Please please help with capsule wardrobe for work trip to China in August

[upyourninja]

Please please help me with some ideas for a capsule work wardrobe which will be smart but not too hot for a work trip to Beijing in August!

It will be smoggy and hot. I'll spend a lot of time indoors in air con but have to travel between appointments in taxis around the city. In my industry, suits are not standard, but most of my Chinese clients are very well turned out (designer, crisp white shirts and suits, often).

I usually wear wrap dresses and skirts with blazers for this kind of trip. I feel I should be reasonably modestly dressed, with covered shoulders.

I'm 5'3 and currently a large size 10 - quite a broad/athletic build, 32D. Dresses/skirts need to come nearly to my knee and my legs aren't good. I really dislike synthetic fabrics as they're just so hot and sticky so usually buy cotton, but that's hard to achieve these days!

I have one navy dress from Great Plains which will do but almost nothing else. I'll have meetings and business dinners for five days. I never shop as I'm rubbish at it, and we really don't have much spare cash. I think I can pull together about £200 to spend but that's it

Any suggestions at all would be very very welcome!

Any of these would be easy to rinse and left to dry in the hotel room, you'd only need two-alternate (for the day). For the bottom, either a midi skirt or, if you prefer, floaty trousers (again, you can quickly rinse in the hotel room).
Have a look at Zara, the dresses are on sale.

Just had a work trip to India. Air cond' hotel/cars/offices , well into the 40s outside :-/

I would aim for a skirt with light sleeveless cotton shell tops to travel around the city. When you get to your destination you can put on a jacket to look more professional in the air cond' places.

A navy or charcoal skirt and a few differant colour cotton shell tops and a jacket should carry you through the days.
I would just aim to be as undressed as possible for the travelling between venues and add your 'professional layer' when you get to the destination.
Maybe your wrap dresses for the dinners?

My one mistake was wearing a loose but synthetic top. It felt like I was wearing a plastic bag. I agree stick with cotton!

a mini Avene mineral water spray is your friend to cool down in hot taxis.
I don't know how long your hair is either, mine is shoulder length and rarely worn up. The heat turned my well styled freshly washed hair into a damp mess in minutes. I quickly learnt to spend the time in the hotel in the morning putting it into a neat professional looking updo!

I don't know if it would be professional enough for your line of business but I had a pair of light linen trousers - they are very thin so didn't crease too much.

I wouldn't try and dress too much like the local professional business code. There were 4 differant nationalities on my trip and everyone was smart and professional looking but all dressed as they would in their home countries.

I went in October and took several Great Plains dresses I'd bought off ebay - I look for their viscose/mix fibre tunic dresses so they are quite loose yet looked very smart when I lobbed a jacket over the top. I took a couple of very smart fitted dresses as well and they looked over the top and were horrible in the heat.

The mugginess was the problem, and it was lovely to get into linens and cottons at the end of the day.
And yes - tie hair up - I looked like a frizz ball in all the pics.

Thank you! Will take a look tonight and keep suggestions coming!
Any footwear suggestions? I can't really wear ballet pumps as I'm hypermobile and it will make my hips and knees hurt. I wear saltwater sandals to work usually but they're not going to cut it!

Ooh thank you for hairstyle tips. Unfortunately I just had my long hair lopped to chin length - I can't really updo now. Hmm.

oh how exciting
I would love to swish off to china for work

Wild bill I think linen trousers would be appropriate enough. I'll actually be seated for three of the days (book fair) so it's mostly an upper half thing.

No Zara near me so I'd forgotten about them - I'll look online, thanks!

zara will be largely synthetic
i think you can wear sleeveless dresses cant you?

Gretchen it's my first China trip, and will be adding in Rio next year

Although I won't be so much swishing off as arriving a hot, heat rashy mess, getting stuck in traffic, not being able to breathe if there is smog, with a frizzy mop head. Oh and worried about everything I eat because I'm veggie.

The business side should be awesome though!!

Autograph will be better
how about this www.marksandspencer.com/panelled-shift-dress/p/p22306247

I can wear sleeveless I think but in practice very few of my clients do - in fact most wear shirts and suit jackets when I see them! The men often look hot but honestly my female clients are ultra cool, coiffed, and groomed. It can be a bit intimidating

cut out the lining of this
www.marksandspencer.com/pure-cotton-woven-striped-shift-dress/p/p22292432

i think go sleeveless with jacket for aircon
you will have great arms being so teeny
www.johnlewis.com/betty-barclay-sleeveless-daisy-dress-white/p1131807 - might be too matronly on

Just for the idea - I took one of these. Its not natural fibres but was loose and thin enough to work well - I also liked the oriental print.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Womens-Summer-Dress-By-Great-Plains-of-London-Size-L-suit-Size-14-Floral-/231270328661?pt=UK_Women_s_Dresses&hash=item35d8c92955

And:
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Summer-Dress-14-Great-Plains-French-Connection-/231274284804?pt=UK_Women_s_Dresses&hash=item35d9058704

Shoes - I took one pair of heels for formal stuff/banquets, and then flats (not ballet pumps) as there was a lot of walking in the days.
And a pair of sandals and a pair of converse for when I was off duty.

If there will be lots of formal banquets, don't wear anything tight as you will be plied with more food than you think possible. And watch out for the white spirit/wine - bai jiu - it is lethal!

www.johnlewis.com/mango-slim-fit-cotton-trousers-off-white/p1151799 too casual?

upyourninja - ha! I was a veggie for 28 years before the trip but made a conscious decision to eat meat again as I wanted to try everything.

I think it can be tricky being a veggie if you are strict (fine if you are a pescetarian though, or are not too strict about stocks and sauces). Get used to seeing lots of food look at you from the table...

Pack some of these
My BIL used to work in Singapore in recruitment and apparently everyone wears them. Also allows you to keep wearing some of the dreaded synthetics

linen jacket

linen jacket 2

linen blend trousers

linen blend trousers 2

cotton dress

dress with Coolfresh whatever that may be

oh they look ace

Oh you lot are fab, thank you so much! I'll take a look at the links in detail later when I don't have a whirlwind toddler to deal with.

I'm afraid I am just not one of those women who can wear pale colours on my bottom half. I'm a grub magnet! And it just emphasises my short legs.

I'm hoping to lose a few pounds before I go but my arms are quite chunky really. I used to be an athlete and I 'm still trying to figure out my new post-natal, lack of exercise shape. My weight has gone up and down (and up)by 20lbs in the last 18 months so the vast majority of my clothes are just...wrong.

The Great Plains dresses are pretty close thank you! And I could see the Julian Macdonald dress working, though not my normal style.

I have the Boden bistro trousers - maybe a crop pair could work?

if you are arty is this any good under a jacket?
www.fatface.com/camis/tie-neck-peony-cami/invt/81963

too casual?
www.whitestuff.com/womens/dresses/navy-deloris-shift-dress/

Both of those are pretty perfect gretchen - so long as accessorised smart rather than casual. Love the white stuff dress and yey all cotton !