Swears by: Your most-loved buys of 2017

[CharlotteBMumsnet]

Hi folks,

Some of you may already receive our weekly Swears By newsletter, which is a round-up of products (predominantly style and beauty goodies) that Mumsnetters have been recommending to each other. As it's the end of the year, we thought we would round up the most popular products from 2017. Feel free to let us know what your personal best buys of 2017 were too!

If you want to be first to know about the next cult product, you can sign up to the newsletter here and you can also check out the Swears By page here

Mumsnet Swears By is free and independent from advertising but if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale. You can find out more here

Happy New Year!

Alice & Charlotte
xx

I couldn't agree more, that Hush dress and Seasalt jacket are very aging! The jacket reminds me of Hayley Cropper!

Agree the clothes posted are very grumpy but I think a lot of people on here are over a certain age. I dont mean that in an offensive way.

Frumpy

Grumpy works well too. I agree about the clothes even my mum wouldn't wear those

Agree the clothes posted are very grumpy but I think a lot of people on here are over a certain age. I dont mean that in an offensive way.

Guide to manners: if you have to something isn't offensive then it probably is. Age does not inevitably lead to frumpiness, in my opinion an overweight 30 year old is more likely to look frumpy than a fit and healthy 50/60/70/80 year old.

Personnally I'd not wear the Hush dress but I'd not call it frumpy, it's something that should be worn by the tall and leggy with awesome ankle boots.

The Seasalt jacket is very practical and properly waterproof (my Mum has one), it's admittedly not very metropolitan but for those of us who don't live in London it's a good coat for dog walking, the school run when pouring with rain and standing in fields for wet agricultural shows.

I'm surprised no-one has said anything about the breton, that is spectacularly yawnsome IMHO whatever the size or age of woman wearing it.

My London colleagues said my Seasalt coat was very ‘Devon’ when I wore it to a meeting a few weeks ago! (I do actually live in Devon!)

I think the dress would look dreadful on anyone whatever age or size none fitted mostly looks dreadful. There was no slur on age

Count - guideline to manners... well done on offending us 'frumpy' fatties

I think the HUSH dress is awful.

I cant see how it can be flattering at all. It looks awful on the model.

I second Paula's Choice - ALL products but esp this, the Resist range and the retinol serum. Lisa Eldridge swears by it. I've been using them a couple of months and strangers spontaneously tell me my skin glows and think I'm 35 when I'm 50 🎉🎉

www.paulaschoice.co.uk

Ummm I have the Seasalt jacket and love it for spring. I'm a 38 year old and I wear it with stan smiths etc. It's how you wear it.

I second the Paula's Choice product - I've only use that one and it is great for small blackheads, I sprinkle it onto my hand and spread it on with fingers, much less wasteful than using the cottonwool recommended.

The HUSH dress is like very many dresses. Designed for an apple shape with no boobs. The average bra size in the uk according to a Guardian article is 36D so any of these loose shaped dresses will look unflatteringly tent like imv. I prefer something that comes in again at the waist but isn't a clingy pencil style, hard to find.

My best buy were Borden flared trousers in black, Richmond style.
The L a perfect length for my 33 inch inside leg, high-waisted and comfortable, made of 90+% cotton.

Does the Ordinary serum mentioned work for everyone, or just a specific skin type?1

And just for the record, I have the seasalt jacket in pink, I love a breton top, I'd probably wear the Hush dress (with DM's and thick tights), but I wore a ballgown with fishnets and a biker jacket to my last night out so I don't consider myself frumpy, but you might, but that's ok...horses for courses.

Eve Lom Rescue Mask is indeed the dog's, I've been using it for years and never found anything better.

Does anyone use The Ordinary Retinoid 5%? I like the 2%, use it every day and never had a reaction, so was wondering whether to step things up. Or will my face fall off?

The Seasalt jacket looks like something a toddler would wear. The Hush dress looks frumptastic in the pic but it might be more flattering on someone not model-sized?

That said, I applaud Seasalt for making women's coats that are actually waterproof and don't look like you're going fell-walking - it's one of my biggest fashion bugbears that women (and girls) apparently don't go out in the rain.

The beauty recs on here are very useful. The jacket is awful imo but I'd probably wear the dress with thick tights and ankle boots (I'm 52)

I know I've said it before, but I LOATHE the word 'frumpy'. I wouldn't personally wear the jacket, and the dress would be a disaster on me, but others like them then they should be left alone to like them without being labelled something that doesn't even have a definable meaning anyway.

For what it's worth, my best buys this year have been:
Hush Kafka camo jacket
Benefit Dandelion
Some Clarks ankle boots which I now can't find on their site
Hush ruched skirts - one black, one burgundy
A Cos jumper dress, found in a charity shop
Mac lipsticks - these are bloody brilliant and I am now at the grand old age of around 107, a lipstick convert

Frumpy is a very useful word. I think it's fine to describe a dress as frumpy.

It means dowdy right?? Unfashionable?

Nothing like tarty!!

I'd be grateful if someone told me I looked frumpy. I'm never quite sure myself!

That Seasalt jacket is a bit Paddington though.