Dress and the wardrobe system

I adore this purple maternity dress!! - I think I said this every time I wear it... 

This is one of the only three maternity dresses I didn't sell/throw away after giving birth as they are sooo pretty! And funny enough, two of them including this purple one are from Topshop - By the way I do recommend its maternity line, they are very flattering. 

I was chatting with my line manager last week and for some reason we started to talk about outfits, which is an odd thing to do with a male, married, oldish man I think.  Anyway, he said that in order to maximize the use of his clothes, he rotates and wears each outfit combination in an order, for both work outfits or for casual wear too. This system works like this: the same shirt would nearly always go with the same suits/trousers, and they are folded/hung up in an organised way after being washed and ironed. I don't know how many combination he has in place, but all the items get to be wore/organised in that system. So, he may sometimes wear something perhaps too formal and smart for a busy stay-in office day, and sometimes he may wear slightly too casual for formal teaching.  In a way, he is looking forward to find out when/what he is wearing for the following day(s) and how each outfit combination match, or not match, his work commitment of the day!!! 

I was amazed by his organisation and system initially (and I am still so actually). 

Well, I then thought about how I decide what to wear these days - I tend to just grab whatever item nearby when I am dressed on the day, which often results in wearing the same outfits every other day!  So, I thought perhaps I could have a similar system set up like that when I have some free time on weekends, or at least, I could think of some outfit combination as default options for as/when I am out of ideas of what to wear, (like lately!)       

How do you organise your wardrobe ? 

Have you got a system set-up like my line manager ?

These are how I wore the dress and the cardi last time:

 

AA xxx

Dress and cardi, busy working mum's favorite

This dress and this cardi again ! 

This combination has become my new default work wear recently. It's practical for work, and even more so for life with a baby - this dress sits on the knees, so perfect for bending over to the stroller, for chasing after a monster on the train/street, and for picking him up when he cries for a cuddle. So, alrhough it is not my favorite item, it is getting a lot of use lately. 

Another good reason to wear dresses for  work as a busy working mum is if the little one decides to wipe his dirty face with running nose on you at last minute, more chance to get away from changing the entire outfits - just the tights or the dress.  And it's easier keep a spare tight at work than a spare outfit/trousers! 

AA xxx

Needs some inspiration lately

top: oasis (?)

black trousers: Next

cardi: Warehouse

boots: Dune

bag: Marc Jacobs Classic Q Hillier Hobo bag

AA xxx

Playing safe by sticking to classic look: tunic top with smart blacktrousers

Two big meetings (school assembly and mock session & debrief for a coming up important event) scheduled this afternoon. For a big day like today, I'd like to play safe by wearing 'classic' items.

Although I don't like to stand out, I don't want to be unnoticed either, or to be mistaken as if I was a university student (I experienced this when I first started to work here).  

As well as planning/caring for my look, I also paid attention to what colleagues wear:

• Women at senior positions in the professional/admin function go for all black outfits, but not work suits. 
• Women in the admin function up for more business casual style {tunic top + black/dark trousers + cardi}. 
• Women in academic positions would either go for more formal look, ie {work dress with black blazer}, or simply be wearing something comfortable/causal/laid-back ! In fact, I don't think there is a 'typlical style' for academics !

Isn't this fascinating !! And style watch certainly makes the meeting more fun !


So what am I wearing today??

I am wearing this animal print top with black trousers and this white cardi. 
Bag as in the picture and boots are as usual. 

(photo is an old one from months ago)

But for the big coming up meeting, I may go with a more professional look - tunic top, black smart trousers with blazer, rather than cardi.....


AA xxx

Dress up

Dress: Topshop maternity dress (bought 2012-13 autumn/winter)

Knitted top: Dorothy Perkins

Boots: Clark's

Blazer: F&F 

Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs Hillier Hobo Bag

Another dress combination day...

I love this purple maternity dress ! Although it is definitely way too loose on waist without a baby bump, I love the fabric and colour. I think it will go better with a top or cardi that fits the waist line better than what I've got on today.

It was 8 degree in the morning when we set off, but it was snowing in the afternoon. So I was a bit cold in the snow  ha ha : (

AA xxx

Juggling life as a working mum...

Alex's post about juggling life was a very useful and powerful reminder that I am not alone here who feel overwhelmed by the pressure and the to-do lists.  Back to work for 6 months now, how to juggle life is still a steep learning curve.

We live in a small house, where living room and kitchenate are in the same room. It was cosy for a couple, but as parents, it was a nightmare.... I want to MOVE house !!

This means that when I am cooking dinner, Baby D can see me and would often cry for the attention, or throw his toys and books at me, even when his dad sits next to him !

It also means that the room is always messy: toys everywhere, bags (mine work bag, dad's, baby's diaper bag) on the floor or piled up in the corner of the dining table, food everywhere on the carpet (training toddlers to not throw food on the floor is very challenging), and dishes left unwashed !

And our nearly 1.5 years old is a very very handful one.... (aren't they all !?)

I have found it not easy to stay positive and keep smiling at all times.... And being at work, I feel, is the only escape I get for a bit of calm and peace. 

Dress:

Cardi: Whistle

Boots: Clark's

Wearing a dress seems to be the best thing for a busy working mum.
The combination of {Dress + cardi / blazer + boots / heels / flat} works very well for a casual business look environment, and good for a raining day.

AA xxx


 

Stripes dress, Cardi and Boots

I am back, after having two months, or nearly three months perhaps, break from blogging my outfits. 

One reason of that is because I ran out of ideas and thoughts to comment on my outfit combination, and inspiration and energy to keep up with that due to exhaustion from juggling between a full-time job and off-work full-on mum. I was sooo exhausted to a degree that I kept picking up terrible colds one after another till the new year !

While I was recovering from being poorly and from lack of energy, I have been thinking about my blogs (I have two 'active' blogs, one here in English and the other in Mandarine). I have been on and off blogging for a decade now. Although I had taken short and long breaks every now and then, I do generally go back to blogging as I do enjoy it and as a form to be true to myself. 

The original thought of this blog is to simply keep records of my outfit /style, and mostly to see how it would develop over time. I now feel more relaxed about sticking to that plan as life is not always so simple and clear-cut, and I feel I want to embrace more flexibility generally in life. 

I would still blog about my outfits, but I may also share my motherhood ups and downs here too ! : )

Back to my outfits, this is what I wore to work today. 

Dress: 

Cardi: Uniqlo 

Tights: 

Boots: Clarks in Taupe 

Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs Hillier Hobo Bag in Taupe

Coat: Traveler (not in picture)

Had a meeting with colleagues from different departments. Although it was a casual catch-up, I thought a more formal look may go down better, so I put on F&F blazer for the meeting (blazer not in the picture).  The meeting was in the atrium, which was rather cold even with the central heating on. So for that reason, it was a wise decision to have the blazer on !  

AA xxx