If it were fall/winter, I would suggest that you get a decent-looking blazer. Blazers automatically make any outfit look more professional. Since it’s summer, though, that probably won’t be an option you’ll need to worry about for awhile.

The woman I worked with came up with several ideas for mix-and-match outfits, including accessories, listened to what I liked and didn’t like, and wasn’t pushy. She knows that she stands to make more money in the long run if I come back to her or recommend friends.

Basically, I spoke with her ahead of time on the phone and told her the ‘style’ I was looking for ‘creative professional’ and my body type, and she lined up lots of things for me to try, without all the stress of hunting through the racks.

Unfortunately, the location near me has discontinued the service, but I would definitely recommend it. I’m sure you could also give them a budget ahead of time that you need to work within.

I second the advice to ask HR for a policy and a tour and pay attention to what others are wearing. If you notice women whose style you think would be flattering for your figure and coloring, compliment their outfits, strike up a conversation and ask if they have any advice or suggestions for you about office temperatures, what to wear and where to shop. Note nail polish colors, accessories, hair styles. Is everyone there in a high quality, tailored skirt suit with hose and pumps? Or is there more of a mix? What are the people your age wearing? How tight is the fit? How high or low are the necklines and hemlines? Are women wearing sensible square towed low-heeled pumps or three inch Jimmy Choos?

Once you have a sense of what you’ll need, ask a fashion-savvy friend to help you shop first in your own closet. Try things on, make a pile of anything that needs to be cleaned, mended or tailored and then do it. If you don’t know how to do basic ironing, tailoring and mending, ask a friend who does to teach you. How many outfits can you make using your interview suit as a foundation with the tops and accessories you already have? What color blouses and twinsets can you add to that mix to make it stretch a little further? Looking at those colors, what other neutral colored slacks would mix best with what you have – gray, black, navy, khaki, brown? What shoes do you have? Do they need to be re-soled at the cobbler or shined? What shoes do you need? Do you have or need a professional handbag, laptop case or briefcase? Make a list of what you need.

Hit up the thrift and consignment stores and see if you can find those missing items. Probably not and that’s okay. I agree with the earlier commenter that if you know your size and style for major brands that Ebay could be a good bet. Especially for good quality, lightly worn shoes.

You might also be able to put the word out to friends, family, and neighbors who are your size that you’re thrilled about your new job but need to borrow some office basics if they’d be willing to loan them for a few weeks while you get a sense of the dress code and save up a paycheck or two. Be specific about sizes, colors etc. and tell them you’ll return the items dry cleaned within a specific period of time – say six weeks. This will require some tact, but you could also reach out to women who used to be your size and are now a little bigger … don’t we all have an outfit in our closets that we can’t wear anymore but keep in hopes that ‘someday’ it will fit again?!? Twinsets and other knit tops would be particularly forgiving in terms of sizing. Slacks might be tougher. Jewelry, shoes and accessories would be easy to borrow.

Dress for Success is a non-profit that gives lightly used professional clothing to women entering the workforce. If you still don’t have what you need and can’t afford to buy it, I’d see if there’s a branch near you and make an appointment. Later, once you’ve landed a few paychecks, you can return the favor by making a donation to support their work.

After hitting the consignment stores, your social network, and perhaps Dress for Success, buy what you still need. Two pairs of neutral colored slacks that fit you properly and round out your wardrobe are a worthwhile investment. Jones New York just released a line of reasonably priced machine washable, dryable, no-iron, easy care wool suiting and button down shirts in classic lines and colors. TJ Maxx, Marshall’s, and even Target might have some reasonable options, depending on what you need.

Fit is the most important part. Take your newly acquired wardrobe pieces and try them on in front of an expert tailor. Tell her your budget. Ask her to help you decide if some basic alterations to a few key pieces could make a big difference in polishing your professional look – sometimes a little tuck here and there can take a thrift store find to a whole new level.

Lastly, you need to pay attention to hair and make-up. Ask a make-up savvy friend to give you a makeover, then head to the drugstore to buy the basics. The right foundation, basic black mascara, and a matte lipstick in a relatively neutral shade should get you through the first few weeks. Trim your nails and tweeze those eye-brows. Save the boldly colored eye shadows and metallic lip glosses for after work. Ask another friend to help you blow out your hair with the blow-dryer for a professional ‘do. Later you can splurge on a good quality department store foundation and a professional haircut.

If the hair, make-up and dressing feel stressful, take a few practice runs in the days leading up to your first day on the job until the routine feels relaxed and ordinary and you have a sense of how much time you need to get ready.

I agree with earlier commenters that cold-calling your new co-workers and asking what brands they wear could do more to damage first impressions than even the worst fasion faux pas!

Good luck!

Plus when hand-sewing a button you can tie it down properly and reduce the odds of losing the button later on. My father re-sows all his buttons on his new shirts even though he doesn’t replace them for this reason.

Learning how to sew on a button is easy. I do my sewing in front of the TV too, so it doesn’t feel like taking time out of my day.

Just look out for terra-cotta buttons, I put some on a coat but the edges kept breaking through the ordinary thread, and I wound up buying some super-strong thread as I liked the buttons a lot. Incidentally, that super-strong thread has come in handy elsewhere.

I personally think it would be strange to ask about the dress code beforehand, especially particular brands. On the first day I would dress similarly to how your interviewer dressed, or just wear black pants and a nice shirt/blouse. Don’t buy too many clothes until after your first week. I work for a Fortune 500 company and everyone I had seen before I got the job dressed very nice so I bought a lot of new clothes. But I ended up working in a department that does more “dirty work” and doesn’t interact with the public, so we mostly wear jeans every day.

And I am a woman and I do wear a comfy T shirt as an undershirt, but this might not be as easy in more formal attire. I also second the comment about making sure you have a cardigan because offices are cold a lot of the time!

There are lots of workplace-appropriate clothing that can go in the washing machine and the dryer, then be hung without ironing. Take advantage of this.

I used to travel a lot of work in a customer-facing position for which the attire was a shirt and tie, slacks and dress shoes. I skipped the 100% cotton shirts and fancy wool pants and went right for the poly blends. Nothing was fantastically expensive, either — figure $20 for a shirt and $30 for the slacks on sale (and they hold sales for just about every holiday, real or imagined) at a department store.

All of this clothing could very easily be washed on the road in a hotel laundry or at home and packed up again with minimal effort and it came out of the suitcase pretty wrinkle-free. If something got torn, something spilled on it, or my luggage got lost, no big deal since it wasn’t expensive to begin with.

But definitely get the feel of the office before you go in. I now work for a really laid back software company and I wore shorts and sandals to work today with a short sleeve shirt. No one cares. My boss dresses the same way.

Although I think this post is good in a vague & non-specific way (especially since you talk about ties, which Anna probably would not wear since she’s a girl), it’s not as useful if you don’t have consignment stores near you, or if you’re an odd size.

Anna, usually your industry will dictate the level of formality in your wardrobe. I would ask your boss is there’s a dress code, but don’t call your coworkers – that’s one of those things that should be normal, but most people would be weirded out. Your boss should be able to let you know what’s expected, if you need to wear a suit, or if pantyhose are required, or if you can wear jeans every day.

My workplace is business casual, so my bare bones work wardrobe would look something like this (assuming I have all the required underpinnings):

3-4 pairs of pants in neutral colors (black, brown, gray, navy)
1-2 skirts in neutral colors (I like pencil skirts, but I’d recommend buying what you like best)
1 dress in a neutral color
2 white blouses (basic oxford button-down are what are usually recommended, but I think any crisp, woven shirt would work)
3 colored blouses (again, button-downs are the most basic)
3-4 sweaters or cardigans
1-2 pairs of shoes, I’d go with a pair in black and a pair in nude (but anything that goes with the pants/skirt will work).
1 large tote in a neutral color (I have one in olive green, and I swear, it matches everything in my wardrobe!)
some fun accessories (belts, necklaces, scarves) to add color & interest

Then, mix and match! Belt a cardigan over a button-down and wear with a pencil skirt. Layer a turtleneck under the dress. Throw a few strands of pearls over a simple sweater and trousers.

I think that these items would work very well in any office environment. Just make sure everything fits correctly, since nothing will make you look less professional than too-big pants or hems dragging on the ground or buttons gaping open.

It’s worth spending money on these things, but if you’d prefer not to dump tons of money up front, check out stores like The Loft, H&M (I have a pair of pants from H&M that I’ve had for 5 years!), Old Navy, Gap. American Eagle has some of the best button-down blouses I’ve bought. Consignment and thrift stores might work for you, but I have never had good luck with them. Try to combines sales and coupon codes. If you find a brand that works, check ebay for your size.

I highly recommend buying a few good quality items over lots of cheap ones. Wait for the sales for these, unless you’re an unusual size that disappears quickly.

Stick to the classics as you’re building up the wardrobe – black, navy or grey trousers or skirt and button-down oxfords are all timeless and will blend in almost any office. Nice pants/skirts can be mixed with more casual pieces and still look good.

Most offices don’t require suits or jackets any more, especially if you’re a recent grad. I wouldn’t bother trying to buy a suit too fast – that’s something where fit is important.

I would also agree with the other posters…go for the core outfits, that can be mixed and matched with many things, but look professional no matter what. Find out if you’ll be standing or sitting all day and get shoes accordingly. This is something I don’t think I would go to Goodwill to find, personally, but that doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune either. Find a nice pair of dress pants or skirts and get at least 3 in neutral colors. Find a good blouse and get 5 in varying colors, that go with the pants. Get a nice blazer or two to top it all off. Raid your closet for things that will work.

I’ve had to rebuild my bank wardrobe for maternity clothes, and while my wardrobe isn’t exciting, I still look nice, and it is getting me through the next several months without buying tons of new clothes.

Also, it doesn’t seem fair since our office is 75% women, but our corporate office offers a nice discount on a local mens suit store. :-) See if your work offers discounts!

I like TJ Maxx and Marshalls and find they may offer more sizes than a consignment shop. When you invest in a basic wardrobe, think about cost per wear. I think more than anything, pay very close attention to FIT, which I think is easy to compromise when you’re trying to save money, but actually works in reverse. For instance, if you buy a pair of men’s khakis for $15 less, and they don’t fit as well, you probably won’t wear them as often, and your cost per wear will likely be more than if you’d just bought the more expensive women’s pants in the first place.