Dress Like a Pro

Everything from closed schools to zoom meetings from kitchen or dining areas suddenly became a reality. After a year of stay-at-home work or no work at all, it feels like we need to learn how to do make-up and look match our clothes in a dresser. Regardless of the situation, you are in right now, we have a few ideas of how to feel confident and comfortable when you go to that long-awaited interview or a meeting.

What is business casual?

If you are getting ready for an interview or a meeting with people you don’t know, and you are expected to wear “business casual” - there are no limits really of how to interpret it. However, an unspoken understanding is not to wear jeans, tank tops (or have open shoulders t-shirts), no sports attire or sports shoes, no shorts or short dresses and skirts. When you are preparing for a “first impression” meeting – stick to a classy look. No bright colors or colorful clothes, no long and heavy jewelry, no sneakers (even the designer fancy ones) or Louboutin heels, refrain from mixing and matching too many styles. Generally speaking, have two main neutral colors: white, black, grey, brown, navy. And spice it up with a colorful scarf, purse, or accessory. Closed-toe shoes are preferable. For more informal business casual, it is acceptable to wear dark blue or black jeans with a blazer and a single-colored shirt. It could be acceptable to wear a bright-colored shirt/dress/skirt with a neutral-colored jumper or blazer. And even open-toe shoes could be quite acceptable. All you need to have in your closet: a pair of black, blue, grey, and white pants, white, black, crème shirt or blouse, black/navy/grey blazer. Also, consider combinational colors: brown looks much better with crème or ivory, navy looks great with white and red, black and brown generally do not match being too dark.

Color Theory

Without going into a multitude of details about color theory, there are a couple of main concepts that will help you choose the pleasing combinations of your clothes or accessories that can not only spice up your look but also improve your mood.

Basic color concepts like Color Wheel that can consist of Primary, Secondary and Tertiary colors/ The opposite colors on the color wheel always make a pleasing combination. The other harmonical formulas include combinations of analogous colors and based-on-nature colors.

Shoes

In the official dress-code, it is advised to wear closed-toe dress-shoes and neutral-color hosiery for your business attire. However, it is never a good idea to compromise between comfort and beauty. Chose your dress or casual shoes based on comfort level. Leave fancy uncomfortable pair for a party with girlfriends. Comfortable, classical shoes go a long way and save you money and ease your workday. Consider dress or business shoes your daily shoes - do not go cheap, invest in those. Most of the days will be spent in that pair anyway. Consider these tips from Harvard Medical School on how to choose the right shoes for your feet.