Work Outfits 101

Most of you know I took up a new job. Along with the new job came increased commute and frequent travel. I no longer have the liberty of a longer morning routine. There are some mornings when I am trying to get the kids ready for school, pack my bags and catch a flight. I spent some time working on my wardobe to get it 'Morning-Ready'. My goal was to be able to choose a random top, any bottom, add on a coat/cardigan and get out of my closet with in a reasonable amount of time.

Work Wardrobe Essentials

Plain Shirts in Multiple Colors - I am not a big fan of colored pants for work, so the simplest way for me to add colors is by wearing colored shirts. These come in handy to wear with a pant or skirt suit. Add a few prints and blouses for some variety.

Suits Seprates - The pants and the skirts that come along with a suit have a better fit than the ones sold separately. I like to wear the pieces separately or together for presentations and business meetings. Also the modern cuts of the suits sold now blend well with a 'Jean-Friendly' environment.

Pants and Pencil Skirts - Do look out for pin stripes or pants with some kind of detailing instead of the plain ones. I personally look better in skirts than in pants. My skirt count far exceeds the number of pants. Do save a trendy black trouser for evening wear.

Work Appropriate Dresses - Sheat dresses and trendier dresses worn with a coat can be a 'go-to' outfit for a morning when things are not going as planned.

Watch & Other Accessories - A good stylish watch can increase your style factor without trying too hard. As far as the other accessories go, I tend to gravitate towards the ones that look the best. I wear it until I break it and then move on to the next.

Bags & Shoes - There is hardly any time in the morning to switch contents from one bag to another. Days I end up doing the switch, I forget to move tiny things like cabinet keys or my identity card to get into work. After years of trying to switch and match, I finally figured my days are either brown days or black days. For those in between, I choose nude shoes.

Trench, Sweaters, Jackets & Cardigans - One good thing that came out of photographing outfits is the realization that I need more structure in my outfits even in a trench. I also had a tendency to associate cardigans with holiday outfits. It took a lot of blog reading to get over it.

Do let me know what your go to tricks and tips are for those hectic mornings.