There are few people who do not spend at least a little bit of time fussing over what to wear in the morning. Everybody wants to go to work looking presentable and, as a result, we spend plenty of time faffing each morning, trying to put together an outfit suitable for the workplace.

Some of the most successful people in the world simplify this down to the bare minimum. Take Mark Zuckerberg, for example, recently in the public eye after stating that he aims to make as few decisions as possible by wearing the same outfit every day — a grey t-shirt and blue pair of jeans. The same goes for Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who also decided on the same daily outfit of just jeans and a black turtleneck sweater. Art director Matilda Kahl proved that this could also be applied to work clothes for women when she encouraged wearing the exact same thing to work every day.

Now you’re probably not the CEO of Facebook or Apple and, like us, you also probably don’t want to be wearing the exact same outfit to work every day of the week . Nevertheless, you can probably relate to this reasoning and somewhat envy this simplicity.

Wearing the same outfit day in, day out is not something we see ourselves doing, but we do accept that there are ways to reduce decision making while maintaining style and variety, without letting your wardrobe become too repetitive. This starts by establishing some key luxury items and making the rest of your wardrobe cohere with these specific items and complement them…

Quality Over Quantity: Identifying Those Luxury Items

Fashion is moving more and more towards the minimalistic. It is something that helps this problem immensely and something we at Duchess London love. A minimalist approach to fashion that encourages quality over quantity is a big part of our ethic, and the capsule wardrobe trend that’s recently swept the nation is something we could not advocate more.

The first step to a coherent and condensed wardrobe is identifying those significant luxury items, those celebrities of your wardrobe! You want a few of these that you build your wardrobe around. As Kelly Dougher summed up:

“The goal is to have a streamlined wardrobe of high-quality pieces that can be worn often and interchangeably, thereby saving money, closet space, and time.”

This is the heart of your outfit, and having several high-quality luxury items that can be worn both as work clothes and to social events means that decisions can be reduced elsewhere. Work clothes for women come in many styles, so it’s important to think about variety of style here — but also aim for items that go well with everything. Different necklines and different colours are key, but they must also be items that are versatile.

Good-Quality Neutral Basics: Your Wardrobe’s Unsung Heroes

Now here is where we can take a little bit out of Mr Zuckerberg’s book and apply it to women’s working outfits. Those highquality basics are the unsung heroes of anybody’s wardrobe; they sit back and let the luxury items do the talking while looking smart and modest. Neutral colours are recommended to accompany your luxury items. Light pastel colours like cream to darker colours like navy and grey are safe bets and can be worn interchangeably with different colours of luxury item, but black is nearly always the safest bet.

While it is worth investing in some neutral colours, it’s also important to have a substantial amount of black in your wardrobe to help compliment the rest of your outfit. Black has long been associated as the most intelligent and presentable colour, which is the reason it’s often considered ideal for work clothes, regardless of gender. It doesn’t clash with anything, works for any season and looks good on just about everybody.

Black trousers are the ideal working clothes; you can wear them several times a week without anyone batting an eyelid, because the focus remains with your luxury top half and they reduce any decision making in the morning. Find the right fit and style that looks equally impressive at work as they do at a social event, then let them take a back seat and complement your luxury items.

The same goes for skirts. A couple of well-fitting pencil skirts in dark, neutral colours like blacks, greys and navys can be worn with almost anything and in any scenario. A neutral skirt or pair of trousers with a shirt or blazer is an extremely presentable look. You can pull on a sweater or cardigan after work and go for drinks without any issue of being overdressed.

Sturdy Dark Shoes

Everybody loves a pair of flashy new shoes, don’t they? But you don’t need these in abundance. One key pair that can be worn for special events should stay in your cupboard, but you should invest in safe, neutral shoes that address each season for working environments. Nobody judges somebody by what’s on their feet. A pair of flats and a pair of heels in dark, neutral colours like navy and black are sure bets for working and social environments.

Again these let the focus remain on your upper luxury items, they look presentable and modest, but they also camouflage any dirt. Simple black heels worn with an Audrey Hepburn Dress, for example, is the ultimate elegant — yet versatile — look and a sure winner when it comes to women’s work clothing.

For different seasons, you need to consider which boots can be worn successfully and still cohere with your luxury items. Dark leather riding boots are good for colder days and can be worn with both dark trousers and pencil skirts. They stop your feet from getting wet and let you walk through the streets comfortably. They’re light but durable and can be worn to work without issue.