Hello Glitter, Gloss and Glaze readers!
It's Arielle from Beauty by Arielle! You may remember me from the blog swap Kristen and I did in February. You can see those posts here and here.
A
little about me-I am a 20 something product junkie from Illinois. I
can't think of a time since I was a preteen that I wasn't obsessed with
makeup and beauty products! My blog is devoted to all things beauty related. I feature product reviews, hauls, tutorials, tips, fashion and health.
Today I will be blogging about dressing for an interview on a budget!
A couple of months ago I had an interview for my first "big girl" job in
my field. It was nerve wracking to choose what to wear.
Let's
face it-in this economy we cannot afford to spend 1,000's on interview
outfits but we want to look pulled together to land that job! So how did
I handle the challenge?
I began by googling how to dress for an interview. I thought some tips from the pros would put me ahead.
Here are the tips I thought were wins and followed myself:
- You can never be too conservative. If you are going to show skin do one or the other (legs or arms) but do not do both.
- Show some personality but not too much personality. A pop of color is the best way to do this or with a conservative print. Steer clear of neons, red or animal prints. A suit is always nice but is not necessary.
- Wear minimal, simple accessories. Make sure nothing clunks together because it will be distracting.
- Closed toed pumps are a must.
- Take a simple bag that doubles as a brief case to carry extra resumés, writing samples, letters of recommendation, etc.
- Make sure your hair is neat and in place.
- Manicure your nails in french, natural or a neutral, light color.
- Keep your makeup natural.
- Do not wear perfume.
When
in doubt, look up or call the company for their dress code policy. Even
if you know the company dresses casual on a daily basis, dress up for
your interview. I once heard a principal say they were interviewing for a
gym teacher position and the interviewee showed up in a track suit
because she was "dressing for the job." Needless to say, she was not
hired and the principal was completely unimpressed.
Next, I raided my closet for items that would fit into the "rules". I
did not have the time or funds to run out for new clothing. Thankfully, I
keep some basics on hand at all times. I found a LBD, a blue cardigan
and some simple accessories. I wore the cardigan over the LBD, buttoned
up completely, with a belt at my waist. My closet items were all steals
because my LBD was from the clearance rack at Target, my sweater was
thrifted from Plato's Closet, shoes were thrifted from ebay and the belt
was from another top!
Here are some similar items, all from Target (except for the belt), which are all easy on the wallet:
After several agonizing weeks, I received a call for a
second interview. The catch? They wanted me there in the next 36 hours.
This time, I truly had no idea what I could pull from in my closet. I
ended up finding a printed blouse at Kohl's for $7. I paired it with a
pencil skirt I already owned and the accessories from the previous
interview outfit. By doing it this way, I was not blowing cash on a
whole new outfit. I tucked the shirt into the skirt for a more polished
look.
Here are some similar choices, again from Target:
You could also combine both outfits and do something like this:
Here the LDB is used as a skirt and cinched in with the belt.
Let's
say you do not have items in your closet to pull from. My suggestion?
Raid the clearance racks and thrift wisely. All of my items were either
thrifted or from the clearance rack. Everything I wore was less than
$60. Choose outfits where you can reuse accessories. This will also save
you some moolah! It is also helpful to keep basics on hand so that you
only have to pick up one or two new items.
By the way, I did land the job!
Thank you Kristen for allowing me to guest post today!
Thanks again, Arielle! You are welcome to post here any time you want!:)
If you enjoy Arielle as much as I do, make sure to check out her blog and some of the other places she can be found:
YouTube
Bloglovin
HelloCotton
And! If you ever forget how to find her blog; I can pretty much promise her button will always be in my sidebar so she is just a click away!:)
