Five Stylish Work Dresses under $100

one :: Mango $40 

two :: Mango $100

three :: Reiss $79

four :: House of Fraser $97

five :: Zara $70

 Hello everyone! It's freezing in Manhattan. Burrrr....

 Last night when I sat down to put together this collage, I thought I'd be done within thirty minutes, however to my surprise there weren't a lot of stylish and appropriate work dresses under $100. Most dresses advertised as "work" wear were either too tight or too short. I always see these dresses and wonder who really wears this to work. Most of these "work dresses" look like sexy and sophisticated going out dresses. Then on the other hand, there were a ton of designer dresses for $1,000+, which doesn't make sense for most young women starting a career. After a few hours of flipping through hundreds of dresses I found these five dresses and I'm in love with each dress and would wear them to the office any day of the week (the first dress with a cardigan). I feel in love House of Fraser, it's a high quality department store based in the UK and Ireland, you'll be sure to find a few great pieces for your closet.

There are so many tricks to wearing dresses to work; is it too short, is it too tight; are the sleeves appropriate, does it show too much cleavage...the list goes on.  Hopefully retailers and designers will start focusing on a line for the everyday working women in the future because I'd love to start wearing dresses to the office more often. Hope you enjoyed my five picks!

How to Wear a Leather Peplum to Work

Good morning! On this foggy and dreary New York morning, I find myself at the gym and writing today's blog post. I think I can get used to this early morning schedule! Although I must admit rolling out of bed this morning was quite painful.

Moving on to today's look...peplum tops have been under scrutiny the last six months in the fashion world, but I really think this top should be incorporated into our full time wardrobe. Why does this have to be a trend? Can't we consider the peplum top a staple in our closets? Am I completely out of line with this thought process or are "we" over the peplum top? Well, if you're not over the feminine top here's a great look to wear a {faux} leather peplum to the office.

The cardigan is a good addition to the {faux} leather top to the office. It takes the edge off the material. However, I really think this outfit is office appropriate because of the peplum style. The peplum is a little less edgy than your tradition {faux} leather pieces. I finished off the look off with winter white panel pants and suede round toe heels.

If you have a {faux} leather peplum that you've been wanting to wear outside of the office, check out this chic outfit worn by Olivia Palermo.

Top :: Piperlime on super sale!

Cardigan :: TJ. Maxx old (similar here) 

Pants :: Joe Fresh

Heels :: Kurt Geiger (similar here)

Bag :: TJ Maxx old

Necklace :: J.Crew (similar here)

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

Champagne in Central Park

 Good morning! Yesterday Matt and I trained up to Central Park and to our surprise (in the 10 degree weather) the park was full of people! Moments like today remind us why we moved to New York. Central Park is magical. Kids sledding, families taking photos, children making snowmen and people ice skating to the beautiful holiday music. It's true, New York is truly a winter wonderland.

All bundled up, we walked around the park for about an hour and we finally found a great spot to sit down and enjoy a glass of champagne. Yep, we brought champagne to the park. It seemed appropriate. 

As you can see I was all bundled up. For those ladies who live someplace cold, I highly recommend this North Face Down Insulated Arctic Parka. The recommendation came from a friend who lives in Chicago. She doesn't like wearing a lot of layers to work, so she got this coat because she can wear one layer of clothes and throw on this coat and withstand below freezing weather. I threw on my favorite Sorel boots and Surell fur headband. Although it was freezing outside, I was comfortable walking around Central Park for a few hours. 

*Oh yes, the reason I look like a marshmallow is because I put my faux fur vest underneath thinking I'd take a few outfit photos. Too cold to take off my coat.

Parka :: North Face (also love this coat)

Boots :: Sorel Boots (similar here on sale)

Headband :: Surell 

This Week in the Fashion & Business World

Image via

Morning everyone! I'm currently snowed in at my apartment with my fiance. It was so magical to watch the snow fall last night over New York City. This afternoon we're going to bundle up and head up to Central Park. Hopefully, I can convince my wonderful & handsome fiance(I hope he's reading this post) to take a few outfit photos while we're in the winter wonderland. 

Today I'm sharing some of my favorite fashion and business articles I've read throughout the week. I gotta admit I'm a sucker for articles with good headlines. Most of my business articles come from LinkedIn, who purchased Pulse, a publishing platform. If you haven't had a chance to check it out, I'd recommend following a few of your interests on Pulse to incorporate with your daily reads. 

 

• Loved reading this article and couldn't agree more. Why successful people never bring SMARTPHONES into meetings.

• This year's color of the year is Radiant Orchid, according to PANTONE. Great article written by THE GLOSS her opinion of this year's color. 

• This inspirational woman left a SIX-FIGURE job in the corporate world to become an intern at a startup company. She did all of this to pursue her passion in life! #amazing

• I'm a big fan of women in the tech industry. Here are FIVE tech organizations you should know about! 

• In 2013,Warren Buffet made $37 MILLION dollars per day. A day in the life...

• Here are 32 STUNNING RUNWAY photos that will take your breath away.

• My fashion icon, OLIVIA PALERMO, got engaged over the New Year holiday in St. Barts. Check out the INSTAGRAM video of the engagement ring!

• SNEAKERS at work?!? Refinery29 thinks "YES". I'm going to say "NO", unless you work at a cool startup like Refinery29.

• One last fun article, not fashion or business related, but you have to watch these videos! Check out these AUDITION TAPES from Rachel McAdams, Natalie Portman, and other celebs.  

How to Wear Track Pants to Work

Happy New Year! How are the resolutions going? If I were to grade myself on my resolutions, I'd probably give myself a C+. My blog and fitness are two of my top priorities and yesterday I didn't blog or go to the gym. However, I'm currently writing this blog post from the gym {happy dance}! 

One of my goals for Corporate Catwalk is to give my readers more valuable information. Like today's post, I'm going to try and give you ideas on how to wear pieces to work and your everyday life. Hopefully you'll find the information valuable, especially when you're getting ready in the morning and/ or out shopping.  

On today's post I'm wearing one of my favorite outfits to work. When I first wore this outfit I questioned where I could wear this outfit; to work...yes, to a business meeting...yes, to a customer meeting...yes. The reason this outfit works is because the track pants and blouse are not too baggy or too tight. The trick with drawstring track pants is finding the right material and fit. These pants are from Express and perfect for the office. As for color, I'd recommend sticking to solid colors like black and grey. Other deep hues of blue, green and burgundy would also be appropriate for the office. Since drawstring track pants are already casual, stay away from bright colors. Also, try and steer clear of stripes down the side of the pant leg. Here's an example of white track pants with a black stripe down the side, but not really appropriate for work.

Moving onto the blouse...which goes perfectly with the pants because you can tuck it into the pants and you don't see any lines. Other neutral tops can be interchanged with the pants, which I'd recommend grey or nude heels. Sticking with a monochromatic theme also added to a polished and professional look. The entire outfit is a great alternative to the classic office suit. Oh, did I mention the comfort of this outfit?!? Closest thing to wearing your pj's to the office. 

Blouse :: Express

Pants :: Express

Heels :: Nine West loafer heels (similar here & here)

Coat :: Zara (similar here) 

Bag :: Coach

 Places to wear this outfit :: the office, business meetings

Photos by Lydia Hudgens