One way to increase the variety in your business casual wardrobe is to add more skirts and dresses into the mix, especially if dress slacks are your staple. Skirts and dresses REALLY change up your look because the silhouette variety for these items is greater than it is for slacks. Also, wearing skirts and dresses in the colder months allows you to have additional fun with hosiery and boots. Slacks, on the other hand, tend to hide hose, knee-high boots and bootie detailing. What a shame!

For most of my clients, my friends, and YLF forum members, dress slacks or pants are regarded as the easy, practical and comfortable business casual option. I have lost count of the number of times I have heard statements like…

“I don’t look good in skirts and dresses”

“I can’t wear hose because it is uncomfortable”

“My legs don’t look good enough to expose them”

“I can’t wear skirts and dresses because I don’t like high heels”

These are seldom true.

All women look fabulous in the right skirts and dresses. You’ll get used to wearing and liking nice hose. And dressy flats or one inch wedged heels are perfectly acceptable peds for business casual. As far as comfort goes, I’m personally more comfortable in a skirt or dress than dress slacks. In fact, I seldom wear pants for biz casual. If I’m not wearing a suit or cigarette pants, I’m in a skirt or frock.

Help me understand why so many women get into the dress pants rut. Is it about fitting into an environmental norm? Will your peers and superiors take you more seriously when you wear pants? Do you find skirt and dress outfits hard to combine?

For $49.95 (39.95 Euros), the quality of this trench coat cannot be beat. Unbelievable. Fabulously durable poly-cotton, neat topstitching, great drape, robust lining and above all, a flattering silhouette. Flop-proof design features like a V-shaped revere collar, waist defining tie belt, long sleeves and side entry pockets are what make this trench coat instantly attractive on most body types. The style also has a slightly A-line bottom half which gives it a fun retro flavor. Delicious in Spring’s new coral, or in an urban black.

High prices do not guarantee superior quality (especially when it comes to knitted fabrics) and low prices do not automatically imply shoddy quality. So you need to develop a discerning eye and judge the quality of a product for yourself.

Another win for H&M. My quality control bar is high, but this inexpensive trench passes with flying colours.

The links take you to H&M in Europe, but American shoppers will also find this trench in stores.

Rayon is a semi-synthetic fiber produced from naturally occurring polymers. It’s a killer fiber and one that I actively seek out in both woven and knitted items of clothing because of its superior drape, substance and luster.

The positive properties of rayon are especially noticeable in rayon-rich knitted tops. They feel as soft and cool against the body as natural fibers like cotton and silk, but they don’t cling because the fabric is weighty and substantial. This prevents the dreaded midriff muffin top cling. Also, synthetic fibers are more stable than natural fibers. So items made of rayon retain their shape after laundering, whereas often, cotton knit garments stretch out of shape. And the added sheen on the fiber is a plus because it makes for a more pristine garment.

These tried and tested knitted rayon garments are flattering on the body. Look at the drape on those sleeves! Delicious.

Every day I see countless people wearing jeans. Men, women and kids of all ages sporting jeans in all sorts of ways, all over the world, at any hour of the day. Jeans have got to be the most worn item in the world, and one of the largest money spinners in the fashion industry by sheer production volume alone.

So what would happen if we suddenly lived in a world without jeans? Total chaos! Half the population wouldn’t know what to wear. People would need to think much harder when picking an outfit in the morning. Shopping would be harder because stylish casual pants are hard to find. At least women could fall back on non-denim dresses and skirts. Blokes would have a much harder time of it.

As much as I love wearing jeans and enjoy sporting them regularly, every year I wear them less frequently than the year before. It’s quite liberating actually and definitely part of my style evolution. There is fashion and style life beyond jeans if you force yourself to choose other options. Could you live in a world without jeans?