Last May, on a trip to Stockholm, I bought a neon blue, long-sleeve stretchy collared top from second-hand store Arkivet. With a ribbed bodycon fit and buttons down the front, it was a more feminine take on the striped polo knits that had hit the Miu Miu catwalk for spring/summer 24. It quickly became a heavy rotation option for the office, paired up with vintage Levi’s, pinstripe trousers, and ankle or knee-length skirts. Shortly after, I stumbled across another workwear find in Brick Lane’s Serotonin Vintage in the form of a Max & Co top with an open collar in a checkered black and white pattern with a subtle, early 2000s feel.
As I have written in these pages, I love a good shirt. They are one of my summer essentials for the office, when the thermometer hits 22 or above. But in the often fickle London spring, I still prefer to wear something with a bit more weight that can equally protect me from chilly morning winds and the office air-con, while being light enough for a lunch break in the sun. These two long-sleeve tops are perfect for the in-between days before summer, especially when I know I’ll be out day-to-night, with temperatures swinging from the low teens to 20 degrees before dropping down again.
Their benefits seem endless. They are soft on the skin, comfortable and appropriate for my informal, media office, but also form-fitting and flattering, making me feel put together for a post-work drink, dinner or the theatre. They keep me warm but are still a thin layer, so I can easily wear them under any kind of blazer or jacket. Most importantly, they require minimum styling, because their shape and details (colour in one case, pattern in the other) make any basic look less dull.
A quick look at the spring/summer 25 catwalks offer plenty of inspiration for this kind of alternative workwear tops. Tory Burch paired up sporty, body-skimming, polo shirts in wool gauze with businessy mid-rise slim wool trousers. At Tod’s and Miu Miu, yellow, white and red tight mock-neck T-shirts with quarter-zips at the front came under blazers in navy, dark brown and burgundy.
Tove offered see-through crystal mesh tops layered on top of long-sleeve jerseys. At Acne Studios, fitted or cropped cardigans came with sewn-on layering details, creating trompe l’oeil effects. Many brands also took on the humble henley shirt this season, including Chloé and Brandon Maxwell. Some made the classic design more interesting by asymmetrically placing the front buttons (Daley) or by adding a sculptural neckline (Ferragamo).
Most of these styles mould to the body, something that “feels fresh because we have been in such an oversized trend for so long”, says Dublin-born, New York-based designer Maria McManus. Her eponymous label, founded in 2020, offers basics with a twist such as the glittery, slim-fit Metallic shirt ($690, mariamcmanus.com) and the Kissing Placket polo ($590, mariamcmanus.com), whose front closure leaves a subtle gap that reveals skin between each button. “You can wear it really buttoned up and feel quite nerdy, but then it can also be opened up to be a V-neck. It looks great with oversized bottoms, like a wide leg trouser or our high-waisted cropped flare,” says the designer.
Shrunken cardigans are also in demand. “We had one on Net-a-Porter that sold out completely in the first two weeks. There is an appetite for this kind of smaller, more put together feminine shapes,” continues McManus.
At London-based Peachy Den, which was founded in 2019 with the aim of “exporting cult Brit girl style to the world”, shoppers come for trendy pieces but keep returning for reworked basics such as the Cindy long-sleeve top in recycled seersucker fabric (£110, peachyden.co.uk), the Claudine cardigan (£95, peachyden.co.uk) and the semi-sheer Elise knit (£68, peachyden.co.uk).
“Sixty per cent of our business relies on those core pieces which lend themselves more to officer wear, but depending on the styling can be worn to go out — just by taking a layer off for example,” says Peachy Den founder Isabella Weatherby. The idea is to provide versatile silhouettes that can create “a killer outfit that you put together in no time. [An outfit] that makes you feel super comfortable and ready for the day ahead, transitioning from going to work to dinner or even going out.”
I realised that most of my spring office favourites, which include long-sleeve, patterned mesh tops, cropped cardigans and quarter-zip sweatshirts, follow Weatherby’s mantra. In the office, I wear them with plain cami tops underneath to avoid showing too much skin, but I often take off the extra layer if I’m going out after work. Most often a light-wash or grey denim trouser, some layered necklaces and a leather jacket is what I need to complete the look.
Kay Barron, fashion director at Net-a-Porter, enlists lace and mesh pieces as well as polo shirts as “great alternatives to the classic office button down.” She too commends the fact that these styles can be paired with “just about anything. I wear a lot of denim so personally, my go-to would be a pair of jeans from Citizens of Humanity.”
At London-based brand Ninety Percent clothing, which was founded as a purveyor of no-frills basics in 2018, head of design Emily Green has expanded the offer to include pieces such as the Iphis top (£60, ninetypercent.com) and the Mona top (£60, ninetypercent.com), answering shoppers’s demand for versatile items with a “point of interest” such as draping. These fitted silhouettes in MicroModal fabric, which gently hugs the body, have quickly become the brand’s best-sellers.
“People are shopping more consciously now and if they are buying a top they want to be able to wear it for different occasions,” explains Green. “The fabric that we use for those styles, to create that draping, is perfect for transitional weather, because it’s really breathable and soft on the skin.”
Another benefit of these alternative workwear styles? They rarely require any ironing. “All of these tops could be worn on a work trip and they would look just perfect coming out of your suitcase,” says McManus. “You don’t need a steamer, you don’t need to iron. You are just ready to go.”
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