How to look 'expensive'

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I'm not sure if that's the right word but I was in Sainsbury's today and the woman in the queue in front of me just looked 'expensive'.
She wasn't wearing anything remarkable - a leather jacket with a fur collar, skinny jeans and brown knee length boots but somehow she looked 'done' whereas I looked like a sack of spuds.
How to achieve that expensive look without the budget?

ready where do you get your shirt dresses from? I find them hard to find...

Better maxi dresses here

Good hair, good skin, eyebrows and nails, and a slim/toned figure go a very long way.

This is what I think looks expensive/ classic. Nothing here imo would date

Wannanewone - I buy nearly all my clothes online. The great thing about shirt dresses is that they nearly always fit because you just pull them in at the waist, so they are a really easy online purchase! I think they look great with ankle boots for the daytime but can be jazzed up with heels for the evening.

I have a couple of DVF ones bought on sale on theoutnet which I have worn to death. ASOS has a few nice ones at the moment too.

I think we also have to consider that looking 'expensive' is not desirable for everyone

I'd personally like to look friendly, approachable, able to joke, clean, tidy, interesting, practical, attractive - not all at once

I strongly suspect that there's extra connotations like aloof/fastidious/unapproachable/snooty/unable to have fun cos I don't want my clothes messed up that I don't want to exude.

I'm not saying they're definite side affects of 'expensive' just that I don't want to put clients/children off that I work with. I don't want a barrier between me and the rest of the world.

There is something about 'expensive ' that also gives off a don't fuck with me vibe - I want to look assertive without putting distance between me and others

Anyway, rambling

Everything dates - some things more quickly than others - some clothes are basics but too many classic basics can just look frumpy and dull - slim, blond, tall, white teeth - now that is expensive!

Wearing a cheap watch can instantly cheapen your look.
It doesn't have to be very expensive, but you don't want to be wearing a really cheapy one - ie from Next/ M & S/New Look etc
People forget about things like watches and other jewellery when they're putting together an outfit.

I also think that some types of statement jewellery look cheap and nasty.
If you must wear statement jewellery, make sure it's good quality or failing that - fine jewellery (even if a bit old fashioned) is better than the wrong thing.
It's all in the detail.

Designer bags look fake if you are not dressed to the same standard - imo you can't up your game with a handbag there are so many fakes.

I think we also have to consider that looking 'expensive' is not desirable for everyone

No, but the thread title kind of lets those people know this one isnt for them

The Press picks unflattering photos of women in order to illustrate a particular story - or whether or not they "think" a woman should be seen as classy or not.

So I never trust them and the image they present of celebrities.

Charlotte Church describes how just because she is fairly curvaceous the Press enjoyed presenting her as "desperate for male attention" and "men only want her for her money".

They made up stories about her proposing to boyfriends and being turned down (and then found the WORST possible photos of her to illustrate this).

Look at how Kate and Chelsy were both "juxtaposed" .

Both are incredibly attractive women but Chelsy (an economics/science graduate who trained with a Magic Circle law firm - they don't take slackers or intellectual slouches!) was constantly "slut-shamed" by the Press for not having a finished appearance (when being stalked by paparazzi) - what so hard-working women can't wear a tracksuit on their days off?

Real life interactions overtake 2D ones for sure.

Posture, voice, manners - those override clothing choices.

I did OD a few years ago, and so many guys who had photos of them looking "elegant" in a bow tie from a certain angle (and had good cheekbones which photographed well) but came across as very uncouth IRL.

I think unless you are incredibly wealthy, designer handbags look naff.

Is it possible to look expensive without any jewellery at all? I dont have any. Not even costume jewellery. I dont have my ears pierced. I dont have a watch. I wear none. I find it a nuisance at work tbh and havent worn anything in years. I know i cant afford to invest in anything that would look even half decent (but not flashy) so is it possible to get the look without jewellery?

Blows it for me then higge

The last few posts have made me recall a lady in Sainsburys at the end of summer. She was probably late 20s. Beautiful silk navy and beige striped shirt dress, light tan, fabulous flat and elegant leather sandals, lovely bag, gorgeous hair and utterly beautiful. And then I noticed the tattoo up the side of her leg. .......and then she spoke. Everything she wore at that point might as well have come from the market in Albert Square. She might have been a lovely person and the sum total might have been £10,000 but at the moment she became cheap.

Stepawayfromthezebras Fri 01-Jan-16 18:37:19
I think you can look expensive without looking preppy. Sofia Coppola looks expensive but not in a preppy way. A person wearing ingnenue style clothes in good fabrics with good quality leather shoes will look still expensive even if they're not wearing preppy or sloaney clothes.

This is what I was trying to get at in my huge earlier post, I probably didn't articulate it well enough. Lots and lots of people mentioned the classic look as epitomising "expensive". I do think people that have other style personalities can look expensive, but might find it harder because they can't just go classic. People like Sofia Coppola and Olivia Palermo are the exceptions as they just seem naturally stylish (and are slim, attractive and can easily afford lots of great clothes).

Agree, this thread is great.

RudeElf - you definitely don't need jewellery. If you won't be comfortable in it the it will probably just detract from the outfit. I think that it can look very youthful not to wear jewellery - it's that sort of polished French understated style. A discreet necklace might work for you occasionally though?

By the way, given that the original question was how to look good on a budget (and assuming that the general consensus of "be slim and tall" may not be realistic for everyone) another point that has been made and that I agree with is that shoes are really important.

Personally I think that heel height really matters. I think that women tottering around on too high heels generally looks a bit cheap and try hard, which is why I think Kim Kardashian rarely looks expensive. Perhaps it's part of the confidence thing - shoes that are the right heel height for you will give you good posture, a feeling of confidence and perhaps make you look a bit taller and slimmer if that matters to you. I love 2.5" heels personally, but I think that everyone has a different comfort zone. Nice shoes definitely don't need to be expensive, and I think they can really make a simple outfit.

I don't know about the jewellery. I do always clock it tbh. I wear a gold watch with a black leather strap, a wedding, eternity and engagement ring. At the moment I am wearing a black drop pearl on a silver chain (I don't wear gold as I'm a summer). That lot's worth about £9,000. (not meant as a braggy comment). But I'm also wearing a pair of earrings - a circle of tiny diamonds with a hole in the middle (like a polo but tiny). I have received so many compliments about them and once, when one had dropped out someone made a huge gaspy fuss. They were £17.99 from Oliver Bonas. Whether anyone would have made a fuss if I didn't have some decent stuff I don't know.

But tomorrow in my black Per Una Jeans, anorak and Romika lace ups because they accommodate my orthotics, I'm not sure anyone will notice . I wouldn't want it any other way.

It does all tend to rest on being slim.

I'm not keen on reality TV stars but Olivia Palermo has it down, every time. She has great J.Crew style. Love it.

Interestingly, I think Victoria Beckham - who always looks well put together - never looks expensively dressed. She always looks like she is wearing a pencil skirt and a £10,000 handbag.

Another example of an expensive bag that does not improve an outfit but just overwhelms it.

The richest woman I know wears Ecco sandals with socks (possibly with a hole), ancient flowered skirts and a bobbly fleece (and drives a T reg golf with dents). You bump into her and think yikes x, the state of you, and then you see a simply marvellous diamond twinkling somewhere and realise she's probably standing I more money than anyone in a five mile radius and just doesn't care. She scrubs up well when necessary though.

Smart and looks expensive. Not classic but very pared down and unshowy.

Before I clock off for the evening, this site is great for jewellery that is not always too expensive but that I think is often really classy: www.theoutnet.com/en-GB/Shop/Accessories/Jewelry?sortBy=price-asc&scroll=14245&pn=1

I have a lovely Monica Vinader ring from there that cost about £40. Kenneth Jay Lane does some nice earrings that always look more expensive than they actually are.

This could be worn at Tesco, a school parents' evening or lunch with friends and would look expensive and chic.