As temperatures are rising, so should your summer work style sense.  This Avonlee Silk Georgette Top offers a sensationally chic, sophisticated style with lovely ruched sleeves.  Sleeves are a perfect place to have ruching accent adding just enough texture to this soft gray top.  It’s one of those tops you can get a ton of mileage out of by wearing to work with trousers, a pencil skirt or with jeans and belt on Casual Fridays.  We often invest money in either shoes or bags, this time let it be a top that is timelessly classic and versatile.

Here are three stellar looks styled with a same top that will take you from the board meeting and beyond!

Business – Top, Blazer, Skirt, Pumps

Business Casual – Top, Pants, Bag, Pumps, Belt

Casual – Top, Shorts, Slingbacks, Satchel, Watch

Regardless of size or body shape, what you wear has a huge impact on the way you look and feel.  Let us introduce to you Kiyonna, a leader in the plus-size industry.  Kiyonna houses a collection of apparel & accessories exclusively for plus size women.  We were quite impressed to say the least with their sophisticated, classic, and fashion-forward styles that will effortlessly spruce up your workwear.  Some of the dresses and tops offered on the site are just simply irresistible!

Finding correctly proportioned apparel can be challenging especially for extended sizes.  Kiyonna is just the right place that will meet your needs for those that are sizes 10 & up.  We also like their affordable price points plus not to mention you will find their customer reviews helpful with purchasing decisions.

Workchic is happy to announce that we have teamed up with Kiyonna to offer an exclusive 15% off discount to WC readers by entering code WORKCHIC15 !  Be sure to check out their ‘Career Wear’ section as well for suiting, tops and skirts.

For our Frugal Wednesday segment, here are some of our favorite Kiyonna finds under $100 – top 6 spring/summer must-haves for work!

1, 2, 3

4, 5, 6

Today’s outfit is not as serious yet casual-chic with a bit of a sporty feel to it.  Puma’s Sweat Blazer is brilliant for those who refuse to give up the comfort but still look put together enough to wear to the office.  Try a Lacoste Polo Shirt underneath rather than just a plain tee, even better with a pop of color.  There are 16 color options for this particular top plus it’s on sale!  Meet your new favorite spring/summer shoes –
Toms Canvas Wedges.  Cropped jeggings look best with a pair of heels, and what better pair than canvas wedges for this season?  A graceful gold-tone watch finishes this casual office outfit.

Wearing conservative attire can be daunting and boring day after day.  Thus, there is Casual Friday to enjoy a day of dressing in more casual and comfortable styles.  It’s perhaps the best day to let your personal style shine through even more.  Keep in mind though, casual attire does NOT mean donning a sloppy outfit (unless you are working in a completely relaxed environment where your appearance is of no concern).

Here are several outfits from our favorite blogs that can easily work as CF outfits.  If you have a favorite work look you would like to share, we’d love to hear from you.  Please email us here with your (or a friend’s) photo or simply request a certain look you’d like to see featured in the future.

This comfortably chic ensemble would make for a lovely CF outfit.
We like the print on the dress and the edgy handbag. (source)

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Happy February everyone!  We are basically two weeks away from the most romantic day in the world, Valentine’s Day of course!  No Valentine’s Day outfit would be complete without a pair of decadent heels.  If you are like us, there are moments when you really want to wear feminine heels!

Here we have pumps that will work not only for special evenings but for the office as well.  Seriously, lace heels are not only meant to wear on a night out but during the day, even at work.  For one, it’s in black lace.  If the lace was in red or pink, they surely wouldn’t be appropriate for the work environment.  Secondly, the bow embellishment gives a dainty vibe to what could have been just sexy lace heels.  Last but not least, a classic stiletto offers a sleek & elegant style.

Vamp out your outfit in Valentino’s Bow Embellished Lace Leather Pumps.  Pair with a black pencil skirt and blousy top or with a dressy suit anytime you want to add a touch of luxe glamour.  We are not surprised at the popularity of this pair regardless of the high price of $885.

These Satin and Lace Bow Pumps sounds fancy yet they are budget-savvy at just $59.  Imagine them paired with your favorite little black dress and a red clutch.

One of our favorite days to get dressed for work has to be “casual Fridays” or for those of you that work in a more relaxed work environment this could be any day of the week.  On those days where you can be less business and more casual is when you can really have a blast wearing a wider variety of shoes including fashion-forward boots.

We are smitten by knee-high riding boots because of the rugged yet feminine appeal, not to mention the overall comfort.  Rich brown leather is quite versatile and will age beautifully as the years go by.  Here are 3 Workchic picks that will make great additions to your work shoe collection.

Frye Melissa Button knee-high boots, Miz Mooz Kent riding boots, Timberland Earthkeepers Cabot 2.0

Well, we are going to kick start the new year’s first Style Me Monday with a comfy-chic outfit!  We got today’s inspiration from Macy’s – a model wearing a cozy sweater tunic, leggings, and boots.  If you want to look fashionable and stay comfortable all day long, a chic tunic top over a pair of leggings is a wonderful option.

This outfit is perfect for casual Fridays or a work environment where the dress code is relaxed.  We picked out the denim leggings (aka. jeggings) to enjoy both the comfort of leggings and the look of jeans.  They look great tucked inside boots.

Sweater Tunic, Denim Leggings, Boots, Bangle

One thing that is universal for all of us that work in an office setting is that feeling of “it’s always so cold in here” no matter what season it is.  If you are like us you really do not want to keep your coat or jacket on all day and what is the point of that if it keeps your outfit covered up?  Cardigans are wonderful pieces for layering and you can easily mix and match them with different outfits.

Here are some lovely cardigans that will come in handy to keep you stylish and warm at the same time while enduring the office chill all year long.

Amber Sun Long Cardigan – $38.90 $79

Beyond Vintage Sequin Cardigan – $99 $246

Daring Solo Performance Cardigan – $89.99

BCBGMAXAZRIA Wool Wrap Cardigan $228

Cashmere Blend 1-Hook Cardigan – $29.99 $59.90

Sense Striped Open Cardigan – $78

Jones New York Signature – $99

I stopped into a local Kohl’s in desperate need for a new cardigan.  I have to admit I really loved some of the new pieces from Lauren Conrad’s Fall collection.  Especially since they were retailing under $50!  I love how this reality TV queen stays true to her own style and created a feminine yet wearable collection that has separates suitable for all age ranges.   Take a peek at some of the items you can find on Kohls.com! 

We are always looking for a stylish bargain so who better to turn to than Jennifer who owns the website The Looks for Less. Web developer by day, fashion blogger by night-Jennifer covers everything from styling your favorite dress to create a variety of unique looks, DIY projects, and of course celebrity and designer looks for less. Every post is infused with a bit of her personal style, which ranges from contemporary to preppy to rock-star glamour.   In fact she sent us some of her business casual & casual looks for the office.

We are seriously in love with her colorblock heels.  More on those later but here is a close-up:

We just had to ask her more about The Looks for Less and the inspiration behind the outfits above.  Keep reading below!

WC: What inspired these outfits?

JL: I work in a really casual work place. Well, I am a web developer that gets to hide in a basement office and do not correspond with the public on a regular basis. So, I would have to say that every work day is casual Friday for me. This is the perk of working on the bottom floor; that and you get to play your music a little louder than your coworkers.

The shoes were the main focus of this outfit. They were sent to me courtesy of a British invasion street-style website called Next Direct. I wanted to show two looks with these beautiful pumps – one casual Friday look and another a bit dressier. To work, I would probably pair the studded dress with black tights.

WC: Are there any celebs outfits that you try to mirror their look for less?

JL:My favorite celeb style icon was Rihanna for as long as I can remember; however, it’s not easy to wear studded outfits on the streets of Florida, haha. So most recently I have fallen in love with the oh-so-wearable Rachel Bilson. I can’t find a picture of her that I don’t love! She is always wearing head-to-toe high fashion labels, but in such an approachable way in a style that is all her own. LOVE!

WC: How do you shop for work clothes when you are on a tight budget?

JL: One of my favorite ways of extending my wardrobe on a budget is working with what I have already. In fact, I recently hosted a 1 Dress, 4 Ways contest on my site ( http://www.thelooksforless.com/2009/12/02/help-me-choose-a-winner-1-dress-4-ways-contest/ ) and the options that my readers put together with one dress were endless. You can take a sweater or top and wear it over your dress so that the bottom looks like a skirt. Or, you can wear a skirt over the bottom of the dress so that you have a completely different outfit. A black dress is a work essential that can be worn alone or styled in so many different ways.

WC: What do you splurge on?

JL: Most girls are addicted to shoes and handbags… I, am addicted to jackets. I think jackets transform an outfit like no other piece of apparel of accessory can. You can throw on a t-shirt and jeans and dress it up or down with the right jacket. From street style to tuxedo, I have a growing collection of jackets in my closet. I love all styles and colors, but in particular, I have way too many black jackets and my favorite is a military inspired button down that I picked up from Forever 21.

Other than jacket splurges, I spend a bit more than I should at the Mac makeup counter! Their prices aren’t terribly expensive, but I have to have one of everything they offer, so it all adds up.

For more info on Jennifer visit her at the following:

http://twitter.com/thelooksforless

http://facebook.com/thelooksforless

Thanks Jennifer for participating in our July Steal Her Style segment!