Can a navy trouser suit be made to look vaguely cool or lost cause?

[OneDayIWillLearn]

I have to present at a work conference in November and need to be dressed smart/ professional, but I really I don’t want to look or feel dowdy and middle aged. I’m 41 and a size 14-16.

I almost never wear this kind of thing (my job is usually a mix of manual outdoor work which I dress accordingly for and smart casual for meetings). My go-to style is more Boden sweatshirts, bird print or bright check shirts, bright coloured or patterned trainers. I’ve got a navy Boden puffer with rainbow sleeves that I love and a corduroy pinafore dress. But obviously none of this kind of thing is appropriate!!

I did a personal shopping session at John Lewis last year and came out with a navy Whistles jacket and tapered Hobbs trousers which the stylist suggested I could wear as a trouser suit - and I really liked them at the time (I’ll paste links below). However I can’t work out how I can wear these so I feel like me and non-frumpy but also look professional enough!

Would a brightly coloured top/ big Prue Leith style necklace/ some kind of colourful shoe do the trick do you think? Or just look silly and inappropriate?

If the navy trouser suit is a lost cause then I’m open to any other suggestions of a look which is professional/ smart enough for a conference without being a complete frump-out for a curvy woman in her 40s??

https://www.whistles.com/product/180826.html?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=22797692313&cq_term=&cq_plac=&cq_net=g&cq_plt=gp&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=22797692313&utm_content=188306982451&utm_term=&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22797692313&gbraid=0AAAAADtW8dtRJNtX3Bd71nfHwY0KHmdl2&clickref=1110luWCHym&app_clickref=1110luWCHym&utm_source=partnerize&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_campaign=easyfundraising

www.hobbs.com/product/linda-tapered-trousers/0224-8618-9845L00-DEEP-PINE-GREEN.html?cq_src=google_ads&cq_cmp=22300217733&cq_net=g&cq_plt=gp&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=22300217733&utm_content=171138532490&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22300217733&gbraid=0AAAAADC5o-LsMUVlVhTWQYDLLClnUXEcW&gclid=CjwKCAjwi4PHBhA-EiwAnjTHuZJtc339G0G4eD8YrFfCJVhmOLkqMiKF2S620iG1CILE3FeUlsS9ghoC7asQAvD_BwE

Can you go for a shirt or blouse in a more colourful print (with some navy in it) which is a bit more your usual style? I don't think anyone notices shoes much at conferences so I'd just go for comfortable boots or low heels. https://www.boden.com/products/effie-short-sleeve-top-bright-blue-leafy-grove

https://www.boden.com/products/easy-printed-top-french-navy-cosmic-meadow

How formal is the event?

I always err on the simpler the better to avoid looking frumpy.

I would wear the jacket unbuttoned over a well cut white tshirt (Cos fo the best) or short sleeve round neck fine knit underneath, some great shoes - smart loafers? Block heel? Kitten heel sling back? I would avoid Prue Leith style necklaces if it were me - I know they seem to be coming back in but so hard to get right. Instead try chunky but simple silver earrings - M&S had a lot in last time I looked. If it’s more smart casual affair I would swap out the white tshirt for a Breton top and wear trainers.

Make sure you have a decent bra, makes all the difference.

If you are especially top heavy swap out the round neck for a scoop neck.

Ooh I like those Boden tops. I worry about a shirt with a collar looking a bit too ‘air hostess’ or C&A shop assistant but I think without the collar it’s a much better look!

Definitely suit and tie for men. Audience will
be more of a mix. Big earrings is a good idea, I used to wear those a lot pre children then got out of the habit. Will check out M and S….

Go for the suit OP but add a shirt/ blouse and then take the buttons off the jacket and resew them with a matching thread to your top 😉Cool, classy, understated but mindblowingly coordinated and unexpected 😉It's a Mod thing 🤣Good luck!

Ooh or maybe I could even try some funkier buttons?! Love this idea!

I'd team the suit with a classic white top (not tucked in) as long as it didn't hand below the jacket hem. Easy to wear , hides lumps and bumps.
https://www.marksandspencer.com/crepe-top/p/clp23016813#intid=pid_pg1pip48g4r7c3

I'd wear a t-shirt under the jacket and something like converse on my feet.

Would a brightly coloured top/ big Prue Leith style necklace/ some kind of colourful shoe do the trick do you think?

A thousand times no.

The trousers would be fine with a simple, but brilliantly cut plain top. A friend buys white tee shirts (heavy cotton, really amazing quality ones) and has them tailored to nail the casual/professional work wear look that she feels just right in.

I'd be tempted down a similar path for your presentation. Simple, not over-wrought, comfortable and smart.

You can get button covers if you don’t want to sew.

I would get a silk shirt and shoes

Echo silk shirt with a fun print plus kitten heeled slingbacks. Ditch the jacket.

I wear a rust coloured silk boat neck top with navy trousers: it's a colour combination that a friend pointed out and I love it because it's an interesting contrast but not out-there or "I'm mad/cool, me!"
I love a navy suit with a kind of "off"/sludgy coloured top, eg, dark mustard, greyish green, petrol blue so it's contrasting without being in your face.

A suit jacket over a casual dress goes a long way. I'm just back from ML and breast feeding so am wearing seasalt dresses with a blazer. Depending how big the conference is and how you respond to nerves, you could be very hot on stage so don't eerst anything that makes you sweat!

I'm no expert, but I think adding a top with a bold print would make it look more frumpy, not less! I'd go with a plain white top as @peggam suggests.

I’d either ditch the jacket and wear a bright shirt….whatever colour or patten you like …. Green or pink would work for my colouring but maybe not for you and simple heels….or if jacket a white or even lemon fitted tshirt with bright trainers or converse. Be you

Simple heavyweight t shirt, maybe with a nice silk scarf can work well. Or a simple silk/satin shirt.

Definitely not a chunky necklace - if you're presenting on stage these things can be very distracting so keep accessories simple and clothes with clean lines. I like the trouser and jacket but as PP have said go with a white top underneath, definitely not a print as it's too much with the two shades of blue.

Do you mean like burnt orange kind of colour? I think that suits me too, hadn’t thought of it with navy but I can imagine it would look good….

Hmm ok so maybe either a more interesting shirt but ditch the jacket

OR

plain white t-shirt/ top and bring a bit of colour in the buttons/ shoes/ earrings

OK I can work with this (though I am terrible at buying t-shirts but maybe I will try a couple from somewhere I can easily return them too….)

A shell top under the suit. Any colour you like, but ivory would be safe.
A crisp white shirt will look like school uniform. A patterned shirt will look store manager/cabin crew.

I’m currently trying not to do formal/formal in the same way that I used to avoid matchy/matchy. I’m a little older than you and in a senior role but as clothes have become less formal in the past few years, a suit with heels and a shirt, looks overdone and in my mind, ageing.

I now tend to wear suits with plain T-shirts and trainers to look a bit more modern. The good thing about navy, is that it’s a good neutral so you can pick a white t shirt or go for a strong colour that suits you.

I would wear a white tee shirt and simple jewellery.

I think a Prue Leith necklace immediately frumps any outfit. I really like the jacket and trousers though, it’s something I’d wear as a mid 30s professional.

This sort of look: Reiss Slim Fit Suit Trousers in Navy - REISS

I’m surprised at the things a stylist found for you last year - the trousers in particular, as they weren’t a fashionable shape last year, or this.

And no, cos-playing Pru Leith would not make you look vaguely cool! (She looks fine but that’s her.)

Tbh I would never have started with Whistles and Hobbs - they don’t tend to embrace the current oversized, louche look in jackets and trousers. I would browse sites like

& Other Stories
Arket
Cos
Massimo Dutti

as well as, for inspiration (rather than buying)

The Frankie Shop
Rohe
Studio Nicholson
Toteme

to get an idea of new proportions. Then perhaps consider getting some new trousers to wear with the jacket. And a good plain top - cotton, silk or lightweight wool to wear underneath. No pattern, no frills … And absolutely no ‘statement jewellery’. Just restrained pieces you might ordinarily wear. Observe the styling on all the sites above.

I would go for silk, either a shirt or a top any colour would be fine but not too garish or bold. A heeled simple shoe not boots. No patterns or statement pieces , these generally look try hard or frumpy as does a suit with a t shirt and converse unless that’s your style and you can pull it together