The Ultimate Work Capsule Wardrobe Guide
This guide will show you exactly how to build a capsule wardrobe for work.
On this work wardrobe essential list, you’ll find all the pieces you need to effortlessly put together fresh work outfits every day while minimizing the number of items in your closet.
During 2020, many offices moved to a work-from-home model temporarily.
Some people worked from home for a year or two, but many offices have now returned to an in-person work model, requiring employees to come into the office three to five days per week again.
If you work in an office, you might be interested in the idea of a work capsule wardrobe.
And if you are not familiar with the concept of a capsule wardrobe yet, it’s a collection of items that you can wear interchangeably. Capsule wardrobes allow you to create many different outfits with fewer items, reducing the number of clothes in your closet.
Women’s Work Capsule Wardrobe
Capsule wardrobes are the ideal solution for minimalists and anyone interested in sustainability, because they allow you to minimize the number of clothes you own, while still being able to put together great outfits.
Another benefit of capsule wardrobes is the time-saving factor.
Instead of standing in front of your closet wanting to pull out your hair because you don’t know what to wear, you’ll be able to get dressed quickly and head off to work feeling comfortable and confident in your outfit.
It’s common to create seasonal capsule wardrobes (like a winter capsule wardrobe, a summer capsule wardrobe, and so on) because the clothes you wear during each season can vary so widely.
Similarly, you may want to build a separate work capsule wardrobe just for work outfits that is separate from your everyday clothing.
What do you need for a capsule work wardrobe?
Every capsule work wardrobe is going to be different depending on your personal style and your work environment.
Many offices have a dress code that ranges from business professional to business casual to smart casual. And if you have a non-office job such as teaching, what you wear to work is going to be different, too.
For this guide, we’ll be answering the question “How do I set up an office capsule wardrobe?” These capsule wardrobe ideas are ideal for women who work in an office with a smart casual or business casual dress code.
Although these pieces work best in a business casual or smart casual work capsule wardrobe, they can be tailored for your specific situation if you have a different work environment.
Even if you work from home, you can benefit from a work capsule wardrobe. Getting dressed for work every day instead of working in your pajamas can make a huge difference in your mindset and productivity levels.
For a typical work capsule wardrobe, you’ll want a selection of tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, and shoes. It’s best to stick to neutral colors in a capsule wardrobe so items are easy to mix and match.
You can swap certain pieces out based on your personal style (for example, an extra shirt and trousers instead of a dress) and factors like climate.
If you live somewhere that’s colder for most of the year, you will want warmer items in your work wardrobe.
How many pieces do you need in a work wardrobe?
A question you might have when getting started with a capsule wardrobe is how many items should be in a capsule wardrobe?
The goal of a capsule wardrobe is to maximize the outfits you can create with a minimal amount of clothing.
There’s no rule for how many pieces can be in a capsule wardrobe, but with a work capsule wardrobe, you may want to stick with no more than five tops and five bottoms. This ensures that you have at least one week’s worth of unique outfits, and then you can mix and match pieces to create another week or two’s worth of fresh outfits.
It’s important to select pieces for that can be styled with other items and are not limited to just one outfit.
Even with just a small number of items, it’s possible to create lots of unique outfits as long as they are easy to mix and match. This is especially easy to accomplish with workwear.
Work Wardrobe Essential List
Are you ready to create your own work capsule wardrobe?
This simple work capsule wardrobe checklist is broken down by category including tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, shoes, and accessories.
While this is a good checklist to follow to get started building your capsule wardrobe, you may want to swap out some items based on your personal style, work environment, climate, and other preferences.
Where can you find pieces for your work capsule wardrobe? Some of the best places to shop for workwear include Loft, J. Crew, Banana Republic, Amazon, and Madewell.
Tops
Button-down shirt
A classic tailored button-down shirt is a professional work capsule wardrobe staple. You can go with a solid color like white or light blue, or go for a striped top.
Long-sleeve blouse top
A long-sleeve blouse is another good top to have in your wardrobe. Something with a little flair, like a white blouse with black accents or a tie-neck blouse, can add more variety to your wardrobe.
Crew-neck top
Crew-neck tops are a basic staple for a work wardrobe. You may want a couple of these in different neutral colors (like black, gray, beige, or tan.)
These can be paired with any work pants, and are great for layering with a blazer or cardigan.
Cashmere sweater
A lightweight cashmere sweater is a must-have for the office. This can be worn with work pants and is great for both a winter and fall work capsule wardrobe.
Mock-neck tank top
Another top to have in your capsule wardrobe for work is a neutral-colored mock-neck tank top.
“Tank top” and “workwear” might not seem to go together, but a more conservative tank top like this works for an office setting, and can be layered under a blazer too.
Bottoms
Having several pairs of work pants that are comfortable and cute is a necessity. A great place to shop for work pants is J. Crew or Loft.
Depending on your preference, you may want to swap out one or two pairs of pants for a skirt instead.
Black Pants
A pair of slim-fitting black trousers are super flattering and a great basic item to have in your work capsule wardrobe. Black pants can be worn with just about anything.
Gray Pants
Similarly, having a pair of gray pants will help build out your options without adding any “fluff” to your closet. Gray work trousers can be paired with any of the tops in your work capsule wardrobe.
Cream Pants
A lighter-colored pair of pants (in cream or beige) allows you to switch up your outfits, while still being neutral enough to match almost anything. You may also want to switch up the style of these pants and go for wide-legged instead of slim or straight-fitting.
Print Pants
Finally, a pair of fun print pants can be worn with any of the solid-colored tops in your work capsule wardrobe to switch things up. You can go with plaid, checked, or another pattern.
Dresses
If dresses are your style, you can add one or two basic dresses to your work capsule wardrobe. I personally like wearing dresses to work because they can be more comfortable than pants.
Short-Sleeve Dress
A short-sleeve dress is a great piece to have in your work capsule wardrobe for the summer months. Stick with a comfortable, breathable fabric and a neutral color like tan, black or gray.
Long-Sleeve Wrap Dress
In addition to a short-sleeve dress, a long-sleeve wrap dress is another essential for your work capsule wardrobe.
Outerwear
When it comes to outerwear for your work capsule wardrobe, you’ll want to adjust based on the season. Below are three light outerwear options that can be worn during any season.
Even during the summer, you may want to wear a blazer or sweater to work because offices can be notoriously chilly with the air conditioning blasting all day.
During the colder months, you may want to add an actual winter coat on top of your work outfit.
Black blazer
A classic black blazer is a staple item in any work capsule wardrobe. This blazer option is incredible quality and SO comfortable. It can be paired with any of the tops in your wardrobe, and always looks professional and elegant.
Neutral or print blazer
Aside from a black blazer, you can switch things up with another solid-colored blazer (think gray or tan) or a print blazer with a plaid, houndstooth, or another pattern.
Cardigan
A professional, blazer-style cardigan is one of my favorite things to wear to work. This is a comfortable option that still looks good for work. Go for a neutral color like black, navy, or light gray.
Shoes
Shoes are a pretty simple area of your work capsule wardrobe. You really don’t need more than two or three pairs of shoes to wear to work.
Loafers
Loafers are my favorite work shoes because they’re so comfortable. Birdies and Amazon are great places to shop for comfortable yet chic women’s loafers for work.
Ballet flats
Another work capsule wardrobe staple shoe is a pair of comfortable ballet flats. Like with your loafers, you’ll want to choose a neutral color such as black or tan for these.
Heels
If you want a pair of heels in your work capsule wardrobe, go with a pair that is comfortable and easy to walk around in, like some neutral-colored block heels.
Accessories
The final element of your work capsule wardrobe is accessories. These are the staple accessories you’ll want to have in your closet for work.
However, you can also accessorize with your own jewelry and you may need to add weather-dependent accessories like a scarf and gloves depending on how cold it is.
Skinny black belt
You can never go wrong with a skinny black leather belt. This is a must-have that can be worn with any of your work outfits.
Black tote bag
A black leather tote bag is a great work bag for carrying your laptop and other work materials. Be sure to choose a bag that’s sturdy and has plenty of room inside.
Small leather purse
For your personal belongings, you’ll probably want another bag to carry to work. A small tan leather purse is great for storing your wallet, phone, keys, work ID, and other personal items.
A nice watch
One great accessory to have in your work capsule wardrobe is a classic, elegant watch. This adds a nice, professional touch to any work outfit (and is also practical for checking the time and making sure you’re not late for any meetings!)
Other posts you might like:
- How To Build A Capsule Wardrobe + FREE Capsule Wardrobe Checklist
- How To Build a Classic Summer Capsule Wardrobe
- The Ultimate Capsule Wardrobe for Winter
- 21 Stores Like Loft For Incredible Workwear
Check out the Fit Mommy In Heels Instagram page for more outfit inspo.
