‘APPRENTICE’ DRESSING FOR WOMEN HAS BEEN OUT OF FASHION FOR A WHILE
After more than a year of working from home, the very concept of workwear seems foreign. Sure, we’ve all thrown on blouses and blazers for important Zooms (usually on top of leggings and slippers); some of us have even followed the Duchess of Cambridge’s lead and invested in a bright blazer or two, the better to bring colour and cheer to work calls. But workwear as we once knew it – power suits, power dresses and power heels – feels as relevant to the present day as the clothes worn by the Mad Men secretarial pool.
That’s partly because workwear was drifting in a casual direction well before last March. Bright, tight, highstretch-content dresses worn with black blazers and heels looked more Apprentice-y than aspirational.
Returning to the office, especially on a hybrid basis, doesn’t have to mean ignoring the changes of the past year. Including changes in the way we think about dressing for work. “Flexible working calls for a flexible wardrobe,” says Polly Mcmaster, founder of workwear brand The Fold. “People want elevated separates that work across different contexts, whether that’s a silk blouse or a trophy blazer.”
So de-link your suits, wearing a blazer with dark jeans instead of the matching trousers. Swap tailored black or navy trousers for a more fluid pair of culottes. If you must wear a suit, wear it with (get ready) clogs. Trade those power dresses for softer styles that you can dress up or down with a blazer or change of shoes.
And while you’ll want to leave your leggings at home, there’s no reason you can’t find a pair of trousers that feels as easy as your favourite yoga pants (try “performance workwear” brand Dai).
Then again, some office returnees may find the prospect of dressing in “real clothes” once again thrilling.
Anyone in the office for two or three days a week will want to make the most of their workfrom-office days, stacking diaries with gym classes, lunches and cocktail plans.
A good blazer can take you everywhere – and looks good on the back of a dining-room chair on WFH days, too.