Over the past year, I have done a fair bit of work from home (WFH) – often one or even two days a week. Although I enjoy having in-person contact with my colleagues and co-workers, the majority of my work can be done remotely even under normal circumstances. Obviously, we now live in not-normal circumstances and working from home is a necessity and a huge privilege. Doing it 100% of the time has taken a little adjustment, but I was probably more prepared than most.
One thing that has changed is my approach to getting dressed “for work”. In the past, working from home meant wearing my pyjamas or lounge wear all day long; apart from the significant commuting time savings, this was one of the biggest perks of WFH. Now that it’s the rule, not the exception, I had to adjust. Spending day after day in sweats no longer feels like a treat, but the opposite. I miss my regular clothes.
Obviously, getting dressed in the same way I would for the office wasn’t quite the answer either. For example, blazers are fun as a style statement, but they’re not a necessity at home – especially as I don’t have video conferences. Skirts also feel, for now, a bit “de trop” (too much); that may change as time goes on and I start really missing my favourites.
The key word, of course, is comfort. Even more so than at the regular office, I want to feel comfortable at my home office. I’m going to share some of the things that have been working for me, WFH style wise, but please don’t take them as tips. Now more than ever, I am a firm believer that you should wear W(ever)TF you want, especially when working from home. Ballgown, sweatpants, and everything in between.
Leggings
I mean, yah – no surprise here. Leggings are comfortable and warm. You can also pair them with almost anything and make it look (a) intentional (they’re pant-like after all), and (b) like you made an effort. Even if the effort was, in reality, minuscule. Graphic sweatshirts, sweaters, button-down shirts, tops of every description, and yes, even dresses.
Graphic Prints
You guys know how much I love black, but I find myself drawn towards the colourful end of my closet lately. Maybe it has to do with the psychology of isolation. My rainbow sweaters always cheer me up; ditto for some of my colourful floral prints. Even monochrome prints, provided they’re bold enough, can be a pick me up.
But Above All, Comfort
I find myself looking at my clothes with new eyes and one over-riding question: how comfortable is that? Stretchy dress? Super comfortable. Tencel-blend culotte-like pants? Practically pyjamas. Jumpsuit? Even better. (And the upside of working from home is that I don’t have to worry about the usual impracticalities of jumpsuits.)
In the beginning, I didn’t bother much with accessories (and I never wear shoes indoors – the ones above are just for the photos); but as time went on, I began to ask myself: why not? Just like bright colours, accessories cheer me up. I’ve been mostly sticking with earrings, and the occasional necklace; because I wash my hands approximately eleventy thousand times a day, I’ve stopped wearing rings and bracelets altogether for the time being. I don’t wear my accessories to show them off; I wear them because they’re beautiful to me, and wearing them feels like a nice little luxury. Sometimes they match my outfit, sometimes they don’t. But they always put a smile on my face.
Your wfh outfits are nice. Maybe you should get a fancy pair of slippers to wear indoors? I used to have an ivory pair with a small heel. Wearing earrings makes me Happy. I found a nice flat gold ring to wear to work. I can’t work from Home! I don’t mind though. I know I’m Blessed to have the job that I have!
Love seeing this.
I know that for me, wearing PJ’s everyday would increase my anxiety and lead to depression. I decided I would try to wear something in between PJ’s and ball gowns! It’s helping I think.
Stay well.
100 percent sweat pants plus a turtle for me.
I’ve really enjoyed seeing your work from home style on Instagram! You’ve come up with a lot of fun outfits that still look comfortable.
I’m mostly wearing loungewear every day, though I’ll occasionally mix it up with one of my more relaxed-fit summer dresses. Comfort is definitely also the main thing I look for when picking out clothes these days.
Love seeing the colorful stripes and prints! I am trying to wear more color in my new WFH life because it perks up my day (it also makes me realize how much I default to black and gray out of laziness). I particularly enjoy the print on your first top in the 3rd row, I am now wishing I had more prints to pull from.
Same here – I normally love wearing black, but WFH I have been gravitating towards colours for that same reason. Funny how that works.