Business Casual : A How-To Guide for Lost College Students

Sister Cate Casparius is here to ease you into the real world with an in-depth guide on how to style for interviews, internships, and other business-related events.

So, business casual…

What is it? Why? How? Where? Business - what? WHAT????

Trust me; I had all of those same questions until one free day over Thanksgiving break lead me to spend 5 hours inside LOFT and Marshalls trying on so many outfits that I closed all of the fitness rings on my Apple Watch.

Here’s the deal, by this time in our lives (mid-college), we’ve had to dress for proms, the halls of high school, winter formals, waitressing jobs, movie nights, etc.

But, where most of us hit a roadblock is that first time we’re required to dress in business casual attire. I am fortunate enough to have multiple different styles filling up my closet for other events, but what the past 20 years of my life didn’t prepare me for was these two daunting words…

Business. Casual.

You’ll need it for job interviews, business-oriented club meetings, internships, and more. It basically feels like once we graduate college, our style goes from spunky, unique, and vast to strictly business casual.

First, I’ll ease you into everything with an basic guide that’ll work for any and every business casual event you have.

This is all you’ll need, to start:

Screen Shot 2020-12-17 at 10.43.28 PM.png — **You’ll need a blazer.**

Okok, you don’t NEED a jacket because you can create a kick-a** business casual outfit with a cute top and pants, BUT I do have to say, it’s a staple you should invest in, and it can take any outfit that one extra step you might need. A blazer completes an outfit. I don’t know about you but, whenever I complete my outfits with a blazer, I feel confident, put together, and ready for anything ahead.
When it comes to purchasing your first blazer, I highly recommend dropping $30-$40 on a cute blazer from either Target (my favorite brand from them is A New Day), Old Navy/ Gap, and Marshalls. These stores have the perfect staple blazers that will LAST and will NOT break the bank. ***This exact blazer is $35 from*** ***Old Navy***.

**Start your journey with a *simple* top.**

You can’t go wrong showing up to an interview with solid colors unless you’re like a fashion major or something, but for me, a marketing major, solid tops and bottoms have been the majority of my business casual purchases so far. The nice thing about this top (which is $50 from ***LOFT*** ) is that it’s incredibly versatile - you can wear it for business casual events, but you can also wear it for brunch, dinner, shopping on the streets, etc. Not to mention it looks so sleek with the LOFT pants and blazer mentioned above. You’ll look put together and stylish. What more could you want?

Jewelry … I’m team gold. Ok, really silvery or gold works - personally, I wear silver for almost every event in life, but when it comes to business events, I always tend to go gold - something about it just feels so professional, I don’t know. This … — **Jewelry … I’m team gold.**
Ok, really silvery or gold works - personally, I wear silver for almost every event in life, but when it comes to business events, I always tend to go gold - something about it just feels so professional, I don’t know. This necklace is $38, and these earrings are $20 from ***Madewell***. I’d basically recommend any of Madewell’s jewelry for an interview or business-related events - it’s pretty, low-key, versatile, AND I’ve had these earrings for 2 years now - they LAST.

Screen Shot 2020-12-17 at 10.43.13 PM.png — **You’ll need a plain pair of pants, similar to leggings but made with nicer, more professional material.**

These exact pants are my go-to pants that go with EVERYTHING, look amazing on ANYONE, and are just so simple and comfortable. These are from LOFT (one of my main places to shop business casual), and they’re $50. I know $50 is steep, but that’s why I’m advising you to buy these. *They don’t go out of style; they’re made with polyester and rayon, so they’ll last more than 5 days, and you seriously cannot go wrong wearing these to an interview, internship, etc.*

Screen Shot 2020-12-19 at 3.50.21 PM.png — **Ah, shoes… you’ll definitely need something other than your Nike Air Force 1s.**

I don’t have much advice for this category - basically, just make sure you’re not walking into an interview with sneakers. Pictured above is a $35 pair of block heeled booties from Target. The nice thing about these is that they’re simple but not too simple - you really can’t go wrong with plain booties. ALSO, I wear these to brunch, the fall pumpkin patches, and more non-business related outings, it’s a win-win!

Screen Shot 2020-12-17 at 10.44.22 PM.png

Now that I’ve eased you into this it doesn’t seem so scary, does it?

It takes practice, but you’ll get the hang of it quick, I promise!!! Venturing out and expanding your style is exciting and can be really fun if you make it. Make Pinterest boards, shop, and try stuff on, go outside of your comfort zone - you might surprise yourself and completely fall in love with this whole business casual look!!!

OH! And one more thing …

If you’re shopping and have to ask yourself, “Is this slutty?” the answer might not necessarily be yes, BUT if you have to think about it, I recommend finding something else!

Once you’ve purchased the basics, head down below and shop my favorite pieces from my go-to brands…

BUT WAIT !! BEFORE YOU SCROLL ANY FURTHER, CLOSE YOUR LAPTOP AND HEAD OVER TO THE CLOSEST TARGET, GAP, OLD NAVY AND MARSHALLS AND SHOP THER FIRST.. THEY HAVE ANY AND EVERYTHING FOR THE BEST BEST BEST PRICES!