You know that office attire is important. You can tell that there’s a difference when you walk into a
boardroom wearing a blazer, button-up blouse and perfectly fitted pants. You command the room.
The only problem? Top-quality work clothing can be really expensive, especially when you have to replace most of the clothing sitting in your closet. Read ahead to see what you can do to look professional without breaking the bank.
Check Your Budget
If you don’t want to overspend, you have to double-check how much money you have available in the bank — or how much room you have left on your credit card. Without determining a sensible shopping limit, you’re bound to cross it.
Make sure that your shopping limit isn’t the entirety of your savings. You don’t want to get caught by surprise with a small emergency before your next paycheck. What if your car stalls in the driveway? What if your home’s pipes are frozen and need to be thawed?
You want to have some funds set aside to deal with these problems right away. If you don’t have enough, you can submit a request for online loans in Illinois so that you can manage the emergency quickly, even when you don’t have the savings available. With a personal line of credit, you could request a withdrawal from the account and have the necessary funds quickly — it could be as soon as a single business day.
Online loans should only be used for emergencies. They shouldn’t be used to buy clothes and accessories.
Get Second-Hand Outfits
If you can’t seem to find the right deals at online stores, you’re bound to find some budget-friendly finds at your nearest thrift shop. You could give new life to that structured blazer hanging on the rack or chic turtleneck folded on the shelf.
Thrift stores aren’t the only places to find second-hand items. Ask your friends if they’ve cleaned out their closets recently. They could have some pieces that they’d be happy to give to you.
Learn Tailoring Hacks
It’s not the price-tag that makes something look good. It’s the fit. If you want to make those thrifted finds look like they were made for you, you can learn how to do simple alterations like darning holes, sewing on buttons and hemming pants. If that’s too intimidating, you can try these simple tailoring hacks that don’t require any sewing skills whatsoever. Fake your way into getting your outfits to fit like a glove.
Focus on Tops
Are you working from home and dealing with video conference calls all day long? Then you should shift your energy and budget onto tops like blouses, blazers and cardigans. Since you’re seated at your desk, you won’t be showing off your bottoms. This is not to say that you shouldn’t care about wearing pants during meetings with your boss. It’s to say that you shouldn’t spend a significant portion of your budget on something no one is probably going to see.
Take Care of Your Clothes
Getting clothes is only the first step. Making sure that they stay in top condition is another challenge. Here are some ways that you can do that:
- Learn how to properly wash your clothes
- Always check the symbols on the laundry tags
- Wear undershirts or bandeaus to prevent sweat stains
- Invest in stain remover pens
- Put cedar chips in your closets and dressers to keep moths at bay
Don’t feel pressured to go into serious debt over an office-appropriate wardrobe. You can still manage to dress to impress while sticking to a strict budget.
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