Home to office to weekend wear
Once Was (above) Cable Melbourne (below)
When we’re not writing to you, we work in offices — either at home or in the city. We also love a virtual window shop, so often recognise the workwear fashion choices of other office bods like us. Or (much worse) find ourselves twinning with someone who’s high street fashion taste is similar.
With less ‘proper’ office outfits needed these days, we’ve been investing time and money into finding quality Australian designed and made workwear that’s not the same labels you can get in every Westfield.
Our first find was Once Was whose shirts and tops are perfect for office outings and also for wearing with jeans/shorts for video-meeting days. And they’re ‘small batch’ so you’re unlikely to see the same outfits on your office/Zoom travels.
Then there’s Aje, a label that has been providing laid-back essentials to Australian women for twenty years. From workwear classics to edgy evening, you can’t go wrong with an investment in Aje pieces. You’ll be wearing, and loving, them for years to come.
Assembly Label is a favourite too. Not just because their designs are so versatile (talk about office to evening) and help both the ladies and gents to build long-lasting capsule wardrobes. We adore their commitment to supporting local in every possible way and to doing good by people and the planet. They even boast a take-back program called Re-Worn, with a 10% gift off voucher given to everyone who returns pre-loved items to their stores for repairing and re-selling.
Our last new favourite is Cable Melbourne, a label that was born of a love of quality fabrics and a passion for bringing Australian Merino Wool made by Australian knitters to the masses. If you’re close to a Cable store, we highly recommend a visit — you’ll love the look and feel of their fabrics, and the nod this company gives to our ‘riding on the sheep’s back’ history.
We know that there’s a lot of fashion on offer out there and it’s always hard to make a decision to spend more for quality home-grown pieces, and overlook the season’s latest fast fashion trend.
What we love about these Australian labels is that they are encouraging us to buy pieces that will last — and that sustainability and ethics are baked in to their businesses. It’s slow fashion, Australian style. And you’re unlikely to be twinning with colleagues any time soon.
