Outfit Details: Missoni Dress (more sizes here), Loro Piana Bag (coming soon, similar here), Sherman Field Necklace, Irene Neuwirth Earrings, Ferragamo Heels

Late July has a funny way of making summer feel like it’s fully arrived and slightly numbered all at once. The days still feel long. Dinner’s still outside. And yet my calendar has already started filling with the first signs of fall. That’s usually when I start reaching for the dresses that feel the most like summer: the ones with color that can stand up to a garden in full bloom, a neckline made for warm nights, a pattern that matches the vibrant energy of summer’s best days.

Saturated maxis, printed halters, draped jersey, border prints, pieces with enough presence to carry dinner or one more trip before the season turns. All of it with that vivid, memorable feeling that makes late-summer plans even more worth dressing for.

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We’re not back to the days of “statement necklaces for work,” but we are slowly going back to more substantial jewelry — and I am here for it. This beaded necklace from Cuyana is a great example — it isn’t a wispy gold necklace but a significant piece of jewelry.

They show it with a strapless gown and it looks lovely, but I also think it would look great peeking out of a crisp white blouse or atop a neutral lady jacket.

The necklace is $398, at Cuyana.

Sales of note for 7/19:

• Nordstrom – The Anniversary Sale has started! Here’s our big roundup of the best workwear, as well as everything we’ve selected thus far. Don’t forget to check to see if their daily beauty deal is a good one for you – e.g., 7/23 Lancome; 7/24 YSL; 7/29 up to 40% off select lip products; 7/31 Bobbi Brown; 8/1 Jo Malone
• Ann Taylor – Semi-annual sale, 60% off sale and 40% off everything — readers love this blouse and I always love the variety of colors/textures for this jacket (it’s a great separate)
• Banana Republic – Summer sale up to 60% off sale styles + extra 20% off
• The Fold – Up to 50% off, further markdowns
• J.Crew – 50% off select cashmere
• J.Crew Factory – 60% off clearance
• Lo & Sons – Summer sale, up to 50% off
• Lululemon – Summer sale!
• Me & Em – Sale! Up to 60% off (new lines just added)
• M.M.LaFleur – 25% off jardigans (Try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off on other items)
• Nordstrom Rack – Clear the rack, extra 25% off clearance! Nice selection of Vince, Veronica Beard, Reiss and Rag & Bone, a ton of affordable work dresses from Calvin Klein, Maggy London, Eliza J, and Donna Morgan
• Talbots – Red Door Sale! Prices start at $15
• Theory – End of season sale is on!

This post may contain affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Stock photo via Deposit Photos / SIphotography.

There was just a NYT story about how “zone of genius” is a new popular phrase that seems to be everywhere now. The basic idea: it’s the intersection of what you’re exceptionally good at and what energizes you. Gwyneth Paltrow’s stylist “zone of genius” is the red carpet; for the author of The Big Leap (the first to use the term) it meant that he “cut out work that he performed with mere competence to focus more fully on writing, which he is both good at and loves to do.” Considering our day and age, the headline offered a not so subtle push: Step Into the ‘Zone of Genius’ (Before AI Takes Your Job). (Here’s a gift link to the full article.)

One thing in the comments section jumped out at me though — she noted that she has done exercises to “try to suss out what I am good at and like to do.” Which, same… in fact, we’ve even talked about personality tests that can be useful to your career, as well as how to be mindful of which parts of your job you actually like. But it’s been a long time!

So let’s discuss: Do you know your zone of genius? How did you figure it out? Have any personality tests, strengths assessments, exercises, coaches, or career experiences helped you identify what you’re uniquely good at — or is this just another buzzword for something we’ve always called “playing to your strengths”?

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Our daily workwear reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.

The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale is still going strong, and this polo dress from Julia Jordan is one of my favorite workwear pieces I’ve come across. The olive green color is lovely, and I really like the contrast trim detailing to make it feel a little extra special.

Add some flats, and this would be a great option for a business casual setting where the other folks are wearing chinos and polo shirts. 

The dress is $84.99, marked down from $139, at Nordstrom and comes in sizes XS-XL. It also comes in black. 

Sales of note for 7/19:

• Nordstrom – The Anniversary Sale has started! Here’s our big roundup of the best workwear, as well as everything we’ve selected thus far. Don’t forget to check to see if their daily beauty deal is a good one for you – e.g., 7/23 Lancome; 7/24 YSL; 7/29 up to 40% off select lip products; 7/31 Bobbi Brown; 8/1 Jo Malone
• Ann Taylor – Semi-annual sale, 60% off sale and 40% off everything — readers love this blouse and I always love the variety of colors/textures for this jacket (it’s a great separate)
• Banana Republic – Summer sale up to 60% off sale styles + extra 20% off
• The Fold – Up to 50% off, further markdowns
• J.Crew – 50% off select cashmere
• J.Crew Factory – 60% off clearance
• Lo & Sons – Summer sale, up to 50% off
• Lululemon – Summer sale!
• Me & Em – Sale! Up to 60% off (new lines just added)
• M.M.LaFleur – 25% off jardigans (Try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off on other items)
• Nordstrom Rack – Clear the rack, extra 25% off clearance! Nice selection of Vince, Veronica Beard, Reiss and Rag & Bone, a ton of affordable work dresses from Calvin Klein, Maggy London, Eliza J, and Donna Morgan
• Talbots – Red Door Sale! Prices start at $15
• Theory – End of season sale is on!

Outfit Details: Chanel Dress & Bag, Ferragamo Heeled Slides, Arielle Ratner Necklace

Some prints ask for attention, and I’ve never minded giving it. A striped pattern with real contrast, colors that have clearly been thought through, a print my eye goes to first, before I’ve registered the shape or the fabric or anything else. The print is the statement, and everything else in the outfit is there to let it be one.

Christiano Marchelli Dress, Eliou Necklace, Loro Piana Bag, Ancient Greek Sandals

In the depth of summer, these are the pieces I reach for most, on the days and nights when I want to get dressed without overthinking it but I don’t want the result to feel plain. A bright striped dress is already a whole look, ready for dinner or an afternoon of shopping. A matching set in an all-over floral does the same, one decision instead of ten. Even a shoe can carry it, a graphic stripe peeking out from a pant leg. That’s the pull of a print that does the work. It makes getting dressed simple, and the outfit still says something.