1. Classic Suit A good quality suit can really take your professional wardrobe far.  You can break up the pieces for more casual occasions or wear them together for a more sophisticated look.  This is one place you don’t want to skimp on fabric quality or fit.  Choose a light weight wool in a neutral color like black, grey or tan if you only need one suit.  You should expect nothing less than a perfect fit with your suit, so don’t forget to have your suit tailored.

2. White Dress Shirt – The crisp white dress shirt is an American classic.  It works well under a suit, with a nice pair of dress pants or with jeans for more casual events.  The white dress shirt doesn’t have to be boring either.  Pick one with interesting details like a subtle texture for men or a little ruched at the waist for women.

3. Dress Pant – A dress pant is a wardrobe staple that can really take you from day to night.  A solid black pair will look great with almost anything from a t-shirt to a sport coat.  Brown and grey are great secondary colors to add to your wardrobe, but will not be as powerful for your most professional situations like an interview or presentation.  A flat front pant without cuffs is the most modern and flattering for both men and women.

4. Sport Coat/Blazer – A sport coat for men or blazer for women will help you look pulled together and professional, without going for the full suit.  It is great to wear for a networking event, client dinners or cocktail hours where others may be dressed more casually, but you want to still look and feel professional.

5. Jeans – Long thought of as only weekend casual wear, jeans do have their place in your work wardrobe.  A dark denim will be the most flattering and also look the most professional.  Light jeans look too casual as do jeans with heavy stitching, rips or fading.  Make sure you pair your jeans with nice quality shoes to keep them looking professional.

6. Sweater – A thin cashmere sweater can be worn with your dress pants or jeans.  Chose a style that is classic, like a v-neck for men or a cardigan for women.

7. T-Shirt – All t-shirts are not created equal.  A nice quality t-shirt can be paired with dress pants or jeans and layered under a suit coat, sport coat, blazer, or vest.  Solids in a dark or muted color are best.  Look for cotton fabrics that contain viscose, elastane, or cashmere for a soft and smooth texture and professional look.  Men, don’t forget a plain white cotton v-neck t-shirt to wear under your dress shirts.

8.  Dress/Tie While your company dress code may not call for you to wear a dress or a tie, these two items are great ways to change up and maximize your wardrobe while remaining current.  For women, the Little Black Dress is feminine, slenderizing and classic.  The same dress can take you from day to night, by changing out your accessories.  For men, a tie is a great form of self-expression.   Have fun with different prints and textures.  At the very minimum have at least one dark silk tie which can be worn anywhere from a wedding to an interview.

9.     Shoes You’ve heard the old saying that shoes make that man.  It still holds true and it applies to women as well.  Every YP needs a pair of black leather dress shoes that can be worn with a suit or dress pants.  Your shoes can be either classic or have a touch of style to make you stand out.  The toe box should be contoured rather than boxy to add length to your leg.  Shoes with laces are most dressy for men and heals that are sturdy not skinny or wide are business appropriate for women.

10.  Watch Nothing says you are man/woman on the move like a watch.  A classic metal watch will get you noticed.  In fact, it’s the single most important accessory for a man.  It does not need to be blinged out with diamonds, just simple, sleek and set to the correct time.

For more information or questions, contact Milena Joy at joy@milenaconsulting.com.  Milena Joy is an image consultant, professional speaker, author and founder of Milena Distinctive Image Consulting a full-service image consultancy located in Denver, CO.

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By Milena Joy

The clothes you wear each and everyday say a lot about who you are and what you do.  Imagine a man dressed in a pair of khaki pants with a red polo shirt on.  Where would you guess that he worked at?  If you guessed Target, you might be right or you might be wrong.  The point is that regardless of where he actually worked, you made assumptions based on his attire. I doubt that you guessed he worked at the leading downtown advertising agency.  Why?  If he worked at an advertising agency, his clothes would have said creative, intuitive, and cutting edge.  Instead his outfit was more like a uniform, rather than
a form of self-expression.

Your wardrobe is a great opportunity to express who you are, what you do and how you do business.  Until someone has the opportunity to get to know you or experience your work, they only know what they see.  Make sure that what they see meets your business goals and objectives.  Here are a few ways to say the right things with your wardrobe:

Creative:  Wear bright colors such as magenta or grass green.  Mix and match patterns.  Create balance between fitted and loose pieces.  Perfect for someone in an industry that thrives on being current or forward thinking like marketing or technology.

Authoritative:  Wear deep, dark colors like black, charcoal grey and navy.  Solids are best or use stripes minimally.  Keep clothing styles structured and controlled.  This is valuable in a meeting or presentation setting where you want to command attention and respect.

Friendly:  Wear warm, earthy colors like brown and orange.  Keep patterns round and smooth.  Clothing styles should be soft and minimally structured.  This is ideal for a team project or networking event where you want to be approachable.

For more information or questions, contact Milena Joy at joy@milenaconsulting.com.  Milena Joy is an image consultant, professional speaker and author.  In 2007, she founded Milena Distinctive Image Consulting a full-service image consultancy located in Denver, CO.

Our goal is to start bringing you more opportunities for interaction beyond just our once a month event. You saw a small taste of that in 2009, but rest assured there is more to come in 2010. We’ll be working closer with the various industry/cultural/non-profit specific YP groups in Denver as well as other groups in Colorado such as the Colorado Springs Young Professionals (6 Years old this month, oldest in the Rockies), and the Boulder Young Professionals which is looking to start in March. Other groups in Fort Collins and Longmont are gaining traction to get going soon as well.

We plan on helping you, the Denver Young Professional, get more involved in this great city of ours as well as explore it’s surroundings. We will be bringing you news via this very website to keep you up to date on news that can help you professionally and personally.

Have ideas? Want to get your business more involved? Want to see how you can personally? Just hit the good old “Contact” button on the top of the page today.

Our first event of the year January 20th at the Gin Mill, 6pm-8pm, which like before is the 3rd Wednesday of the month. We have a National level Ski trip in the works for the last weekend of February an we’ll be down to Colorado Springs this month for their huge 6 Year Anniversary Party. Anyone who’s gone in the past can tell you it’s not the Colorado Springs you think you know.

We look forward to working with all of your more in 2010.

Sincerely,

DYP Team

More details to be announced. But here is a quick list of who’s committed to helping us on this event so far:

• Downtown Denver Partnership
• Comcast
• Wahoo’s Fish Tacos
• Lavish
• Spill
• AMA Up!
• Behind The Moon
• Gesher City
• Pinto Pictures

We all remember what is like to have toys on Christmas day and what that meant as a child which is why we’ve teamed up with the above groups and Denver’s Santa Claus Shop (a non-religious background specific group). Denver Santa Claus Shop is also one of Colorado’s oldest non-profits dating back to 1931.

Event Flyer (1MB)

Serving a classy professional crowd has drawn quiet a bit of attention in even the last 8 months. Denver Business Journal’s write up on DYP President Ira Johnson and COYP founder Jon Severson was almost 2 pages. Others from Denver Examinar all the way up to Colorado Biz Magazine’s own editor Mike Cote have devoted time in their hollowed pages to Denver Young Professionals. A true testament of what’s to come.

Coming up for the rest of this year you’ll see collaboration at our October event with Gesher City, AMA Up!, AD2, and the Denver Film Society’s YP offering at the next film festival. There are also outings in the works with the Denver Nuggets as well as the Avalanche yet this year as well as next. Right before Christmas DYP and Denver Gives will be teaming up to bring you the 1st Annual DYP/DG Charity Toy Drive which will also be co-sponosered by some of your favorite industry/cultural specific yp groups.

Working towards next year there is a ski trip in the works for February which will be a collaboration between  all the Colorado Young Professionals groups. Volunteer days, community outreach, professional training, and other such events are also in the works.

Denver Young Professionals is the only group of it’s type in Denver and while it’s just a bit over a year old the leadership has over 15 years experience in bringing it all together. Colorado YP founder Jon Severson has personally been running and consulting young professionals groups since 1999 who’s efforts put him as one of the leading experts in the country. He is currently donating his time towards helping the conflict torn country of Cyprus get it’s own Young Professionals program going. More soon on that.

See you at Casselman’s Oct. 21st!

Sincerely,

Denver YP Team

“This is really exciting” says Colorado YP founder/President Jon Severson. “We’re really able to get Colorado out there as a result. We’re looking to share the major achievements of our young professionals in Colorado as well as developments that will attract more YP’s as well as hopefully more jobs”.

YPNation.org is a new website dedicated to offering young professionals up to date information that affects them in today’s world and local business climates.

Two other long time CSYP members have really stood out lately, Justin Burns and Diane Witt with their outstanding work on the Keza Fashion Show and 1st Annual Pike’s Peak Ecofestival respectively. Justin has been a member for over 4 years now and Diane was at the original very first CSYP Social almost 6 years ago. CSYP was a sponsor and is very proud of what these two have done.

On another note, our sister group to the North, Denver Young Professionals, has quickly become one of the premier networking groups in Denver in just a hair over a year. Almost 3000 member strong, it’s easily also one of the biggest. Do business in Denver? Check them out at www.DenverYoungProfessionals.com

Sponsorships/Advertising:
For 2010 (and a limited number of events in 2009) CSYP is proudly now making public the opportunity to sponsor events, be a Platinum or Gold Level Sponsor of the group, special events, and will be offering advertising avenues on the website. With around 2000 members and our connections throughout the state, we’re an affordable option as well as your dollars help keep CSYP growing. Contact csyoungpros@gmail.com to set up a meeting today!

Following CSYP:
Wondering how you can keep up better with what’s going on with CSYP? First step is join for FREE at www.CSYoungProfessionals.com. You can also find us on:

Facebook (page)
Twitter (@cosyoungpros)
Buzzherd (Herd)
ASmallWorld (Events)

A special thanks again to the readers of the Colorado Springs Business Journal for nominating us “Best Networking Group in Colorado Springs” in the 2009 Best Of. With what we have planned in 2010, we intend on owning that spot indefinitely.