Let’s collectively admit that the best part of working from home was living in your sweats. After a year and a half of questionable clothing, it’s time to rejoin the real world. If the idea of morning tussles with your jeans gives you shudders – a transitional wardrobe is the key for you. The idea is to ease back into your workwear by mixing your casual style with a tinge of formal. Think breezy dresses, flared pants, oversized shirts, palazzos, skirt suits, coordinated sets and more. The trick is to make your office wardrobe relaxed yet chic. No tight tailored suiting or thick-material clothing, opt for lighter fabrics and movable silhouettes that will help you work comfortably for long hours. To help you figure out the concept of a transitional wardrobe a little better, we’ve rounded up a list of 10 celeb-approved outfits that fit the bill – with a list of affordable options to pick from.
1. Animal Printed Jumpsuit
When we saw Priyanka Chopra Jonas work her charm in this overall printed jumpsuit from Ralph Lauren, we instantly knew we need it in our lives. For a pocket-friendly version, you can also invest in this snake-printed number from Jollychic.
Style Tip: Let the outfit do the talking and keep the accessories minimal. Team it with a pair of strappy heels and you’re good to go.
2. Cropped Black Shirt
Never underestimate the power of basics in your wardrobe – they are versatile and can be styled in different ways. Take this cropped version of a regular black shirt for an instant – you can wear it with your denim, formal trousers or even with a chic skirt. You can find a simple, anti-fit cropped shirt at H&M in case you’re looking to add it to your cart.
Style Tip: If you’re planning to wear it the formal way like Sanjana Sanghi, jazz it up with layered jewellery. Go for mini hoops, necklaces and chunky bracelets for a more polished look. But if you’re opting for a more relaxed vibe, you can actually pair it with your favourite black sweats and work the normcore aesthetic.
3. Shirt Dress
Karisma Kapoor made a strong case for knee-length shirt dresses and we’re here for it. She wore a colour-blocked black and crayon blue dress by Love Birds, which looked like an ideal ensemble for a day you have back-to-back meetings. If shirt dresses suit your style narrative, you can find a powder blue piece on Zara that will amp up your work wardrobe.
Style Tip: There are multiple ways in which you can spruce up your shirt dress. Like Karisma, club it with a pair of white sneakers, a top knot and a bold red mouth. For a laidback approach, you can lose the belt and go a little boho by pairing it with contrasting coloured ankle-length boots (preferably tan).
4. Midi Skirt And Tank Top
Rose Huntington-Whiteley is a style icon for many reasons, one being her ability to make smart casuals look like designer pieces. If you’ve followed her for a while, you know her strength lies in pairing basics intelligently. Here, she teamed a simple white knit tank top with a straight-fit silver midi skirt. If you like this fit, you can grab it from label Pixie Market in an affordable range.
Style Tip: Keeping it simple is the key. Throw on a blazer or a knotted white shirt, style it with boots or strappy flats, go minimal on accessories or with a chunky necklace – the options are endless.
5. Kurta Set
Kurta is a god sent silhouette – it’s functional, breathable and makes for a stylish office wear option. An outfit that compliments every Indian woman, needs some space in your workwear wardrobe. Of course, you don’t have to opt for the traditional heavy numbers, there are elegant yet light-weight attires easily available. Actor Kajal Aggarwal wore a peach printed kurta and palazzo set from Anita Dongre’s sustainable label Grassroot. Further toned-down design of a similar set is available at Biba, in case you want to try this look.
Style Tip: When you’re wearing a kurta set in the office, mellow down the usage of accessories and extreme embellishments on the outfit. Opt for solid hues and keep it contemporary by wearing a pair of juttis or stylish sliders with them. If you do want to add some jewellery, restrict it to a pair of small-sized jhumkas to finish off the look.
6. Nautical Dress
Sonakshi Sinha looked ready to take on the day in this blue and white chevron striped midi dress. A silhouette perfect for both brunch and boardroom – you can use it for the latter. One can never go wrong with stripes when it comes to workwear. You can hunt for a close-enough style on Flipkart if nautical dressing is something that pique’s your interest.
Style Tip: High-top white sneakers work very well with an A-line silhouette. In terms of accessorising, wear dainty trinkets with a cool strappy watch.
7. Blazer Dress
Skip your power suit and wear it as a blazer dress instead – nothing gets more transitional than this. Tamannaah Bhatia wore a drape-detailed blazer dress by Mae Paris, but you can always turn it down a level by picking a basic style from the same genre of silhouettes. To sort you out further – here’s a classy yet understated blazer dress by Perfectly Average that will also work as an appropriate day to night outfit.
8. Grey Trousers And Black Blouse
Want to have a suave office wardrobe? It’s easy, copy everything Amal Clooney does. Her everyday style is one for the books. Seen here in grey trousers and a black blouse, you can recreate the look with these straight-fit bottoms and blouse from Vero Moda.
Style Tip: If you’re a type-A fashion-focused individual, slip into a pair of stilettos to add that sharp edge to your formal look. If not, you can also work in a comfortable angle by opting for loafers and sneakers. Layering another piece of clothing on your monochromatic look will give it that extra business upgrade – you can either style it with a well-fitted blazer or a long overcoat (depending on how freezing your office is).
9. Pocketed Kurta Set
Let us let you in on a little secret – pocketed kurtas are everything. Ladies, we were robbed of this luxury for the longest time, now let’s make the most of it. Formal, informal, casual or traditional – we want pockets in everything. Dia Mirza sported a denim hued kurta and matching trouser set with pockets, you can find a printed style with the key detail in question on Ajio.
10. Anti-Fit Sweatshirt
Oversized printed sweatshirts make for the best office wear attires. They are cosy, quirky and can be clubbed with a number of bottom silhouettes. Like Gigi Hadid, you can tuck it in and style it with an equally anti-fit checkered trouser or bring back your skinny jeans and create a semi-fitted look with this cartoon printed sweatshirt from Tata Cliq.
Style Tip: When it comes to sweatshirts, there’s no way you can go wrong. If you fall under the Gen-Z bracket, layer up some y2k necklaces with a pair of the fresh new kicks and you’re sorted. But if you belong to the world of millennials, play it cool by teaming it with your choice of favourite denim, boots and minimal accessories to keep it desk-friendly.
