Running out of clothes due to needing 'smart casual' for work

Spendless

I am working p-time 3 days a week in an admin role, on a temp-contract. 1st job I've had in this field since having my eldest child 10 years ago.

My work-mates who all hold a senior position to me, dress very casually in jeans and t-shirts. This is because tho they are often office based, they can be on-sites involved in the chopping down of trees. As this doesn't apply to me it's not appropriate for me to dress down so much. Some of them wear company polo shirts, but I am employed a recruitment agency so again not appropriate. My instructions on what to wear from the agency are 'dress smart unless told otherwise'. Because my workmates are dressed so casually, me in a suit or 'officey' clothes (smart blouse) etc would look totally OTT and not suitable, which leaves me with the category 'smart casual' for work not jeans and t-shirt and not power suits.

This is where I'm getting a problem cos when an occassion calls for 'smart casual' out of work-hours, I now find I only have work clothes. Today for example I attended a coffee morning at my kids school and then called to see my nan and give her her birthday present- the only thing I thought suitable was what I wore to work the other day.

How can I seperate my wardrobe up, to allow for this?

melancholly

i guess this could be a good thing- it means all of your clothes are being used all the time? you could try wearing jeans with a smart top and nice accessories/ear rings as that might fit in well with an office of casual staff....

littlemissbossy

I have this problem too.

I have always worked in an office where suits were the order of the day. I now work in an office in an oily, dirty garage environment. Not suit suitable at all. All my "smart" clothes are at the back of my wardrobe and my more casual clothes are worn for everything.

Another thing, I work with my brother so he sees me in the same clothes at work as at weekends, he always takes the mickey out of me, but hey thats his job hes my brother!

Spendless

melancholly wrote: »

i guess this could be a good thing- it means all of your clothes are being used all the time? you could try wearing jeans with a smart top and nice accessories/ear rings as that might fit in well with an office of casual staff....

No it's not cos I feel I am wearing 'work clothes' on my day off. Adding jeans would also make my jeans work clothes and I don't feel it is appropriate to my role.:cool:

littlemissbossy wrote: »

I have this problem too.

I have always worked in an office where suits were the order of the day. I now work in an office in an oily, dirty garage environment. Not suit suitable at all. All my "smart" clothes are at the back of my wardrobe and my more casual clothes are worn for everything.

Another thing, I work with my brother so he sees me in the same clothes at work as at weekends, he always takes the mickey out of me, but hey thats his job hes my brother!

I suppose I do have an advantage here as because 98% of my work-mates don't live in the same town as me, I don't get this problem. Let me know if you find a solution.:rotfl:

ailuro2

Why not buy a couple of polo shirts the same colour as their corporate work wear, and wear them with plain black trousers, available from Asda for about a fiver?

That way you will have a cheap work wardrobe that is smart but fits in with everyone else, but you can get away with wearing a jacket over polo shirts too, if the need arises.


By "mimicking / assimilating with" them you will become more a part of the workforce and may become part of the furniture so much that they would consider taking you on permanently?

Caroline73_2

Why not get a basic wardrobe for work of black/grey trousers and a few tops, such as bright coloured jumpers or t shirts. Choose a basic matching bag and shoes/boots. Then keep those solely for work. That way you are defining your wardrobe. You needn't spend much, Matalan and Tesco are great for this kind of thing.

Then you can just choose any different things for out of work, smart jeans, bootleg cords, denim skirt and nice tops.

I imagine at the moment you are just buying something you like in the shops and not giving it purpose.

Spendless

ailuro2 wrote: »

Why not buy a couple of polo shirts the same colour as their corporate work wear, and wear them with plain black trousers, available from Asda for about a fiver?

That way you will have a cheap work wardrobe that is smart but fits in with everyone else, but you can get away with wearing a jacket over polo shirts too, if the need arises.


By "mimicking / assimilating with" them you will become more a part of the workforce and may become part of the furniture so much that they would consider taking you on permanently?

I have thought about this BUT the person who is my 'boss' isn't based where I work, so it's not upto the people I work with to take me on permanently. As such I am a bit bothered like looking as if I've assummed things if I take on the uniform of somewhere when I am not actually one of the employees.

Spendless

Caroline73 wrote: »

Why not get a basic wardrobe for work of black/grey trousers and a few tops, such as bright coloured jumpers or t shirts. Choose a basic matching bag and shoes/boots. Then keep those solely for work. That way you are defining your wardrobe. You needn't spend much, Matalan and Tesco are great for this kind of thing.

Then you can just choose any different things for out of work, smart jeans, bootleg cords, denim skirt and nice tops.

I imagine at the moment you are just buying something you like in the shops and not giving it purpose.

Thank you. Sorry I missed your reply earlier cos I was typing. You are right, because I didn't get much notice I was starting work offerred on Thursday, went on hol for week fri, started following week. I had to make all my 'smart casual' wear work clothes. When I upped my hours I needed more clothes and just shopped for some extras, instead of specifically looking for stuff to label as workwear, leading to my problem. I need to do what you suggest.

melancholly

Spendless wrote: »

No it's not cos I feel I am wearing 'work clothes' on my day off. Adding jeans would also make my jeans work clothes and I don't feel it is appropriate to my role.:cool:

i guess i wear anything from smart to casual at work and don't have separate work/home clothes.... apart from some smart tops to wear out in the evening. i often wear jeans to work too.... but i don't mind having one mixed wardrobe. it makes me feel like i'm me all the time, rather than having two separate parts of me..... if that makes sense.