Clothes spending

I have just spent £38 on a summer dressthat was reduced from £53. I am still reeling in shock at myself for spending that amount. I may have had heat stroke! I am miserable with clothes. Due to having slim and shallow feet I usually have to spend high on footwear but they do last a long time.

I have “ two” wardrobes, one for my good stuff mainly Hobbs, Phase Eight, Gina Bacconi, Jigsaw etc, Sole Bliss and Dune shoes that are worn on cruises, weddings etc, then the other one full of Next, M&S and other high street stores jeans, trousers, tops, jumpers, trainers, boots and everyday shoes and sandals.
Maximum spend was probably my outfit for my Son’s wedding, £450 dress, £250 shoes and £120 clutch bag plus undies/shape wear.
My husband always buys my handbags as birthday/ Christmas presents, so have a lovely selection of Radley and Kate Spade bags in all sizes/ colours, I like a good quality bag.

I like dresses and this summer, I bought 2 very cheaply and I've already worn both a lot. One is a white linen shift dress with a china blue pattern on from TK Maxx and the other is bright multi colours from Tu. Each one cost me £24. I also love Bombshell dresses, particularly the Grace style, I have a collection but I always buy in the sale. I feel they are really "me". They are beautifully made in this country and last for years. My most recent one cost £189.00. I wear jeans in the day time but only M& S and TK Maxx & usually with cheap jumpers - I had 2 cable fronted ones from H&M for £10 each years ago and they're still going strong. I didn't think that woman in the navy trousers had a look worth aspiring to I'm afraid. As I type, I'm in my Primark "satin" PJs which cost £12 in the sale and look very expensive. My favourite winter coat is a red and cream wool houndstooth M&S second, I've had it more than 12 years & it cost £17 & very often gets admired when I wear it. I also have a paddock coat by Guinea of London made from Yorkshire tweed which cost £350.00. It's very smart & also gets admired but it's not as cosy as the old M&S second!!

One thing I’ve never been interested in is expensive handbags.
My favourite one at the moment is from anthropology and is a sort of lattice work lime green little bag, I love it, I think it was about £60.

To me, it’s all about the fabric.

Todays fabrics can hardly stand up to the more natural and luxurious threads we could buy in the past, whether ready-to wear or on bolts to fashion our own clothing.

That in itself is a big driver of what I’m buying these days, no matter the cost. Some lightweight fabrics are good for everyday wear, a thrill, laundering, affordability, but for occasions, when you want a statement piece expect to pay a pretty penny to get the fit, styling, fabric, long term wear, “oohs and aahs.”

Be your own Stylista!
USA Gundy

Gundy I agree, the fabric and the cut make all the difference.

Often one 'expensive' item can lift an outfit. I like good shoes and bags, but sometimes a really good tee shirt can make a cheaper pair of trousers look good, or even a lovely scarf.

I agree that fabrics aren't as good as they used to be. I tend to knit my own woolies to avoid acrylic mixes, but yesterday I had on an old cashmere cardigan which has lasted for years. It is a 'St Michael' one from M&S, which shows its age. I've looked at the modern versions, and the fabric is nothing like the same. It's much thinner, and the items are a lot shorter and smaller, so you'd need to go up about 3 sizes to get the same fit.

I wish I could sew, as there is such a difference between clothes where things like stripes and patterns match up, like they used to on mid-range brands like Jaeger. Nowadays you have to go a lot further up-market to get a guarantee of that - into territory uncharted by me .

I haven't bought anything brand new from a store for years. I buy in charity shops and car boot sales. I have also just discovered Vinted. Lots of things from all of these are sometimes brand new or hardly worn.

I like clothes and enjoy sorting out my wardrobe . I have given away BAGS of clothes in the past and am trying to cut down now because of my age and way of life. Have (partly) decided to only wear trousers and long skirts in future as I spend a lot of time indoors. Like good-quality, classic clothes but keep an eye out for bargain prices. Add a bit of drama (!) with unusual belts, necklaces, scarves and collars. After colour analysis know which colours suit me and watch out for these in tops, scarves etc.( Occasionally buy) from Kettlewell even though these are expensive as someone always comments on the colour "suiting" me!

Last thing I bought was a Phase Eight midi dress @£150.I buy a lot of clothes and rarely wear them a second year .In fact theres nothing in my wardrobe older than 4 years old .

Apart from my 48 year old wedding dress which my sentimental OH insists stays.
I DONT THROW THINGS AWAY I pass them on to my sister,my DIL even one of my GD 's anything they dont want goes to the charity shop who are always pleased to have what I pass on to them .
I do the same with furniture which I also change quite often .
I know I'm fortunate to not have to worry about money but I did work for 55 years so what I spend it on is surely my business
I dont have "good " clothes I wear things when I want to not for specific settings or events.I never kept the kids clothes for"good" either after a neighbours daughter who wanted to wear her holiday clothes never did because she died suddenly age 6 just days before the holiday .

The other day I spent a fortune at the hairdressers having a cut. She was new to me but so good. So now I think will stay with her and buy my clothes from charity shops. Also the best thing is to lose weight everything looks so much better. So that's the plan!

Snap Loopyloo! My hairdresser makes me look and feel great, worth every penny.

I buy in sales and, mainly, charity shops, bought a lovely new Gudrun Sjoden dress in one last week for a tenner, have had as new Seasalt items for £5-£10, what's not to like

I buy most of my clothes from Asda these days. Got some lovely dresses from Roman and on Amazon. I'm not a fashionista, I just like the things I wear to be good value and have some 'wear' in them. I've just recently dusted off my sewing machine. A cotton summer dress and skirt for £30! I call that a bargain and I know its been put together well and will last. Even if I say so myself. That needlework O level has always been a godsend.

Blossoming

Snap Loopyloo! My hairdresser makes me look and feel great, worth every penny.

Me too! My favourite place to spend, best value of all.

Whoop Whoop! I won a nice Boden voucher at the school fête yesterday!
Just coming on here to tell anyone who is interested, that Boden has a sale with 60% off - plus an additional 20% this weekend.

I don't spend much at all as I buy on ebay or from charity shops. Sell clothes on there too when I'm fed up with them. Atm wearing Levi jeans I bought for less than £10 including postage. They're like brand new. I can buy what I like on there and always afford it. Often get brand new things too for really cheap prices.

Lunched out on Friday and kept having compliments about my jacket. Lovely. Didn't tell anyone that it was twenty five years old but I was secretly chuffed about that.

Germanshepherdsmum

It’s very pretty, but for that price where was it made?

My dress duly arrived, perfect fit, ankle length on little me. The fabric is recycled viscose and doesn’t feel at all cheap. I wore it to a birthday lunch with my family who thought I looked great. Well, they are my family

The label says made in Myanmar.

Exactly.

loopyloo

Pamelaj1,
Where is that?
That's dreadful.
Perhaps like Karmalady I should get into spinning.

I couldn’t find the information on the burning of fleeces but here is a Pisces from the BBC

Pic of a piece😂

Thank you Pamela's.
That's dreadful. What can we do?
I might write to the farmer and see if I can buy some fleeces.

I'm wearing a Lands End cotton cardigan I bought in a sale over 20 years ago. It washes well and shows little evidence of wear. A 'duvet' coat from Lands End cost me approximately 33% of its original price. From the same source, I also bought a down jacket at half price which has done good service for six years so far. It's worthwhile looking for a discount code on 'Pouch' - not always available, but I've been pleasantly surprised on several occasions.

It's a pity the fleeces can't be made into duvets. Someone in Devon was doing that.