Drawing on old favourites

It's exhausting choosing outfits 5 days a week, without being able to resort to jeans and a sweater. I've been trying to return to old favourites - to varying degrees of success.

I loved this look originally. I thought I could make it a little more "cold spring day" and it loses all my interest. In fact, I'm thinking this shirt is nearing its last days.

I like subtly starting to do non-traditional colour mixing. It really wasn't that hard going from a trouser jean to wide leg black pants

And again, fancy-ing up another favourite.

And finally, I did a play on what is still one of my favourite outfits from last year

Business Casual

I was told that there was no official dress code, but general business casual attire was accepted. There is no term that confuses people more than "business casual". To me, the traditional business casual attire is dress pants, dress shirts, and sweaters. So for my first week of work, I wore exclusively dress pants, dress shirts, and sweaters.

Day one, I went with a ruffled collared dress shirt (not properly shown in photo), a shawl collared sweater (new, stolen from my sister), and a blue on black pinstripe pair of trousers. I really hope that they look better in real life than in the photo. Since I knew I'd be walking, I went with conservative black, casual wedges.

Day two, I started pattern mixing, which was a bit strange for me. I don't do a lot of pattern mixing at the best of times. However, I went with a collared green and white shirt with a glenplaid trouser that reads as a solid. I topped it with a black cardigan, and bottomed it with a very quintessential oxford with the twist - a heel.

I even ended off the week with trousers, collared shirts and sweaters! I had seen Cori of La Petite Vie wear a similar outfit and immediately filed it in my inspiration. It was the perfect opportunity to navigate the even more vague "Friday" of the "Business casual world". I felt so confident in this outfit, calling it the "Business casual three piece suit".

Cardigan Vs. Blazer: the Rematch

Given the influx of cardigans in my closet, I couldn't let blazers have the last word. Sure, it is easy to throw in a blazer to complete a look, cardigans have rewards of their own.

They can add softness to a harsh outfit. Whether it's a soft knit, or a sweeping style, paired with typically masculine patterns (tweed and stripe) and conservative styles (pencil skirt and dress shirt - ok, this is a little less conservative of a shirt than I could have gone), it makes the outfit more approachable.

And perhaps the best reason I have to choose a cardigan over a blazer? Colour. As blazers typically fall under "investment pieces," given the difficulty to find an appropriately fitting blazer typically comes with a larger price tag, they tend to stay within safe neutral colours. Cardigans, particularly those in inferior quality which don't seem be any harder to fit than those of higher quality, are easier to purchase in larger quantities, and in a larger variety of colours.
  

A bright wrap sweater - the perfect alternative to the blazer!

Where do you weigh in? Blazers or cardigans?