Pieces that trick people into thinking you're rich

[PaintingOwls]

Sorry about the wanky title, I don't quite know how to put this!

I have a friend who always looks very expensive and put together but whenever I ask where her clothes are from she will say Zara, Primark, etc. She says she gives off the vibe that her clothes are expensive because she has a few statement pieces that set the tone, so Ted Baker coat, Longchamp bag, Kate Spade purse. People see those and assume everything else is of the same caliber.

The only expensive thing I own is a Hobbs trench coat which I only bought because it was the perfect shade of beige. I have a black Harrods bag that I bought on sale to have a smart interview bag. I've been trying to use it more but it is a bit incongruous with the rest of what I wear.

I have noticed that when I wear the Hobbs coat people are more polite towards me, hold doors open, smile, move out of the way for me, men help me with luggage on trains... When I wear my denim or leather Primark jacket I get ignored and people barge past me.

Has anyone noticed anything similar?

I realize this isn't an exact science but if I was to buy a thing or two to help set the tone, as my friend says, what would that be?

Ha! Good point Zara

If you can afford £700 for a pencil skirt you have no need to trick anyone you are rich.

Well, no - but if you’re wearing it in the region of Chancery Lane you may wish, through wearing it, to persuade others of your professional success. Damn sight cheaper than a sports car.

George but to impress anyone in that world you would have to have the handbag, shoes, jacket, jewellery, accent etc.

All you need is manners, a little smile for everyone you interact with, and a sparkle in your eye.

And maybe a dash of some perfume that you wouldn't find everywhere.

Clear skin

Straight and white teeth

Manicures

Tidy hair

Very large diamond engagement/eternity rings

They can be wearing very ordinary and simple 'classic' clothing and I never notice brands but I do notice the above, particularly the big diamonds.

I was not suggesting that anyone parade up and down Chancery Lane wearing only their skirt ...

Neither was I.....

And maybe a dash of some perfume that you wouldn't find everywhere.

I love perfume but I don't think most people have enough perfume knowledge to know if your perfume is niche or highstreet. And true perfumistas don't care as long as you smell good.

I'm not sure CountFosco. There are high street perfumes that smell of themselves and are instantly identifiable on whoever wears them. And then there are gorgeous indefinable perfumes that some people wear which really do suggest a level of luxury you can't buy in Boots.

Perfume doesn't smell the same on everyone though, so if you find something that smells great on you does it matter if it came from Boots or is a niche scent that cost £££?
Perfume would be low down on my list of purchases if I was compiling a list of 'rich' looking items, after shoes, coat, bag and we'll fitting/well made clothes.

Black does look expensive if it is ...err...expensive. It's the fabric, cut and the blackness of the black that's important. There is cheap black and then there is expensive black - the two should never be confused.

I love perfume and own a vast range. You’d think people would comment on the most expensive. No, I get asked what I’m wearing all the time when l’m wearing cheap as chips Floratyna from M&S. The Frederic Malle goes unnoticed.

@ILikeyourHairyHands she actually wasn't that fat, she had a chronic stomach condition of some sort (heard this on Lucy woolesly thing on radio 4 recently) so all her dressers were made really loose and unrestricted, and her corsets, because she was in so much pain if her stomach had pressure on it.

The male Partners are getting their suits and their shoes made for them - unfortunately no one would be impressed by the price tag on a £700 suit.

Openupyourmind are you arguing that junior, female members of the Bar who can’t yet afford custom-made suits should give up and leave the profession?

No I'm just saying a £700 suit is not going to make you stand out (like a sports car!), you'd fit right in.

Actually it was a £700 skirt, not the whole suit. And the implied intention was to fit in, rather than to stand out.

But

Actually it was a £700 skirt, not the whole suit Actually the skirt was £195 and it was you that said it would persuade others of your professional success. Damn sight cheaper than a sports car. To persuade others of your professional success suggests more than just fitting in.

It was a jeffing theoretical skirt!

Actually my only thought when I saw the post on Ede and Ravenscroft was to be mildly interested that they seemed to have extended their womenswear. At the time I had occasion to be loitering in the vicinity it was all horrid boxy cardboard. Wouldn’t have been seen dead in any of it.)

Lordy. Is this a convenient moment to move on from this utterly pointless excursion?

(And anyway, you are merely repeating a point I have been making for years. Pointlessly. No-one on MN ever buys clothes from anywhere other than eBay. (Unless they’re ‘chucking’ a t shirt into the Sainsbury’s trolley.))

Do you always have to have the last word - George? 😂

No ... Sometimes I can walk away.

I've always wondered what it is about certain people that makes them look more polished, even in casual clothes. I feel that it could be their personal attitude that really carries them through. They seem to know exactly what to do and how to do it and are 'with it' regardless of what they are wearing. Perhaps this doesn't equate with 'rich' though 🤔

In the end I think it can be down to wearing clothes that fit really well.

I've just spent a lot of money (for me) after discovering a petite range that actually fits. Suddenly I look so much better and more polished even though my style is quite casual.

Shirts that fit on the shoulders, underarm and sleeve length, as well as finishing where they should, neatly on the hip bone.

Linen shift and shirt-dresses that look like they were made for me and sit flatteringly on my knee.

For years I've struggled with everything drowning me (To fit across my 32FF breasts I always had to go up to a size 14 which was overall far too big). In the petite range size 10 or 12 is perfect and I suddenly feel very nicely turned out.

I think it could well change my life.

The husband of a friend of mine wears the most beautiful shirts that I have ever seen. They do not come from a shop.

Dh wears Thomas Pink shirts, they’ve upped their price tag quite a bit since the last time we had to buy a stack - were £65 maybe 2-3 years ago, now £130, not thinking they are worth that much of an increase - it’s only a bloody white shirt!