So if you're mid-thirties/ early forties - where should you be clothes shopping?

[saltyseadog]

Following on from the White Stuff thread, I am mystified as to where I should be shopping....

I still like some of Top Shops clothes, and mix them in with Jigsaw and Kew - and the occasional WS skirt dress. I now feel that I must be dressing in a horribly frumpy way.

So where do you shop? I love Reiss's clothes, but I am 5'11" and a 12/14 - not exactly a good combo for Reiss.

I loathe M&S except for underwear. Monsoon is even more frumpy than WS IMO. Fat Face is occasionally good.

I'm not a fan of Next generally.

So if you're my age where do you shop? Pleeasse come and enlighten me :o

All over. Mostly cheap/mid-range stuff.

Last night I went to a party dressed in wrangler skinnies and a lovely top - both from Matalan! Tonight I am out again, will wear top from DP, skirt from Gap, leggings from M&S. And when I get dressed in a minute I will wear Top Shop jeans, longline tshirt from sainsbos and bravissimo cardi.

Its not about ranges, more about fit and shaper IMO

IMO the older you get, the better quality fabric and cut you need. Droopy clothes are not good on (even slightly) droopy bodies/faces.

So Monsoon/Fat Face cheap Indian-type fabrics and prints are a very bad idea.

Gap/Benetton can be good for wardrobe staples.

No idea so watching with interest...
My entire wardrobe seems to be from Gap as it's 2 minutes away from home and end up wafting round there with the pram most days. DS and DD's entire wardrobe also seem to be from Gap so it's all a bit sad really...Odd bits from Fat Face too.
Apart from that have recently bought a few tops from Zara (not bottoms- always way too tight). Used to like Reiss when worked but all a bit trendy now..
V occasionally M&S but only for very plain stuff. Jigsaw doesn't fit me at all.
Actually last summer got lots from Esprit which I never would have gone in before. Loads of crap but some trousers and skirts that fitted really well. Surprisingly expensive though.
Banana Repubic trousers fit me as well.
Always think that by 40 I should have upped the game a bit and be wafting around in more grown up clothes but have 2 toddlers so still covered in snot and yogurt by the end of the day so still end up in bloody (Gap) jeans.

Though it pains me to admit it, I do shop a lot in m and s, especially work clothes. I've still not found anywhere else that does suits that fit my shape as well as their suits do.
I get a lot of cardigans and jerseys and t shirts from uniqlo.

Tops from gap. Got some great trousers from sainsburys recently.

Tbh other than work clothes I haven't bought casual clothes for a long time. Needed a posh frock recently and went to John Lewis as they have such a huge range there.

I am 35 this year - 5ft nothing and a size 10 (an 8 is eluding me more and more these days ). Admittedly being small means that I often pass for late 20s.

I think the most important thing is that the clothes fit well and you feel confident. My wardrobe is made up of the following shops

Topshop - blazer, jeans, dresses, Ts, ballet flats
Next - trousers, jeans, dresses, leggings
Whistles - Ts and tops
Kew - Tops and knitwear, bags
M&S - trench, denim skirt, joggers, leggings, leather bags
Gap, Ts and tops
Boden - Knitwear, tunics, tops, belts, shoes
Warehouse - Knitwear and dresses
Monsoon - cardigans, tunics, tops, scarves
Joules - tops, scarves, belts, shoes
Clarks - shoes and boots
Dune - shoes and boots
Orla Kiely - bags

Where ever you like! The idea that you hit an age and suddenly need to conform to a certain style is alien to me.
I know what suits my shape and buy from everywhere. That being said I would probably avoid teen shops like Punky Fish etc. hoodies and hightops not the best look :)

I am making an effort to try things that I wouldn't have tried before, and having lost a load of weight, can now buy from shops that previoulsy sold clothes that wouldn't fit.

Recently, I have bought from Oasis, Gap, H&M, New Look, Warehouse, John Lewis and Boden. I choose very carefully from the cheaper shops and am often surprised at the quality for the price.

Wear and shop what you want !!As long as your skirts arent too short [ micro] or batty rider shorts !! Mutton is not a good look !! However frumpy is not good for anyone !!

I agree with other posters - it doesn't matter which shop, it's about the fit and the fabric. I buy far fewer things, but better quality than I did when I was younger - high end chains and outlet designer stuff. I have just had a ruthless wardrobe purge and feel better and smarter for it. I don't wear anything gimmicky or silly or ultra fashionable. I think I look OK most of the time :)

Trousers - Boden, Joseph, James Jeans (I am tall, got to have a 33" inside leg if I want to wear heels with trousers, and hate low rise) - I've narrowed it down to these brands and don't bother to try anything else - I know it doesn't work and is just a waste of money
Tops from places like Whistles, LK Bennett, Boden for work. Plain stuff & underneaths from Uniqlo
Dresses from Anthropologie, Hobbs
Shoes and boots from Russell & Bromley, LK Bennett, Clarks for comfy flats
Knitwear from Whistles, Anthropologie, Ralph Lauren. Would love Brora but can't face those prices
Coats - plain classic and spend as much as you can afford - I bought a Joseph cashmere coat 9 years ago and wear it every winter - it still looks fab - whereas the cheap Boden one I got last year already looks tatty.
Bags - one for summer (LK Bennett), one for winter (Longchamp) - good quality lasts for ages if you look after them - my old Coccinelle one did 14 years service!

I suppose the big shift from being in my twenties to forties is that when I was young i want to look different, unique, change my look all the time, follow fashion, got bored easily with my clothes. Now I have children, dog, work, house to run I want a reliable 'uniform' that I can put on with zero thought on most days and leave the house looking respectable. You can only do that if all your clothes and nice and everything goes with everything else. So having much much less stuff is the way to go (and I speak as a woman who used to have 3 wardrobes )

I'm only 156cm, so it can be tough. Like Llareggub (which I've just realised is buggerall backwards - lightbulb moment) I shop very carefully in cheaper shops.

I will admit to buying stuff from Wallis, but it is never obviously from Wallis. I avoid their patterned stuff.

I like Mexx, have bought loads there
Monsoon but only occassionally as it's expensive
H&M but some things from there can look really cheap and flimsy.

Limited Collection - again occassionally as it's expensive
Dunnes !! for undertops, knickers, tights, pjs, slippers, all the stuff you don't want to spend a lot on.
I look in warehouse and Oasis out of habit but I find Oasis a bit per una ish tbh and warehouse I don't know what their look is. Not a good one on me I suspect.

OH!! you are all going to laugh, but look in a shop called country casuals occassionally now. Yes 90% of their stuff is too old,but not all of it is, and the stuff that isn't too old for me is really nice and good quality and none of your friends will have a clue where it's from, unless they went shopping with their mum. Don't laugh, bet you go in there and fall in love with at least one thing.

Betty Jackson is also great for women out of their 30s. Debenhams is good because they have Wallis BJ and designers for debenhams. I miss principals.

I mean I miss Principles oops

lookee here

forties style dress with polka dot for this season it's lush. If I had a wedding to go to which thank god I don't I would buy this

I';ve found a few good things at Phase Eight and Coast recently.....some of their stuff is truely awful but if you have a dig around there's some well made pieces and their sales are great.

Hobbs had something very similar recently for twice the price though

leopard skin knit but classy

yep, shop where you can find clothes that suit you personally and make you feel comfortable.

I didn't know Principles had gone!! Wah, I liked them!

It's terrible here in Australia - I don't know which shops correspond to which UK types, iykwim - so occasionally I end up in shops that are waaaay too old for me, or way too young (that happens less, the music tends to be a dead giveaway!)

Thanks for this thread, I am just about back to my usual size (but slightly different shape) after having my second child and wondering where on earth to buy clothes (especially as I normally wear dresses but mainly need things that are breastfeeding friendly).

I've been thinking Phase Eight and Kew (but find them quite mixed too)...also think I will end up buying that lovely forties style dress Valium for the ocassional night out!

Minimarmite,they have another beautiful one which is very audrey hepburn. here, lemme find it.

Principles have pulled out of Ireland, I don't know if they still exist. I couldn't even find them on line.

I lurve that 40s dress Valium .

What is their fit like on big boned heffalumps like myself (not curvy, just tall and athletically built)?

here it is i love this one it would suit me as i'm so small chested. Love it. I don't think it would ever go out of fashion. GOD that does sound olfogeyish.

saltyseadog, tis my dirty little secret. all my friends look in coast and east and all recognise each others' dresses then!

Completely agree with Bonsoir. I'm buying fewer clothes but paying much more attention to quality of the fiber, cut and fit. Nowadays I'm more confident about what flatters me and also know which trends I won't be joining.

I'm shopping much less at high street and looking into niche brands, occasionally even handmade clothes. Zara and Gap and Banana Republic have some good basics, but many stylish-looking chains (H&M, Mango) use materials that don't look good on me any more.

I've got a few work dresses from Phase Eight. Strangely, a year or so ago someone bought me a tunic/dress thing from Zara with a zip up the back. I loved it and wore it ti death. This winter, Phase Eight sold exactly the same item only they turned it around and the zip on the back was now the front and they sold is as a cardigan. Off-topic I know, but the perception in that Phase Eight is a bit mother of the bride whereas Zara's isn't.

IMO it's fabric, fit and colour that matter.

Having done the color and style thing with HOC I'm much less conscious of brands now but just focus on individual items that seem to work.

I am older than the majority here and actually tend to buy less from a lot of the shops listed here than I did years ago. Nowadays I go for bargains at designer stores and buy from a couple of local one off shops that are cheap but sell great clothes. For the first time in ages I have just bought two tops in the tkmaxx sale for 8 quid each.

oh was reading other thread but perhaps this will help too...

i HATE top shop/
i dont think you haev to be allied to one shop tbh
dont judge on the store
judge on the clothes