Sometimes it can be difficult and expensive to find work appropriate clothing that makes you feel professional while still being yourself. Some of the best stores are also the most available places to explore for office fashion without compromising on style, budget, or comfort. With these in mind you can get yourself a professional wardrobe that you can customize with pieces already in your closet.
Nordstrom + Nordstrom Rack
Nordstrom offers high end brands that will add great professional pieces to your wardrobe. Nordstrom Rack is where designer meets bargain. Much more affordable than Nordstrom itself, the Rack offers a wide array of clothing options all at dramatically lower prices. Whether you're looking for a high quality suit or you're searching for fill in items there will be plenty of choices. It can be a bit more of a treasure hunt to find the perfect piece but the discount will be well worth it.
J.Crew + J.Crew Factory
J.Crew is the place to pick up the long lasting staples that can create a professional backbone to your wardrobe. With the more expensive price tag J.Crew can offer high quality long lasting pieces. Most styles can come in a variety of colors to show off your personal flare. The cheat to avoid the high prices is to head to J.Crew Factory and it's large collection of professional dresses, pants, suits, and blazers. With dramatic discounts you can get a great deal on that expensive item you love and save the extra money to fill in the gaps with more affordable pieces.
Anne Taylor and Anne Taylor Loft
Anne Taylor has sleek looks that add maturity to a professional wardrobe. Anne Taylor's sister store frequently known as The Loft features professional attire geared more towards a younger demographic. Offering clothes with fun unexpected colors and patterns The Loft is a great place to get everything from a statement piece to a fun filler item.
The Gap and Gap Factory
If you're looking for basics then the Gap is your best friend. Featuring a lot of neutral tones and clean cut lines the Gap will give you a surprisingly comfortable professional wardrobe. With a few gap pieces it is easy to have a professional base to build off of. If you're looking for a discount then head to Gap Factory. The Factory store sells all of the Gap's signature looks with a lower price tag.
Uniqlo
Uniqlo is a great place to pick up all the filler items you need for your wardrobe. With a lot of basic low cost items you can load up on all those shirts to go underneath your sweaters and blazers. Uniqlo specializes in comfort and their shirts are affordable, convenient, and work appropriate. That doesn't mean they don't feature more professional items because Uniqlo has the whole package.
Lord and Taylor
If you need to suit up then Lord and Taylor is the place for you. When you need to buy a classic basic suit or you want to buy a ready made outfit and skip having to match up tops and bottoms then Lord and Taylor will have plenty of options. The price tags here can be high and if you are shopping on a budget then keep your eye on the sales. Great pieces can come down drastically in price if you are up for some sales rack hunting.
Target
Target not only features some great work attire on its own but also frequently does designer collaborations. The fashion here can be more on trend and outside of the box. If you want to keep adding new and exciting pieces to your wardrobe, or you just want to stand out in the office then Target will have more options than department stores who thrive on neutral colored classics. This is a great home base for building up a work wardrobe with both professional staples, cheap fill in items, and interesting accessories.
Banana Republic and Banana Republic Factory
While Banana Republic is not cheap it does have some of the most flattering staple pieces available that are a great option for your first investment piece. Banana Republic always has classic styles and they frequently refresh their stores with interesting and on trend seasonal additions. If you need a powerful interview outfit or an ensemble for an important work event and you are interested in investing some money into it then this is a great place to look. Their factory store offers their looks at a discounted rate if you want to save a few dollars while you build up a solid wardrobe.
Go forth and get Shopping!
- Best Grocery List For Someone on a Budget | POPSUGAR Food ›
- The 55 Best Cheap Online Shopping Sites | StyleCaster ›
- How to Shop Carefully With a Tight Budget: 13 Steps ›
- Keto on a Budget | Shopping List and Meal Plan for Keto on $5 a ... ›
- 25 Budget Grocery Shopping Tips to Save Money | My Money Coach ›
Every time payday rolls around, I’m on top of the world. Jeff Bezos-level rich - even though I’m anything but. And then somehow the very next day, rent is due.
The cycle continues. The next payday, bills for my apartment. I find myself without a surplus of savings since I just moved and newly-furnished my apartment completely.
Even more terrifying is the looming presence of the holiday season. Halloween’s officially over and before we know it, hello Thanksgiving…and then there’s Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year’s. It’s insane.
I’ve been feeling very British lately. Not in a Union-Jack-obsessed, “Keep Calm and Carry-On” way. I went through that phase in 2012 with everyone else… no thank you. And it’s not even a surge of patriotism catalyzed by the Queen dying — I’m firmly team Diana and team Meghan.
Now that fall is officially here, the holidays will sweep in and I’ll have to contend with the fact that I won’t be spending them with my family in the UK. I went home to London earlier this year, so there’s not much left in my travel budget for another trip across the pond. A few domestic jaunts might be in my future, but the closest I’ll get to England this winter is watching Love Island and Love, Actually.
So in that spirit, I’ve been filling my days with content from my favorite Brits. I’m listening to all the old British rock bands I grew up listening to, patiently awaiting the new Arctic Monkeys album, and rewatching anything with Michaela Coel in it. I even shipped myself an order of British Baked Beans, so you know it’s dire.
I’ve also been watching British YouTubers like Grace Beverley — my favorite. Generally, I only go on YouTube to watch Vogue Beauty Secrets and AD Open Door videos. But I’m so glad I stumbled on Grace. Her content is a mix of London lifestyle (what lured me in), relatable entrepreneurship, and mindful productivity. I’m not a hustle-and-grind-girlboss, but as a creative person in a 9-to-5, I need all the help I can get to stay plugged in. So, the video “how to be really really really productive without getting overwhelmed” changed my approach to WFH.
Grace outlines her own productivity method: the to-do table. Instead of making a simple to-do list, she divides her tasks into a table that anyone can follow. As someone who’s survived with to-do lists for years, I recently implemented Grace’s method, and it’s revolutionized my workdays.
how to be really really really productive without getting overwhelmedwww.youtube.com
I follow her routine to a tee. Here’s how it works:
Essentially, she divides her daily responsibilities into four categories: quick ticks, tasks, projects, and non-negotiables.
- Quick Ticks: Actions that take less than 5-minutes
- Tasks: To-do’s that take up to 30-minutes. Probably don’t take too much brain energy.
- Projects: Long-term list items. These help guide your priorities, even if you’re not crossing them off in one day.
- Non-negotiables: Pick 3 things each day that you must get done. This is how you’ll truly measure success.
With everything written down and sorted, next address your schedule. Meetings, deadlines, and time blocks — whatever works best for you. Write it down. Then make a pact with yourself to stick to them.
This way of categorization provides a roadmap for prioritizing your day — making you far more productive. Have you ever spent the entire day on small tasks and then suddenly realized you hadn’t moved the needle on any task? Or do you spend way too much time on tasks that aren’t a priority? No more. With your non-negotiables laid out, you know what to laser-focus on and what to dedicate energy towards.
Also, it pays to know your working style. I’m not a morning person. Yet, I have to be up and at ‘em super early. So, first thing in the morning, I march through my Quick Ticks to warm me up. I set a time limit, so I can knock out some easy wins which is totally inspiring. Then I move on to bigger things without lingering on emails or admin. For others, it might be more helpful to tackle the big things with all that early-in-the-day brain power earlier.
Grace has great tips on avoiding overwhelm and burnout. My favorite is taking more intentional breaks rather than scrolling through social media. I call this scrolling “productive” because I’m “coming up with pitches.” Oh, the lies we tell ourselves. It’s more productive in the long run to giving my brain a break with non-screen related stimuli.
Grace’s solution? Set a timer to read a real, an actual book. I’ve never thought of this. It’s a genius way to check off some books on my TBR and kickstart my creativity. After reading a good book, I’m completely inspired to write. So having books near my desk helps me step away from the computer during my lunch break for an actual reset. (And yes, the current books I’m reading are by British authors: Assembly by Natasha Brown, and Love in Color: Mythical Tales from Around the World, Retold by Bolu Babalolu.)
In my pursuit of switching out my WFH set-up and getting my life together, I’ve engineered my workstation for success. With my new WFH essentials and Grace’s productivity technique, I’m revitalized for work — despite the fall blues and my melancholy about the pending holidays.
Here are the things getting me hyped for work and helping me crush my Grace Beverley-inspired to-do tables — no lists in sight:
Southwest Airlines Sale 2022
Pack your bags — Southwest Airlines is having a major sale! Fares are as low as $59 one-way if you book by October 3rd.
This end-of-summer super sale is a game-changer for your travel plans through the end of the year. Summertime travel gets all the glory. But why not take advantage of your long weekends, holidays, and PTO this fall. You’ll be surprised at how much travel you can fit in. Keep the fall/winter season exciting with domestic trips that give you all the excitement without breaking the bank. All thanks to Southwest.
Here’s the breakdown:
Where can you go?
You’ll find discounted tickets to and from most airports. Sale fares apply to cross country travel, and even Hawaii, Mexico, and the Caribbean! Whether you’re visiting a new city or revisiting your last beach vacation, this sale has fares to make your travel dreams come true.
What do the fares cover?
Southwest Airlines has multiple fare tiers, each with various benefits. Wanna Get Away fares start at $59, while Wanna Get Away Plus fares start at $89. You can also find great deals on Anytime fares, which offer priority boarding and express lanes. Then there’s Business Select tickets for a luxe experience at an affordable price point.
Do you have to be a Southwest Rapid Rewards member?
You may think these sale fares are too good to be true. Is there a catch? Do you have to be a Southwest Rapid Rewards member to access them? You’re in luck — anyone can attain these fares for a limited time.
But, insider tip, you should consider signing up for Southwest Rapid Rewards. With a free sign up, you earn points and miles with each trip you take. And with this sale, each dollar you spend on these discounted tix can stretch super far until you eventually earn free travel. The only thing better than a sale is free stuff.
So pack your bags and brace yourself for those chaotic airport lines. Everyone’s hopping on this deal so get on it. Don’t miss out — grab your sale tickets by October 3rd!
I’ve been browsing the Southwest Airlines site, checking out flights and dreaming.
