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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Middle Class Ugly Clothing part two

463 replies

RoyalFamilyFan · 07/01/2022 22:39

Original thread here.
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4446999-To-think-so-many-middle-class-clothes-are-ugly?pg=40

I admit I am hardly a style guru. But when I joined Mumsnet people talked about lots of companies I had never heard of like Toast. So I followed links of clothes posted and looked at the websites mentioned. And was shocked at how ugly so much of the clothing was.
Shapeless grey dresses. Black loose trousers teamed with black tunics which make the model look like she is a member of a cult. Shapeless brown t-shirts.
They are just so ugly. AIBU?

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Thread gallery
19
RoyalFamilyFan · 07/01/2022 23:53

@toddybell if you like it get it.

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MaxNormal · 07/01/2022 23:58

@toddybell the heart wants what the heart wants Grin

PickAChew · 07/01/2022 23:59

That chairman mao suit is a classic worker jacket. They're all over the place, at the moment!

I M typing this while wearing pyjamas with penguins on, of course.

mathanxiety · 08/01/2022 00:00

Pulling up a pew...

toddybell · 08/01/2022 00:04

I've just come across this thread and my take:

I spent years working out to get to a certain size and then maintain that size so that I could fit into clothes I was told (magazines, etc.) would suit my shape, make me look stylish/hip/current, etc. then I got pregnant and gained a lot of weight. I've tried and tried to address the weight issue and have lost some but have also come to terms with the fact that I'll never have the body I once had which means all of my old wardrobe (which I still can't get rid of- quality pieces which cost me a small fortune) has gone to waste. Since having the DC, I've discovered the Toast/Seasalt/Ganni/Shirin Guild style suits me much better- I can move about freely, not be self conscious, for example, about VPL, wearing shape wear underneath, etc. and I find it liberating. I probably look like a sack of spuds when people see me but I genuinely don't care- I feel much happier in what I wear now than I did in my slimmer days when everything was planned and coordinated and may have restricted what I was able to do (e.g. run for the bus!). The slouchy look suits me fine. I'm not here to win any fashion awards (confession: I still wear Uggs).

toddybell · 08/01/2022 00:05

Following the thread for inspiration 😂😂

JazzyBBG · 08/01/2022 00:05

I totally agree also some stuff is just so expensive and for what???
I'd consider myself pretty middle class and have been rocking Peacocks today whilst my best mate was showcasing Tu by Sainsburys (with her Rolex - stealth boast for her not me!) I often hear people talk about these "posh" brands and I don't even know what they are (smile and nods). But then sometimes I think am I still dressing like I'm thin (I'm not) and 20 (also not) and do I need to up my game but every time I buy more expensive I just don't feel it lasts or is any better.

KimikosNightmare · 08/01/2022 00:10

@Bitofachinwag

From the other thread; The rumblings about 'modest' dressing becoming a trend worry me quite a lot. While I support everyone's right to dress as they see fit, I think the idea that virtuous women cover themselves as much as possible is a dangerous one, to be resisted (I consider all religions to be about male supremacy anyway) But who says those women are virtuous? I know some people do for religious reasons. But if you are just comfy dressing in a way thay you consider "modest" that doesn't mean that I consider myself "virtous". Interesting....I suppose it just depends on how you define these concepts.
I think the rumblings about modest dressing are a bit exaggerated. The last couple of years of Amish and prairie dresses remind me of the sort of hippy, dippy, long skirts, demure little cheese cloth blouses, and droopy Indian dresses and skirts I wore as a teenager late 70s/ early 80s, mixed in with Laura Ashley milkmaid/ Tess of the Durbervilles, followed on by Monsoon.

Only a tiny, tiny, tiny proportion of my wardrobe ever has had a skirt length above the knee- and even then was only just above knee length. I've had many skirts and dresses which were mid- length to ankle length.

This is over decades , bought in high street shops and independent boutiques and as my disposable income increased very much not high street. It's all however mainstream and didn't require any particular effort to look out specialist shops.

RoyalFamilyFan · 08/01/2022 00:12

@toddybell

Following the thread for inspiration 😂😂
Grin
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RoyalFamilyFan · 08/01/2022 00:15

@KimikosNightmare cheesecloth blouses were often worn tied at the midriff.
I think most women over the last fifty years in Britain haven't dressed very modestly, but also haven't dressed showing lots of skin either. There is a middle ground where most women's clothing sits.

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LikeAbatOutOfHell · 08/01/2022 00:16

FFS those Plumo trousers are haunting me! Every advert on here!

By the way, I have no class and no style. 65 and still buy my clothes from Primark. BUT if I had the money I would not buy big baggy overpriced dresses and trousers, nothing to do with class, they're just gopping.

Skullycup45 · 08/01/2022 00:17

@Tillymintpolo

Clothing for cult members
I did snort out loud when I read that on the first thread.
KimikosNightmare · 08/01/2022 00:17

@MaxNormal

Whoever recommended Little Lies, the stuff is gorgeous.

I agree with a PP that the style is a statement that the wearer is above such considerations as needing to look attractive to anyone else.

It's all subjective. The Little Lies stuff to me is, well, don't want to be rude but even when I was a size 6 teenager I wouldn't have touched it with a barge- pole.

I very fondly recall a tiered , long- sleeved prairie dress from Wallis which I bought in my first week at university in 1977.

Skullycup45 · 08/01/2022 00:19

Modest fashion is just another label or term to sell clothes though.

I'm 5'1", every single item of clothing swamps my height and is therefore 'modest'.

JazzyBBG · 08/01/2022 00:20

I do love the coats and scarves from Rew but the dresses are a bit Toast -esque

www.rewclothing.co.uk/collections/dresses

onlychildhamster · 08/01/2022 00:21

@KimikosNightmare idk, my SIL who is orthodox jewish told me that some of her friends used to buy 2 cheap dresses and take it to the tailor to chopped up and altered (sleeves added hem line lengthened etc). It used to be so much harder to find modest clothes when I was at university and now I am 29. I find it so much easier now!

I do think the Muslim community have been a driver of this push to modest clothing but they wear trousers while many orthodox Jewish women don't. I hate trousers and I haven't worn them for years. I like easy to wear dresses with sleeves which I pair with jumpers and black tights and ankle boots/loafers. I find it easier that way, separates are too stressful for me, and i don't get why sleeveless is a thing - I can't be expected to shave everyday! And I guess loose fitting clothes are more comfortable?

I love Gudrun Sjoden and also shop at Boden and monsoon and Oliver bonas Mango is ok I guess. I do think toast is a bit much though ...

KimikosNightmare · 08/01/2022 00:21

[quote RoyalFamilyFan]@KimikosNightmare cheesecloth blouses were often worn tied at the midriff.
I think most women over the last fifty years in Britain haven't dressed very modestly, but also haven't dressed showing lots of skin either. There is a middle ground where most women's clothing sits.[/quote]
Please don't tell me what clothes I owned. I didn't wear anything which exposed my mid- riff.

Just an aside - but you really do appear to have some difficulty accepting that other people have different tastes and your opinion isn't actually worth any more than any one else's

KimikosNightmare · 08/01/2022 00:23

@Skullycup45

Modest fashion is just another label or term to sell clothes though.

I'm 5'1", every single item of clothing swamps my height and is therefore 'modest'.

I loathe the word "modest" as a descriptor for clothes. I'd permanently boycott any retailer who used it.
toddybell · 08/01/2022 00:23

@MaxNormal

toddybell I found the original! The women's patriotic Chairman Mao suit circa 1970.

This made me laugh- I love how anti-establishment I am in my choice of clothes ¡vivalarevolucion!

tectonicplates · 08/01/2022 00:25

I really like that Little Lies website. Does anyone know of any similar sites, but which make petites? I'm always interested in things with a touch of rock n' roll about them, but everything's always too long, necklines too low etc.

tectonicplates · 08/01/2022 00:26

@Skullycup45

Modest fashion is just another label or term to sell clothes though.

I'm 5'1", every single item of clothing swamps my height and is therefore 'modest'.

Except for the necklines, which are always far too low and therefore the opposite of "modest". That's why more companies need to make petites. It's not just about the length, it's about the neckline and waist position etc.
onlychildhamster · 08/01/2022 00:27

@Skullycup45 I am five feet tall but I need modest clothing.i remember buying an ASOS skirt back in the day, it barely covered my knickers. Also cleavage- I do have a few dresses which show a little but then I have to be more conscious of where I wear them to...it's easier in a way to have more modest long sleeved, non low cut dresses which can be worn everywhere. also for religious people, collar bones have to be covered, sleeves quarter length. Even if you aren't religious, there are a lot of settings I feel more comfortable being covered up.

RoyalFamilyFan · 08/01/2022 00:30

@KimikosNightmare were you the one who insulted me last thread for disagreeing with you?
I was not telling you what clothes you owned. I was simply stating that although cheesecloth blouses were very popular, they often were not worn in a particularly modest fashion.
I don't understand why you would insult someone for simply disagreeing with you. Pretty strange.

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KimikosNightmare · 08/01/2022 00:31

toddybell

MaxNormal

toddybellI found the original! The women's patriotic Chairman Mao suit circa 1970

This made me laugh- I love how anti-establishment I am in my choice of clothes ¡vivalarevolucion!

I had a black padded Mao jacket in 1978. From memory the lining was white or cream and the lining showed at the cuffs and collar.

My husband claims I was wearing it the first time he saw me.

RoyalFamilyFan · 08/01/2022 00:32

I personally like long sleeves. But fashion trends are often because of wider cultural moves. And I think a cultural move encouraging women do dress more modestly is alarming.

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