How to look 'expensive' 2

[IkeaGoddess]

(old thread got to 1000 posts)

Thanks for the handbag advice

I'm so glad you didn't all say crook of the arm as I felt so silly when I carried mine like that. I just put it down to not being a proper grown up!

I've also changed my wats slightly because of this thread. I've culled my wardrobe and am now left with clothes that fit me well, are in good condition that work well together. I've identified gaps and intend to choose excellent quality, perfect fitting clothes to fill these gaps. As opposed to mindless shopping in my lunch hour in new look and primark, where I just bought things because I enjoyed buying and could justify it because it hadn't cost much. I've started ironing! I've started polishing shoes! I file my nails weekly and apply clear polish, red or plum if going out somewhere nice. I've started upping my water and taking cod liver oil supplements and my skins looking great. I've booked in for a house of colour consultation for my birthday which I'm really excited about. I've got a shopping trip with my mum a few days before in Cambridge and want to treat myself but as it's before the hoc (wrong way round really) I don't want to buy anything in a colour which il find out isn't a good colour for me.. Are there any colours that most people suit or am I best opting for a nice bag/shoes instead?

Ways not wats

I see this loads on here - HoC don't tell you which colours to wear. They tell you which shades to wear. Everyone can wear navy blue. They help you see which type of navy is the best one for you.

There are a few exceptions (I think cool tones don't have orange in their palette at all, though they can have yellow) but really, everyone can wear most colours. It's just a bit more specific than that.

Why don't you just shop for your mum on that day, and maybe pin/take photos of things you like, then after HoC you can buy the things you liked if you find out they were in your palette after all? :)

Ahhhhh I see! Have you had a hoc consultation then, was it useful? I haven't seen my Mum for months as she lives far away and she's taking me on the shopping trip for my birthday and has said that she has put some money aside for me to spend there, which is very kind of her. So she will be wanting me to spend it! I just want to spend it wisely..

I see women now and again who carry their bag in the crook of their arm and it looks right on them. They usually have the polished look that we're referring to here though - and their bags are usually beautiful, understated and work with their outfit. You can't really see her bag in this pic but I think that Mai Tai pulls it off really well

I think the problem is that lots of people trot about doing this with really horrid looking bags, complete with tracksuit bottoms, messy bun etc. and look like a caricature. Realise I sound like a raging snob(!) so I will say at this point that I am currently ensconced in trackie bottoms and pre-chop was a committed fan of the messy bun. But none of it looks polished.

Good colours for pre-analysis (won't suit every single person, but will sit comfortably in every palette IMO):
Grey, not too dark or light, or mole
Teal/Aqua
True red, not burgundy or tomato
Stoney beige, not too golden or too pink.

Avoid buying things that will be under your chin (scarves, tshirts) as you'll want those in your best colours.

I still sometimes think 'old-fashioned' when I see bags worn in the crook of the arm, as that was how it felt in my 1960s childhood - it was how they had been worn in the 1950s

I've been out today with my bag on the crook of my arm Was wearing skinny jeans, grey cashmere roll neck, navy leather jacket and navy chloe Marcie bag.

However had eyebrows done and the lady was a little over zealous with the pencil so fear I did look a tad scousebrow-tastic!

Hi Favourite, yes I have and it was though I cheat with navy, it's my favourite neutral, and I can't get it right all the time or else I wouldn't have anything to wear.

Hopefully knows her stuff so I'd take her advice on colours.

Hope you have a lovely day with your mum and a great birthday. What a fab treat.

On bag wearing, I have a couple of bags with short straps that I wear in the crook of my elbow. It's the only way I can carry them without taking up a whole hand, which can be annoying. I don't think it automatically always looks wrong. But then I work in a very Waggy town, so maybe I think it's normal!

Strange about the bags I've always worn bags in the crook of my arm. Even shopping bags. Have done since I started using bags (and all my friends too!) perhaps its an age (early 20s) or a location thing? I'd feel so strange carrying a tote in my hand.. And I'm mostly carrying my phone too so that would mean being handless? Maybe I should put the phone away and try it, I think I will tomorrow.

Finally caught up on both threads, couldn't have come up at a better time to be honest!
Went shopping yesterday with 'chic', 'timeless' fashion in mind and bought a Jaeger Stripe Jersey in navy&white in TK Maxx, a grey cropped turtle-neck and a printed jumper from H&M. Now on the hunt for a good handbag and nice coat with a budget!

And a few things I've learned from this thread..

Sometimes at work even showering in the morning and using a thick roll on I'd still by the end of the day smell a bit.. I've put two and two together and come up with polyester. I also checked all the clothes I threw out and noticed a distinct pattern, the polyester stuff looked crap tbh. I ended up chucking tops I bought just before christmas. Also pattered/ printed things were mostly thrown away too. I don't think I'll invest in a pattern item again unless its for an occasion and I'm OK with it not lasting.

Secondly I've been making a concious effort to look polished. I've been using Aussie Miricle Shine, a shine spray, a joico protein cream (which smells amazing) and a morrocon oil treatment and people are noticing how glossy it looks! I've not managed to get colour done at the salon yet but its next on my list. My nails are now filed short and rounded square, a very subtle pink and a high shine top coat. I've started wearing small CZ studs, fake it til you make it eh?

I'm absolutely loving Huile Prodigieuse oil by Nuxe. I've been using it on my arms and chest and it just smells elegant and sophisticated. I really want to find some good hair skin & nails vits so I'm going to reasearch those next and add them to my routine.

I'm just feeling generlly so much better about myself and my appearance and I find its rubbing off on other aspects of my life too. Looking and feeling "polished" has spurred me on to try to get my life a bit more "polished" too.. Does that sound completely mad? Anyway, this thread has been great, thanks to you all!

Love this thread!

For me it's about understated style and classics. That you could forget about it at the back of the wardrobe and it'll still look like quality in five years.

I'm overweight and ancient, so fashion makes me look like a try-hard Waynetta - although tbf I know it is w.r.o.n.g. to wear "skin-tone" coloured leggings.

1. I've started wearing make-up daily - not a huge amount, I intend to build on it from here. But I look far more polished and people treat me differently.

1. Blow-dry every other day. At first I thought this would be a huge time-suck, but it evens out as I only need to wash every other day.

1. Handbags - synthetics are a no. I like Peony & Moore (not mentioned here? Is it on the s&b shit list?) - gorgeous supple heavy leather, no over-bearing logos and neutral colours. Their sales are fucking awesome, they're not afraid to slap on a discount.

1. Coats. Nothing makes you look less "expensive" than a poorly-fitting coat. ... and that's why I filled a bin bag with old ski jackets yesterday.

1. If you think it's "off" when a man orders for you, try a French restaurant where the menus don't have prices on for the women!

1. Patterns... oh my. As someone else said - good patterns (e.g., Pucci) are expensive. Cheap = cheap.

1. Hot & humid? Wide-leg linen trousers and fitted vest top, perfectly-fitting bra.

1. Semi-designer, prescription sunnies - don't need to cost the earth. Specsavers are always doing BOGOF and I get one pair for seeing people and one pair for seeing people when the sun shines.

1. Check out european designers on eBay - HUGE bargains. E.g., a Marina Rinaldi coat second hand for £130 as opposed to new for £2000. Most people would rather stick with the brands they know.

10. Natural fibres. I got really lucky and found a brand new cashmere jumper in my "colour" in a charity shop in the summer for a fiver. Kerching.

11. My signature look = pretty much any straight leg, slight bootcut dark jeans. Brown leather shoes/boots. White shirt. Navy tanktop. Blazer/fitted leather jacket. Scarf. Real leather bag. Understated jewellery in silver. Perfume. Sunnies.

As one of the intermittent posters on this thread, I am thrilled to read posters who are feeling better about themselves, and sharing their new found confidence and enjoyment. It's style and beauty, and therefore trivial, but it makes people feel good. Surely something to celebrate?

Once more, for practice, it's about fit, grooming, ironing, deportment and being very picky.

As one of the intermittent posters on this thread, I am thrilled to read posters who are feeling better about themselves, and sharing their new found confidence and enjoyment. It's style and beauty, and therefore trivial, but it makes people feel good. Surely something to celebrate?

Once more, for practice, it's about fit, grooming, ironing, deportment and being very picky.

And not double-posting, sorry!

For anyone else in the same boat as me overhauling their wardrobe, frasers is doing a 50% off flash sale for 12hrs.

Got myself a merino cardi in a camel colour which will go with a lot of my staples. I'd love to try cashmere the washing sounds like a bit of a faff with a 1 year old about, is merino an OK substitute?

Hamiltoes- I swear by Mitchum deodrent. I have tried hundreds (usual brands and natural alternatives and this is the only thing that keeps me stink free for as long as needed (don't even smell in the morning when I applied it morning before).

Z for Accessorizes is defo worth a look for their gold plated/ semi-precious stone stuff. Have bought a fair few bits when in sale at 75% off so only a couple of quid for rings etc. I would say get in store to see it in the flesh as some stuff that looks great online looks cheap/flashy in the flesh and thibgs I would have ignored on the website look lovely in real life .

Hamiltoes- I stick cashmere in at 30 with my other colours and it's fine. I just stretch out after and dry flat.That said, never paid more than £25 for 100% cashmere (sales/ebay) so not hugely precious.

The problem with polyester (and viscose) is that if you get the teeniest bit BO'ish must once even if you and the garment have been washed, as soon as the garment meets body heat it releases the whiff again. Probably never bad enough to be unpleasant for most of us, but if you know, comfort, confidence and assurance goes "poof".

Today's 48 hr anti-perspirants are a great improvement (and no, I shwr/bath at least daily) and the one joy of getting older is that I sweat less. Seriously I spent my 20s and,30s scouring shops for pure cotton and silk and always wore a cotton tee under a sweater if it didn't need a blouse. Also would never have worn a dark coloured top in those days for fear of the dreaded sweat patch.

I also try to buy any cashmere on sale, ditto merino wool. I have actually found most of my cashmere and merino items in charity shops. I usually wash them by hand even though they were very cheap. I have also done a small cashmere and merino/fine wool wash in the machine.

For machine washing I use a cold wash or 30 degrees, gently cycle, and I use woolite, not ordinary detergent. I use woolite for hand washing fine wool and cashmere too.

For drying, I squeeze them out gently once washed (one woolite wash and one thorough rinse) and roll them in a big towel I keep for the purpose. When most of the moisture has been absorbed by the towel I reshape and hang to dry. Clothes from the machine usually don't need a squeezing so I can just hang them to dry after reshaping.

It doesn't take long to do a quick hand wash of a few items. The trick is not to use much woolite or you will be rinsing forever. A drop or two is all you need.

*Don't put cashmere or wool in the dryer

I wash my cashmere in cold water wool cycle - I use shampoo. Put it on spin and hang it over the clothes airer - it's not a problem,