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Trademark your professional style with stylin’ career wear

Any good brand manager knows to create a winning brand, she must target a demographic, present a cohesive image, and most importantly, stand out from the crowd of like-products.

Think of yourself as a brand you’d like to build and you have the key to the perfect summer office wardrobe. Present yourself in the most flattering light — consider your audience, play by the rules of withstanding office dress codes, and have a little fun adding your own flare.

Consider Your Audience

In the quest for the most appropriate yet most “you” office attire, a good place to start is just looking around. Sitting at your desk, cube, workstation or otherwise HR-friendly term for “place-I-kill-time-between-weekends,” take a look around. What are your coworkers wearing? What is your manager wearing? Most importantly, what is the person whose job you aspire to have wearing?

Pick outfits suitable for the region of the country you live in, the industry you work in, even the weather of the day. In the office, present yourself as someone who always looks appropriate, but never blends in with the wallpaper. Stand out, but keep it classy — I don’t need to tell you to leave the drug-store flip-flops and baby terry halters at the beach, right?

What to wear at off-site meetings is all about location, location, location. Consider where you’re headed, who you’ll be interacting with, and what you’re trying to relay. If it’s a golf outing, go conservative sporty. Try Paiva for a plethora of appropriate women’s athletic gear. If it’s a black tie function, show off that classy little black dress that’s been waiting in your closet for such an occasion.

For the perfect black dress, try the Sateen Serenade Dress at White House Black Market ($138). It embodies a perfect balance between classic and contemporary, daring and demure and it boasts two of the season’s hottest trends — white accents and a wide, waist-cinching belt.

When meeting coworkers or clients off site, think: should I dress similarly to those I’ll be meeting so we’ll all be on the same figurative page, or should I relay more professionalism and confidence with more formal attire? You’re the best judge of what’s right to wear. If you find yourself questioning the appropriateness of an outfit, it’s a safer bet to hold onto that completely chic, yet potentially out-of-place number for cocktails with girlfriends.

Play by the Rules

There are no hard and fast fashion laws to live by when it comes to office attire. It all depends on where you work, who you see on a daily basis, and the dress code already in place. Most major law firms are strictly business attire. Most boutique ad agencies are all casual. Most working women exist somewhere in the middle –fashion limbo – their what-to-wear plight supposedly elucidated by explicit office dress code policies.

To stay in the clear, unless you work at an avant-garde, shock-em-into-buying-your-pitch fashion company, stick to the basics of your office dress code. Always look polished —no matter the season. Maintain a complete look that says, “If you were to take me at face value, what you see is what you’d get.” You decide what it means to you and what it could mean to the success of the brand you’re building.

A safe, but stylish bet for  office wear is the season’s biggest dress trend: the wrap. You’ll find tons of figure-flattering styles at Lord & Taylor (in-store and online), in a variety of colors, prints, designers and price ranges.

Wrap dresses are comfortable without being sloppy and professional without being stuffy. In a casual office atmosphere, dress it down with Tory Burch flats (love that gold dial!) and bare legs, and in a more professional atmosphere, pump up the professionalism with white heels (summer’s hottest accessory color), hose, and a cropped blazer.

You’ll find a wear-everywhere cropped blazer at Ann Taylor Loft. The City Stripe Cropped Jacket ($64) has a lightweight stretch fabric and can double as weekend wear over a long, lean tank and summer’s biggest denim trend — the trouser. Try Paige Premium Denim’s Hillhurst style (Bloomingdales.com, $198). Trouser-style pants —for both casual and professional wear — a big look for summer.

While we’re talking bottoms, let’s talk about one of my favorite biproducts of warm weather — the skirt! It’s all about a full skirt, hitting at or just below the knee for work. A skirt is a good place to play with a subtle pattern — polka dots are hot, hot, hot this season — or a romantic look in a floral pattern or more feminine color (pink, coral, soft yellow). A tailored shirt is a nice juxtaposition to a flirty skirt — I prefer the wrinkle-free variety from Talbots or Brooks Brothers.

Consider wearing light layers, wherever you work, because commuting in scorching heat or suffering through overzealous air conditioning is never fun when you’re not prepared. Blazers are a perfect professional piece for a business dress code, but make sure your underneath layer would be appropriate if you had to go blazer-less in a steamy office. For business casual and casual settings, cotton cardigans and coordinating tees (think: Ann Taylor Loft and J.Crew) are perfect layers.

Have a Little Fun

Now that you’ve considered what you can’t wear to work — short shorts even Jessica Simpson in her best “Dukes of Hazard” shape should reconsider, Yoda-esque dresses that more closely resemble sacks, and anything ripped, torn or frayed — it’s time to have some fun with what you can wear.

A fabulous place to start on setting yourself apart from you peers is the accessories. Think: shoes, jewelry, belts and headbands. These items — in any combination — can perk up any stuffy suit or add polish to otherwise casual ensembles.

Your best bet for reasonably priced complements is H&M. Try a white patent leather belt, thick-heeled black pumps, or the ever-chic power shades for wardrobe boosters.

Also an amazing source for perfectly unique, yet a bit pricier accessories is Anthropologie. Among the plentiful peasant tops and A-line skirts (perfect for casual dress codes), you’ll find tons of equally dainty headbands, ribbon belts and spring clutches.

Don’t forget the bling this summer! Glitzy, glistening lucite baubles are where it’s at for sensational summer accents to your perfectly pulled-together work ensembles. Tear through the aisles of inexpensive accessories stores like Claire’s to find stacked bracelets (perfect with short sleeves or a three-quarter length blazer) for a sweet summer look.

For when the weather really heats up, tie up your locks in a high ponytail and secure your position in the fashion forefront with a lively patterned Coach ponytail scarf ($38). It combines fashion and function and adds a flair to even the most staunch “business” dress code.

If you” re stylin’ in suits all day, a good place to try for one-of-a-kind office wardrobe boosters is your local vintage shop. I’ve found killer crystal brooches, stellar Ferragamo flats, and divinely worn leather briefcases — all in the little second-hand shop around the corner. What other businesswomen don’t have room for are just the pieces you can build your brand around.

Pull It All Together

At the end of the day, it’s not so much about brand building as it is about the product itself. No matter what you wear, it’s your confidence, intelligence and presence in the office that will really sell you.

So, what does your wardrobe say about you? Are you smart and sassy? Charismatic and coordinated? Sophisticated and strong? Classic pearls and wowee-pumps can only take you so far. The most important component to your super summer wardrobe is your personality.

Don’t let your wardrobe do all the talking. Make a statement with your education, interpersonal skills and professional savvy, and make an impression coworkers and clients won’t soon forget.