Restyle required for work

[SharonGless]

Having worked in uniform for the last 19 months I am back to wearing my own clothes in a month.

I could do with pointing in the right direction for work clothes. I am 5'11, size 14 top 16 bottoms with good legs but big tummy and hips and no waist. Blonde hair but can't wear black!

I need to start from scratch as I literally have bugger all in my wardrobe which is suitable.

Work attire has got to be pretty smart but I would like to look funky too iykwim. I remember reading on here about choosing 3/4 colours and building wardrobe around that - any advice please MN stye gurus

Do you prefer trousers or skirts and dresses?

How funky can you be? Can you u give a general idea of the job?

What's your age and budget?

A wide leg trouser suit in charcoal
A pencil skirt
A funky shift dress
A good white shirt
A cardigan in a colour that suits you
Smart scoop neck tops in a couple of colours

Try and get items that you can mix and match to create different looks

I am more comfortable in trousers but think I look better in a dress cos legs are my best bit (well below knee anyway!!)

Job is CID but mainly office based so could wear heels/dress but not too short. Need to look professional as am a supervisor but don't want to be boring either.

Age is 38.
Budget - haven't worked it out but probably about £500 to start with for a full wardrobe including shoes. Have got black flat boots that could wear for work but thats about it.

I'm assuming that CID funky means a few bright accessories then, not high heeled hiking boots, bare legs, shorts and a parka?

Meggles list is good then

Yep Kristina - dont think I would get away with bare legs, Parka and shorts. Would wear that out of work though!

Am liking Meggles list but where do you go for such items?
Funky shift dress?
Pencil skirt?

I don't suit black either and wear grey and navy as colours for basics. Also look good together

Your black boots should be fine as long as not too much like wellies

Do you have a decent coat ?

Hmm may be a bit wellyish. Christmas is coming so DH may treat me if I find something else I like.

No I haven't got a decent winter coat yet - just a couple of macs. Am going shopping on Thurs so will have a look. Would you go for something bright or a neutral coat?

Macs will do for the moment so don't panic

For coat I think the standard advice is that if it's your only coat you should go for neutral . Although i am always tempted by brights like red and purple but I guess it's wiser to get bright hat or scarf instead

Ok - will get a decent charcoal grey wool coat and bright accessories.

So where do I go to start with? I haven't bought work clothes for about 5 years and used to get suits from Next.

i really dislike Next now. well for years actually. the stuff often looks great in the directory but then in the shop it all seems to be polyester blouses and trousres. i ordered a dress last week ( against my better judgement) and when i tried it on it was above mid thigh ( i am only 5'5'')

i don't shop very often for work clothes as i only work p/t. i usually get trousers, skirts and the odd dress from hobbs and jaeger sales and tops and knitwear from uniqlo, white co, H &M.

i stuggle to blouses to fit as i am large of nork and paranoid about gaping buttons, esp at work

shift dresses almost impossible for me for the same reason, although ocassionally bravissimo are ok ( quality getting worse there too)

Next is grim. I know what you mean about clothes looking good in the catalogue and the quality when you see them in the shops. I haven't bought clothes from there for about 5 years but I do buy shoes as they do wide fit.

I like Uniqlo for basics and also like Esprit online.

I am deprived in the norks area and shift dresses look ok on me - have a Uniqlo one from couple of years ago that I really like.

if you suit shift dresses then you are onto a winner, there are always loads in the shops

add pair of heeled boots, grey or navy wool coat and you are sorted

you can always brighten up a bit with accessories eg animal print scarf, coloured opaques to show off your good legs

i know its a bit boring, but if you are youngish and newly promoted then i think you really have to dress the part for your job and not try to push the sartorial boundaries too much, especially in a conservative job.

Thanks Kristina - don't feel particularly youngish and not newly promoted either. Was moved sideways due to working p/t and have managed to get a move back with much stamping of feet.

However I do appreciate that I am in a conservative enviroment so have to dress accordingly. I want to feel confident and comfortable in what I am wearing then can concentrate on doing the job iyswim.

Cheers for the advice

well done for foot stamping and best wishes in your job

Any of the morning MNers got ideas of where to look for work clothes. Was looking online last night and very uninspired.

I had a similar problem following a return to work from maternity combined with huge weight loss. I saw a personal shopper at John Lewis and I really can't recommend it enough.

Did they try and push you into buying loads of clothes or did you give them a budget and they worked to it?

They weren't pushy at all.

The adviser asked me what clothes I had to start with and we worked on building a wardrobe around what I had already. I had a much smaller budget (I work part-time, 2 days) but I still walked away with quite a few things. She was excellent at picking out clothes that I would never have tried and I ended up buying a few of those things.

After the session I felt that I had "outfits" for work that made me feel far more confident about how I looked at work. She was great at giving tips on how to wear the clothes too. All in all it lasted 2 hours and to be honest I did get quite bored towards the end as I'd mentally decided on what to wear.

She brought out around 20 or so dresses for me to try and then we tried a few to see what suited. She then brought out more in the same or similar style and we ditched the rest.

No pressure at all. In fact, I'm sure if I'd bought nothing she wouldn't have said anything. I was very happy with what I ended up with, too.

That sounds brilliant - will book in for a session this week with JL. Have got some time so can assess what else I need after that.

Will update when I have been.

Just to say thanks very much to all those who gave me advice. The powers that be have now decided that I will be staying in uniform in my new post so I haven't got an excuse for a new wardrobe

I am feeling inspired to buy new clothes though and if I get money for Xmas am treating myself to a personal shopper at JL

now you get to buy all the new clothes than you really like, rather than work appropriate things

Buy a cape, not a coat - it will instantly update your look to this season! And there are fab capes at all prices in the shops.

Buy knee high or over the knee boots - if you have good legs, you can wear very short skirts with thick tights and over the knee boots which looks both elegant and sexy, and is very comfortable (a win-win-win situation ).

If your tummy/hips/waist are your weaker point, short skirts with a slightly longer cardigan over the top will look best and try to wear a pretty top under the cardigan to accentuate femininity on your top half if you cannot accentuate your waist.