I've reached my target weight - now what??

[Peopleplease]

I've finally reached my target weight and after years and years of buying stuff just because it fits I can buy things I actually really like BUT I like a LOT!!

i want to buy a few basics to get me started and then build on that once I figure out my style (which up to now has been slightly scruffy SAHM). I've been spending a lot of time on Pinterest and I love the look of Hush and some Mint Velvet.

First on my list is some nursing bras as I'm still breastfeeding and I desperately need jeans and tops.

How do you narrow it down???!! I obviously dont' have unlimited money but I do have a decent amount saved up that I've set aside for a shopping spree!

Also, even though I'm at my 'target weight' I'm still a bit unhappy with my hips and thighs (I'm a pear shape) so am unsure as to whether I should try and lose some more fat. I'm toning up well (mix of yoga and weights), would like to add cardio but with 2 young DC, time is a major issue.

Umm, ok, so I guess my question is - what would you spend money on now if you were me??

I would invest in some lovely jeans that make you feel smoking hot. As you don't like your hips/thigh area this should make you feel more positive. Clothes are there to make you look good not the other way around and 'perfection' is perilously difficult to achieve. I went to selfridges to the jeans clinic or whatever it's called and got some fabulous jeans. I had no idea what looked good on my shape and the attendant was fab and made me feel really attractive! Helped that I had dropped 4 jeans sizes... the jeans I got were among the cheapest at £110 though so prepare to get fleeced...

You can often recreate the Hush look at Next/Asos/La Redoute for a fraction of the price. I'm a bit of a hush addict though but I generally buy in the sample sale on Feb whee everything is approx 80% off.

I'm having similar issues, having lost a lot of weight and no idea how to dress myself. I've still got a way to go, but I'm now a 14-16 rather than a 22. My only criteria for purchase in the past was 'does it fit?' I did get a bit better last year at choosing some nicer clothes but I currently have next to nothing that fits, and need transitional clothes that can withstand at least another stone of weight loss. I will admit I went slightly crazy with the Hush preview code (A17PREVIEW valid till 31 August if you don't have it). My priorities when the next stone comes off will be the best jeans I can find, whatever they cost. So I guess in your position, already at target, that's where I would start. But I'm finding it SO exciting that there is a whole range of shopping options that I just didn't have before. Yesterday I spent a couple of hours in a big JL just trying stuff on from different brands to get a sense of how they fit me. It was eye opening and rather wonderful not to be hunting out clothes online in the hope they would 'do'.

(Sorry, advice not style and beauty related, but based on seeing someone amazingly get to goal weight then get very sad due to losing the positive reinforcement from others/self - I felt gutted for her) I would make myself another goal - not weight loss, obvs - as maintaining can be a lot less rewarding. Study/sport/big project. Enjoy the clothes shopping.

Ok so Jeans seems to be coming out on top!

I'm still wary of ordering online (partly because I'm in Ireland and returning stuff can be awkward) because it's so hard to tell if something will fit and the reality of my weight loss and my vision of myself haven't quite synced yet!!

You have to go into a shop IME I'm afraid. Is there a decent department store with good customer service you can get to? Maybe book a stylist/personal shopper but be specific about what you want. I'm not sure what you have access to in Ireland... oh and pump some milk if possible & leave baby with someone you completely trust, so you can spend a few hours just focussing on yourself. If you hate jeans shopping (who doesn't?) promise yourself a reward like a coffee or nail polish if you get it done. All you need is to find one pair you like & then you can reorder/buy all the colours etc online later. Good luck!

In your situation I wouldn't buy too much in one go. Just get the nursing bras, some great jeans and a few new tops. Then, see what your weight / shape does over the next month or two - and how the new things fit - then have another shopping trip.

The irony is I used to work in retail and was great at helping people find what suited them. I'm just rubbish when it comes to me.

I find a good look around Zara can be quite rewarding. They have some fairly off the wall stuff, but they also have some gems.
They have a cracking white poplin shirt in at the moment for 19.99

www.zara.com/uk/en/woman/new-in/poplin-shirt-c840002p4833629.html

www.zara.com/uk/en/woman/blazers/tweed-jacket-with-faux-pearl-button-c756615p4791099.html

The balcony in arseknotts is probably your best chance for really nice jeans. Take next month's mortgage money with you.

There are three Zaras in the pale, two outside, one in Cork, one in Limerick.

You generally need to go for a size bigger than you think, I am a 6/8 and in a lot of their stuff I am a medium.

Mint velvet is overpriced IMO.

Make sure you try stuff on in shops and determine what size you actually are now.

It can be hard to start shopping for a totally new size, in your head you are still your old size.

I tried on a 'large' top yesterday and it was way too big - so I got the medium instead which felt odd in my head but fit better.

I like using this site to work out what might suit me, but be warned, it's easy to spend ages on it...!

www.truth-is-beauty.com/style-analysis.html

My closest Zara is in Cork (and that's still 1.5 hours away) I was there 2 weeks ago and it just looked like a huge jumble sale. I couldn't see anything I'd wear.

Try a personal shopper in House of Fraser in Dundrum or Debenhams if there's one closer. It's usually free. Tell them your budget and think of a capsule wardrobe. It's nice when someone else does the running around and you don't have to spend a lot. I did when I went back to work after my daughter and none of my previous clothes fit the same.

I'm also a pear and well fitting jeans, (Salsa) pricey but worth it, some nice fitted tops at the waist and dresses are my go to items.

P.S. weights will help more with toning than cardio but once a pear always a pear. A-line skirts, fit and flare dresses, belts and high waisted trousers are your best bets. Start by emphasising your waist and go from there.

I was going to mention Salsa. My friend is a pear and these are the only skinnies she likes. They are nice and high waisted too which means no arse flashing when in playgroups etc. She did a personal shopper and came away with 2 pairs of jeans, a blazer and 2-3 tops she can mix and match. She looks great!

Brown Thomas (Irish version of Selfridges) stock Salsa! It's still 1.5 hours away though.

I tend to buy the jeans when House of Fraser have a 20%off or more sale. I've never bought them full price and I've worn them for years until they've worn out.

House of Fraser have a Mint Velvet concession and I don't think much of the clothes in real life. You may find that drapey, unstructured clothes don't work on your body. Having said that, COS can be a goldmine for pears but you have to try their stuff on.

I've a feeling you'll have to give yourself a day out in the big smoke and just try stuff on. Try it on then buy it online so you don't pay the Paddy tax because of the discrepancy in exchange rates