How do you add a generic item to a ComboBox bound to a collection in WPF

Question

I have a ComboBox in a WPF application that is bound to an ObservableCollection of Department objects in a C# ViewModel class. I want to use the combo box to filter another collection by department (And indeed it works for that now) The problem is that I want to add an additional option "All" to the top of the list. Is there a correct way to do this. Making a fake department feels wrong in so many ways.

The ComboBox

<ComboBox ItemsSource="{Binding Path=Departments}" 
          SelectedValue="{Binding Path=DepartmentToShow , Mode=TwoWay}" />

Answer 1

You could use a CompositeCollection as the ItemsSource for the ComboBox to include the "All" option. You need to set the Collection property of the CollectionContainer to your "ObservableCollection of Department objects".

<ComboBox >
    <ComboBox.ItemsSource>
        <CompositeCollection>
            <ComboBoxItem>All</ComboBoxItem>
            <CollectionContainer x:Name="departmentCollection"/>
        </CompositeCollection>
    </ComboBox.ItemsSource>
</ComboBox>

Not sure if this will be suitable for your filtering situation however...