So many of my customers are working women — IT parks, banks, clinics, schools. And the question I hear most often at exhibitions is some version of: what do I wear to work that’s comfortable but doesn’t look like I’ve given up?
The kurti is the answer, obviously. It handles our weather better than western formals ever will, and nobody has ever looked unprofessional in a well-fitted kurti. But the trick is having a small set that rotates well. Here’s the formula I suggest to almost everyone.
Two solid, structured kurtis
These are your serious-meeting pieces. Straight cut, crisp fabric, colours like ink blue, deep teal, ivory. A mandarin collar or a clean neckline does the same job a blazer does in western wear. With slim pants and small earrings, you’re done — nobody in the room is better dressed.
Two printed everyday kurtis
Small florals, block prints, nothing too loud. Prints are forgiving — of long commutes, of creases, of the day itself. These are your Tuesday-Wednesday workhorses. I always tell customers to keep prints small for office; save the big bold ones for the weekend.
One co-ord set
For the mornings when you cannot make one more decision. A matching set is one choice instead of three, and it always looks like you tried harder than you did. Mine gets worn most Wednesdays, which says something about Wednesdays.
Bottoms: keep it to three
White straight pants, black or navy palazzos, and one good pair of jeans for casual Fridays or off-site days. If your kurtis are in sensible colours, all five will work with all three bottoms. That’s fifteen combinations from eight pieces — you can go three weeks without repeating.
Small things that matter
Sleeves you can actually work in — elbow or three-quarter, not floaty. Minimal embroidery before 6 pm. And spend on fit, not on embellishment; an office kurti earns its keep through the cut.
If you tell me your office dress code and the colours you already own, I’ll happily pick out pieces that fit into your rotation — just message on WhatsApp. Or come see everything at our next exhibition.