How Moms Can Prepare a Webcam Ready Wardrobe

As most of us have transitioned from our workplaces to our homes, setting the boundaries between our personal lives and our careers can be difficult. As a mom, there’s the added challenge of keeping your family happy while working a full-time or part-time job. Before the new normal setup came to be, it was easier to segregate the two. Now, work-life balance almost seems near-impossible to achieve.

While getting used to remote work setups, one of the first aspects of our lives that we tend to neglect is our fashion choices. The comfort of working from home can make us complacent with the way we look when we’re on the clock. Unlike working at an office, where we’re surrounded by our colleagues, working from home usually means we’re usually only surrounded by our family members, who don’t usually comment on our outfits.

However, it can be beneficial to dress up for work more often, even if you only work from home. This is especially true if you attend a lot of online meetings for your job. Here’s why:

Why You Need to Dress the Part

Dressing the part at home might seem a bit strange at first, but hear us out. To put it simply, the act of dressing up properly can help you simulate the feeling of being in the office. This, in turn, can make you more productive. Looking the part while on the clock can trick your brain into thinking that you’re in a proper office, and this mindset can push you to work instead of lounging or getting pulled into housework for hours.

While comfort is necessary as we oscillate between house chores and work duties, function and fashion are equally important in looking presentable, especially during office meetings. Finding a balance between the two is necessary so we can project a good impression not only on other people (like our coworkers, employers, and clients), but also ourselves.

Make sure that you’re not just dressing your upper body, though. Dress from head to toe to make yourself feel productive and like you’re really at work. So, buy hosiery, blazers, polo shirts, jeans, slacks, skirts, sneakers, heels, stockings, socks, and other clothing pieces that will form the foundation of your home office wardrobe.

Invest in Blazers

If you often run out of time to dress up in the mornings, a blazer can make even the simplest of tees look formal. However, your blazer doesn’t have to look drab and stiff, as there are plenty of chic blazers that can work with most outfits.

When choosing what blazer to wear, it’s a matter of preference in how you want to look during work meetings. If you want to appear more formal, fitted blazers will do the trick when it comes to projecting an authoritative appearance. Meanwhile, loose, belted blazers will soften your image up a bit. A more casual look will also call for a different type of blazer, like one with a looser and less constricting style.

That being said, not all work meetings will be the same in terms of importance. If you have a big work presentation coming up, for example, it would be best to go for fitted blazers that make you look more confident and put together.

Go for Comfortable Bottom Wear

Working from home requires some versatility in how you juggle your responsibilities. Since you’ll be moving around a lot, it would be best to go for comfortable bottom wear. This will let you easily rush to make a meal for your kids and feel empowered once you sit down in front of the camera for work.

In general, straight-cut pants or loose trousers might just be your best bet. Pair them with a simple tee or a well-fitting polo, and you’ll look casually fashionable without sacrificing your comfort. The whole aesthetic of work-from-home is usually a combination of comfort and chic, so it’s best to go along this line of thinking.

Embrace Leggings

Another type of bottom you can count on is a reliable pair of leggings. While leggings would generally be looked down upon in the office, they’re the perfect middle ground of comfort and style at home. Who says being a work-from-home mom has to be drab and difficult, either? You don’t have to settle for a pair of plain black leggings. Try out leggings of varying deniers, lengths, and colors. You can even match them with your different dresses and skirts.

Though you certainly won’t be able to forego any of the additional responsibilities of working at home, you can at least enjoy styling your wardrobe for a cozier remote work vibe. And with the right leggings in your wardrobe, the practical fashion possibilities are endless.

That said, even though people usually only see your upper half during a virtual meeting, you wouldn’t want an on-camera fashion faux pas to happen. To be specific, you wouldn’t want to stand up and show the meeting attendees that your leggings don’t match your top. So, take the time and effort to pick the best clothing combination possible.

Opt for Dresses

If you feel like selecting a top and bottom for your work outfit is too much effort, opt for fashionable dresses instead. They’re perfect if you’re pressed for time but still want and need to look professional. You don’t have to put a lot of effort into styling them since they almost always look great even when worn on their own.

In addition to looking good, they also allow for greater freedom of movement, which is perfect when you need to do chores right after hopping off a virtual meeting. If you feel that your dress is a little plain, you can always spice it up with some accessories. Just make sure that your dress is a little bit loose towards the hem so that you can maximize your mobility in it.

Try Out Your T-Shirts

Unless you have meetings that call for strictly business attire, a laid-back look that still seems presentable can often be more than enough for your typical day of working at home. A well-fitting t-shirt can be worn on its own without being paired with a blazer for more casual meetings, too. T-shirts are also easy to wash, dry, and fold, making them less of a hassle to maintain. At the same time, they’re versatile enough to match almost anything, so you can pair them with most types of bottoms.

Include Bright Colors

As professional as you want your outfit to look, you wouldn’t want to appear plain during work meetings. Bright colors can motivate people and uplift their mood, so wearing clothing in these colors can lift your spirits somewhat whenever you experience the stresses of a work-from-home setup.

To boost your energy and help get things going, include warm tones like red, orange, and yellow in your outfit. You can wear a brightly colored shirt, dress, or polo, for example. If that feels like too much for you, you can just add hints of color by putting on a few key accessories like a necklace or a pair of earrings.

Accessorize with Simple but Eye-Catching Pieces

Related to the previous point, you can also build upon your work-from-home outfits by accessorizing. Wear earrings that will be visible to the camera or a necklace that compliments your top. These small things can go a long way in making you look professional with minimal effort for those surprise on-cam meetings.

Don’t just wear the same accessories all the time, though, or you might start growing tired of your look. Make the most out of all the accessories that you own by switching them up now and then. Pair your tops with different pieces of jewelry and see how well each combination works for you.

The pressures of being a work-from-home mom might get to you now and then. Still, dressing up for your job need not be another chore to add to your ever-growing to-do list. To minimize your stress levels, it would be good to go for outfits that don’t require a lot of thinking or preparation to pull off. With the tips above, you can make the most of your work-from-home wardrobe. Who knows, you may just impress coworkers and clients with your stunning looks whenever you’re on camera. You likely won’t project the image of a mom who’s exhausted from all her parental duties, either!

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