After posting my Labor Day sales, it occurred to me that one of the things I hear women complain about the most is that they can’t style their outfits from just seeing a garment in a store or on a blog post with links to sales items.  Furthermore, some women have mentioned that they simply DO NOT like to shop.  I know, I know…I couldn’t believe it when I heard it either, but it’s true.  Some people just don’t care to shop for clothes! Well, here’s a simple, and thrifty guide for the woman who needs office-appropriate outfits, but doesn’t care for frills or having to go on more than one shopping trip!

Work wear essentials

1.  The White Button Down

I really like a nice crisp button down to wear under a blazer, a sweater, layered under a dress, or alone with a pair of slacks or a pencil skirt.  Here’s one from Target that is very affordable:

$22.99, target.com

And a couple ways to style a white button-down:

Photo Credit: Pinterest

Photo Credit: www.instagram.com/chic_in_academia

2.  The pencil skirt

I really love a great pencil skirt.  I’ve mentioned it before in previous blog posts, but I don’t mind saying it again.  I think they are incredibly flattering and work with most body types.  Although I recommend getting a classic twill or cotton blend skirt, I also highly recommend getting a knit or jersey skirt.  Personally, my weight tends to fluctuate a lot.  Sigh.  It’s a problem…a whole other blog post in fact. 😛  So, knit skirts are great because they are sizeless for the most part!  In math/stats terms, they have a wide confidence interval, haha.  Plus or minus 10 lbs…no worries!  A knit or jersey skirt is bound to fit well regardless because of the stretch.  Here’s one for less than $20:

$12.80, forever21.com

Black is a great color to own if you’re not a big shopper.  If you like options, get one in every color, or in a print!!  Some ideas for styling your pencil skirt:

Photo Credit: Pinterest

Photo Credit: instagram.com/chic_in_academia

3. The wrap dress

I LOVE wrap dresses.  They are easy to travel with.  Often made with jersey, so they don’t wrinkle.  Also, very flattering, silhouette-forming, and slimming!

$27.99, target.com

And some ideas for prints and or styles, including one of my own favorite wrap dresses from nearly 10 years ago!

Photo Credit: instagram.com/chic_in_academia

4.  The shirt dress

I LOVE shirt dresses.  They look great with heels, flats, boots, even sandals.  They can be dressed up or down.  Here’s one from Target:

$27.99, target.com

And some ideas for styling your shirt dress, including one of my own:

Photo Credit: instagram.com/chic_in_academia

5. The blazer

Oh, friends.  My name is B and I have a blazer problem!!! I probably own at least 10.  At least. In different colors and patterns.  I just LOVE them!!  I’ve mentioned before that Forever 21 has great ones, so it should come as no surprise that the affordable option I’ve chosen comes from F21, except you cannot wear yours to work with a crop top like this model 😛 :

$32.80, forever21.com

And a selection of my own blazers and one from Pinterest:

Photo Credits: instagram.com/chic_in_academia and Pinterest

So there you have it!!  5 wardrobe essentials to help build your office-appropriate wardrobe, along with some styling ideas.  Hope you also liked the thrifty choices I selected for you.  Let me know if you happen to find any other items that fall into these 5 categories.  Comment below or email me with anything you may come across!

Until next time!  Stay Chic!