Does your job require you to look stylish AND be active? Are you a librarian who reshelves books, a teacher who spends her hours running after energetic kids, or anyone who has to balance professionalism and comfort? If so, I bet you'd love some recommendations for styles and garments that look lovely while allowing for an active lifestyle. Some applicable advice can be found in this post about durable dressing, but here are a few other tips for those of you in need of clothes that allow for easy movement:

BEFRIEND JERSEY

There's a great big world of gloriously fluid, drapey, sumptuous jersey knits out there, and it's a world that all women who need comfort and range of motion should consider exploring. Jersey dresses, waterfall cardigans, skirts, and tops can all look sophisticated and elegant but they're stretchy, relatively breathable, and washable. Ideal for women who need to stretch, climb, and sit cross-legged on the floor.

EMBRACE PONTE

Another amazing fabric that looks as great as it feels is ponte knit, a heavy-weight, stretchy, double-knit interlock fabric that is more sturdy and stiff than jersey, but almost equally flexible. Due to its stability, clothing made from ponte can be structured and architectural, which means that this fabric can play tailored to jersey knit's flowy. Ponte pieces are available everywhere from Old Navy to Saks these days, and range from slim pants and pencil skirts to blazers, dresses, and tunics. Pick up a piece or two and see how they fare in those active environments.

LEARN ABOUT LAYERING

For those working in fast-paced, kid-centric, or borderline-athletic environments, you'll probably need more than a few fab fabrics to make your wardrobe workable. If you're dancing with toddlers, climbing to high library shelves, or engaged in activities that might put your bust or buns into plain view, you'll need to embrace layers. For your upper body, simple stretch camisoles under blouses and v-necks work beautifully, as do scarves. For your lower half, tights are the obvious choice for cold weather, but cropped and footless versions can work when it's warm outside. More layering tips can be found right here.

LOVE LEGGINGS

My enduring love-affair with leggings has been well documented, yet I know that many people loathe 'em. Here's the thing, friends: Leggings are comfortable, flexible, cute, versatile, and it is entirely possible to make them look polished enough for work. (Assuming you're not a lawyer or a corporate CEO.) Take your brand new ponte tunic, a pair of cute ballet flats, and a sweet scarf. Now throw on a pair of cropped or ankle-length leggings and tell me you don't look darling. Leggings also pair beautifully with boots, and if you're worried about shortening your leg line, pairing dark leggings with dark boots mitigates stumpification quite tidily. Leggings are a great option for those working in professions that require loads of running, jumping, and climbing.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that women working in jobs that move will mostly be annoyed by brooches, belts, and delicate clothing embellishments that might pop off at any moment. While a nice jersey knit wrap dress is probably perfect and a cute tee with some fabric ruffles will definitely work, loads of accessories aren't practical and garments that require vigilance, tugging, or rearranging will merely annoy. Keep your looks and layers simple and sleek, and all that moving you're doing will continue unimpeded.

Anyone else work in an environment that keeps you active? How do you dress comfortably and stylishly? Any specific fabrics, garments, or manufacturers to recommend?

Top image courtesy Athleta

Sally McGraw is the author of Already Pretty, a daily blog about the intersection of style and body image.