Are you dressing down for work tomorrow?

Dress down day or freaky Friday originated from the US of A, thanks for that all of you over the pond!



US owned, UK based companies started the trend and it has spread over the last twenty or so years. The original idea was that as the weekend approaches we wear more casual clothes to work, the business thinking behind this was that if people are dressed in a more relaxed style, they will feel more relaxed on the inside and so enjoy the day more and so in turn performance should increase, (I’m not too sure about this last point).



So the professional business dress will be relaxed for a day and instead employees are invited to wear smart casual clothes.



Our European cousins “do” smart casual to a tee, they have it captured in an art form, indeed a lot of disposable income in the Europe is spent on clothes, grooming products and accessories. In contrast, we in the UK would rather go to B&Q and buy geraniums, or even a whole new kitchen then invest our spare cash on some clothes that are not normal at work wear so why waste our money.


The outcome of this is that on a Friday morning, millions of wardrobe doors across the UK are flung open and people frantically rummage to find something to wear that they haven’t worn all week.  It's a challenge!

What To Wear When The Heat Is On

The heat is on, it’s June the sun is out and the temperature is generally hot. This is great news if you are on holiday but what does it mean if you have to stay in the office?



How can you wear summer clothes appropriately and still convey professionalism?



Gentleman first:-



• Swap long sleeved shirts for short sleeves.



• Drop the colour of your suit (if you wear one), or trousers several shades to a lighter one, even if you currently wear navy, drop the shade down at least two bars.

• Check the labels of the fabrics you are wearing, if there is more than 50% synthetic fibres consider ditching them. They will just make you feel hotter rather than natural fibres which will make you feel cooler.



Ladies Next:



• In a formal business environment it is okay to show your toe nails but not your heels at the same time and vice versa.



• Look in the mirror and check the amount of flesh on show, this includes arms, cleavage and legs. More than 30 % is a bit too much, and results in you look as if you are heading off to the beach before you finish your working day.



• Check the fabrics that you are wearing are more light weight than the ones you were wearing all through the winter.



And finally,



Enjoy the sunshine, even if you do have to wait until the weekend!

My husband says Swishing is just another word for Jumble Sale!


I regularly tell my mother of her child neglect…the fact that I didn’t own a new, (to me) dress until the age of five.



You see I grew up in the age of church jumble sales, this, combined with parents that grew up during the war meant that I had a general childhood of thrift. I was not alone of course, and my experiences have left me craving so much more of less, whilst other friends have revolted and would sooner go near a charity or second hand shop than have their toe nails pulled out.



But for me the lure of second hand is so much, much more attractive than new. I just love rummaging and finding things that look sad and lonely but with a little bit of accessorising and matching to the right body shape look absolutely fabulous.



In the last few years the role of an image consultant has changed radically, in a recession it is the consultants who have managed to revitalise existing wardrobes that have survived.



For me personally I have been in seventh heaven. Whilst I totally enjoy shopping trips, and a recent one involved buying a whole new working wardrobe for a Marketing Director taking up a new role where she had worked from home for the last 5 years was really useful and necessary. I far more enjoy the projects where I have to use what I currently have and mesh this into a working wardrobe that is practical, cost effective and works as a capsule.



Coming soon, (once I have got to grips with the new camera lead) will be my photos from a recent assignment of just that.



If you want to find out more about swishing this is a great web site.


If you are local to Peterborough, and want to come along to a swish look here.







Photo courtesy of http://www.swishing.com/

One Day To Go!

Just to let you know that there is just one day to go until the next official Wallace & Grommit Wrong Trousers Day.

I advise people how clothes go together, how to co-ordinate and how to have a wardrobe with minimal spend but with maximum things to wear in it.

So just for fun, go on, tomorrow is wrong trousers day.  Here is how to do it in style if you are a little unsure.

http://www.youtube.com/WGChildrenFoundation

Enjoy!

How can I stand out in today’s competitive job market?

Believe it or not you are unique! You are the only person who can be you, so in order to stand out from the sea of potential job applicants you need to demonstrate what you are, what you can do, and most importantly how you do things.



Most applications and CV’s are full of bland meaningless words and statements that recruiters have read over and over again, for example “enjoys working as part of a team”. To stand out from the crowd you need to analyse the job advert to identify exactly what the recruiter is looking for. Match this list with examples of what you have done in your previous jobs; highlight your personality in describing how you achieved these things. Doing this will demonstrate your uniqueness and allow you and your application to shine out.

Did you know that today marks the start of Volunteer's Week?

It is official, the 1st to the 7th of June is volunteer’s week…so what you ask?

 

 

 

I have been chiming on for a number of years about the fantastic opportunities that volunteering can offer, as I believe a lot of people perceive the voluntary sector is mainly about working with the elderly, changing knickers and possibly delivering library books. If you too think this, you are wrong!

 

 

 

Volunteering can:-

 

 

 

Provide you with insights into a different culture


Give opportunities to meet new people


Mean you try your hand at something different


Use your natural skills and talents


Motivate you


Help you to learn something new


Make you get out of the house

 

Lots of clients I meet, for lots of different reasons are not ready, or not able to go back into the world of paid work, volunteering has really worked for them.

 

 

 

Recently I have had clients who have:-

 

 

 

Felled trees, built fences, catalogued a newt collection, set up a mentoring scheme in a prison, provided financial advice to those considering going into a residential home.

 

 

 

The benefits they have reaped from volunteering have been huge, both in terms of their personal fulfilment and also the addition to their CV’s.

 

 

 

If you are local to me in Cambridgeshire, the Peterborough Voluntary Centre is a really good place to start your journey into what opportunities there might be for you in volunteering.

 

 

 

For more information nationally on volunteering week