Where to buy clothes? Early 30s

[BrumBirth]

Hi all, I’m going back to work soon after maternity leave. I’m about 1 or 2 dress sizes larger than I was before so need some new clothes! I have a new job and the dress code is pretty causal, the men wear jeans and polo neck t-shirts (haven’t met any of the other women).

I didn’t buy clothes very often and most of my wardrobe has been accumulated over a long time. The problem is when I go into H&M now I don’t really feel like the clothes are for me. A lot of my nicer clothes are from Hollister or Jack wills about 10 years ago and I can’t shop in those places anymore either!

I generally wear basics with the odd bright colour or fun pattern thrown in. I occasionally did well in Oasis or Mango but don’t really know where to start now.

Though the office is casual it’s a reasonably well paid professional job in a creative industry and I want to feel like I’m dressing well!

Bump!

River Island, New Look, Mango and Zara are my go tos.
Next for some work clothes and F&F too. HTH x

Warehouse, Oliver Bonas, ASOS, COS

I’m 34 and buy most of my work clothes from Zara with some basics from m&s.

I’m mid thirties and have not shopped in H&M, Mango or Oasis for many many years. Fast fashion is ruining our planet and I think the quality you get from those shops has deteriorated over the last few years.

If you are in a creative industry and can be causal, then can I make a few suggestions:

1. Start to work out your own unique style, the pieces you truly love and will return to. Invest in them. Google capsule wardrobe. Before you buy something new, ask yourself if you will wear it 30 times or more.

1. Look in charity shops/ buying second hand. It means you can get better quality clothes for cheaper and it’s much better for the environment. I recently purchased a cashmere almond Armani cardigan for £6 on EBay.

1. Don’t underestimate the way accessories can transform an outfit. You might find that investing in a decent watch, handbag or brightly coloured accessories can really enhance any existing outfits that you already have.

As a first stop you could book a personal stylist at a big department store, giant John Lewis does this and has a good range of high street type brands. You give the stylist a brief and budget and there are clothes waiting for you to try on and no pressure. Good place to start.

Thankyou! I hadn’t thought of Oliver Bonas, their clothes are quite fun but I always thought they were too expensive. I think I need to re-adjust how much I’m happy to spend on clothes.

Thanks for your points @Handy123 I have got things from eBay in the past but part of the problem now is that I don’t really know what size I am. Or how to dress for my slightly different shape. Maybe a personal shopper is the way to go.

Similar age here. I mainly shop in charity shops, occasionally eBay, and sales. I find new look surprisingly good, occasionally mango and H&M, but try and avoid them as quality is so dire. The things I've bought from H&M and M&S over the last couple of years have fallen to bits or shrunk. Prefer to buy less and higher quality, ideally second hand so it's also cheap!

Sézane, Rouje, The Kooples, Maje, Sandro, Bellrose, Outnet, Net a Porter, Kitri, Reformation, Sunspel, Liberty, Selfridges, Hiut, Blackhorse Lane Ateliers, Nudie….. also in my 30s.

@TuftyRusty I am in love with Sézane! Thankyou

I’m 29, not a huge amount of spare money for clothes and feel a bit lost with where to shop. I’d say most of my stuff comes from New Look. I also like Oasis, NEXT, H&M and increasingly getting bits from Tu at Sainsbury’s. I use eBay and pre-loved sites a lot as well.
I’m finding it a tricky age and feel a bit lost style-wise though.

I get quite a lot of stuff from Monki. They do nice shirts, dresses and skirts in fun patterns. I feel the same about H&M and I feel like Monki is a slightly edgier version (I know they are owned by the same group!)

[quote BrumBirth]@TuftyRusty I am in love with Sézane! Thankyou[/quote]
Oh so glad you like Sézane! They do relaxed smart casual well - love their trousers and knitwear in particular. There’s a healthy amount on eBay and Depop too so you can often get a good bargain. Watch out for their archive sales as well!

Have a look at Styled by Susie. They suggest shops based on your body shape and budget.

John Lewis have an online Personal Style Edit which is really good.

Vote for Next, M&S, new look, ASOS and supermarkets (Asda/Tesco/Sainsbury’s)

Uniqlo