As the calendar flips to Friday 2 January 2026, the festive break officially concludes, and the collective focus shifts to navigating the return to routine. Fashion expert Melanie Wilkinson has curated a timely guide on how to dress for this gentle transition, championing comfort and ease without sacrificing style.
The Philosophy: Comfort-First Dressing
The core advice for the post-holiday return is to prioritise wellbeing through wardrobe choices. The recommendation is to ease yourself back in with relaxed silhouettes, cosy fabrics, and slipper-adjacent footwear. This approach aims to bridge the gap between holiday relaxation and professional demands, making the first week back more manageable and less sartorially stressful.
The Key Pieces for Your 2026 Capsule
The edit focuses on versatile, high-comfort items from a mix of heritage, high-street, and contemporary brands. The selections provide a blueprint for building a practical and polished January wardrobe.
Outerwear takes a utilitarian yet stylish turn with a £265 jacket from Carhartt WIP and a classic £179 Barbour jacket. For a smarter layer, a £190 wool blazer from Hush offers a soft-tailored option.
Knits and tops emphasise cosiness, featuring a £139 cardigan from Kiltane and a £155 jumper from Finisterre. A £120 shirt from With Nothing Underneath and a £175 dress from Jigsaw provide the foundational layers.
The relaxed silhouette is achieved through trousers like £75 Cos trousers and €295 trousers from The Frankie Shop. Footwear, the highlight of the 'slipper-adjacent' trend, includes £189 boots from & Other Stories, £110 shoes from Clarks, and £180 loafers from GH Bass, all paired with cosy socks from Uniqlo and Vuori.
Finishing Touches and Accessories
The guide doesn't overlook details. Accessories range from a £36 bag from Marks & Spencer and a £14.90 Uniqlo bag to a £475 Ganni bag from Liberty. Jewellery picks include a £310 necklace from YSSO, £49.99 earrings from H Samuel, and £100 earrings from Enamel Copenhagen. A £24 Jones Road lip balm serves as the essential grooming touchpoint for the winter weather.
This curated selection for early January 2026 demonstrates that returning to business can be done with deliberate comfort, blending pragmatic pieces with considered style to kickstart the new year on the right, and relaxed, foot.
