Business Attire

We can’t help but feel excited for summer—aside from the sexy bodies that will be lining up the shorelines, we are pretty sure that summer fashion is going to be sizzling hot as well!

Day dresses are an important part of any woman’s summer attire. We’ve seen many dresses come and go, but today, we focus on day dresses trends that will make it big these summer months.

Asymmetrical dresses will be huge this summer. The long back-short front combination is just going to be one fun style that is going to be big as soon as the summer months hit. Another trend would be the boyfriend shirt being turned into a summer dress! If you want to be comfortable, then this is the way to go. Light, cotton maxi dresses in geometrical prints will also make waves this summer.

Summer is more fun with day dresses!

Women’s shirts are a must-have in any woman’s closet. There are a lot of popular styles of women’s shirts, like the regular cotton t-shirt, v-neck shirt, and a dress shirt that is worn on more formal occasions and in the workplace.

A dress shirt is also known as a button-down shirt. Button-down shirts look great in the workplace, as they look formal and professional. Women’s shirts normally are casual-looking, but dress shirts are a different story.

If you want to have a dress-shirt with that soft, cotton look, opt for iron-free dress shirts. Non-iron or iron free are so soft and comfortable that you want to wear them 24/7. Remember to wear the color on the inside of your blazer, and don’t let its collar lie around the collar of your blazer or jacket. White dress shirts mustn’t be machine-washed to avoid yellowing.

Women’s shirts aren’t always too casual. Wear a dress shirt, and feel the difference.

 We know how women’s jackets have become a part of our wardrobe since forever. We love women’s jackets and we like how they have a lot of styles and designs to choose from.

One particular style that we can’t get enough of is a blazer. A blazer is the ultimate all-around garment—you can wear it anytime, anywhere, and any season. A blazer is something you can wear in the office, wear in a party, or wear on casual gatherings.

Blazers also make a good layering piece. Boyfriend blazers and skinny jeans and a t shirt always look good together. This look is always edgy, giving you that “rockstar” vibe. On the other hand, power dressing will never be complete with blazers.

There may be a lot of women’s jackets available to us, but one thing is for sure—a blazer will always be a popular favorite. Time to show some love for blazers!

This spring’s fashion season will be going ahead with pastel colours taking centre stage.  Even a trendy printed dress featuring disorganised maps of the United States is designed with a plentiful amount of this season’s yellow dotted over it.

Another winning colour will be white.  Instead of the ‘little black dress’, a ‘little white dress’ should be packed when going away.  Dresses in white may look stark and cold in the fashion store but when worn can look pure, clean and fresh, especially with large jewellery to soften the image.  To really grab the attention however, a woman can do no better than to wear a complete outfit in white, for instance, a white crepe tunic and trousers or white trouser suit.  In a smaller dose, any white top with black velvet tuxedo trousers will create a strong contrast.

However, snowy white ski jackets on a skiing holiday are not usually recommended.  Victoria Beckham has been photographed on the slopes wearing a red jacket and red ski-pants.  The general consensus for fashionable ski trousers is that they should be skinny.  Jackets for skiing, by their very nature, will inevitably be baggy which will make skinny trousers look slimmer than ever.  Fur trims around jacket hoods and cuffs are best avoided because as with an animal’s fur, they can trap icicles.

How difficult it is to make it as a top-notch model in today’s magazines and newspapers.  These models are sometimes referred to as an ‘editorial’ model, in other words, one who meets the requirements of the editors or publishers of a particular genre of magazine.  A girl may be beautiful looking but lack the ethereal figure or exotic ‘fantastic’ facial features so favoured by designers and editors.

On the other hand, well-known personalities such as Carol Vorderman, former ‘Countdown’ hostess, will always attract media attention for what they are wearing.   Whilst attending events and functions they are sure to be photographed accordingly.  At a National TV Awards recently, we were informed Carol Vorderman donned a figure-hugging dress and was thus photographed.

For such house-hold names as these who expect to be snapped by newspaper photographers whilst out and about, it must help to be mostly seen looking fashionable and up-market.  Therefore to don a dress with a scalloped hem-line; shorts with scalloped edge bottoms or a top with a scalloped shape of collar will be a sensible choice because these are apparently the latest fashionable look. 

Furthermore, any item of knitwear decorated with small curves along the edges of its neck, cuffs or hem-line are highly rated as the latest fashion necessity.

The controversial case involving a teenager who had to undergo a school bra search will soon be sent to the Supreme Court of North Carolina.

In a 2-1 ruling last year by the state Court of Appeals, the case of the school bra search at Brunswick County Academy was found in November 2008 as “degrading, demeaning and highly intrusive.”

The case involved a teenager who was allegedly asked to untuck her shirt and pull out her bra with her thumb as part of a search for pills. On Monday, the high court is hearing the appeal over several issues, including whether the search violated the Constitution’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

The academy is an alternative school for at-risk children.

The teenager’s legal counsel, Attorney Geeta Kapur, said she believes the court’s ruling will apply to all public school students, about 1.5 million of them, and not just those in alternative schools.

“It’s concerning to us because the population that usually attends these schools is minority, low-income and are low-performing,” said Eric Zogry, juvenile defender for the state of North Carolina. “And so the state seems to be indicating that it’s OK to relax the Constitution for this population.”

According to reports, the school principal, Sandra Robinson, acted on a tip from other students that unsafe pills were coming into the school. However, Robinson reportedly did not have any other details as to which pills were being brought in.

What are the factors that contribute to a successful career for a woman, apart from qualifications, skills and expertise?   A well-thought through clothing style is indisputably of great value.

Women in  accountancy, banking, insurance and law require suits:  jacket, skirt or trousers with a blended tone or bright shirt or top to enliven the sober suit. It is a good idea to match your bras with the same colour as your  shirts wherever possible, otherwise  nude underwear will always blend.

On the other hand if a woman is employed in the non-uniformed caring sector, perhaps as social worker or counsellor, then non-threatening colours such as navy co-ordinated with white are appropriate.  However, a colourful top will not go amiss and will serve to cheer everyone up and win the confidence of clients.

Those women in marketing, management consultancy and public relations who regularly meet clients will impress with mid-tone neutral colours for their suit but when undertaking a presentation, a power red jacket is perfect.

If selling direct to the public then the client group must be considered.  If the product is serious such as IT software or medical supplies, a ‘user friendly’ look is required.  Therefore, tops or shirts in soft pastel colours along with blended neutral colours for jackets, trousers and skirts should suffice.

Teachers should wear tops of interesting colours and textures to hold their pupils’ attention.  A flashy orange top will distract.  Those working in advertising, media, retail or travel must look fashionable, therefore a chic jacket and stylish top or shirt are ideal.

According to a recent article in the ‘Style’ section of a broad sheet newspaper, the 3-piece suit is returning to grace ladies’ fashions.  

Owning a 3-piece suit does not mean having to wear all three pieces together.  The waistcoat is versatile and can be worn with effect under a coat without the bulk of a jacket.  In the daytime, a waistcoat will look charming with an item of knitwear such as a thin jumper, or a stark white shirt. 

A high street 3-piece suit will vary in quality according to the tailoring.  For women who do not possess angular, ‘androgynous’ figures it is worth visiting fashion stores that specialize in making jackets and waistcoats for more curvy figures.  In this instance, the customer is professionally measured by a trained style adviser.  A made-to-measure jacket or waistcoat may need a few adjustments at the final fitting but the shop will then be able to keep those measurements on file to be used at a future date. 

We need only to think back to 1971 and the wedding of Mick Jagger, to agree that the white maxi skirt and jacket that Bianca wore, designed by Tommy Nuttall, was a chic outfit in which to be married.

T-shirts and jeans are the mainstay of Rihanna when off stage.  A point of interest is that she has now joined forces with Emporio Armani to help create and promote a collection of casual outfits, in other words, skinny jeans, biker jackets and T-shirts.

For those of us who have not got the super slim legs intended for skinny jeans then there are plenty of alternatives in which to feel comfortable in, for instance with a 2-way stretch.  The stretch is accomplished with a blend of wool and crepe.  The trousers are tapered so the wearer feels she is not only being pampered in sumptuous fabrics, but beautiful tailoring too.  Extremely flattering pairs of trousers are those that are artfully made to keep unwanted curves under control.

For the on-coming party season, trousers are quite acceptable, especially with a luxurious jacket, perhaps of sheepskin.  Sheepskin is very light in weight to wear; there is nothing burdensome or heavy about it.  The ‘hippie’ image of sheepskin is outmoded because the jackets of today have a shapely waist and are beautifully tailored.  Darker colours, such as chocolate brown look ravishing when worn with luxurious gold earrings.

If a more elegant look is required for a party, any soft tailored jacket such as a jacquard will perfectly complement any trousers.

Glamorous tops with elegantly tapered trousers of today were also considered highly fashionable in the 1950’s but with one crucial difference - high, narrow stiletto heels were never worn to complete the outfit as this was deemed vulgar.  This seems regrettable because stilettos and heeled mules looked absolutely fabulous in this era, worn with a couture sheath dress, renowned for its small waist and tight skirt. This is also a great look for the modern office.

Another style of ladies’ trousers, pedal pushers, was popular with teenagers in the 1950’s but it was   the close fitting tapered trousers with short tops & a matching bra that had a universal appeal.  The trousers could be full length, mid-calf or just below the knee.  It became a cool, sophisticated style, capitalised on by the likes of model and film star Grace Kelly.

The eminent fashion house of Christian Dior was more interested in ultra-feminine styles which he called his ‘New Look’.  A wool coat with sloping shoulders for example, revealing full billowing skirts falling to mid-calf length was this look.  His feminine hour-glass figure was complete with a pair of stiletto heeled shoes.

This ‘New Look’ was condemned by thrifty post-war dignitaries who thought it frivolous and wasteful in a time of austerity measures.  This is a fair point because one wartime dress required three metres of fabric, whilst Dior’s dresses needed much more.