AIBU to think in the UK women generally dress in quite a frumpy way and to wish we wore period clothing.

[NCJaneDoeNut]

Just that really. People don’t seem to make an effort and if you do you end up looking ‘overdressed’.

The reason I say UK is because that’s where I’m based and other places I’m seeing as a tourist or on tv, so maybe not a realistic impression. Not that they are worse than anyone else.

If you think this is just a UK thing you aren’t very well travelled. You will find women who dress like this all over the world and honestly, I don’t give a shit what clothes other people wear. If they are happy and feel comfortable then so be it.

I love being a rumpled scruff bag.
I loathe heels. And make-up. And "do"s. Fecking torture inventions. If heels are so great, why don't blokes usually wear them?

Just dress how you like.
You can enjoy pitying us mere mortals being looked down upon for our frumpy contented ways.

I’m chronically ill. I wear what’s comfortable. Bully for you that you have the energy to do makeup and up dos and wear heels. I was with you until you said It affects me in that I have to look at it.. Vile. Just vile.

.

Poor thing having to look at the likes of me when I make an appearance in the outside world to take and collect my dd from school.

I’m sorry you lack the confidence to wear what you want & that you try to bolster that by putting others down.

Maybe find a therapist?

Chic doesn't take effort. It's a mind set!

Funnily enough, as is pretentious twonk it seems.

ahh the glamour of the past!

I wouldn't describe the style of dress as 'frumpy' more 'mismatched'. Women in the U.K. seem to care less about matching and coordinating outfits. This is my observation, I've lived in a few countries.

I'm not sure if it's not caring (which in a way is liberating) or not knowing how to dress well.

As a teenager I was painfully shy and self conscious. I had terrible dress sense and limited shops nearby (baggy t-shirts, unflattering jeans, frumpy long skirts, Hotter sandals etc). I didn't like any of my clothes but didn't know how to dress to suit me or where to shop. In my 20s I read books about style, studied colour wheels and discovered EBay!

Much of the problem is disposable fashion. Cheap nylon and polyester clothes that hang badly and loose their shape after a few washes. Impulse buying so nothing goes together. Being in a hurry in the mornings so you leave without looking in a full length mirror and the colours/shapes/fabrics don't coordinate. Buying things without trying them on or the wrong size because that's all that was left in the sale.

Mousefunky
Agreed. Having actually lived in a few European countries, op is definitely speaking out of her delicate arse. Dhs aunt for example goes almost everywhere in a floral overall thing, which looks a bit like a lab coat. Was very common up until recently for women to wear one or a tabard in France to protect your clothes.

Are we talking on the blob or Victoriana?
Wear what you like op , and leave other women to do the same. Or go and live in Italy, plenty dressy there.

Well, Ive been out today and I'm certainly shocked by what I've seen, and the obesity epidemic is well and truly alive and kicking.

ahh the glamour of the past!

But that proves my point. He is wearing a suit. She is wearing a housecoat over a dress. You would never find people in those circumstances dressed like that today .

Lol. Why do you care?

Wear what you like. I really do think you’d be happier if you stopped worrying about what you and everyone else is wearing.

Looking "pulled together" is vastly overrated. I have no desire to look like a minor member of the Royal Family.

I also work in an airport and see people from all over the world daily. It is a complete myth that all European women are chic and groomed, and thin.

Mousefunky alot of the clothes in the UK are cheaply made and disposable. The fabrics are synthetic, vile and don't fit well. Have a look at the style boards on here bemoaning the demise of great quality clothes on the high street.

Saying to me that I'm not very well travelled is a nasty snide little comment.

I'm sorry you lack the confidence to wear what you want & that you try to bolster that by putting others down
Maybe find a therapist?

⬆ That, exactly.

Why oh why oh why do some women question what other women wear? Women dress for busy lives, for their job, to avoid being raped, for comfort, whatever the reason why do we have to question every move women make?

I wear clothes that feel nice next to my skin, and that are practical for my lifestyle. I’m not really bothered about what anyone else thinks of them. Clothes don’t actually make a person interesting, they just make a person look interesting.

Think you've been sat in the sun too long love. Either that or the beer garden.

Do you really think anyone else on the school run gives a shit about what you, or indeed anyone else, is actually wearing?

I can tell you what ONE mum on my school run wears each day. That mum is me. I don't pay attention, nor do I care, what anyone else is wearing.

Perhaps because you seem so concerned with what others are wearing, you assume everyone gives it the same thought.

I wear what I'm comfy in. I'm not scruffy, but I don't feel the need to dress to the nines, unless I'm going out for the evening. I'm happy and content. Dress how YOU want, and stop giving thought to what others wear, it's their business.

@NCJaneDoeNut if I'm not as stylish as I could be, I blame the shops for not selling interesting, stylish, affordable clothes, that suit my less than perfect figure, not me for not buying or wearing them.

The shops are mostly full of tat, aimed at fast fashion and market trends. Any new shops that are a bit more interesting, and aimed at a normal budget, rapidly "expand" into mass-market tat, or go bust.

Meh. Too much effort. Comfort and warmth above everything.

I wear smart clothes for work & casual clothes for slobbing out. OP, maybe you should get a job in a corporate environment, then your dress, tights & heels would fit right in.

She is wearing a housecoat over a dress. You would never find people in those circumstances dressed like that today.

Yes you would. Older women in France still dress like that. And let me assure you the dresses underneath hardly ever see the light of day. And they are normally frumpy.

He is wearing a suit

That’s because this would have been all he had. Sunday best became clothes for the working week. That is if you were able to afford Sunday best. There was no concept of clothes specifically designed for an occasion.

Looking "pulled together" is vastly overrated

"Falling apart" is more my speed...

OP should write for the Daily Heil.