I've made an effort to find cheaper shops - with fab results !!!!

[Petal02]

Some time ago, the realisation dawned that I spend far too much money on clothes, and that I should change my habits.

I've found there are some real gems in Primark, Dorothy Perkins do great dresses for around £20 (and their Tall range is great, even though I'm only 5'6"), and H&M was a complete revelation for 'basics', I love their long line vest tops for layering, they're got some really cool t-shirts, their accessories are amazing, and I've just bought a really nice waterfall cardigan for £14.99.

And (dare I say it) some of the cheaper brands seem more on-trend .....

Are there any other cheaper shops I can try? It seems there is life beyond Boden!

Supermarkets. There are always some things I like in Sainsburys for example.
In particular their tshirts and tops tend to come up quite long, and they wash v v well too.

I do love river island, there is some crazy items in there too but I love their bags, jewellery etc and have recently bought some thick black leggings and a white top £22 each.

I like the whole MintVelvet/wrap thing but not the cost so have found Lagenlook stuff on eBay with the same aesthetic but loads cheaper.

I have stuck to a limited palette of taupe/mink/grey/navy etc and bought uneven/dip hem jumpers/slouchy styles for £ 3-5 a time, which I layer up with scarves/longline vests.

Charity shops are good for cashmere.

Amazon warehouse is great for boots as is Next Clearance. I also buy my boots in the summertime when they are cheaper.

I have bought second hand slouchy bags

I think if you have a clear idea of a look you like it is easy to then shop for it when you pull it apart and actually look at what is is made up of.

Milmingebag I like your idea of sticking to a specifc palette of colours - and agree that the ones you've suggested are the 'classier' colours, which probably makes the cheaper items of clothing look more expensive. In fact the colour scheme you mention pretty much describes what my local H&M is stocking this season.