Chiconomical

A white shirt is a complete game changer and when it's ironed and tucked in, you've got yourself a sure winner. This white shirt is a lovely piece that has black detailing that almost makes it look like I've got suspenders on. I swapped out the heels for my staple black pointed flats and pulled my hair in a severe bun. The result is a chic look that works well for the office.
PS: You might want to get your hand on my White Shirt Style Guide for some more inspiration. It's completely free and it'll possibly change your weekend dressing game!

Look 3 : Put a Peplum on It

The key to dressing up a regular office outfit is to find your hero Indian piece. Something as simple as a bag in a traditional indie print. For instance I added an ikat print bag to a simple shift dress and instantly the outfit has some earthy accents. Similarly, you can create a mix of indie pieces you like and using your core pieces you can simply create interesting accents in an otherwise boring office outfit.

Wouldn't it be amazing if all of us could wear all our weekend outfits to work on Monday. I personally like buying pieces that can work at the office as well as a more casual setting but for the longest time, the off shoulder top had me stumped. This trend that is every 'cool' girl's favorite piece at the moment is absolutely amazing on the weekends but come weekday and the real world (aka office) and you'll probably be pushing it at the end of your closet. Well, here's a super simple way to actually wear a ruffled cold shoulder or even a tube top to the office and still look super professional.


Since it's summer in most parts of the world at the moment and I'm actually digging all white outfits, I decided to give this look liberal sprinkling of whites. The top is actually a ruffled cold shoulder crop top (all things that I know most of us can't imagine wearing to the office). In order to hide the completely peep-show to the world of my shoulders and clavicle, I decided to add a long sleeveless jacket. This 'jacket' is actually a wrap dress I bought last year on a whim and I may not have worn it as a dress ever till date because it is slightly see through inspite of the lining. However that makes it perfect for layering on as a jacket.





All in all, it's actually not that hard to make your cold shoulder tops work for the office. If you don't want to show any skin, you can even wear it with a long sleeve jacket. I wouldn't recommend a cardigan simply because they're usually thinner than jackets which means there will be an awkward bulge near your shoulders.

Have you ever made your weekend outfits do double duty? Talk to me in the comments on how you did it! Do you have some piece of clothing that you find hard to style for the office? Just comment on below and I'll take it up as the next style challenge for work!

Concept | Outfit | Curation | Photgraphy : Quirky Engineer

Hello lovely people, I hope the grey weather isn't getting you down! I know I'm actually enjoying the challenge of dressing for work quite a bit and am super excited to share some really great workwear hacks with you. Today's outfit is the first in the rainy day workwear series and I hope it helps you brave the elements and look put together and chic no matter what the weather does!


Read on and find my top 10 tips to dress for a rainy day and still look on point!

10 Tips to Dress for Work in Mumbai Rains

1. Wear materials that will dry super quickly. This means keep all your denims and thick trousers at home. Opt for breathable fabrics that are a blend of natural and synthetic materials. The natural bits let your skin breath and the synthetic materials infuse it with quick drying properties.

2. Do not wear any hand-dyed fabrics. These will bleed when wet and that means you'll end up with a colorful pattern that's not going to be stylish no matter how relaxed your office is. This includes all those precious hand-dyed mul cottons and ikats that you sourced straight from the local producer. Best keep these at home unless you're 100% sure they aren't going to bleed colors.



3. Ankle length pants like the ones I'm wearing are absolutely perfect when it rains. These usually don't get wet when you're puddle hopping and running to catch that last empty rickshaw. If you don't own ankle length pants, try and roll up your regular pants to give it a cuffed look. The trick is to roll only those fabrics that are thin (something like a blended cotton looks great)



4. Darker colors will hide all the stains that you've possible made during the aforementioned puddle hopping. If you do like lighter colors, I'd say try wearing them at the top as usually your shirts and blouses see less damage compared to your bottoms (unless you completely forget to carry an umbrella or a raincoat and in that case, I'm asking you, why girl??!)

5. Keep the accessories minimal. There's nothing worse than sporting a fresh rash at the office. It's going to be itchy, it's going to distract you from your work and it's just not good in any sense. Now I know some people love wearing accessories (raising my hand right here!!) but the rains are not the best time to flaunt them. You can opt for tiny earrings and maybe a little watch if you must (and even those should probably be in your bag prior to reaching the office).



6. A sturdy umbrella will be a lifesaver. The thing about rainy days is that when it rains it pours and blows and generally gets super messy. It is actually worth the money to invest in a sturdy umbrella once and I'd say go for function over fashion to be honest. You can make plain ones fashionable but honestly, you might not get a chance to flaunt the rest of your fashionable outfit if it isn't for an umbrella.



7. Don't let your hair fly all over the place. Seriously. Irrespective of whether you've got frizzy or lanky hair (like mine) there is an absolute no no. Tie it up in a sleek bun like me or atleast tie it up till you get to work. Wet hair (in case you do get drenched) shouldn't be tied up but if you're travelling, it's actually best to tie it unless you want it flying all over the place and impairing visibility in the already low visiblity rains.

8. Jelly bellies are everything. No, honestly. I have been wearing my crocs for 3 years now and these are the only shoe I recommend. I actually love gum boots/rain boots but they just don't work when it comes to going to the office for me. These are more of a weekend shoe and I personally prefer wearing close-toed shoes to the office. They may be a bit hard to find but trust me, they look professional and are super functional at the same time.


9. Minimal makeup is an open secret. You've heard it a million times but I'm saying it again. Keep your makeup minimal, there is nothing worse than raccoon eyes when you get to work. If you must wear some, wear a bit of waterproof liner and a simple lipstick that doesn't transfer. Remember, if it transfers when it isn't raining, it's going to get into places you can't even imagine when it pours!



10. Napkins are the secret to staying dry. No seriously. I don't think anyone ever lists these on their 'rainy day essentials' list but believe me, these are what you'll be reaching for if you've just spent a significant amount of time getting drenched. Get them, not all offices have tissues and tissues have a tendency to disintegrate when wet so you might just end up with what I like to call tissue lint. Napkins people, the cloth ones...these will be the best thing you every carry when it rains!

And that's that folks. There are my 10 tried and tested tips to braving the rains to get to work. I really hope these help you the next time you're stuck on what to wear to the office and generally help you be better prepared. Have some tips of your own? Share them in the comments with your social media and I'll shout out to the best ones on my socials!

Don't forget to get yourself my 1 Trousers, 7 Ways style guide in case you need just a little extra help in getting ready for work with a limited closet. Click the image below to get your Free style Guide today!



Outfit Details: 
Top: Rs. 500, H&M Sale
Trousers: Rs. 700, Project Eve
Crocs: Rs. 2500, Crocs India (old)
Lipstick: Rs. 250, Rimmel London
Bag: Rs. 1000, Hong kong Street Market
Book: The Outsider by Stephen King

Total outfit Cost: Rs. 4950, which is about ₤50

No matter how many pretty and trendy dresses I wear, I'm always a uber geek and crazy fangirl at heart. My love for Doctor Who is something that all my friends know and if they don't they're probably not good friends in the first place! (I'm not kidding, if you don't know I want to make little Matt Smith babies after talking to me for over a day, I don't think we can be friends).

Anyway, one thing I face now that I've slowly transitioned into the corporate world is that I can't simply wear my old tshirts even on casual fridays without looking like a child. (damn, its a pain being a grown up isn't it!) Of course the fashion lover + crazy fangirl in me has found a simple way around this! Honestly, I've steadily been building my blazer collection. The simplest way to look grown-up yet keep the child in you alive is to just shrug on a blazer! This look is just a casual Friday look when I'm feeling the love for The Doctor (that's what you call the doctor who lead character in case you didn't know) but still have to go be a grown up at work.



I love red blazers since I believe they instantly make a look brighter, and everyone needs a little brightness at work right? Plus, this tshirt, that was a present from a friend is pure love! I almost don't wear it as much as I want to in fear of ruining it. Honestly, I'm pretty sure Matt Smith (okay, and Colin Morgan too, but then that's a whole other story) could turn me into a puddle if he ever appeared in front of me IRL so this tshirt is precious. (Pretty much everything I wont that's doctor who related is extremely precious). Oh well, fan-girling aside, this look can be replicated by using all your favorite pieces from your wardrobe with little or zero investment and still give an interesting twist to that funky tshirt you never wear to work.