Clare Maxfield

Where Image Matters

What is Business Classic workwear?

Business Classic workwear is becoming more common in the corporate workplace. Gone are the days where it is necessary to wear a suit every day to work. Casualisation has taken over and we are becoming more and more relaxed. But what does this mean for you? What does it mean for your professional appearance? More than anything it means you still must be wearing the best you can afford and keeping your business and your work clothing separate as much as possible as it can be the difference between distinguishing what is work and what is play.

The greatest challenge many of my clients have is keeping their work wardrobe fresh as spending hard earned money regularly on work clothes, when you would prefer to spend it on play clothes, can be disconcerting. Keep in mind though that you are in your work clothes for more than 50% of your waking hours if you have a full-time position. Why wouldn’t you want to spend those hours in nice clothes that make you feel good? Don’t put your work wardrobe into the second-hand pile as that is how you will feel – second hand.

business level 2

Level 2 – Must have a jacket

JACKET Blazer or Sports Coat

Belts-embossed or smooth leather; calf skin or reptile skin.

 Shirts-Collared solid colour, patterned, long sleeves only or polo tops.

Ties– bolder and brighter, woven, knit, silk.

Jumpers– turtleneck, crew neck, V-neck. Cashmere, cotton or wool and must be worn with a shirt and jacket.

 Pants-wool, linen, silk blend, light to medium weight, cuffed or uncuffed

Socks-dark, plain or discreet pattern.

Shoes– thin to medium sole. Lace up or loafers in leather. Black or dark brown

 Watches-gold or silver face and matching band; gold or silver face with fine dark leather band.

Accessories

cufflinks – gold, silver and coloured enamel
Making it work–

Always wear a jacket.
Keep clothing and the accessories at the same level. Level 1 will dress it up, level 3 will dress it down

Wear smooth fabrics that co-ordinate colour, fabric& pattern.

Overall Impression-

Professional, authoritative, dependable, organised, reliable,     

Conscientious, consistent and detail oriented.

So, as you will see here, the primary consideration is ensuring that you have a jacket on. I recommend to all of my corporate clients to keep a jacket in their office, no matter what. It will ensure that what ever comes their way during the work day, that they can pop on the jacket, and immediately lift them from casual to corporate to attend any meeting that might spring up.

The colours are not overly colourful, however, they are brighter and more colourful than Level One. The clothing is tailored and well finished.

What do business/corporate dress codes mean?

Companies are forever moaning about the dress standards of their staff and what to do about them?

The simplest solution is to have a dress code that is relevant to your industry, your brand and your clientele.

The way you dress speaks volumes. make sure your clothes are sticking up for you.

Business Clothing Level One

business clothing level one

This article is rich in content for you to understand exactly what works well and doesn’t work well when you are dressing for the workplace. You may not plan to work in a corporate environment, which means a lot of the information regarding the most traditional of suiting is irrelevant to you. Keep this in mind, no matter what industry you are in, if you plan to be successful you are going to be expected to look successful. It might be that you do not wear suits because you have to but you might end up wearing suits because you want to. This chapter will start explaining for you how to look your best in the clothes you are wearing and to ensure that the accessories you use are right for that look.

When we talk about corporate dress, it is easiest to describe it in 4 levels. There are many different schools of thought and many different ways to describe these levels. I know of another consultant who describes them in level 1 as the most casual and level 4 as the highest – kind of like a building. Myself, I work the other way around as I think of dance gradings I have done in the past where you worked your way up to level one and being the best. You can really give these any name or number you like. The whole idea is to ensure that you know what you are doing, what impact you are giving and what people are seeing.

The benefit to a business having a dress code is to stop the confusion os what is and isn’t acceptable by your staff at work. It is important to remember that dress codes should be important for ALL staff. It may be that different departments have a different uniform and that may be a formal uniform or it might just be a standard of dress due to work requirements. Businesses which do not bother with a dress regulation or grooming guideline are asking for trouble. If you need to counsel a staff member about their grooming you have nowhere to begin as it isn’t laid out and expressed anywhere and it can be deemed that your comments are based on a  personal dissatisfaction and not a brand adherence.

The levels I use when I am training staff are the following

Level 1 is the most formal and professional – a suit is required (formally known as Traditional Business)

Level 2 it is a tad more relaxed – a jacket is necessary (formally known as Business Classic)

Level 3 is everyday office/retail wear. It is smart and professional. (formally known as Business Smart)

Level 4 is for casual Friday. It is relaxed it is the most dressed down you can be at work. (formally known as Business Casual – that’s an oxymoron to me but more about that later)

Today I am going to focus on Level one. Over the next few posts, I’ll go into detail on the remaining three dress codes.

Insights

Level insights

Level 1

Traditional or Classic Business Dress
Suit- Dark serious colours. Black, navy, charcoal, pin striped and chalk striped.

Belts– Belts or Braces are applicable with a suit. Belts should be made of black smooth leather.

 Shirts– Long sleeved, solid or patterned in traditional colours of pastels or red or blue stripes on a white background colours. Regular collar not buttoned down.

Ties– Strong colours with a small print or pattern. Best to use Base Colours

 Jumpers– Not applicable

 Pants– Same as Suit Coat in darker core colour. May be cuffed or uncuffed depending on your frame and size.

Shoes– Thin to medium a leather sole. Lace –up.

Socks– Dark, plain or discreet patterns. Long to the knee (no one wants to see the top of your socks)

 Watches-gold or silver face and matching band; gold or silver face with fine dark leather band.

Accessories

Kerchiefs, gold or silver cufflinks, tie pins, pinkie ring
Making it work

Ensure your suit is crisp at all times. 

Never try to dress it down

 Overall Impression

Authoritative, credible, respectful, solid, analytical, precise, dominant, logical and reliable

Look the part. Unless you are in the fashion industry – dressing too faddish will have your bosses wondering if you are more concerned with your wardrobe than your job

What does Business Smart or Dress Code Level 3 mean?

At level 3 you are wearing everyday smart clothes to work. They are neither still and ready for formal meetings, nor are they your Casual Friday wear. This is what I think of as your everyday work wardrobe. A jacket is not required. Neither is a tie for men nor hosiery for women.

business level 3

 

Some tips I give here are:

Separate your casual and work clothes so that you get into your work mindset in the office and can enjoy the freedom of not being at work both physically and mentally in your other clothes.

Keep it smart, not relaxed

This level of dressing can be one of the trickiest levels to carry off successfully. Once they know they don’t have to wear their suit or jacket to work, many men and women end up looking way too relaxed in their style of dressing for the job. The introduction of casual Friday can create an even greater degree of confusion. Casual dressing does not mean jeans and T-shirts. That style of dressing should only be for your time outside of work. It does not fit into the corporate market.

Making it Work

The smart-casual outfit does not require a jacket.

A two-piece outfit without a jacket.

Coordinate clothing and accessories with similar colour and texture.

Jackets should be loose and unconstructed.

Business dress code level 3

 

Overall Impression

Accessible, friendly, team player, original, competent and creative.

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Business Dress Code Level 2

At level 2 the single item of clothing that dresses this level is the jacket. ties for men are optional. Hosiery for women is optional, but the jacket is mandatory.  You will see it is slightly more casual than that of level 1. There are more colours and jackets do not necessarily need to be of the same fabric as trousers or dresses and skirts for women. for men it is still a collared shirt. Women now start to express greater personality of style here.

The ideal times to wear this level of clothing is in the following situations:

First meetings with a client.

When you want to present a more formal and powerful impression.

Making presentations.

Leading a meeting,

Presenter at a trade show and

In a sales role at a trade show.

Business dress code level 2

 

 

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How to create moods with colour

Colour Your Moods

 

The colours that you wear can influence how people feel about you and the mood that they perceive you to be in.
Whilst these images are relating to women’s clothing the combinations hold true for men as well.
Dramatic and dynamic moods suit bold colours worn in a high contrasting manner. This mood makes you want to stand out in a colourful and vibrant manner.
The person whose mood wants them to command attention, to take control will wear black, often in a double breasted pseudo-military manner with gold or silver buttons. They will wear deep and dark or metal accessories. There will be little to no colour to their outfit with the exception of white.
When your mood is elegant and sophisticated you do not feel the need to be showy. Your colours will be neutral and medium toned.
When your mood is playful you will feel very comfortable in jackets with cute or colourful, even childish imagery on them.
A romantic mood will find you looking for low contrast and pastel outfits where shades of medium blue, or pink are visible.
A playful mood will find the person wearing loads of colours.
When your mood is earthy and relaxed you will look for colours which speak of nature in a heavier form than the elegant mood would wear nad finally to be fre3ndly and welcoming wear mid-density colours with lighter brighter accents. Not quite as romantic as mood above it, but it is subdued and makes everyone feel at home.

 

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