When I was younger, I had dreams of working in one of those fancy high rise, posh office buildings in a big city. I have no idea why as I dislike faceless companies, didn’t want to do office work, and I hate cities! In fact, I think the only draw of this was that fashion magazines tend to be located in these buildings and I wanted to dress like them. Like the people in The Devil Wears Prada, specifically. High heels, pencil skirts, delicate printed blouses.
My first real job out of uni was teaching, and I enjoyed dressing for that. I got to wear clothes that were smart but interesting. I wanted to portray that image of a teacher that was put together but fun. Prints mixed with sensible shapes. Low heels worn with midi skirts. These were the kind of outfits that gave me the confidence each day to stand up in a front of a class full of teenagers and pretend I knew what I was doing! Most of all, I wanted to carry around the kids’ homework in a basket. I’m nothing if not an idealist! I had fun with my outfits for that year, but I was glad when I got to relax my style a little.
When I started at Bronco, I was a bit thrown with how to dress. When I went for my interview, which ended up being more of a chat – I can’t think I got asked a single “real” interview style question! – I was told that they weren’t a smart company and just to wear what I felt comfortable in. In the end, I think I wore a pair of black trousers with a brightly coloured blouse – enough to show I’d made an effort, but not so much that I looked over the top. I’m glad I didn’t go all out as I turned up to find an office full of hoodies and jeans!
Now I’ve been working at Bronco for 4 years, I’ve managed to figure out how my style fits in here. For me, it means changing my style on a daily basis. Some days I’ll turn up in my jeans and a Bronco branded hoodie and T shirt; other days, I’ll wear a fun retro style dress; another time, you might find me in a more conventional office outfit of a pencil skirt and blouse with heels. Yes, my coworkers do make fun of my outfits sometimes, but we’re a small team and I know everyone well enough to know they don’t really mean it (or do they?!).
For me, casual office wear is about being comfortable. Everyone has those days where you wake up and really don’t want to drag yourself out of bed and put real clothes on – on those occasions, I can pull on my most comfortable jeans or leggings (my fave ones are my Hogwarts leggings from Hot Topic!) with a big jumper or a hoodie and slipper-like shoes.
Sometimes I’ll have a client meeting and want to make a good impression, or I just want a bit of a confidence boost and will make an effort with my outfit, wearing a sensible blouse like these from Simon Jersey or a fitted dress. Zara is also a haven for workwear that mixes fun personal style with more modest styles of clothing.
I’ve scattered a few outfits I’ve shared on the blog throughout this post, all of which have been worn to work – either as a teacher or in my more casual digital marketing office.
What do you wear to work?
