5 Outfit Formulas to Help You Figure Out What to Wear to Work in the Winter

Treat thigh-highs like a pair of tights—wear them under a midi length skirt for a layer of warmth. Finish with a knit in your favorite hue or print.

Shop the look: Topshop Unique sweater, $300; net-a-porter.com. Whistles skirt, $490; whistles.com. Stuart Weitzman boots, $798; stuartweitzman.com.

The combo is a classic, but vary it up slightly with cropped kick-flare pants for a touch of on-trend interest. 

Shop the look: Joe Fresh shirt, $20 (originally $39); joefresh.com. Trademark sweater, $239 (originally 398); trade-mark.com. Zara pants, $50; zara.com. Banana Republic boots, $198; bananarepublic.com.

Cold-proof any tunic with a turtleneck layered underneath, and then belt it over a sleek pencil skirt for an instant office-friendly outfit. Complete your look with black fleece-lined tights and heeled Chelsea boots.

Shop the look: H&M turtleneck, $18; hm.com. Cos tunic, $99; cosstores.com. Hope belt, $89 (originally $128); stevenalan.com. Babaton skirt, $95; aritzia.com. Acne Studios boots, $600; acnestudios.com.

Treat wide-leg culottes as you would with their longer counterpart—balance the voluminous silhouette with a fitted top by way of a structured button-down and a sharp, tailored blazer. Step in pumps to round out your ensemble.

Shop the look: Gap shirt, $30 (originally $46); gap.com. J. Crew blazer, $248; jcrew.com. J. Crew pants, $198; jcrew.com. Manolo Blahnik pumps, $595; barneys.com.

If you're the type to avoid wearing tights whenever you can (guilty), make sure the length of your dress overlaps the height of your boot to prevent any skin exposure. Winterize a sleeveless dress with a turtleneck, and throw on a cute tweed jacket over for good measure. 

Shop the look: Splendid turtleneck, $85; net-a-porter.com. Whistles dress, $170 (originally $340); whistles.com. & Other Stories boots, $345; stories.com.