Dry cleaning is not great for the environment, which makes me feel rightly guilty every time I do it (damn you, chocolate!). It is also expensive. Over the life of a $1,000 suit you will probably spend almost the same again on dry cleaning it (assuming you don’t grow out of it, which is obviously a completely unrealistic fantasy, but you might hand it down to the next generation if it’s a particularly good one).

Don’t even get me started on the number of dry-clean only shirts I’ve seen doing the rounds while writing WithPockets. Jackets don’t touch the skin – there’s a layer between you and the jacket (a shirt or a t-shirt or a top), meaning, if you don’t drop chocolate on them like me, they can go a while without a wash and a quick spritz with Febreze or vodka and no one will ever know (if you think for a second the person working in DJ’s department store didn’t do that with everything on the rack you’re dreaming…) . However, I wash shirts after every wear because I am a real-life girl who doesn’t smell of roses at the end of a 14-hour workday. That means I would need to dry clean that shirt after every time I wear it. That’s a hard no from me, budget-wise.

The easiest solution to dry-clean only tailoring is to go for a synthetic fabric suit. This used to be a by-word for ‘cheap and nasty’. However, these days with the invention of fabrics like ‘clever crepe’ you can get beautiful tailoring that you can put in the washing machine. I’m coming round to the idea, especially as this kind of fabric also packs really well for travelling.

Here are a few of my favourite stockists. Fair warning: machine-washable proper tailoring is something that is still surprisingly hard to get in Australia so you’ll need to get over the environmental impact of the air miles from the initial purchase – but I’m pretty sure that’s offset quickly by the lack of dry cleaning.

WithPockets x

Not ready for a paid subscription? You can always buy me a coffee…

Buy me a coffee

THE AMERICANS

For some reason, machine washable suiting is far more popular in America than it is in most places. I was going to say something uncharitable about the quality of the fabrics but really I have no idea why this. Potentially it’s driven by the death of the corner store dry cleaners? (athough a lot of Walmarts have dry cleaning concessions so really who knows? If you do know, please do tell me…)

M.M. LaFleur

I’ve featured M.M. LaFleur on WithPockets in the past and I’m sorry but I’m not sorry. At least 50% of the professional clothes they sell are washable, including suits and tailoring. They do particularly lovely office dresses that, if you have hips, will really work for you. Look for their Origami Tech, Clever Crepe and Travel ranges.

Ann Taylor

Ann Taylor’s suits are a little on the conservative side but my God do they do a decent sale (which is on at the moment). Also, you can actually search specifically for machine wash only tailoring on their website. Thought went into this and I am very here for it.

Banana Republic

In general Banana Republic’s “workwear” options are far too laid back. I love the idea that we all get to wear double denim in the office but in reality, even now, if you don’t work in a creative industry or a startup that doesn’t fly. However, what they are good for is shirts of all kinds, but particularly silk shirts that are machine washable.

JAPANESE INVENTIVENESS

The last time I was in Tokyo three years ago I spent A LOT of time in department stores. This was partly driven by the fact that I had made the fatal error to be in Tokyo in July (when it is about 40C and 100% humidity and people wear neck fans) and partly because I wanted to get up close and personal with Issey Miyake. However, one of the key fashion takeaways I had was how many emerging brands sold themselves on being machine washable.

AOKI

One of my absolute favourites for this is AOKI, who also like pockets in women’s wear a lot. Can we just have a moment of joy for the description of this houndstooth blazer:

Frankly, this ticks all my boxes.

Uniqlo

Whisper it: Uniqlo shirts are surprisingly good. I have a black one with a mandarin collar that I bring travelling with me a lot because it never needs ironing. Let me repeat that it never needs ironing. I have no idea how they have achieved this mastery but I wash this shirt, dry it on a hangar and it looks fabulous with suit trousers or a skirt. I think it cost me less than $50. I notice their Uniqlo:C brand now have the stand collar shirts, which are a variation on the scarf collar and look excellent.

The other great thing about Uniqlo is that if you have young teenagers, which I do, the range of sizes they stock means they can also wear them. The downside of this, as I have discovered, is that they will look better in them than you do and, related, my merino wool sweaters have now been taken (I am clinging onto the shirt…)

BRITISH PRACTICALITY

There have been cheaper machine washable suits available in the UK for many years but you wouldn’t exactly call them ‘stylish’ or ‘executive’. This has changed for the better lately and this is driven by ecological as well as practical demand.

Marks and Spencer

I featured them in the last edition too, which I’ll be honest I really never saw myself doing. When I was growing up M&S was what your nan wore. However, lately they have really upped their game in the style stakes. Their M&S range seems to be almost entirely machine washable and wouldn’t look out of place in the board room. There has been a lot of chatter about their woven faux leather clothes, which apparently look identical to Balanciaga’s latest range but are about 100^th of the price. M&S is B-Corp certified.

Jigsaw

Gone are the days past when I once bought an empire-line dress from Jigsaw which made me look distinctly like Mr Collin’s wife from Pride and Prejudice and went straight to a charity shop. Jigsaw’s clothes are extremely good and I have several items in my wardrobe. Their clothes are not only eco-friendly and sustainable by design, they are also often machine washable. Look for the cupro and crepe lines in particular.

The Fold London

I would buy literally everything from The Fold if I had the money. Their Clever Crepe range is machine washable and fabulously structed. It’s not cheap but at the moment there’s 15% off (use code READY15). I’ll see you at the checkout.

How much time do you spend at the dry cleaners? Or are all of your clothes machine washable? Tell us…

I don’t tend to buy clothes in charity shops (however, I’m proud to say my donated clothes have graced the window display of our local Vinnies Op Shop for 16 consecutive weeks now, which feels like the ultimate vindication of my taste…). I know a lot of women who adore shopping in charity shops (including a surprising number of very senior female executives) but I don’t have the patience for it. When I’m shopping, I’m usually looking for something specific. It’s not unusual for me to walk into a regular shop, scan the racks and walk out again in 20 seconds if nothing piques my interest or the clothes are badly displayed (I mean, just buy a clothes steamer…). Also, I normally don’t have time to shop when shops are open because I frequently work ridiculous hours.

So, most of my second-hand buys are from eBay or specific second-hand online retailers. And I’m strategic about how I shop; or rather, I’ve learned from bitter experience to only buy certain items second-hand. I’ll tell you more about this below…

I also buy a lot of my clothes from archive and outlet sales because I’m not tied to what’s ‘in’ this season. If I like something, I’ll wear it regardless of whether it’s ‘on trend’. And frankly, if you have enough patience, clothing trends are cyclical and the styles you like will come around into fashion again sooner than you think.

If this all sounds like you, read on…

WithPockets x

WHERE I SPLURGE

Here are the items I’m guaranteed to spend proper money on and I never buy second-hand:

Knitwear

I never buy knitwear second-hand because knitwear requires preservation, and most people don’t take care of their clothes. Even if you don’t have the money for an Acme sweater, these days cashmere and merino wool are so ubiquitous and cheap in places like Uniqlo, it isn’t worth not buying it new. The other reason I never buy knitwear second hand was that years ago I bought a jumper from eBay that looked from the pictures to be in immaculate condition, and when I finally received it in the mail it transpired it had been shrunk in a dryer to about 1/3 its natural size and would probably only fit a cat.

Jackets

I’m generally pretty good at gauging if something will suit my body shape from pictures online but somehow jackets are my blind spot. I have made many bad online jacket purchases over the years so now I have a rule that I always need to try them on. An ill-fitting jacket or one with cheap fabric is always the first thing people notice (and it’s even more noticeable on men) so this one matters.

Flat shoes

My father used to buy his shoes from a Shoesmith in Jermyn Street because he was raised on the old saying that people judge a man by the quality of his shoes. By the way, they were always Oxford Brogues, which Guy Ritchie is completely wrong about in the movie franchise Kingsman.

I don’t know that saying holds true anymore, but I do know that it’s worth investing in a decent pair of flat (or low heel) shoes because they last. When I was younger, I bought a number of cheap shoes, and they never stood up to the amount of walking I do (which is a lot). Lesson learned.

Bags

This is a matter of personal preference, but I’ll never buy a bag second-hand because I don’t want to think about what’s been in it in the past...

WHERE I SAVE

Dresses

I have a very good track record of success buying designer work and event dresses on eBay. This is because many women only wear a ‘nice’ dress a couple of times before they grow out of it or grow tired of it. This has worked to my advantage for years.

High-heeled shoes and boots

For the same reasons above, I often get these second-hand. But they’re often not actually second-hand because many women buy high heels and wear them once, if at all. Especially post-Covid. I don’t wear heels all the time but if I have an important meeting I find they give me a confidence boost (OK, maybe I just enjoy intimidating short men…). I also wear heels if I’m going out with my husband because he is ridiculously tall and I don’t want to look like a child who’s being taken out for a treat.

Trousers

I buy suit trousers in the sales, but I will never buy them second-hand. Woollen suit trousers become shiny with wear, and no one wants to turn up to work with their backside looking like a public statue that people rub for good luck.

El Vecino Curioso statue in Madrid (picture credit: Alberto Andrés, TripAdvisor)

Glasses and sunglass frames

It’s not unheard of for me to buy second hand designer sunglasses and then get the lenses replaced by an optician. If I see frames I like I’m going to do that anyway because I have a prescription, so why not get something no one else has? After all, only the frames are ‘designer’ – the glass inside them is the same no matter what.

What do you spend money on and where do you save? What are your red lines? Also, I could write a whole article just on the strategies I use to save time and money on second-hand clothing websites, let me know if you’d be interested in that…

I’ve decided I’ll do an ‘edit’ article once a month, wrapping up current office-wear trends and things I’ve seen around the traps. I’ll also look to give you a flavour of what’s about to hit the shops because, despite having almost no followers itself, the WithPockets Instagram account has already been invited to about a million secret squirrel chat channels for fashion insiders. This is hilarious to me and feels very much like when I was in my twenties and was somehow on any number of ultra-cool nightclub VIP lists despite not being famous or going to nightclubs that often.

This month it’s official, we can mark the death of two of the most ubiquitous trends in recent fashion: the Fisk brown suit and the barrel-leg trouser. Burgundy, baby pink, and wide leg trousers are where office fashion is heading, folks.

However, just when you think you’ve successfully banished two bad trends, two new ones enter the chat; leather dresses and puffball skirts and jackets. Yes, we’ve replaced one ‘80’s fashion remix with another.

I actually like the look of some of the leather shift dresses, but it’s optimistic they will translate well to Australia. The forecast for this Autumn (for Northern Hemisphere readers, everything is the opposite here, even seasons…) shows we’re in for a warmer than average winter with low rainfall. The words ‘warm’ and ‘leather’ never work well together (which is why you never see Goths in Fiji). Also, biblical flooding can and does return at any time in Australia (for those in the North of Australia, it never went away…), and when it does, that leather dress will be a mould magnet…

Finally, it looks like someone high up in Peter Shepherd read last week’s WithPockets article on comfortable shoes as an extensive range of Spanish footwear brand Chie Mihara is now available Down Under as of this week. Woohoo!

WithPockets x

A new colour palette

In the words of Gillian Anderson’s new fabulously feminist Marks and Spencer’s ‘Chief Compliments Officer’ adverts, can I say a big ‘Love that!’ to Perri Cutten’s latest season of trouser suits? See below, they’re absolutely ‘chef’s kiss’.

Perri Cutten Alto Wool Suit in Bordeaux seen below with the Florence Leather Dress in Burgundy. Yes, even the dress has pockets!

Perri Cutten’s Adelena Suit in dusty pink is also beautiful – and it has an unusual long cut to the jacket and no lapels, which somehow looks completely new and different.

If you prefer a lapel but like the longer line, ME + EM do a really lovely light pink blazer. It has a twill weave, so it’s got a bit of character. Not sure how the light pink trousers will fare colour-wise after a domestic flight or two though...

Staying on the pale pink theme, Bianca Spender’s Powder Wool Mutual Jacket is pretty much the ideal Spring/Autumn transition jacket.

Regrettably, this jacket does not have pockets owing to its shape, which is a shame or it would be a strong contender for jacket of the year (at this rate, I’m going to need to do a whole article on jackets…)

Also at Bianca Spender, this (slightly pricey) shirt with a funnel collar caught my eye.

You can’t tell from the picture above but the website photos make it look very Fran Leibowitz, whose uncompromising trademark looks I can only aspire to in my Autumn years. I also love that, in the sea of dry clean only shirts in the shops right now (seriously, who thought that was a good idea?) this one is 100% cotton and would do fine on a cold gentle hand wash setting in the washing machine.

Considerably more affordable, is this Jaegar Cotton Modal Jersey Woven midi skater dress. It looks absolutely nothing like its name (with the exception of the fabric). I would love to show it to you, but sadly Marks&Spencer’s social media marketing is best described as ‘vibes based’ (lots of British people eating strawberries from hampers), with the exception of the Gillian Anderson campaign. The dress has a cowl neck, cinched waist and pockets (hooray!) and would look incredible in the office. Definitely worthy of a compliment from Gillian.

M&S’s own brand Pure Cotton Balloon Sleeve Jacket is a good (much cheaper) alternative to the Bianca Spender jacket above and will probably be sold out in about 5 minutes flat so I’d get in quick if I were you.

Finally, a confession. I meant to include another shoe brand in last week’s article on comfortable shoes and I only remembered it the next day. If you don’t already, you should also definitely know about Parisian shoe brand Carel, which stocks the kind of low-to-mid heel shoes that allow French women to effortlessly traipse the streets of Paris looking fabulous. My favourites are the silver ballet shoes with a slight Cuban heel (yes, really), which would go well with pretty much any of the clothes above

What’s caught your eye lately? And how do you feel about the prospect of leather shift dress? (or a light pink suit?) Let us know!

Office dressing has obviously evolved since the pandemic – mostly in a good way – and in many office environments you can now get away with a trouser suit and sneakers (/trainers) combination. This is particularly good news if you have a job that involves you being on your feet all day – and long overdue. However, it is not universal by any means.

There are still plenty of office environments where there’s a formal dress code. Corporates and legal firms have returned seamlessly to the old ways of dressing except on ‘casual Fridays’ and that means proper shoes (some corporate workplaces still want you to wear tights at all times. Even in the heat of summer. To them I say, it’s an office, not a bloody religious sect).

So, what do you do if you work in one of those offices? You either decide the sector isn’t for you, or you find office-worthy shoes that are comfortable. This is no mean feat, particularly in Australia where our shops stock thongs (that’s ‘flip flops’ for my UK readers. Australians push the boundaries of casual dressing, but not that far…), crocs and runners – and, on the other end of the spectrum, the kind of killer heels Margot Robbie wears in Barbie. There is very little in-between.

In the interests of transparency, I’ll admit that I don’t mind a decent heel as long as it has some stability. I have extremely high arches (like an actual Barbie doll) and high heels often work better for me than flats (I’m praying I haven’t just opened the door to a deluge of fan mail from Substack foot fetishists in writing this…). However, I realise I am very much in the minority, and consequently the below list is geared to the 99.99% of women of my acquaintance who just want a stylish, comfortable low-to-mid size heel that doesn’t make you look like your aged Aunt who wears orthopaedic stockings.

Picture below for inspiration from a recent shopping trip of mine (they survived a schlep around Parliament House last week so I can vouch for them being extremely comfortable).

WithPockets x

Go European

My number one tip would be to look to European shoesmiths. European women don’t wear high heels to the same degree as women from Australia and the US (where there’s a strong car culture). This is often because the commute to work involves walking across cobblestones and nothing destroys a Manolo Blahnik stiletto faster (or causes a broken ankle more easily…). Despite what street style blogs show you, you’ll rarely see a woman in Paris or Stockholm in heels outside a dinner date (Romans are a different breed and frankly I have no idea how they live in such constant peril…)

Chie Mihara

Yes there have been a lot of Spanish brands featured lately in WithPockets lately but I swear this is an absolute coincidence. Chie Mihara do ultra-comfy cushioned soles and showstopper uppers in bold patterns and colours. They’re not for the faint-hearted but you’ll definitely get stopped in the lift at work and asked where you bought them. Sadly, none of their Instagram posts will display here so you’ll just have to visit the website.

Neous

If you’re in the market for a Louboutin price-wise but you want something a little less high and flashy, Neous do the kind of ultra-classy mid-size heels Jacquie Kennedy would have worn.

TOTEME

On the other side of Europe, and on the other end of the Kennedy fashion spectrum, TOTEME do the kind of stylish flats that Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy would most definitely have rocked in the office in the days before she gave up her job to live in Camelot.

Anonymous Copenhagen

Anonymous Copenhagen do boots and flats that bring the hipness and comfort of a trainer while staying inside office rules. I know a number of people who swear by them.

Enjoying WithPockets but not ready for a paid subscription?
You can always buy me a coffee..

Buy me a coffee

The Anglophones

Walking is a big thing in London. You’re always somehow about 5-10 minutes from the Tube (and always 45 minutes away from where you need to be regardless of how close into town you live). So London is a good place to start for a pair of comfortable office shoes. There are obvious, dependable brands like Dune and Hobbs - but here are some others you might not have considered...

ME + EM

More well known for their officewear, ME+EM also do the most appealing loafers, courts and pumps to go with them. Their Spring/Summer collection has the most incredibly lovely mid-heel Mary Jane slingbacks in candy pastels. They may well be my next purchase.

Marks and Spencer

This may come as a surprise but if you’re on a budget, I absolutely recommend Marks and Spencer office shoes (Australians, your link is here - sadly the range of shoes they’re willing to ship to us is smaller at the moment). M&S are particularly good if you prefer a wider fit after years of wearing sneakers. For the price you’d be hard pushed to beat them.

Anthropologie

Here’s an American brand that doesn’t often make an appearance in WithPockets because they sell very little in the way of ‘work wear’ and more in the way of Carrie Bradshaw from Sex in the City (you may well be able to get away with a Taos-batik crossover sundress poncho in your office but I can’t…). However, what Anthropologie does have, is an excellent selection of American shoe designers, decent international shipping (as of now, anyway…) and very good sales (even better at the moment with the exchange rate).

The Australian outliers

For those of you who’ve been exclaiming since the start of this article “but there are Australian shoesmiths who do comfy shoes! I own some”, you’re right - but they aren’t exactly on every street corner. If you’re living in Australia you probably already know these brands but if not, you should get to know and love them (and not only because global shipping is probably about to be disrupted).

Frankie 4

Frankie 4’s entire raison d’etre is comfortable work shoes and, according to numerous friends of mine, you won’t even want to kick them off at the end of a long day. Their loafers look particularly good (I can’t fit them sadly because of the freaky ballet dancer feet).

Bared Footwear

The other brand you should know is Bared, which have a bit more range than Frankie 4 and they even organise their website by heel height. None of their shoes would look out of place in even the most restrictive corporate environment.

Where do you find your shoes? Does anyone out there actually prefer a bit of a heel or is it just me? Let me know…

But it’s also a on…

Read more

I live in Australia, which has been hotter, and more humid, than a Turkish Ha…

Read more

Read more

What I won’t be writing about is the continuing trend for clothes in dirt, khaki, and various shades of brown (you’ll notice I…

Read more

Obviously, women are individual…

Read more

I travel hand luggage only for both business and pleasure, regardless of how long I’m going away. I also (despite the extensive amount of travelling I…

Read more

I used to think being an executive would involve a lot of power dressing, high heels and blow-dries. More often it meant 14-hour+ working days, gruelling travel, and a schedule where a pee break counts as ‘me time’.

Talking to other women in similar level roles to me – partners in consultancies, executives of government agenc…

Read more

Subscribe now

Read more