FashBlog.com

How people perceive you has a lot to do with the way you dress and the clothes you wear. People form opinions on you in the first 3 minutes after they meet you or see you (even at the transit stop). And since you are often what you wear, people will form opinions about you by the way you are dressed.

What about your working hours? What do you wear to work every day? Most companies have some sort of rule (even if it is an unwritten one) on what you can wear and cannot wear at work. Some companies that deal with the public on a daily basis, dress wear are a must (such as a suit and a tie for men; a suit and skirt for women). Business suits for both women and men are a necessity and with the choice of business attire available, there are many avenues to find a suit that looks best on you. But, business casual is the generally accepted form of wear to work for most companies these days. What defines business casual? And what about when you are not at work? What do you wear then?

Business casual is more of a classic look, rather than a trendy one and although a grey area for some, business casual (also known as smart wear) can be defined as neat and crisp and should look appropriate for a chance meeting with the powers that be or a day with no one else around. What is the trick to attaining this look?

Business casual should not beach wear, it much more put together than that or evening wear, it is much less forma. Business casual should not be tight fitting, or on the other hand, baggy either. Business casual should consist of Khaki pants with long sleeved button down or golf shirts for both men and women (depending on the weather). Women have more choice when it comes to business casual than men do. More often than not, men are stuck wearing pants and a long sleeved or golf shirt (with a sweater thrown in here and there) While women have much more options available to them. They can wear a casual skirt (khaki), a flowered cotton skirt, jean skirts or the hot look for autumn, corduroy. These can be topped with a nice shirt or sweater or even a casual corduroy blazer. The key is to look neat and freshly pressed; after all you do not want to look like you just hopped out of bed wearing the clothes you are currently wearing to work, do you?

Business casual also goes beyond your clothes. It also deals with your general appearance. If you wear a really nice shirt and a great pair of khakis, but old tattered and ripped shoes, how will that make you look? Shoes that are sandals may be inappropriate for your work as are running shoes and as for make up and jewellery, less is definitely more

What about after work and over the weekends? Are sweatshirts, jeans and sneakers your uniform of the weekend? Even if it just running to the store, you never know who you will run into while out doing errands, so it best to look somewhat put together. How about a denim jacket or blazer with a t shirt underneath instead of a sweatshirt? Layers are always a good way to go when you want to look put together. And instead of wearing running shoes, how about putting on some loafers or some sort of shoe or boot with a small heel? There are plenty of comfortable yet fashionable clothing and footwear that can be put together for the weekend, no matter what your plans are.

Hey, I know you are busy on the weekend with errands and the like, but the key is not to borrow your spouses over sized clothing and you might want to give your clothes that you had in high school away (yes, it is good to be thrifty, but that is a little too much so) and to wear clothes that are appropriate for your age, size and shape and with stores galore and the Internet at well, your finger tips, there is a plethora of choice that will fit every sized body, both casual and for work too.

Remember you are going to be perceived for what you wear. If you wear sweats with writing on the butt that says ‘juicy’, what does that say about you? Even if it is the weekend, what if you run into the CEO from your company? What would their impression be of you at that point? Or what if you tend to wear low cut shirts with lots of cleavage, again what does that say about you as a person? The saying used to be you are what you eat, well, while that is still partially true, the real truth is in the knowledge that you are what you wear!