Business Casual Capsule Wardrobe for Work: The Ultimate Guide

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Whether you travel constantly for work, or just work from home, having a business casual capsule wardrobe that’s ready to go will help you get ready efficiently. Saving time and money always makes business sense, and it’s even better if you can do so without sacrificing personal style! In this guide, I’ve put together a professional travel capsule wardrobe that consists of just 15 pieces. (And yes, that even includes the 2 pairs of shoes!)

What is a Business Casual Capsule Wardrobe?

Let’s start with the concept of a “capsule wardrobe”. A capsule wardrobe is a small collection of clothing pieces that all go together, but can be styled in many different combinations to create different looks.

A business casual capsule wardrobe is a capsule collection that consists of smart casual pieces that you can wear to the office, or on a video call if you work from home. With the pieces in a business casual capsule collection, you can create tons of different work outfits that can function for any kind of professional setting.

Update: For more examples of a capsule wardrobe, check out my summer travel capsule wardrobe, my fall travel capsule wardrobe as well as a 2023 spring capsule wardrobe. I walk you through how to put together a capsule wardrobe, piece-by-piece. For colder weather, you can check out my cold weather travel capsule collection.

Why Capsule Wardrobes Work for Travel

Capsule wardrobes are perfect for travel because they help you to pack efficiently, saving you both time and money!

I first heard about the concept of a capsule wardrobe from Caroline at Unfancy, and it struck me that this was the perfect solution for women who travel for work all of the time.  

If you’ve read about my story, you might already know that I used to have a job in biotech, where I traveled all the time.

To make packing easier, I kept a bunch of go-to business casual pieces that I relied on trip after trip. They worked well for travel because I could create lots of smart casual options for business meetings, conferences, or presentations.

I started thinking about my own collection as a professional capsule wardrobe, so I wanted to share an example of how you can create one, too.

How Many Pieces are in a Capsule Wardrobe?

How many pieces are in a work capsule wardrobe?

As many as you want! I n general, though, try to limit your capsule wardrobe to be less than 20 items, otherwise it can get unwieldy. The purpose of the capsule is to do more with less!

I recommend using the 5-4-3-2-1 packing method to create a 15 piece capsule. This means that you capsule should include 5 tops, 4 bottoms, 3 outer layers, 2 pairs of shoes and 1 dress. Use this as a rough guide depending on your own personal style!

How to Make A Work Capsule Wardrobe

Let’s start with a few tips for creating your work capsule wardrobe.

Start With Neutral Colors

When creating a business casual capsule wardrobe, start by choosing a neutral color palette. Colors like black, white, gray, navy, or camel are easy to build from because they go with almost every other color.

In my example work capsule wardrobe, I’ve used black, white and gray as the color palette.

Add an Accent Color

Next, add to your color palette with an accent color. The best accent colors for capsule wardrobes are ones with versatility.

Pick whatever color you like, but as an example, colors like olive green, pink, navy, and rust are perfect accent colors because they will go with any neutral palette that you’ve chosen, but will still add interest to your capsule.

Build Your Capsule With Versatile Pieces

When it comes to selecting the pieces in your capsule, look for clothes that have versatility. What does that mean exactly?

A piece is versatile if it can be:

  • Styled in either a casual or dressy way
  • Paired with any other item in the capsule

One of the most versatile pieces in this capsule is the black blazer I’ve picked out. You can wear it with jeans, a skirt, dress pants, or over a dress. And each outfit will have its own look!

15 Piece Professional Capsule Wardrobe for 2023

Let’s dive in to the capsule!

I put together this professional capsule wardrobe to show you that it’s possible to create a TON of different outfits with just 15 pieces.

This business capsule wardrobe has two kinds of outfits: dressier outfits for meetings, and casual but polished outfits for travel days, or dinners out with co-workers.

15 clothing pieces that create a women's business casual capsule wardrobe

Tops: black turtleneck | cream sleeveless | camel sweater | button-down | gray sleeveless

Dress: Camel midi dress

Bottoms: black ankle pants | jeans | midi pencil skirt

Blazers: plaid | black | white with black trim

Shoes: black slingback | nude heels | ankle boots

Depending on where you’re traveling and what the weather will be like, you can add pieces or make adjustments to customize the capsule so that it works for you.

I’ve included a few investment pieces, but have intentionally tried to make this capsule wardrobe as budget-friendly as possible, including the accessories I used to style each of the different looks below.

Creating Business Casual Looks with Your Capsule

With the capsule pieces in place, let’s use the collection to create just a few of the outfit combinations that are possible with this collection.

These first two outfits are perfect for work travel days. Wear the jeans in your capsule wardrobe on the airplane, along with a few layers to keep you warm.

You should also wear your bulkiest shoes on the plane so that you don’t have to pack them. In this capsule wardrobe, those are the boots.

Business Casual Travel Outfits

Pair your jeans with a blouse and black blazer for an easy, polished look for work travel
Use your work capsule wardrobe to create a comfortable but professional travel outfit

The next six outfit combinations will work for any sort of business setting, whether you’re attending a conference, meeting with clients, giving a presentation, or collaborating with colleagues.

Since all of the pieces can go with almost all of the other pieces, you can use your business capsule wardrobe to create endless different options, even though you’re traveling with just a carry on bag!

Professional Business Casual Outfits

This midi camel dress is the perfect staple for a professional capsule wardrobe!
The blazer has interest, but is still versatile enough to be in a business casual capsule wardrobe
Pair a traditional button-down shirt with a black midi skirt for client meetings
This jacket is such a perfect capsule piece because it goes with everything!
Pair the dress with the black and white jacket for work meetings or a conference
Or, pair the same jacket with pants for a work dinner with colleagues

These outfit ideas are just a starting point! Let your creativity flow, and you can really create endless combinations with just a few key pieces.

Tips for Packing Work Clothes

Taking your work capsule on the road? Packing clothes from your capsule wardrobe can be a challenge!

When you’re trying to look professional, the last thing you want is wrinkled clothing! Here’s a few tips for packing when it comes to work travel:

Make sure to pack your heaviest items at the bottom of your suitcase. That means shoes and toiletries should go on the bottom of your bag. Knit items and delicates should be rolled and packed on the very top of your bag.

Try to stick with darker pieces of clothing, or pieces with patterns. If you happen to get a stain on your clothes while you’re traveling, it will be less obvious on a dark or patterned item.

Finally, stick to clothes in fabrics that are less prone to wrinkling, such as wool or other knits. Try to avoid cotton and linen if possible!

There you have it – the perfect business casual capsule wardrobe for travel!

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11 Comments

  1. Thank you! I just got a promotion at work and will now be traveling internationally all the time (expect more business travel tips on A Friend Afar in addition to vacations)! There is a major lack of fun, young, stylish blogs that talk about business travel for our age/preferences, so I’m super thankful for yours! Some of my trips may be close to 2 weeks, so I’m working on developing a business capsule wardrobe, and this is literally my favorite inspiration yet. It’s professional, neutral, and not overly feminine, if you know what I mean.

    1. Wow thank you so much Meagan!! Congratulations on your promotion! Sounds like an amazing opportunity. It took me a lot of trial and error before I figured out what worked and what didn’t…so I hope this helps! Look forward to keeping up with your travels!

  2. Hahaha this is way too much discipline for me. I really choose depending on my mood for the day… though I also memorize almost all I have so it makes it more like a week of shopping in my head and just pulling things out

  3. Hmm, this feels like a little more than I’d take for 4 days, but then again, I’d likely just be SUPER lazy and bring 5 dresses to tide me over haha! I find I get pretty lax about clothes and makeup when I’m travelling

    1. I definitely couldn’t fit all of this on one trip either! These are just the group that I pick from whenever I’m packing 🙂 makes it so much easier to choose! Thank you for stopping by!,