It can be so easy to fall into the trap of buying cheap, poorly made fashion in order to keep up with trends and save money. However, here at The 400 Co, we’ve found that these pieces don’t tend to last long both in quality and in style and may even be costing you more in the long run. We also know that trends come and go – but your personal style should be eternal.

We’ve realised that it’s far more important for professional women to invest in high quality, timeless wardrobe pieces than rushing to buy each and every trend. This way you can mix and match to create strong outfits, which truly reflect your personal style and will last the test of time.

Step 1: Wardrobe Audit

It’s time to get serious about your wardrobe! Many of us are guilty of buying big with cheap, trendy clothes, which fall apart after a few wears. So now is the time for the wardrobe audit! This allows you to decide which clothes and accessories must go and which will stay. A great idea to ensure an effective audit is to create at least three outfits around each article of clothing. Each article in your wardrobe should be versatile and lasting.

Once you’ve finished your wardrobe audit and donated to the op shop, you should think about what pieces would improve your existing selection of clothes or whether you need a complete wardrobe reboot! Ultimately, you need to decide whether your wardrobe truly reflects your personal style. 

Step 2: Find your Style

When crafting your personal style, it is essential to understand what clothes and accessories you need. In particular, you should be looking for high quality and timeless items, which ultimately complement your personal style. For example, do you prefer a more minimal approach and yet your wardrobe is filled with colour and prints? Or have you stocked up on ultra-formal work clothing that you don’t feel comfortable in and never wear.

Finding your style is involves researching different looks (Pinterest is a great place to start) and comparing which outfits you like with what you will realistically feel comfortable and confident to wear. Online look books and fashion campaigns are also ideal for those who need a little assistance to visualize and associate certain styles with familiar products. Once you’ve identified your personal style, you then need to find pieces, which will create your new favourite outfits. 

Step 3: Fill in the Blanks

Now it may be easy to fill the gaps of your wardrobe with every cheap, trending item again – but we need to change this way of thinking if you want to achieve that timeless wardrobe. High quality pieces, which stand the test of time should be seen as an investment in your personal style and confidence. We believe that by shopping around and putting a little extra thought into each purchase, working out different ways to wear the item, you are likely to even save money in the long run and you don’t need to continuously update or replace items in your wardrobe.

When it comes to women’s corporate work wear, we can’t go past the highly versatile essentials such as well fitted pencil skirts, bold blazers and colourful print blouses. Remember, the more thought and effort you put into building your wardrobe, the more satisfaction it will give you in return.