so it’s safer to stick with the general rule. Vertical stripes are OK, but, again, only if they’re blue and white. As with your suits, your dress shirts should be clean and wrinkle-free, with crisp-looking collars.

 For many men with wardrobes limited by their business formal workplaces, shoes appear to be an opportunity to deviate from the pack. Often you’ll see a guy dressed conservatively from head to ankles , sporting a pair of black lace-ups boots or clunky loafers, complete with dagger-shaped detailing on the front, trust me just because you may not see it in the mirror don’t mean your boss won’t .Your shoes should match the overall style of your clothing. For business formal, that means well-constructed leather loafers, oxfords or even wing tips. Skip the boots, sneakers and remember, business formal means no suede just straight leather.

Match the belt to your shoes. Keep belts simple and classic — no ornate buckles. Good quality leather is a must. Like your shoes, belts should be polished when they start looking ratty. Replace your belt when the belt hole begins tearing or looking noticeably worn. Now there is the question on you wearing a colored pocket square to match your tie. Many Sharp Men like these classic touches, but watch out: too much "matchy-matchy" and you will pass your self has too fashion conscious than paying much mind to your work. Experts’ votes on pocket square when it comes to work and you aren’t sure, SKIP IT!!!

Then the tie, there’s something important about this piece of clothing. No man’s wardrobe can survive without ties. It’s the so-called centerpiece of a gentleman’s collection of clothes. Men’s ties can reasonably increase the status in the society as well as decrease it. Fashion trends of new era neckties can fully represent the personality of a wearer and his ability to keep up with a chosen bluff image. So perfect colored and patterned tie makes you stand out and adds confidence in your corporate image. Just try to distinguish which color works best in your work environment and dress code.




And some other Men office accessories that give you a sharp confidence look.



Tie Bar



Silk Knots



Bras Collar Stays



Stud Set Cufflinks

So perfecting your office wardrobe will take some trials and errors, so don’t feel pressured to make over your closet immediately. These tips can be a help guide to finding new pieces and accessories and you would be on your way to your workplace with your style along. Besides it gives you an excuse to go shopping.

...xoxo Ur Foxxyness!

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