British style, or lack of it

[Sarcelle]

I haven’t been abroad for a while (annoyed with the whole palaver of flying and just been holidaying in UK.)

Recently went to Mallorca and spent a day in Palma. What struck me is that compared to a lot of Europeans, with exceptions, we dressed so badly compared to them. And we are less fit. Since I got back I have been really noticing, it’s like we don’t care, yet in the main we have a lot of the same shops as them.

This is an observation for both men and women and when I say British I mean every age and demographic that makes up modern Britain. We seem to wear a lot of easy clothes - sportswear, stretchy stuff. In Palma they were wearing great shirts, dresses, fitted trousers, great accessories. I was sitting next to a Spanish guy at lunch, plain blue shirt, well cut trousers, clutching a book - he just seemed to exude style in an effortless way.

I know there are exceptions but it just strikes me that the average British person just does not dress that stylishly. I include myself in that btw. Sometimes I do dress well, but never with the same casual elan, and it always gets a comment along the lines of - ooh, you look smart, where are you going, even if what I am wearing is very simple. Like I S this be doing something extraordinary to warrent dressing a bit more smartly.

We buy a lot of clothes in UK but perhaps that is the problem. We buy a lot of cheap clothes and don’t accessorise well. I don’t think money or lack of it is the reason. Lack of will and perhaps a bit of self-respect?

I am sure I am going to get flamed for this post but what do you think?

That is fine for you but the whole point of this thread is how to dress less British. It could be worth opening a new thread to see how people embrace British clothes and get ideas there though.

That would be super interesting imo. (My opinion may be influenced by me not being British).

What I call the traditional English colour palette for more formal (non-business) occasions is something I can't emulate, btw.

I look horrible in pastels. And yet they're apparently what one should wear to a wedding in the UK...

I just looked up the average heights for women in the UK and it's apparently pretty much the same as Spain and Italy. Which really surprised me/isn't what I would have guessed, tbh...

There is such a huge difference but I think its mainly down to ill fitting clothes which has a lot to do with our shapes.

But British people have nice shapes as well!

The light playing differently makes a huge difference to how good you look IMO. The dim, milkiness of autumn and winter flatters a Northern European complexion more but can make an olive look a bit green - reverse that and pale Brits look blue with smattering of red in the med sunshine whereas the olive-skinned properly glow.

This can all be disclaimed the minute there is proper rain/wind, when we turn into pasty-faced, drippy-nosed, frizzy messes - I say we; I mean me.

Most of the women I work with genuinely have no interest in the way they look beyond basic hygiene - there are about 3 of us for whom it's a priority.
I was brought up cleansing and toning don't bother with that bit now and my mum was v interested in grooming and clothes. I love it all and it brings me inordinate pleasure and boosts my confidence. Maybe, it's passed down?
One of my closest friend could not be less interested and finds my interest very odd. We have lots of other things in common mind.

I think it is passed down, Dame. My granny was very elegant and stylish, she loved clothes. Same with my mum and I'm a completely clothesaholic. i don't understand people who don't care how they look.

Complete! Damn predictive!!

Yes British people, like everywhere, can have nice shapes. Excluding teenagers and people who are naturally slim/go to the gym etc. Generally we are bigger, less toned and have bigger breasts. A pair of skinny jeans on a smaller frame looks neat. A pair of skinny jeans on me make my legs look like parsnips. A polo neck on a smaller frame looks classy. A polo neck on me looks matronly.

Interesting point about the light. I am ultra pale in the sun, blue and pink (usually striped) whereas in the snow earlier this year, my skin looked healthy in photographs.

Also to add, whilst in Spain during the summer, I asked for a size 12 pair of trousers. I was embarrassed when the shop assistant loudly called to her colleague to get a size large for me. At home size 12 is pretty much average. We are bigger. There is no point saying we are not.

Both DP and I always get mistaken for not being British when we are abroad. It doesn’t matter where we are, it always happens. I think it could be down to not wearing the sort of clothes most people wear. I think I am quite Eastern European looking and DP is quite Scandinavian/Germanic but we have been mistaken for Spaniards and Italians. It must be down to clothes.

We have a lot of language schools round here and one thing I have really noticed -that doesn't seem to afflict British teens anywhere as much as it did in the 80's - is cystic acne. If you look around and are of a certain age you will notice how few UK teens have really bad skin yet it's still quite prevalent amongst other Euro teens.
I might focus on this too much as I had terrible acne myself and found it socially debilitating.

DH's parents were from Minsk and moved to Yorkshire in the mid 60's. DH is an innate follower of Eastern European fashion circa 1972. I endeavour to style him up - well I did but it's been trying. Donnay trainers and a carrier bag would be DH after a make-over. Luckily, he has so many amazing qualities that I can oversee his sartorial shockers.
I have tried to swathe him in cashmere - he looked a right tit.

It’s interesting to see young Japanese and more recently Chinese young women in the UK wearing what they imagine to be classic British clothes aka as heritage style: camel coats and brogues, pleated skirts and classic white shirts. And tartan. They look lovely as is that look lovely. That is my preferred style, too.

I think getting mistaken for other nationalities is more to do with looks/colouring unless your dressed like a football fan. Recently on a flight back from Lithuania an air hostess assumed I was Lithunian, I was wearing jeans, hoody & adidas. DH is dark & olive skinned & in every country we’ve visited is thought to be french/spanish/czech, even when in gym gear.

...They look lovely. That is my preferred style, too.

DH is an innate follower of Eastern European fashion circa 1972. I endeavour to style him up - well I did but it's been trying. Donnay trainers and a carrier bag would be DH after a make-over.

Brilliant! 😂😂😂

As for Spanish and Italian women - or men - being a similar average height to British people, this is not something I have observed in either country! They are really quite small.

I tower over them and I do not consider myself tall at 5. 6.

I do not own “leisure wear” and I wouldn’t dream of being in sportswear on the street. Not everyone is the same so what’s this “we” stuff!?

Aspenfrost I am in thrall to the delicate beauty and immaculate style of the Japanese and Chinese women who visit York. They are absolutely impeccable and their skin ... OMG.

There are lots in Edinburgh too. They look immaculate even when yomping around with a rucksack!

As for Spanish and Italian women - or men - being a similar average height to British people, this is not something I have observed in either country! They are really quite small.

I know. I'm also quite (very!) small. And I happen to have 4 Italian grandparents (but I wasn't born or raised in Italy...)

However, the medium height is 164,6 for Italian women, 163,4 for Spanish women and 164,4 for women from the UK (according to Wikipedia).

I would however add that being small isn't an advantage. Looking long, lean, elegant, powerful (also in a work setting)?
Much easier with an additional few inches.
And if a small person gets pudgy, they often look round very quickly...

"There is a lot of jealousy in this country but that’s perhaps for another thread." I totally agree @Sarcelle. How Brits dress is very much intertwined with how they want to disclose their wealth. E.g. Americans display their wealth by brands on their clothes, Tom Ford , Tommy Hilfiger etc, Germans/ Scandinavians show their wealth in the cloth, they buy expensive but boring clothes (e.g. Jil Sander), and Brits often want to hide their wealth and are discreet; they are happy to show small signifiers of their wealth but not go the whole hog.

I went to Madrid in March, when it was still quite cold and I'd say 90% of Spanish women that I saw there had black padded puffy-type coats and jackets on, with skinny or slim fit jeans, and ankle or calf height boots.

This is also the look worn by many women in rural eastern France where I spend a lot of time. I'd consider it borderline frumpy, but presentable. The others wear baggy anoraks, gilets, fleeces, shapeless jeans etc. I come back to Britain and everybody seems well dressed in comparison!

I do agree with the OP though. We have the best heritage fabrics and tailoring in the world, but we would prefer to let ourselves go and buy cheap ill-fitting tat. It was going that way even in my 80s childhood, when clothes certainly weren't cheap. We should try to do better!

There is also a dearth of tailors/alterations shops/cobblers/dry cleaners in the UK. It's a right faff schlepping into town to get stuff sorted and the prices are eye-watering. If you don't have a dedicated inclination, why would you bother? These things seem to be the norm, even in ruralish villages, in Italy and the price reflects it - a bit like the cheap as chips nailbars in NYC.
Us Brits have always had British figures but look back to the 50's etc. to see them at their best and how we should be. The people of the UK could and often do look fabulous but whatever age, weight or shape, those that do, put the effort in and most probably thoroughly enjoy it.

I'm not tall by British standards, but whenever I travel to Italy or Spain - which is fairly often - I find myself to be average or above. This is especially the case in the South of Italy. I simply do not belive that the average Italian or Spanish woman is as tall as the average British woman.

At home size 12 is pretty much average. We are bigger. There is no point saying we are not.

Yes. On average British women - and men - are taller and larger than their Spanish counterparts. So what?