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The Office Siren has entered the building. As 2024 continues to fly by, we seem to be drifting further and further away from the hot pinks and frilly fun of last year's Barbiecore mania. The year began with a bang as TikTok was swept up by the Mob Wife aesthetic – we tossed aside our bows and lace of 2023 and donned our finest fluffy coats, designer bags and chunky gold jewels in an homage to the fearsome Italian-American mob wives of pop culture – but now, there's a new aesthetic in town. And it's arguably just as fierce as the mob wife.
The internet's latest fashion offering is niche, but instantly recognisable — she's the woman in the Y2K rom-com office we all grew up equal parts afraid and envious of. With her chic glasses, her no-nonsense bun and effortlessly chic wardrobe of business-appropriate ‘fits, she’s the ultimate office babe.
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There are a few patron saints of the Office Siren look. The Devil Wears Prada's Serena – Emily Blunt's catty clacker friend – played, of course, by Gisele Bündchen, nails the sexy corporate look and frequently appears in posts about the aesthetic. Her wardrobe of sleek monochrome blazers, tailored trousers and suggestively unbuttoned shirts provides the blueprint for the look.
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Other influences include Friends' Rachel Green (in her corporate personal shopper era) and '90s and 2000s Calvin Klein office wear. Here, Bella Hadid sums it up perfectly:
What's behind the appeal of the Office Siren?
Of course, with any TikTok aesthetic, the appeal goes beyond simply ‘the look’. We embraced Barbiecore to get back to our inner girlhood, supposedly. We tried on the mob wife aesthetic to give ourselves a fierce, takes-no-bullshit edge. So why is the Office Siren suddenly so appealing?
At a glance, the Office Siren is a relic of our corporate past — an early 2000s girlboss with style whose power came, at least in part, from her sex appeal. For the modern feminist, the look might not initially be one worth revisiting.
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But 2024's Office Siren takes on a new meaning. Today, the era of the girlboss is officially over. Young people are embracing standing up for themselves at the office. They are setting boundaries and demanding respect. And young women are rejecting gendered workplace biases.
However, while young people may be rejecting the idea of “girlbossing”, they still want to thrive at work. In fact, according to 2023 study, young people want to work full-time and many even take on side hustles. As the Office Siren aesthetic shows, we still have a desire to feel like we are bossing it at work. So, naturally, we are looking for inspiration — and the Office Siren is the embodiment of a bad ass woman who is committed to both her work and her sense of style.
How to get the Office Siren look
Want to lean into your inner Office Siren? Here's your toolkit:
- A monochrome wardrobe. Embrace chic blacks, brilliant whites and maybe a few sultry greys.
- A must for the Office Siren, invest in a few vintage Y2K blazers — preferably fitted ones with a cinched waist.
- Ditch the contacts and grab a pair of glasses.
- Lean into a more masculine look with tailored trousers that fit you perfectly.
- A pair of heels. If you hate heels, opt for a pair of pointed ballet flats or even chic loafers.
- A sleek bun with stringy pieces at the front. Grab the hairspray and make sure you have zero flyaways.
- Office-themed accessories. You are all about business efficiency. Maybe you use a pen to secure your bun in place – or maybe, you have a pen necklace à la Joan from Mad Men.
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