Urgent work makeover needed (two week countdown)

[Jobpanic]

After being made redundant last year and finding it really hard to get back in a role, I have landed one!!

please help me undo the slovenliness of wallowing in doom as I start in two weeks time!

can you help pull together some outfits arhat are nt supermarket leggings and also help me with how I can go from 0-10 (or abs close to 10) on the beauty side? I am very overweight and have let myself go in all areas. I feel a mess and not confident at all.

am size 18, tall and busty, dress code smart, office based. I have huge size 9 feet :-( budget mid - whistles/Hobbs pre weight gain.

That aren’t*

M&S website. Get a bunch of their plain midi dresses (they start at £30), several packs of their tights, couple of plain cardigans, two pairs of flat shoes (because you won't have been wearing heels any time recently) and if it's very smart, a couple of blazers.

Might be a bit boring - you can obviously branch out once you're settled in - but a dress is simultaneously smarter and more relaxed than a blouse and trousers and by sticking to the M&S brand, you'll have more money left over to a) spend on Hobbs and suchlike once you're comfortable and know what people actually wear and b) it never hurts to get some new bras and knickers whilst you're at it.

Other than that, do your hair and eyebrows and swish in through the door feeling like you've got this all under control!

Look at Anne Weyburn on La Redoubte. I got beautiful things from there, a poster on another thread recommended dresses and they are gorgeous and very suitable for the office.

Book to get your nails/hair/eyebrows/whatever you fancy done.

New bag and shoes. Jewellery!

go.skimresources.com/?id=470X756&isjs=1&jv=15.3.0-stackpath&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mumsnet.com%2Ftalk%2F_chat%2F4713909-how-smart-would-you-dress-for-an-admin-interview%3Fpage%3D2%26reply%3D123100789&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.laredoute.co.uk%2Fppdp%2Fprod-350069765.aspx%3Fdocid%3D221822%23shoppingtool%3Dtreestructureflyout%26srt%3DnoSorting%26facets%3Dbrand%2Aanne-weyburn%26shoppingtool%3Dtreestructureflyout&xs=1&xtz=0&xuuid=a824894024aad231a72f5c84f4dbc2f7&xjsf=other_click__contextmenu%20%5B-1%5D

Ugh does this work?

Also see if you can find Clarks Hamble Oaks in size 9, I have size 7 wide feet and they make my feet look tiny like little pixie feet. It is weird. DH was like WTF when I put them on, my feet looked so small 😂

Ok. Calm down and don’t panic.

I would try and build a wardrobe focused around the following, all in fabrics/colours that compliment or match each other. I’ve used navy as an example neutral colour but you could do black instead.

Tailored navy dress (knee length with sleeves)
Navy trousers
A boucle style skirt suit (in a colour that compliments the navy items so the jacket can be worn with the dress or trousers.
3-4 tops (I would do for say 2 plain silk round neck tops and two shirts/blouses, half in white/ivory, half in bright or dark colours)
A smart bag in either navy or black.

That could easily do you a few weeks of outfits. I would then look to add in a plain navy blazer and a patterned dress that you could wear with that, plus a plain skirt that goes with the boucle jacket.

I think Hobbs is great for workwear and you often get stuff that is machine washable.

I also think if you get decent jackets/blazers you can do cheaper on the tops. I sometimes just wear a plain t shirt if I know I’ll be keeping my jacket on.

Congratulations! How exciting!

Hair cut and colour. Bobbi Brown counter for a makeup update even if it is just a lovely new lipstick. The sales assistants are good at advice especially if you go at a quiet time.
New bras as a priority! Bravissimo will sort you out.
Jewellery from Whistles, just something little that you love eg earrings. Treat yourself, if you can afford it.
One or two new outfits only till you see how the office dresses. Cos and Hobbs do both do size 18. I would just get a couple of plainish dresses from them and perhaps long sleeve T shirts for underneath. Nothing madly formal, you might find the dress code is a little slacker now. Your jackets might still fit if you wear them open?
Good luck!

I know this is an old post and I hope you got sorted out? I know you said no to leggings but lots of tall leggings from Long Tall Sally are listed on Vinted.