Have you ever been stumped by your seasonal work wardrobe?
There are three mistakes people often make when it comes to building their summer wardrobe:
1. People often confuse a summer wardrobe with a “casual wardrobe”.
Lightweight summer work outfits should not inherently feel less “dressed-up”.
If you find that your wardrobe feels too sloppy, unstructured or underdressed during summer, YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG!
Utilizing lightweight top layers, grounding your outfit with light-colored leather accessories and bringing structure back into your outfit with fabrics like poplin are all great ways to polish your look without compromising your comfort.
2. People are scared of wearing white, so they stick to wearing black.
If you’re one of the many who fear stains, see-through fabrics and “easy to spot” wrinkles, it’s not difficult to understand why you might avoid white fabrics.
However, the answer isn’t always wearing black. While there are many great black linen pieces to get you through the summer (you can shop some of our favorites in this post!), it can still weigh down a summer outfit without the right balance. Don’t fill your summer wardrobe with just black. Try branching out to olive, tan, navy, mid brown or gray!
3. People don’t want to invest in a summer wardrobe.
We get it. You think you can sweat it out for a season and move on to your Fall wardrobe ASAP. But guess what? Summer comes every year! And if you live in Los Angeles, the hot weather rages on through October. Your comfort is worth a little effort – And with the right pieces, you’ll get good use out of your summer purchases during transitional seasons as well.
Get inspired for summer with Personal Stylist Meg Gallagher’s favorite tips and tricks on building a lightweight summer work wardrobe. Check out outfit inspiration and Meg’s Wardrobe Essentials shopping edit below!
Looking for a personal clothing stylist to build you your perfect summer work wardrobe? View my outfit styling services here.
Summer Office Outfits: Light Colors and Linen
The best place to start when buying pieces to build a summer office wardrobe is considering both fabric and color. Purchasing pieces in lightweight breathable fabrics and/or natural fiber materials like linen, cotton or rayon will keep you feeling cool and comfortable in warmer temperatures. Swapping dark colors for whites, light greys, tans and brown are a visual ode to the warmer season.
Linen and Maxi Dress Summer Work Outfits
Wearing a lightweight linen or breezy maxi dress to work allows for extra airflow! Top your dress with a linen blazer and finish off the look with a heeled sandal!
Summer Office Wear Skirt Outfits
Skirts are another great option to maintain some airflow in your summer office outfits.
Swap Dark Leather for Mid Browns, Tan and White
One of the easiest mistakes people make with their wardrobe is not paying attention to their belts, bags and shoes.
Swap the heaviness of black leather with raffia/straw, metallics, cream, taupe and mid-browns to keep the visual weight of your outfit light and airy!
Accessorize Your Summer Office Outfits
Shop summer belts, bags and shoes perfect for accessorizing your office work wardrobe.
Best Summer Work Outfit Pieces from Banana Republic
Banana Republic offers an extensive wardrobe staple collection of lightweight pieces for all your summer office outfits!
Check out our favorite linen tops, trouser silhouettes, dresses, skirts and more to build a wardrobe of business casual summer outfits.
Best Lightweight Summer Work Pieces from Massimo Dutti
Discover Massimo Dutti’s masterful summer collection filled with ultra-flattering wardrobe staples that will upgrade your summer office wear at an attainable price point. Go beyond linen blazers with Massimo Dutti’s layering kimonos, linen tie tops and shirt jackets. Check out our favorite tie-detail tops and trousers, flowing maxi dresses and more.
