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Washable Workwear Wednesday: The Bridget Top

Machine-Washable Work Clothes· Recent Recs

woman wearing plain olive green collared blouse

I never found collared button-downs flattering on me, but this blouse from M.M.LaFleur might make me reconsider.

The Bridget Top makes a few tweaks to the classic button-down — it’s made from a lightweight fabric that’s perfect for moving between A/C and the muggy outdoors and features elongated cuffs and covered buttons that can be buttoned all the way up for a high-collared look. It’s also treated with Polygiene, an anti-odor finish, which is perfect for the hot and humid weeks of summer.

The top is $190 and currently available in XS–XL. It comes in “Fern,” an earthy green, or “Alabaster,” a creamy beige. The washable silk version is $225 and comes in a pretty ivory/black or ivory/garnet herringbone pattern.

Looking for other washable workwear? See all of our recent recommendations for washable clothes for work, or check out our roundup of the best brands for washable workwear.

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Sales of Note…

(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)

Kid/Family Sales

  • J.Crew – 25-40% off kids’ styles; extra 50% off select sale
  • Lands’ End – Up to 40% off your order
  • Hanna Andersson – 30% off all kids’ & baby clothing; PJs on sale from $25; up to 75% off clearance
  • Carter’s – Rule the School Sale: Up to 50% off; up to 40% off baby essentials
  • Old Navy – 50% off back-to-school styles; 30% off your order, even clearance
  • Target – Backpacks from $7.99; toddler & kids’ uniforms on sale from $5
  • Pottery Barn Baby – Summer sale: up to 50% off
  • Nordstrom – Limited time sales on brands like Maxi-Cosi and Bugaboo.
  • Strolleria – Free infant seat car adapter with any Thule stroller; 30% off all Peg-Perego gear in our exclusive Incanto Collection

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And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!

About Ann

Ann is a working mom, a longtime reader of Corporette and CorporetteMoms, and has been writing our morning fashion advice for working moms since November 2020! She has a daughter (born winter 2014) and a son (born fall 2019) and is a public interest lawyer in Washington, D.C.

Comments

  1. Clementine says

    This shirt would have me well on my way to my goal CJ Cregg aesthetic. Could I pair with a pair of pleated waisted dress pants, a medium width brown belt (through the loops) and a long blazer?

    • Anonymous says

      I was thinking that the pants should be looser in the leg, not tapered, and in that case, not a long blazer, but something shorter and maybe in a more trapeze shape. Otherwise, yes.

      My coloring would mandate this olive color with black or white or denim, which I’m cool with. Brown is no bueno for me.

  2. Mask mom says

    Looking for masks recs for a 3 year old- lightweight comfy breathable. Ear loops often fall off her little ears. We are planning on a short flight this fall – my kid’s daycare does not require masks so she is not used to masks for long periods. I’m nervous that she will pull hers off mid flight and we will be hassled by staff. Dad and I are fully vaccinated, in bay area. Thanks.

    • anon says

      My favorite masks for my 3yos are the Gap contoured ones, followed by the Gap pleated ones. Old Navy pleated ones are okay, but don’t seal around their cheeks as nicely. We’ve definitely also had trouble with earloops not staying on their ears, but these ones seem to work quite well, even when running around the playground and hanging upside down.

      You also might try disposable masks; some kids find them more comfy because they’re stiffer and stay away from their mouths better. The Costco kids ones come with adjustable ear loops.

    • Anon says

      The way we trained my kids to wear masks was to have a rule that when they watched TV, they wore a mask. It helped get them used to it and also learn to ignore it.

      I found that the hanna Andersson masks fit a 2-3 year old the best. I also have used lots of cloth masks but actually would suggest disposable masks where you just knot the ear loops to customize the fit.

      • Anon says

        The Hanna ones are a bit small on my very large almost 4 year old, so would be better for a smaller (or even average) size 2-3 YO. We prefer the gap pleated ones for DD. I prefer for her the costco kids disposable ones (kiddo does not) because they are more protective than just a cloth mask if we will be in high risk environments, so more risk balancing (of how risky it is, how much do I want to fight her on a mask, etc.). She wears cloth to preschool no problem but if I were putting her on a plane I would fight for the disposable ones.

    • Anonymous says

      Could you fold a buff-type face covering and put a mask in between the folded over fabric? I’ve done that before on masks where the elastic had worn to the point of being too loose (before you could easily buy masks and masks had adjusters; these were hand-sewn masks with cut-down elastic from what was on hand). Alternatively, there are masks with two ties that go behind the head. Those help for my hospital friends who have tired ears and need to wear all day, every day.

    • Anon says

      we recently flew with 3 year olds and they wore Happy Masks. THey also like Vista Print. Many kids pulled their masks off mid flight and no one was hassled by staff…but my kids were hassled by me bc i wanted them to keep their masks on. mine are home with a nanny and also dont wear masks frequently, and we talked about it beforehand and they did great. i personally would not have been comfortable flying with my kids if i couldnt get them to keep their masks on. i also had kiddo sit in window seat with air fully blasting

    • masks for school? says

      slight thread jack – my 3 year old twins are starting preschool this fall and will need to wear masks. do people recommend the same ones for school as they do for flying? my kids are fine at wearing them, we just need a larger quantity than we currently have. is reusable best? disposable best?

      • AwayEmily says

        I have tried a bunch and I think you can’t beat Old Navy for comfort and price. Both my 3yo and 5yo wear them (the regular pleated ones, not the contoured ones — those are too big on my 3yo). Some have the adjustable ear loops and some don’t. If we need to tighten the ones that don’t have them, we use those teeny tiny hair rubber bands (they don’t come out even in the wash, and are actually more comfortable than the plastic adjusters, I think). We have probably 15 for each kid, wash on delicate and air dry, and they’ve lasted 1.5 years so far. You can also use the hair elastic trick to tighten if the elastic starts to get worn out.

      • Anonymous says

        Our school likes the Old Navy masks and recommends that families buy a whole bunch of them. The kids (2-3 yo) often go through three or more masks in a day, so you need at least a dozen.

        We flew recently, and believe me, staff have better things to do than check in on toddler mask adherence. It’s the adults who are the problem.

      • IHeartBacon says

        I would recommend reusable because they will likely be running around a lot and their sweating and panting will make the disposable ones kind of soggy. If you end up using disposable, I would recommend sending a couple of extras with them each day in case they need to switch them out.

        We like the Old Navy pleated ones.

    • buffybot says

      We have had good luck with the character masks from Gap. My son likes to wear a Spider-Man or Avengers mask and it made it fun, plus they seem stretchy and comfy.
      We flew back in November when masking was relatively new for my kid, not yet three. He did very well for the long flights (cross country) and the flight attendants (Delta) did not hassle us for relatively brief moments of masklessness, likely because they could tell we were trying. Perhaps things would be different on another airline (those United flight attendants are real mean).
      I think parents get in trouble when they aren’t really making an effort or have otherwise set kids up to fail. Obviously I would practice as much as you can with your daughter in advance of the flight.

      • Anon says

        +1 I’ve flown American twice in the last month (four flights total) and no flight attendant cared about kids wearing masks. They hassle adults and older kids (maybe 8+?) who aren’t wearing them properly.

    • NYCer says

      We recently flew with our 2yo who is not great at mask wearing, and the flight attendants did not say anything. There was another 2yo (I asked his mom his age) across the aisle who never wore a mask, and they were never hassled either.

      • NYCer says

        This was on United FWIW. They did make comments to adults not wearing masks properly.

    • Anon says

      I’ve purchased all of my son’s masks from Etsy – the shop SewnbyBunnies makes them with stretchy ties that go around the back of their head, and we also have a few from the seller Gureumi that have adjustable ear loops and contoured nose pieces (all of my fabric masks have also come from this shop). For us, the keys to making him wear a mask without issue have been comfort, ease of putting on, and fun character designs.

    • Pogo says

      It’s worth trying a few and seeing what she likes. Mine has a specific style he prefers, which I order from Amaz*n. I would make her wear it when you go out and you are wearing a mask to normalize – that’s what got my kiddo used to it. He has been wearing a mask 9 hours a day for almost a year now.

    • Anonymous says

      The head of the FDA said yesterday that KN95 or N95 are best for the Delta variant – cloth isn’t cutting it anymore. I know that’s not reasonable for kids, but can you at least get your hands on some surgical masks?

      • anon says

        It looks to me that Happy Masks claims put them to be in the same ballpark as KN95 effectiveness. Happy Masks seems legit to me and my kids really like them.

        I have a package of KN95s for kids, though they’re too big for a preschooler. I’m also not 100% certain they’re legit.

    • Anon says

      For flights, my 3.5 year old wears a KN95, although it’s a little too big and it’s kind of stressful making sure it doesn’t slip below her nose (the flight attendants definitely don’t care, but I do). For school, we just do regular cloth masks from Old Navy. I figure with ~8 hours of indoor exposure, a mask is unlikely to do much anyway but on airports and airplanes you have much briefer contact with a much larger number of people and a mask seems more likely to prevent infection in that scenario.

    • Anonanonanon says

      BAGGU masks are amazing. I wear them when I wear cloth masks because they’re made very similar to the type of N95 I’m fitted for for work. They slide down a lot less frequently than other masks do on my 3-year-old. They do have ear loops, but they’re adjustable.

    • Anonymous says

      OP here thanking everyone for all the great suggestions and feedback!

  3. Anon says

    Assuming schools open this fall, my twins need insulated lunchboxes for K. I want to keep using the Bentgo boxes we send to daycare, but need something that can hold both that box and an ice pack. Anyone have suggestions?

  4. Sleepy Mom says

    Our 3.5 YO is sneaking out of their room at night, trying to get into our room, waking up their sibling, etc, etc.

    How did anyone else fix this problem? I am so sleepy from last night’s four times out of bed.

    • Anon says

      my 3 year old twins are still in cribs, but i dread the day i have to move them to beds.

    • AwayEmily says

      I would do a serious natural consequence, then follow through on that consequence. For my 3yo, it was that if he woke up his sister, we would move him out of their shared room. We actually did it (for one night only), even though it was super annoying for us. He was miserable, she was miserable (she hates sleeping alone), and he hasn’t done it since.

      It sounds like the horse might already be out of the barn, but we also use a Hatch light that the kids obey pretty well — purple means they are allowed to chat with each other, yellow means it’s time to be quiet, and green means time to get up.

    • AnonATL says

      We aren’t quite there yet, but I did see an article about something called toddlermonitor which goes on the door knob and alarms if they open the door.

    • Anon says

      Time. My almost 4 YO has stayed in her bed all night 3 nights this week, which might be the longest uninterrupted set of sleep in a week I have had (absent her solo grandparent visits) in 4 years). She normally co-sleeps when she climbs in with us, but I recently bought her a sleeping bag to try and get her to just stay on the floor. So far, fun toy, not a sleeping spot. Sigh. One day.

    • Pogo says

      Our sleep consultant recommended an extra tall baby gate. Unfortunately our kid figured it out pretty quickly, but when we have issues we crack down again and reinforce it (add a zip tie or something). I don’t like to lock him in all night since he does legit have to pee sometimes, and the shenanigans for us are usually confined to bedtime/early morning. So I might lock him in via gate until he falls asleep or at least quiets down and lays in bed for a period of time and typically he gets the message in one night of this that we mean business. I will say it increases the bedtime encores, because he’ll lay there and scream I WANT WATER instead of getting up to get it, in what I can only imagine is his passive aggressive response to being told he has to stay physically in his bed.

      We also tried sticker chart for compliance to the rules about staying in your room except to pee, but with limited success.

      Major solidarity. There was a week where I was only getting 1-2 hrs sleep at a time because either the baby or the preschooler was up for whatever reason.

    • Ashley says

      Late reply but we do the door monkey and lock him in. There is a small training potty in his room for legitimate bathroom needs.

  5. CPA Lady says

    A vent.

    Ugh the plague has befallen our house. Kiddo has the ‘rona. Her entire day camp program got shut down early (this was their last week) because of an outbreak. Yay.

    Thankfully she is asymptomatic so far. Fingers crossed it continues that way. Of course husband is out of town for work (tested negative before he left) so I’m at home trying to get things done while kiddo complains about boredom and begs for snacks every 10 minutes. How did I do this for a whole year? Is it Friday yet?

    • Anon says

      uch. i’m glad she is at least asymptomatic so far and i’m assuming you are too. i can’t keep up with all the changing rules – how long is the quarantine? set out a bin each day of snacks and let her know she can help herself until those snacks are gone and those are all the snacks for the day. curbside pickup some new things to play with from target? amazon prime some new activities? and all the screentime. good luck! i have a feeling we are in for a very long school year that in some ways will be worse than last bc of frequent quarantines. last year more people were staying home so kids weren’t exposed as much, but a lot of people have decided the risk is low for kids and are out and about (no judgment), but it does mean less guaranteed continuous childcare/school

    • Pogo says

      Oh man, so many hugs. How did we do it for so long, I have no idea (well, one of mine napped and the other was still in utero – that’s how). I am terrified for this scenario, even if the virus is mild in your kiddo it’s still scary!

    • GCA says

      Oh no, I’m sorry! Sending you all healthy and productive thoughts and hoping she stays completely asymptomatic. How old is she again? My rising 1st grader would be entertained by: new Lego or craft sets (Crayola’s ‘glitter dots’ keychain set was a recent hit), writing postcards to quarantined friends, screen time (look at The Kid Should See This for kid-appropriate YT videos), running around in the back yard, KiwiCrates, and…more screen time.

    • Tea/Coffee says

      So sorry to hear! Fingers crossed that she stays asymptomatic and that nobody else gets it!
      My rising first grade would be amused by a blow up or similar kiddie pool, or slip and slide, sprinkler etc. actually last summer i worked outside under a pop up tent a lot, while kids played in the yard.
      LEGO, audiobooks, aiming at things with nerf guns, kinetic sand.
      Do you have any spare change laying around? Random but my kids just spent hours sorting and counting loose change – we have a bucket – bc we said they could keep it if they counted it first.

    • Anon says

      UGH. Just… UGH on your behalf.

      Our best purchase was a sprinkler bouncy house. $199 at Target. Would highly recommend.

    • FVNC says

      I’m so sorry! I hope you and she continue to feel okay! Not sure how old she is, but my 4 and 7 yrs olds have been loving the Olympics. I’d just turn on NBC / USA Network all day for them and they’d probably be thrilled.

  6. Lorelei Gilmore says

    Ideas for a thank you gift for my MIL? She spent two weeks at our house (3-hr flight away from her home) while DH and I had busy periods at work. She took care of DD (11 mo) in the mornings after I nursed, took her to daycare, picked her up early, helped DH make dinner and do bedtime if I wasn’t around. While DD was in daycare, she did laundry and some light cleaning. She was an absolute saint and I am so grateful she was able to help us. (We ALL cried after dropping her off at the airport.) She went to Starbucks every day but doesn’t do that at home (we should have bought her a GC at the beginning of her visit), she eats healthy, and doesn’t really need anything. I was thinking an extravagant flower arrangement and a heartfelt card. Any other ideas? Maybe an electronic picture frame? But I also kind of want to save that for Christmas and give it to all grandparents.

    • Boston Legal Eagle says

      Does she like massages or other salon type things? Maybe a gift certificate to a nice local spa.

    • Spirograph says

      I think an extravagant flower arrangement and heartfelt card are perfect.

      • IHeartBacon says

        I agree. Clearly, she is a wonderful MIL and it sounds like she did it out of love for her son, her DIL, and her grandchild. I’m certain that flowers and a heartfelt card are all she would want or need.

        I envy you.

        • Anonymous says

          Right, exactly this. A more durable thank you gift, or a gift card might feel transactional. It sounds like your MIL is lovely, and I wouldn’t take the chance of offending her by paying her for her help when she probably was thrilled to spend time with her son and grandchild (and you too, but I know I’m an afterthought to my MIL getting to spend time with “her babies”).

          • Anon says

            I agree a gift is unnecessary but I don’t think it would feel transactional. If someone got me a gift certificate for a massage or something like that for watching their kid, I might feel bad and think “oh that wasn’t necessary, they shouldn’t have done that” but I wouldn’t be like “oh wow they’re trying to bribe me to do this again.”

    • Anon says

      I make yearly photo books of my kid and send my parents a copy, so maybe something like that? I do lay flat books from Adorama so they’re not cheap ($200+) but the time I invest in doing it is the real gift.

    • GCA says

      Is she a plant person? What about a nice house plant as an extravagant-flower-arrangement alternative? My MIL has really enjoyed her Mother’s Day orchids. Other hits have been a hummingbird feeder, Audible/ local bookstore gift card, and a large assortment of nice tea.

  7. Music for Kids? says

    I’m looking for new music for the car. Kids are 6 and 4. We’ve cycled through all the OkeeDokee Brothers and Moana, Frozen, Brave, and Sing movie soundtracks. Any suggestions?

    • Spirograph says

      Does it need to specifically be kid genre? My kids were introduced to a lot of 00’s-present pop — boy bands, Brittney, Taylor Swift, the Weeknd, Dua Lipa — at daycare dance parties, and we added Queen, the Beatles, Fallout Boy, Weezer & Panic at the Disco (short jump from Frozen 2, thanks to their awesome covers on the soundtrack) etc

      If you want something more kid-specific, though, definitely They Might Be Giants.

    • Anonymous says

      Descendants soundtrack, classic rock songs (we love the Beatles around here). I recently did a long car trip where I DJ’d the music by artists from that state. My children got a heavy dose of Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen in New Jersey and Frank Sinatra in NYC and are now big fans ;).

      • NYC Girl says

        Fun fact: Frank Sinatra is actually from NJ. He was born and grew up in Hoboken :)

    • Anonymous says

      3- and 5- year old in my house are currently obsessed with Hamilton (consider buying the clean version of at least a couple songs, there are at least two very articulated F-bombs) and The Beatles. So glad to have moved on from the Disney soundtracks altho those are in the mix once in a while.

    • Anon says

      My3 year old loves Broadway musical soundtracks. Hamilton is our all-time fave though it has some bad language.

    • Anonymous says

      Just normal music that you like. It doesn’t have to be kid music. The Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Bob Marley …

      • More Sleep Would Be Nice says

        +1. We don’t do “kid” music, we just listen to music we like that doesn’t have profanity (which takes away a lot of my personal favorites…)

      • DLC says

        +1. My kids are still young enough that listening to Dad singing Piano Man at the top of his lungs is still fun and not eye-rollingly dorky. Savor that.
        We also listen to a lot of Hamilton too.

        • AwayEmily says

          I was singing in the car the other day and my 3.5yo said to me, very politely, “Mama, can you please stop singing now?”

          (to be fair I have a TERRIBLE voice but man, I thought I could get at least another few years before they noticed!)

      • Boston Legal Eagle says

        My kids are in a big Michael Jackson phase right now. It’s nice for us because it reminds us of our own childhoods. We also have some Ok Go, JT, Eurovision soundtrack and few other dance hits on our “kids” soundtrack. I personally LOVE the Hamilton soundtrack, but I’m not quite ready to let them hear the full lyrics.

        • Anonymous says

          I do a strategic turn-down-the-volume for the F bombs. The rest I just let go. My kids love Hamilton, in no small part because one is named Alexander

          • Anon says

            Wait what’s inappropriate in Hamilton besides the F bombs? There’s some sexual innuendo but I feel like it would go way over a little kid’s head.

    • Anonymous says

      We like the “Disney Hits” playlist on Spotify, and it’s been fun because if songs from a movie are particularly good we watch that movie (Princess and the Frong!)

    • Anonymous says

      You could try Maestro Classic CDs which are narrated symphonies for kids. Otherwise I just play whatever I want unless the 4yo is demanding lion king/kidz bop songs

  8. LC says

    As I prepare to go back to the office in a month or so, I’d like to get “real” bras again (been only wearing nursing/stretchy bras for 2 years now LOL). But I am having a terrible time finding any that fit right! Any suggestions?

    • Anon says

      What’s your major fit issue? I’ve had some success with Natori “Zone Full Fit Smoothing Contour Underwire.”

    • Mommasgottasleep says

      It’s a bit of work up front, but I fitted myself using the Reddit /abrathatfits a few years ago (my now four year old was about six months). Now I buy them online from Nord rack, filtered on my size and brands I know fit me. I’m a bit of a weird size though: it may be even easier for you.

    • Anonymous says

      Unfortunately, I think the answer is go somewhere (not Victoria Secret) to be fitted

    • anonamama says

      Nordstrom to get fitted or even Soma – they do fittings and have decent bras.

  9. Anonanonanon says

    It’s a PITA, but I was a bit relieved by the change in mask mandates. My daughter’s preschool stopped supporting mask wearing about 2.5 weeks ago. After four months of the school being open with no illness, literally almost the entire class is sick (half have strep, half have a non-COVID cold). After the announcement, they’re going back to masking. Sad that it is necessary, but it clearly makes a difference. Also, now I have a cold and I forgot how awful it feels.

    • Anon says

      In my ideal world, people will wear masks indoors every winter because it has been an amazing 16 months of no stomach bugs, antibiotics, fevers, or anything more than a mild cold. My rising first grader agrees!

      • Anon says

        The no stomach bugs probably has more to do with the extra handwashing and sanitizing, since that virus is spread primarily by the ingestion of particles from an infected person. But I agree with the broader point! Three mild colds for kiddo this whole winter, none for DH and me. Compare to last year when someone in our house hold was sick at all times from September to March and we practically lived at the ped’s office.

      • Anon says

        i also LOVE not getting sick – but is this bad for our immune systems in the longterm?

        • Anon says

          It’s much more of an issue for kids than adults because kids need exposure to germs to prime their immune systems. And my ped said it wasn’t a huge concern because even with masks kids still catch some things (my kiddo had several daycare cold this past year) plus you are exposed to germs when you play outdoors or if you have pets or if you eat food that has bad bacteria in it…things like that. Basically she said you’d have to be living in a total sterile bubble for it to be a real concern. And I can tell myself I’m helping my kid’s immune system by keeping a not-very-clean house. ;)

  10. Anon says

    I am thinking of buying a peloton. Does anyone have one and NOT like it? If you regret buying one, why?

    • Anonymous says

      Just an FYI – keep your kids away from it. Like, have it in a locked room. My niece broke her leg (2 bones) playing on one unsupervised. Obviously, a know your kid thing. But a friendly reminder that kids and exercise equipment do not mix.

    • Anon says

      I just sold mine. I bought it before the pandemic and used it somewhat then. But once the pandemic hit and I was never able to leave the house, working out was the LAST thing I wanted to do, and esp not in sight of my wfh setup. I would rather go for a run or bike ride outside in my neighborhood, and quite honestly last winter when it was too cold to go outside, I still had zero motivation to workout at home. For me, the “social” aspect of the bike/ network didn’t really work. The instructors felt really fake and impersonal, and riding at the same time as a friend felt like such a poor substitute to taking a class together.

      I know it works really well for a lot of people, but not for me. The good news was that I was able to sell it on FB marketplace really quickly for a decent price.

    • Anonanonanon says

      Like most fitness things, some people I know love it and some don’t. Those that don’t like it don’t have a problem with the actual peloton, they were just forced to face the fact that having a Peloton did not magically give them the motivation or time to exercise more than they did without it (which is how I would be too)

  11. N says

    Does anyone know if Nordstrom will restock a carseat before the end of the sale?

    • AnonATL says

      I can’t speak to carseats specifically, but I’ve been after this one blouse and refreshing throughout the day and it keeps coming in and out of stock

        • AnonATL says

          It is so obnoxious. The moment I put it in my cart, it’s out of stock again! I’ve given up on it.

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