27 Outfitting Tips For Nailing Your Summer Office Looks

If your company has a dress code, obviously, you should adhere to it. But beyond that, you might need ideas for what silhouettes and colors to wear to the office this summer. You might also be unsure about how to accessorize your office looks. The first thing you should know is: Changes in office attire are emerging in the aftermath of 2020. In June 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden and the other politicians convening at the G7 Summit were photographed without their neckties.  Although many people were critical of their fashion choices, others have concluded that we now have official permission to dress less formally and more comfortably at work. 

Communications professor and founder/CEO of Global Public Speaking Allison Shapira shares in Harvard Business Review, "... after two years of hastily throwing a business jacket over a T-shirt and sweatpants while letting people into our homes during the Covid-19 pandemic, our tolerance for conformity — and discomfort — has changed. The business dress code is evolving." Shapira encourages readers to take note of how others are dressing. In particular, she suggests paying attention to get a feel for situations when it's acceptable to wear business casual attire instead of dressing formally. 

When you need to dress formally, some of the top current workwear trends include linen suits, vibrant summer suit colors, and monochromatic outfits. We've got all the inspiration and styling tips you need to be comfortable, professional, and fashionable in the office this summer.

In some office environments, you don't need to wear a suit; you can pull together an ensemble made up of complementary separates. Try a laid-back look featuring dressy linen pants, a black shirt, a black blazer, a black dress belt, and unique jewelry. Your existing favorite jewelry pieces might work for differentiating a simple black-and-white outfit to make it your own. If you don't already have jewelry that would work, and you need ideas, try experimenting with adding a watch, chunky bracelet, and gold pendant necklace to complete your look.

Communications professor Allison Shapira polled her contacts to ask about how they're dressing as they return to work after having worked from home for so long. Shapira observes, "My clients noted that they were much more likely to dress down when they weren't meeting with clients." Based on this assessment, we'd recommend dressing formally when meeting with clients unless your supervisor directs otherwise. When you need to dress formally, it's safest to wear a matching tailored suit in black, gray, or navy blue; a dressy blouse with a collar; and closed-toe dress shoes.

Kim Posnett, Global Head of Investment Banking Services at Goldman Sachs, provides an outstanding role model for career women to emulate when they get dressed for work. Here, you can see how Posnett dressed for a summertime conference in a monochromatic, pumpkin-colored pants suit that's conservative enough to be appropriate for a gathering of businesspeople, yet it's also innovative, up-to-date, and unstuffy. The black platform sandals are appropriate for the resort environment where the event took place but might not be suitable at corporate offices.

Actress and musician Jackie Tohn gives us another example of how to pair a solid-colored pantsuit with black accents. Tohn's chic suit has a short blazer and pleated trousers. She's styled it with a black top and just the right belt. This look is viable in an icy air-conditioned office environment, but otherwise, you can stay cooler by switching out the high-necked top for a scoop-necked or boat-necked style. Just make sure you don't show any cleavage.

The summer pants suit pictured here checks at least four boxes for current fashion trends. It has a double-breasted jacket, it's monochromatic, it's made in an eye-popping color, and the legs on the pants gently flare out downward from the knees. You can style a double-breasted suit without a top as pictured. Another option is to layer a close-fitting blouse or bodysuit underneath in case you'd like to take your jacket off at times when you're hidden away in your own office or cubicle. 

You can pair up a solid-colored sheath dress and a solid-colored blazer together, but you have to be mindful of your color combination. Tonal color combinations work well; it's foolproof to select a lighter shade of a color for the dress and a darker shade of the same color for the blazer. A navy blue, black, or camel-colored blazer is an alternative that would pair well with many dress colors. 

If you're working at a job where it's an asset to be perceived as creative, you could select a business suit designed with artistic details. Look for a suit that has mostly clean, classic lines but also a couple of trendy components, like flared pants legs instead of straight legs. If you want to wear a suit with a subtle gradient effect on the fabric, you could buy a suit that has been printed or dip dyed to create a low-key band of color; or you could buy a solid white suit plus fabric dyes and dip dye the suit yourself. 

At offices where business casual attire is the norm, a sheath dress with sleeves is acceptable work wear on its own. When strictly professional attire is required, you'd want to layer a closely-matching tailored blazer over your sheath dress and ensure you're wearing hosiery and closed-toe shoes with it. 

For a relaxed, easygoing summer look, start with flowy linen pants in a neutral grayish beige color. Add a matching cropped jacket and style your summer linen suit with a black T-shirt. Grab a black designer handbag for toting your essentials to work with you. 

When you choose your work outfits for business casual situations, have fun with including trendy details like fringe and unexpected footwear colors. Online influencer Cloudy Zakrocki offers an example of how an otherwise businesslike blazer becomes more playful and interesting when asymmetrical fringe is added. Zakrocki's light-colored trousers and neutral top are sophisticated, yet the dominant mood of her outfit is easygoing. You can replicate this look by layering a beige top under a fringed blazer; add trousers and a handbag in the same color family, but select shoes in a contrasting color. 

If you've built a capsule wardrobe for yourself, you probably own some basic separates like a beige linen blazer and black trousers that can be mixed and matched together to create professional-looking career outfits. On days you need to dress up, you could choose a black skirt instead of trousers. Chunky closed-toe high-heeled pumps make a fashion-forward finishing touch for this look.

In some offices, sleeveless sheath dresses are acceptable workwear; in others, they are forbidden. Some employers offer a summer dress code policy, and sleeveless dresses may be acceptable to wear in certain circumstances during the summer months; for example, they might be allowed when no one in the office has client appointments that day. If you decide to wear a sleeveless dress to work, choose one that has high-cut armholes and is otherwise businesslike. It's prudent to carry a matching jacket with you in case a last-minute client meeting comes up.

If you're starting a new job, it can be tricky to understand the nuances of how to dress for your new workplace. Kat Griffin, editor-in-chief of Corporette.com, advises women to make the safest possible fashion choices during their first week of employment at a corporate job. Griffin says, "For our $.02, fishnet tights are generally inappropriate for the office environment." Instead, she recommends nude-colored pantyhose with close-toed high heels, even in summertime. During your first week at work, you can scrutinize your co-workers' wardrobe choices; if the senior-level women you work with are not wearing hosiery, you're safe to ditch the pantyhose.