What The Hell Is Business Casual: A Fashion Guide For The Young Professional

Congratulations! You’ve landed the job or internship of your dreams! You’ll be working in an office with a business casual dress code. But wait. . .what the hell is business casual?

This guide will serve as a breakdown for all the components you’ll need to craft your own business casual wardrobe. Business casual as a term is pretty vague: how can something be both business yet casual? Are you supposed to dress up or down? These are the things no one teaches us in college. But with this helpful guide, you’ll be dressed to impress!

Let’s start from the ground up…

Shoes

For women, business casual shoes could mean heels or flats. The choice is really yours to make. If you are more comfortable in flats, then go for a classic pair of ballet flats. If you’re ready and willing to rock a heel, go for it! Stick with something closed-toed and keep in mind the height of your heel; it should be about four inches or less. 

Here’s an example of a look with flats:

She’s wearing loafers, to be specific.

And here’s an example of a look with heels:

The best part about these pumps, and the loafers in the previous photo, is that they’re black, so they’ll go with practically anything and everything. And if you get yourself a pair of heels and a pair of flats, you’ll be set to dress any outfit up or down.

For men, your business casual shoes might be a pair of loafers or dress boots, like the ones pictured below. I would recommend leaving the sneakers at home, at least for now. Once you get a sense of your office culture and what other people wear to work everyday, then you can make the call whether sneakers are appropriate. 

Trousers/Skirts

Onto the pants! For ladies, there are loads of options. You can go for some classic slacks, a pencil skirt, or khakis if you so choose. If you are going the skirt route, make sure it’s the right length! I would recommend just above the knee to be the shortest.

Let’s get real for a quick sec: as women, we have so many dress code restrictions already that worrying about the “appropriate” length of our skirts is a major eye roll. But you don’t want to spend a ton of energy wondering if your skirt is covering you enough – you’ve got other more important things to be focusing on!

For men, the options consist mostly of classic slacks or khakis. No jeans – at least not yet. But maybe your workplace has casual Fridays. Or maybe they do wear denim, and it’s all dark wash. You can get away with making jeans look business casual if they are dark wash with no holes or tears. Again, observe other people in the office, and then make the call.

Tops & Shirts

The fun part! This is where, I would argue, the business casual dress code is the most gray. By that I mean, you could potentially wear a shirt to the office that you also might wear on the weekends, which leaves room to give you lots of options for the work week. You just have to know how to pair your tops with your other wardrobe pieces. For example, if you’re leaning towards a blouse, you could wear a long sleeve, colorful option like this one:

Notice she’s wearing jeans – but they’re black! This makes a huge difference to the overall outfit.

Or you might choose something that’s a bit more simple, like this one:

This is an example of a top you might’ve just had at the bottom of your dresser drawers. If you pair it with the right pants and shoes, and even add some accessories like jewelry, a black long-sleeve shirt can totally work for a business casual outfit!

And for the men, the choices are somewhat similar (anyone can rock a button-down, right?). So you can choose a crisp button-down shirt or even a sweater. With business casual, you probably won’t need to wear a tie on the regular, but again, that might also depend on the culture of the office. But you can still look just as put-together without a tie as you would with one, like this outfit below: 

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Jackets and Blazers

Both women and men will need at least one or two jackets or blazers to pair with their business casual looks. Jackets and blazers are great ways to dress up an outfit, add a bit more style to it, and they’re versatile, so you can wear them throughout the week. Plus, they’re great for when the office might get a bit chilly!

Above is a sleek, long jacket that will be perfect for cooler fall months.

This one is a great example of how to play with color in your business casual outfit. Her dress, shoes, and handbag are all neutrals, which means that her colorful plaid jacket makes the overall outfit brighter.

Here’s a great example for men: a dark gray jacket along with a scarf to match.

Color Scheme

As you may have noticed from the photos so far, a lot of business casual clothing sticks to a similar neutral color scheme. It’s best to compile a collection of items in white, black, brown or gray so that you can then mix and match with colorful accessories to make your look pop.

Plus, if you’re stocked up on neutrals then you can pretty much wear anything with anything!

And with that, voila: you now know how to break down what the hell it means to dress business casual! Just remember: in fashion, and in life, rules are made to be broken. So consider this list as a guideline or a jumping off point on where to start. Once you get a sense of what to look for and your own style, you’ll be the sharpest dress in the office. 

Consider yourself an expert in business casual fashion? Tell us your tips in the comments below!

Featured image source: https://www.pexels.com/photo/portrait-of-young-woman-drinking-coffee-at-home-324030/?utm_content=attributionCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pexels