Workwear Wednesday: Power of Patience...and discounts!

Banana Republic is one of the most notable workwear staple stores of today. No doubt, their quality is very good and they offer appropriate trends for even the most conservative offices. As far as affordable goes though, it's one of those places where it's easy to spend over $100 on as little as two pieces.

I do like shopping there though, but I do it sparingly and smartly. Banana Republic offers 30 to 40 percent off their regular prices at least once a week. Sometimes, you can hunt for an item on sale with additional reduced prices.

If you happen to have a factory store in your nearby neighborhood, that would be the best place to stock up on BR gear. The dress below is from the BR factory store and it's one of my favorite pieces for summer. At $49, it works well within an affordable workwear budget. As with almost all my peices, I like them to be versatile. You could wear this with black tights in winter and even with a white blazer for a more summery look.

Today, select styles are on sale at Banana Republic.  Happy shopping!

Written with love,

Leslie

Sophisticated Casual

Good morning!

I wanted to highlight a casual Friday look.  Today my outfit leans more to the sophisticated casual side, which for me usually means wearing flats to the office.  However, every office is different and for some of you lucky ones it might mean wearing dark denim jeans.  It should never mean wearing things you'd wear to do things around the house.  I've definitely been witness to that awful workwear sin.

Blazer - H&M | Pants - Alfani from Macy's | Shoes - Nine West | Necklace - Strawberry | Bag - Olivia and Joy, from Strawberry but Macy's has a nice selection of Olivia and Joy bags here | Glasses - Warby Parker

You can always style this look to be less casual with some heels.  Options for nude pumps: Nine West ; Steve Madden ; JC Penny 

Hope everyone is doing something wonderful this long weekend!  

written with love,

Leslie 

Workwear Wednesday

Good morning!

Yesterday morning I had the opportunity to introduce a panel of respected colleagues at an event organized by myself and fellow young leaders in my field.  It's very valuable to get involved in industry organizations and take part in those events.  There were over 80 people attending this panel discussion and it was fully developed and organized by young leaders.  We were glad to have highlighted an important issue in affordable housing today (supportive and homeless housing) and facilitated a fruitful discussion among established leaders in the field.  These affiliations are a great way to bring about positive change within your broader work community and at the same time positively impact your resume and career network.  

Given that there was a substantial audience and it was the first time my group had developed a panel of this kind, I wanted to wear something sharp but also summery as it was a beautiful day in NYC.  I decided on this navy stripe sheath dress from JC Penny paired with a white blazer from Forever 21.  I opted for traditional pearl accessories to offset the linear nature of the stripes.  As always, best thing about this outfit is the price.  

Dress - JC Penny | Blazer - Forever 21, old but similar here | Shoes - Nine West | Bracelet - Lia Sophia, old | Necklace - old, but similar option here

written with love,

Leslie 

Affordable Workwear Outfit Under $100

Good Monday everyone!

It's time for another round-up of affordable workwear for under $100!  Catch my last round-up here.

Today I'm bringing you an affordable outfit idea with styles from JC Penny!  JC Penny is totally a hidden gem!  They have some great collaborators and lines like Bisou Bisou, Nicole by Nicole Miller, I love Ronson, MNG by Mango, Allen B by Allen Schwartz and their Worthington collection is very modern.

I am a huge fan of mixing and matching suit separates rather than wearing a full matching suit everyday.  It keeps your outfit more interesting and appealing and it allows you to be more creative with your style.

This look incorporates a more up to date and summery sheath dress with an office appropriate blazer and peep-toe pumps to top off the look.  The pieces are very functional, too!  You can wear the peep-toe pumps for a night on the town and with other work appropriate outfits.  The dress can also be worn with flat sandals and a small cross-body bag for a more casual weekend look.  All of these items are on sale for a total price of $99.97!  

Dress - Nicole by Nicole Miller, Blazer - Worthington, Shoes - 9 & Co. 

Happy shopping!

written with love,

Leslie 

All photos in montage from JC Penny website. 

Rainy Day Workwear

Good morning friends!

It's still been chillier than I'd like for May and to top it off rainy!  I guess in these times of the Polar Vortex May showers bring June flowers?  Anyway, I've got you covered with ideas on how to tackle your wardrobe these mild, but chilly rainy days.

Tips for dressing for work on a rainy day:

1.  Wear a skirt! This is an excellent opportunity to wear some cute skirts to work.  It's also a practical option to avoid wet pant legs.  Work pants also do not tend to look very good tucked into knee high rubber boots, but a skirt with knee high rubber boots is an adorable look.  Your colleagues will be impressed that you look so good on an ugly day!

2.  Invest in a good raincoat and even more importantly, a good umbrella.  Umbrellas that you buy at the drugstore for 5 bucks get you through an emergency but leave you drenched otherwise.  Invest in a good umbrella that provides full coverage.  This one is a nice option, but these dome umbrellas offer full coverage at an affordable price.  Hunter also has a version of the dome umbrella.

3.  As for footwear, rubber boots are a good option.  In these photos, I am wearing rubber Capelli booties that I snagged at a discount retailer in midtown.  Here is a similar option.  Or you can opt for knee length rubber boots like the popular Hunter boots or this more affordable Totes version.

For milder summer rain, I like wearing my Sperry Top-Siders.  These are more breathable and comfortable than rubber rain shoes.  I've worn mine on numerous occasions in pouring rain and they've held up very well.

My outfit: Rain coat - Laundry by Shelli Segal, old but similar here | Skirt - Zara, old their newer version here | Shirt - Elle for Kohls, old but similar here | Bag - Calvin Klein, similar here | Boots - Capelli, old but similar here

written with love,

Leslie 

Networking Tips

Happy Monday everyone!

Do you remember the first networking event you attended?  It seemed innocent enough at first.  You walk in and use the bathroom, re-touch your make up.  That killed about 5 minutes.  You walk out into the crowded room with a look like a deer in headlights, but then you spot the wine and cheese.  Excellent!  You help yourself to a plate of cheese (and you know it was a full plate of just cheese) and ask the waiter for a glass of Pinot Noir.  You're feeling good.  These networking events are great!  What a nice cheese selection!  Now you look back to the crowd and what to do?  Here are some tips.

1. Don't be scared or shy.  Everyone is there for the same reasons as you.  They want to meet you and learn about what your work is like and how you can potentially collaborate.  Scope out the room and find a single person or group of 3 that you can introduce yourself to.  I would avoid approaching two individuals talking as you might be interrupting, but a group of three allows you to eventually break off into pairs.

2.  Worried about an opening line?  Again, remember you're all there for the same reason.  A simple, "Hi, My name is ____ and I'm new to this event" will suffice.  Make sure you know your elevator pitch, though.  That's the next thing that inevitably your new networking acquaintance will ask.

3.  Don't get stuck.  If you find the conversation feels forced or it's not going in the direction you want, excuse yourself and start fresh with someone else.  The whole point of networking events is to meet people who have some connection to your business and can be a good partner or ally in the future.

4.  Always have business cards on hand and in convenient reach.  Oh, but you have a glass of wine in one hand and a plate of cheese in another!  Mistake!  Keep it to either a glass of wine or a plate of cheese, but not both.  Always make sure your right hand is free so you can shake someone's hand and grab your business cards.  A lady should keep her business cards in an outside pocket of her purse or an inside pocket like the ones that fit your cell phone for easy access.

5.  Follow up with the people you met.  I suggest following up the next day with an email.  Also put a reminder in your calendar to follow up with this person in a few weeks and suggest to meet up so that you maintain the relationship.  It was hard enough networking in the first place, so don't lose the valuable connections you made.

I hope these tips help next time your at a networking event!

written with love,
Leslie

photo from wecannetwork

5 Days a Week

Happy Friday everyone!

What a busy and wonderful week!  Here's my weekly round-up for the first full week of May!

1. The week started off in the outskirts of Philadelphia.  As a born and bred city dweller, it is so refreshing to step away from the hustle and bustle and visit greener pastures.  I was really inspired to amp up my garden after seeing these tulips.  Aren't these tulips beautiful?

2. The Wall Street Journal had some solid shopping advice this week.  The bucket bag is back!  Did you all know that the first bucket bag was debuted by Louis Vuitton in 1932 as a champagne carryall!? I'll take both, please :)

3. As a person who is socially conscious and interested in real estate, this was a big week for me.  New York City's new Mayor, Bill de Blasio unveiled his Housing New York plan.  It is very ambitious and I hope that all parties can work together to make it happen.  Bloomberg News gives us a good round up of his plan.  And here is an interesting "reality check" on affordable housing from Forbes.  The article, written by Erin Carlyle, is 100% on point on how New York City is fit to serve opposite ends of the income spectrum but fails the middle.  Can this be why some young professionals move out of New York City?  This WNYC podcast nails it.   

4. I am really happy to see this partnership between Kate Spade and Rwandan women.  This is the kind of social investments we should be seeing more of out of top designers.  

5.  And finally, I am going to see Cher tonight!  It's amazing she can put on a great show at her age, 67!!!  60s definitely are the new 50s!  

Affordable Interview Suit

Hi all!

As graduation season approaches, I thought I would bring you an idea for an affordable interview suit.  You don't need to go and spend $300 on a suit you'll likely wear only a few times.  I am a huge fan of mixing and matching blazers and trousers for work rather than wearing stiff suits.  When it comes time for an interview though, the more formal the better.

Some tips for buying an interview suit:

Go for black, navy blue or grey.  You don't want to distract your interviewer with your outfit.  You want them to focus on what you can bring to their business rather than distracting them with your amazing fashion sense. :)  On this same note, keep your accessories to a minimum and make them classic, not "statement" pieces.

For winter or fall interview, go for a pant suit and for spring or summer try a sheath dress or pencil skirt with a collared or high neck shirt.  Don't risk wearing anything low cut or that would require a camisole.  Those shirts tend to shift around and you don't want to be worrying about tugging at your blouse when you need to focus all of your attention on the interview.

As for shoes and purse - I recommend wearing heels, even if they are low heels.  Heels just always manage to give you the right sense of authority.  Make sure they are comfortable for you though.  And for the purse, I would recommend a basic black or beige tote that will fit a folder full of your awesome resumes!

Here's an example of an affordable suit I put together.  When creating a suit ensemble, make sure that the blazer and pants are the same shade of black, navy, or grey.  When you shop within the same store, it's easy to make that happen.

[Blazer: H&M old, similar here | Pants: H&M old, similar here | Blouse: Old Navy old, similar here | Shoes: Payless | Bracelet: J Crew Factory

Tote bag options: H&M shopper | H&M handbag | H&M shopper bag

My suit pants, blazer, and blouse alternatives linked above total less than $90!  AND the best part is that you can then pair the blazer and heels with some jeans for a great going out look or with flats to meet a friend for brunch with all the money you've saved!  That's a lot of bang for your buck!

Hope this helps some new grads out there!  As always, these views are my own.

written with love,
Leslie

Workwear Trends for Under $100

Hi all,

I thought I'd bring you some workwear inspiration today!  Dressing for work shouldn't cost you a fortune and staying stylish shouldn't either.

This week's roundup is from H&M, one of my favorite stores for affordable workwear.  I have pieces from H&M that I bought when I started working 8 years ago and I still wear them regularly and they are in great shape!

This dress is in my favorite workwear color, navy blue.  I don't think we see enough navy out there.  It's such a classic alternative to black and so much more vibrant.  I added the lace blazer in this blush color as a trendy spring/summer alternative to a white blazer.  The gold accessories add some definition to the outfit.  In the fall or winter, you can swap out the blush blazer for a black blazer, maximizing the use of the dress year round.

Dress, blazer, shoes, earrings, and bangles for a perfect workwear look that will take you from the cubicle to the corner office in style.  Total for this outfit is $98.83.

The best thing about this dress is that it's versatile year round and you can style it for work, casual weekend, or fancier affair.  I can see this dress with a rhinestone belt, crystal accessories, and silver strappy sandals for a summer wedding.

Happy shopping!

written with love,
Leslie

All images from H&M website. 

5 Things to Appreciate Friday, May 2, 2014

Good morning!

It's finally Friday and it's FINALLY May!  I hope this means we get some hot weather soon.  

Here are 5 things that inspired me this week: 

1.   For better or worse, I jumped on the Birkenstock bandwagon.  Ugly shoes?  I think not.  WhoWhatWear and J Crew don't think so either.  It's all about how you style them!

Photo via WhoWhatWear

2.   This week I took one hour out of my workday to view a webinar.  My company has an entire e-learning website with lots of tutorials and refresher courses on finance.  It’s worthwhile to stay fresh on all relevant topics in your industry.  If your company doesn’t have these resources on hand, try checking out the website of a related independent industry association or simply read a book on a related topic.  You can always ask your colleagues questions or ask them to meet you for a coffee to discuss how to relate your new knowledge to current events in your industry. 

3.   Neurological findings in the Wall Street Journal this week.  Very interesting article on how the brain works.  Deadlines may not be as productive as we think.  Take note procrastinators, if you leave things to the last minute, you may not be developing the best material.

4.   I made it a point to go to the gym 3 times between Monday and Friday.  Happy to report I am set to make my goal today!  Cube living is unhealthy folks.  Many studies show that sitting for even 30 minutes slows your body down and increases your probability of developing heart disease and diabetes.  Check out this graphic from the Washington Post.  Even though 3 hours at the gym out of at least 40 working hours doesn’t come close to fixing the problem, it’s a start.  Stay tuned to my blog for a future post on how to stay healthy in your cube.  For now, check out the blog FitSugar, which has lots of ideas for workouts you can do at home. 

5.  Finally, after a busy week, it's important to take time for yourself.  Whether it's giving yourself a manicure or trying a new facial mask (both of which I took time to do this week thanks to my Birchbox subscription), it's nice to pamper yourself every so often.  

Hope you all had a great and productive week!  Until Monday!

written with love,
Leslie