Weekly Top Picks
Welcome to this week's edition of my weekly Top Picks featuring inspiration on how to wear denim to the office.
To continue the denim theme as featured in The Monthly Edit which you can read here if you missed it, this week we are focusing on how to style jeans in a way that makes them feel smart enough for the office.
Jeans and other denim pieces often form part of the backbones to our wardrobe and this time of year is ideal to have a play around with the denim pieces, in particular jeans, that you have already in your wardrobe and see what you can do to breathe a new lease of life into them ahead of spring.
The History of Denim & Why We Still Love it Today
Denim was first worn in the seventeenth century by the upper classes in the form of skinny fit trousers in France and were later introduced to England and across Europe.
Looser fitting denim was historically used for is durability by workers until it became popular in the 1930’s, when the Hollywood film industry began dressing their cowboys in hard wearing denim.
Production slowed down during the Second World War and became popular again in the 1950’s when young people, including women for the first time began wearing jeans as a form of rebellion, inspired again by Hollywood movies and emergence of Rock & Roll, as a result jeans were banned in some social settings. Movie star icons such as Marilyn Monroe began showcasing jeans and as a result empowered other women to embrace the style of trousers.
During the 1960’s and 70’s jeans moved into mainstream when brands like Levis, Lee & Wrangler (still popular today) began designing fashion styles which saw the introduction of flares, followed by skinny fit emerging in the 80’s along with tapered & baggy styles becoming popular in the 90’s and noughties thanks to the rise of hip hop. the bootcut was another style to emerge from the nineties as a more versatile and easier to wear day to day style than the traditional flare.
Nowadays we have gone full circle on what feels like every style and anything goes, proving that denim it seems, will never go out of fashion.
How To Style Jeans For The Office
Post lockdown and hybrid office & working from home roles escalated what already seemed to be happening to office dress codes, going from smart and tailored looks to a much more smart/casual or even anything goes dress code.
For those who have always found it much easier to separate workwear from their off duty wardrobes, this can prove tricky to navigate and suddenly what to wear can feel rather blurred.
If jeans for work is a big no no for you as it just feels way too casual, try an alternative fabric such as cord, velvet and twill in the winter months and work with linen (if you can handle the creasing that is!), viscose and cottons in the warmer seasons.
For those that do wear jeans to work but feel a little bored of the same old style then here are two outfits that you could try to elevate your look a little, or have fun trying them out for other aspects of your life.
Dark Denim and Feminine Shirts
If wearing jeans to the office feels like alien territory, opt for a dark indigo wash which appears much smarter and more sophisticated than any treated and washed out denim. Look for details in the stitching which can make less expensive jeans appear more premium. Try styling them with a feminine shirt with details such as frills, interesting shoulder detail or print, which will draw the focus from your bottom half to the top if you feel out of your comfort zone in jeans. A pair of flat Mary Janes are ideal for any wide leg trousers and a camel coat is a timeless pice that will complete most looks.
Anthropologie Indigo Wide Leg Jeans | LK Bennett Stripe Shirt | Boden Bristol Coat | John Lewis Burgundy Mary Jane’s | Mango Green Tote Bag
Funky Blazer and Loafers
Don’t be afraid to wear a funky blazer to the office, if a jacket on the statement side is new for you then begin with one in a colour in a softer shade and dress them down with a pair of minimal black cropped jeans and some loafers - an ideal work outfit for spring made up of multifunctional wardrobe staples.
Mango Cropped Flared Jeans | Sister Jane Pink Blazer | Free People Pink Loafers | Boden Cream Cotton T-shirt | Cos Cream Socks | John Lewis Silver Tote Bag
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