According to recent research while our male colleagues are still often expected to wear three piece suits to work, women can wear skirts and dresses in the summer. Sounds good in principle, but it makes it more difficult for women to decide what to wear.

Films and TV

Don’t pay too much attention to what women wear to work in films and television. They often show too much flesh. Take Samantha in Sex and the City for example.

Dress accordingly

When deciding what to wear take the following factors into account:

-Where you work. An insurance or lawyer’s office is a lot more formal than a PR or a magazine office.

-Learn from your female colleagues. Pay attention to how they dress, especially your boss.

-Adapt your clothing according your client. If your client dresses formally then you should too. It is better to dress too formally then too casually.

Work is not a beach

Whatever you do don’t look like you are about to hit the beach instead of your desk. Let your poor male colleagues concentrate on their work and don’t expose too much flesh. Avoid:

• Tank tops
• Spaghetti straps
• Backless dresses or tops
• Deep cut necklines
• Mini skirts
• See through material
• Flip flops

Smocks and leggings are a great look for women who are mostly slim but who have a bigger stomach or butt that they would like to cover up. Pick a smock that has some tailoring to show off the upper part of your body. This prevents a smock from looking like a tent. Here are some great smocks I found at Stylefinder.com.

Smocks are also great if you are pregnant.

I was determined to wear my new dress this morning. The only problem was that it is still quite cold in Holland and I cycle to work. I first tried wearing my black tights/panty hose. These looked rubbish. I then remembered that I had some low-cut white trousers. These just fit under my bulging belly. The last problem I had was finding the right shoes, my new silver ballerina shoes looked perfect and I had some clean red socks (miracle!) I am quite pleased with the ensemble what do you think?

Baukje tried on this dress in Vero Moda.

Kate Moss and Scarlett Johanson has been spotted looking lovely wearing high-waisted jeans but are they for everyone? Unfortunately no. High-waisted jeans are great if you have no issues with your belly or butt. But if either of these body parts are on the large side avoid this hot fashion item like the plague. Low-waisted jeans will compliment your figure much better.

If you are lucky enough to be able to pull off wearing these jeans you can find them at Stylefinder.com.

Baukje tends to go for darker colours. What do you think of these colours on Baukje?

Baukje tried on these clothes in Vera Moda in Groningen. She was a really good sport and was willing to try on most of the things I asked. Baukje is tall and thin, something most women would kill for, but even she is not completely happy with her body. One of her problem areas are her long legs. It is hell finding trousers that fit. Baukje is the perfect candidate for cropped trousers that are currently in fashion. Skirts are also great for her. She is still not convinced and tends to stick to jeans. What do you think?

I spent hours trying on maternity clothes only to find out that that the latest collection at H&M had even better clothes that I can wear. Yipee! I bought this top for 20 euros in H&M. These kind of tops are great for those with larger breasts and bellys.

It has been decided by the fashion world that the 80’s are back. But what do you actually think of this trend? How will you look back on batwing tops and baggy dresses?

It would seem that the 80’s are back this season. Everywhere we turn there are batwing tops, smocks and baggy dresses. The problem is that these kinds of baggy clothes can look like tents or shapeless sacks if not worn in the right way. You are best suited to this trend if you are skinny, though wear with caution. Try to combine baggy items with tighter items such as leggings and show off your waist with a belt. Curvy woman, ie anyone with a bit of meat on them, should probably avoid these items. If you have bit of a stomach these kind of clothes can disguise it but only if the rest of you is quite thin. Make sure you show off your other assets.

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