Thread for those who like classic, minimalist clothing.

[IwankaTramp]

Don’t know if there are others who like this sort of thing on here but thought I would start a thread for those who favour quality, pared down looks.

What are your best finds of late? What accessories are you looking at to update your basics?

I am currently loving stuff from The Row but it is beyond my budget.
I tend to shop at The White Company and Pure Collection and pick up shoes etc at Jigsaw.

XingMing I wonder if you’re old enough to remember Jil Sander in its original iteration?

Most of my more painful interviews with my previous bank during the 90s were subsequent to an afternoon at a Jil Sander supplier ...

No worries, thank you I'll keep a look out. Ive only found heeled ones so far in brown and feeling like I'm channeling Pretty Woman. I've got a similar pair to that picture in black that came out regularly last year. Great with tights and slouchy jumper dresses.

Blatant place marking

I also love White Company but am totally pissed off at their ever-increasing prices when they’ve started cheapening their clothes with viscose and polyester. It used to be that all their jumpers were wool or a wool-cotton mix (and I didn’t mind paying for them) but now it’s a cheaper blend and not so nice. And some of their shirts are £100 for viscose. Sigh

I wouldn't class. Minimalist and classic as the same thing

Minimalism has an edge e.g Cos or Arket.

Classic is more middle of the road. E.g a polo shirt or a twin set I are classic. Minimalism is more fashionable than that.

Just thought I'd say😁

Agree re White Company and some of their materials used. Their jersey used to be thicker too and looked more expensive when worn.

I am currently resisting these Next shoes but I may succumb as they have an Everlane/Madewell vibe.....

Yes. WC jersey dresses used to hang so well and last forever. Now not so much

Excellent thread, people, think this is right up my street!

My recent minimalist buys are:
Plain cream long 3/4 sleeve top from jaeger
Navy blue suede handbag from jaeger
Charcoal sweater dress from Melvin woman Hamburg
Black jeggings from M & S
dune pointed flat shoes in pewter
Mustard yellow cardigan from Benetton

Agreed. Classic and minimalist are completely different.

Margaret Howell must look great on someone but looks to me like you’re in costume as an indentured servant.

Oh, I have to disagree! There’s a definite conjunction between classic and minimalist. Extraneous detail - like the ruffles I mentioned above - almost inevitably renders a thing of the moment and then noticeably dated at any time after the moment has passed. An item that makes absolutely no attempt to draw attention to itself is better able to move from one year to the next without becoming laughably out of date.

Obviously the cut of even the simplest thing - a plain, straight, knee length skirt, say, changes over time; an entire outfit of 1980s Margaret Howell or ... dunno ... Margiela era Hermes might strike the eye as slightly off kilter worn un-ironically today. But they would still look stylish; would still prompt the compliment ‘well dressed’. It would be much harder to achieve that if one picked only the most eye-catching, headline grabbing ‘must haves’ of any time in the past half century.

Yeah different but with some common ground. We can be intersectional can't we ? This is just my interpretation but I would say there's a shared concern for well made clothes in good fabrics, with pattern, embellishment and colour all tightly controlled. And that where they part company is that classic is about achieving a look that's traditionally flattering whereas minimalism is more about looking interesting. I think minimalism can be a bit up itself sometimes but equally classic can be a bit too... I dunno, perfect. I always want to mess it up a bit.

Ah - but aren’t you talking about the attitude of the people wearing the clothes? I was talking about individual items themselves.

(But then, I’ve realised I care more about each particular garment - and putting it with other things to make it look good, than I do about how I look myself. Possibly this is why I’m single ...)

Floisme I absolutely agree with "well made clothes in good fabrics" which have become a rarity, even in more expensive shops! I've struggled to find decent clothes for a while. I'm glad the skin tight bodycon fashion is passing, but I really hate all the massive prints and ruffles. I found a nice navy blazer, but cut off the gold buttons and replaced them with matte navy ones.

Yes, in fact I'm probably talking mostly about me I guess I have more and more days when I feel and look as if I am hurtling towards old age and death (hopefully in that order). On days like that I can't pretend I look good but I can still look interesting.

Sorry crosspost that was to Gruach.
Clio yes getting harder and harder to find at any price point and one of the main reasons why I've gone back to second hand.

“Well made clothes in good fabrics” being impossible to find is one of the key reasons retail is dying.

Am definitely a paid up member of the campaign against perfection.

The worst I can say about an item of clothing is that it’s ‘inoffensive’. (This means most of MN S&B is incomprehensible to me. I would die if someone put me in, say, a jersey wrap dress - even though the entire rest of the world looks perfectly nice in them.) I do want to be ‘well dressed’ - and not only in my own estimation - but I quite like it if people are momentarily a little worried when they first catch sight of me. (And this may be because if they’re noticing my clothes they won’t be bothering so much about me.)

To me, if you want people to notice your clothes rather than you, there’s nothing minimal or classic about that.

I have those exact boots but Clark's not White Company.

I agree that classic and minimalist are different looks even if there can be a slight crossover (IMO). My exceptionally stylish friend would probably describe her style as minimalist and she has a definite edge to her look. She would hate to be described as a 'classic' dresser, whereas I very much am.

Hmm.

Does the passage of time matter in the classic vs minimalism debate?

There is some very avant-garde minimalism. But is the minimalism that was avant-garde in the eighties now have an aura of classicism to it?
So classic minimalism.

And what about stripped down, pared back classics? So minimalist classics.

Furthermore, if we look at line, cut and silhouette as key components of any look or garment that define it’s style, could we juxtapose classic and minimalist silhouette/lines/cuts and redraw them in a way that reflects both styles and creates something that is reminiscent of both.

So something that will look edgy in a classic context but traditional in a minimalistic context. Something which is a fusion of both, yet neither and which will interplay with personality and setting.

You could argue that the classic evolves to incorporate the modern as periods of modernity alter.

Can I crash this thread for a bit as I seem to have found my people. I have recently lost 7 stone and for the first time in my adult life am a size 12 so need to start a whole new wardrobe from scratch. I also know basically nothing about clothes! Going shopping with a friend last week was an eye opening experience as I realised I have no style as I was so used to wearing whatever fits and now I have a chance to start again I am at a loss. The pictures on this thread are what I want to aim for though although Im worried with my figure (5'3, massive 34J boobs, hips in proportion though) and age (28) I cant pull this off without looking frumpy or fat. All the models in pictures like that seem to be willowy and glam and I am petite and busty. Is there anyway I can make this work for me? I am also trailing a toddler and a young baby and hanging out with very put together yummy mummies makes me feel awful about myself!
Its my birthday soon so was going to invest in some wardrobe staples so any pointers would be very helpful!

When I think of classic/minimalist I think of it as a neutral colour palette with emphasis on cut and cloth. It is where the two styles meet.

YOU could wear lot shoes of showy jewellery, bright scarves and shoes and be called ‘classic’ but that wouldn’t be minimalist.

You could also adopt a more avant-garde aesthetic to minimalism but that wouldn’t be classic.

Clothes with restraint is classic /minimalist to my mind and a category all of it’s own.

Bert said it a lot better than I managed 🙂

Baby an exciting new chapter for you. I think this style work for any shape. What are you looking for? My advice would be to start with a capsule and build up from there.

More style inspiration....