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…

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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!

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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).

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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.

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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 one-off article because there’s a sad lack of TV shows depicting modern executive women. Although every year we’re seeing more women at the top of the tree, you’re still more likely to see a woman on TV running away from a murderer than running a company.

Or, more accurately, running a country, as it turns out there are only really two corporate roles for women on TV: lawyer or politician / bureaucrat. Luckily, I happen to know quite a bit about the outfit codes for both these sectors, so let’s dive in…

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The Diplomat (Netflix)

Image credit: Netflix

“How is this a $1,600 piece of clothing? It does not even have pockets.” (Keri Russell in The Diplomat)

Preach, Keri. Probably more than any other TV show of recent times, The Diplomat, gets it. Ostensibly The Diplomat is the tale of a Middle East policy expert who thrives on danger and bad decision-making duped into being a symbolic figurehead (Ambassador to the Court of St James) by her Machiavellian husband. However, I prefer to think of it as one woman’s personal battle to wear the dark pant suits she prefers in a demanding public-facing role where she is often too busy to take a shower.

Particularly good is the scene in Season 2 where the US Vice President, played by Alison Janney (if only), delivers a withering analysis of Keri Russell’s wardrobe faux pas.

Alison Janney has a point (Alison Janney always has a point). I also second her advice (different scene) about the usefulness of hair grips. If you have baby hairs, or hair that, in the words of my hairdresser, “really does its own thing”, hair grips and hairspray stop you looking like you walked through a hedge to get to the meeting.

What The Diplomat gets wrong

For the love of God why so many satin shirts? In practice, unless you carry anti-static spray they cling to you like a toddler and hot flush sweat stains become an actual water mark on a satin shirt if you wear deodorant. Hard no.

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All’s Fair (Hulu/Disney+)

Image credit Disney+ / Ser Baffo

Glenn Close, Sarah Paulson, Naomi Watts and… Kim Kardashian, playing successful divorce lawyers in Los Angeles… The show is a more scripted version of Selling Sunset but with lawyers instead of estate agents. It’s Legally Blonde without the one-liners.

Still, solidarity. I once used an all-female law firm to sell my house and they wore leopard print in every single photo on their website. They did a fine job.

So, would any of the clothes featured on All’s Fair pass muster for WithPockets? I gamely sat through the whole of the pilot episode to find out… (this was the limit of both my research and my sanity).

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What All’s Fair gets wrong

It’s hard to know where to start. I’m not sure what the rules are in courts in L.A., but I’m pretty sure you’d be in contempt for a skirt like the one in the picture above anywhere in the world. And this is probably KK’s most conservative outfit of the season. At one point, she wears a John Galliano ‘thong suit’ (Google it, I’m not wrecking the integrity of the WithPockets website by posting it for the SEO…).

What All’s Fair gets right

The show starts with a ‘backstory’ scene of the characters working in a male-run law firm before they leave to run a firm whose expense accounts must be the equivalent of a small European nation. The outfits in this backstory scene are credible. It’s all downhill from there, with one notable exception: for some reason, the character of ‘Liberty Ronson’ (Naomi Watts) continues to dress like someone who might actually have a job. I think this is supposed to be an extended metaphor for her character being British and, ergo, deeply uptight.

Much of her wardrobe appears to be the A/W collection by Max Mara.

Hostage (Netflix)

Image credit: Netflix

UK prime minister Abigail Dalton (played by Suranne Jones) discovers her husband has been abducted. Meanwhile, French president Vivienne Toussaint (played by Julie Delpy), is being blackmailed. She is also, suspiciously, on an official visit to the UK at the time of the abduction. It really does seem that the path to seniority for women on TV never does run smooth. Luckily for us, it does involve some terrific (and wearable) pant suits.

What Hostage gets right

Hostage is pretty much bang on when it comes to powerful female tailoring. The navy suit above, from Episode One, comes from The Fold, one of WithPockets favourite brands, not least because they are one of the few brands with tailored, structural suits that can be machine washed on cold. While the jacket shown in Hostage has now sold out, this similar one is available.

Navy is the professional colour of choice for Suranne Jones in this series. Netflix gets this right too. In all recent engagements I’ve had with senior politicians and bureaucrats, navy has been the colour of choice. In fact, in the same way that in medieval times purple could only be worn by royalty, in politics and the civil service only the top tier wear navy, while the level below them favour grey (this is true for both women and men). I strongly suspect there has been a whole-of-government memo…

What Hostage gets wrong

Julie Delpy plays the French president, equally impeccably dressed in purple, red and white. Presumably because Suranne Jones had already called dibs on the navy – which is just as well as then Julie would have been a walking French flag. Hilarious, Netflix.

House of Cards (Netflix)

Image credit: Netflix

I know this series is… ahem… a little tarnished now but, seriously, let’s take a moment to gaze in awe upon Robin Penn-Wright. God that wardrobe. Just… all of it, please. Hair too.

Disappointingly, quite a few of the outfits were apparently custom-made for the show, which explains why everything fits so immaculately. The items that weren’t made especially are mostly from American designers (fitting the narrative perfectly) such as Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Zac Posen, including the dress above (by Zac Posen, bag by YSL). Zac Posen is now sadly defunct as a brand, however, his recent collection for Gap Studio is worth a browse (although sadly lacking in pencil dresses like the one above…).

Rumour has it some of Robin Penn-Wright’s shirts for House of Cards were bought from Banana Republic and then tailored, so if you want to copy the look and you know a good alterations specialist, now you can…

What House of Cards gets wrong

Very little. Even in the later episodes where the narrative descends into fascism, the outfits are still wearable. A troubling reminder for us all.

Image credit: Netflix

Are there are any other recent shows (or shows set in recent times, not period dramas) featuring executive women you’d like me to review? Let me know – if there are enough, I may do a follow-up to this article…

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