The “how to look expensive” thread

[Throwaway1066]

I remember this thread from possibly years ago, but search function is failing me.

Does any one have the link still? Or failing that…..any tips for looking “expensive”

By that I mean effortlessly stylish, simple pieces, maybe kinda like a Parisian!

Hair, makeup, clothes, shoes, fragrance, jewellery…. Everything! What’s you favourite “expensive” tip?

(bonus if it’s not actually expensive)

Well if nothing else this thread has sent me down a Jade Holland Cooper rabbit hole instead of getting up and starting work … thank you @Ohfgsjon

Yes, this is absolutely crucial! Be stick thin and TONED.

The way to look like a Parisian is to be thin with small boobs and only wear black. Dresses should ideally be backless and worn without a bra. Despite living near Paris and socialising with actual Parisians, I've accepted that I will never achieve this look.

Also Kirsty from location location location isn't thin but she looks very wealthy.

(Might be because she is though)

Avoid fake tan.

That is the best advice here.

The person I know who always looks expensively dressed follows possibly none of the advice on here, including having a "light tan".

It always helps when people provide photos on these threads because then you realise how different people's ideas of what looks expensive can be!!

I don’t think she has the look that this thread is about, though.

Wash your hair 🤣
I say as I sit here with postpartum sweat and grime all over me 🤣

You do understand that many, many people are well beyond ‘a light tan’? Can they not also look expensive?

I think what this poster was meaning was that being pale and pasty isn’t a great look - it’s certainly not on me. So a light tan for a pale person makes you look healthier. I don’t believe this comment was meant to infer that only people with a light tan can look expensive.

I’ve never heard of Jade Holland Cooper before but going by those pics I’d say in the first pic she looks like a well-to-do middle class English woman and now she's got a more international wealthy look. The kind of gloss that belongs to someone who flies by private jet, and has a glam squad on speed dial. I can see that some people might find the new look a bit too showy and ostentatious, but she does look ‘expensive’.

It all depends on one's definitions of such things I suppose.

This is what I mean. To mr she looks very done up, like I'd expect someone from towie or Love Island to look like.

"a light tan"

"all year round glow from multiple holidays"

I took these to mean the same thing. I'm mixed black and white btw and currently have a light tan because it's been sunny and I've been outside a lot. My light tan is a whole like darker than most of the UKs light tan but still it's a light tan, give me two weeks in the sun and I'll have a dark tan.

Don’t display too much flesh and good grooming, particularly hair.

Very thin/athletic. Minimal make up but great skin. Simple clothes styled with good hair and expensive jewellery

I'm very pale but think my skin looks nice (as long as I manage to dodge any sunburn). The fear of looking 'pasty' and the idea that they look 'healthier' with colour leads to some seriously bad fake tan situations.

Everybody definitely looks worse if they have no eyebrows, for sure.

I've no idea who she is. Apart from being terribly thin she looked better in the "before" photo.

It was at best an unthinking and exclusionary comment

Don’t be ridiculous. If someone had said “dark hair looks more expensive”, they wouldn’t be excluding people who already had dark hair, would they?

And I also disagree on the Jade H-C photos. First one is Princess of Wales-style casual, second is Love Island night out. Might have cost more, but that’s not the aim here.

I'd say manners in first place. If you are well groomed but have no good manners, it does nothing. Watch your tone of voice, speak slow and clear, choose your words appropriately, no slangs, smile, be polite, then be well groomed on top and you'll smash it.

A lot of white women do look better with a bit of a tan though & my Jamaican friend at school would change colour in the sun too but she didn’t like it as being brown was seen to be better than being too dark. So wince on that everyone.

Posture and good foundation garments. Well nourished skin from a good diet.

When buying inexpensive clothes (Peacocks in my case) I always go with avoiding prints and details (frills, embroidery, visible plastic buttons). Cheap prints can lack definition, quality, detail and can be spotted. Plain and simple design is much harder to place as a cheaper item. And sewing on posh buttons can really quietly suggest this cost more than it did.

Then add perfume. A quality scent is a good buy.

TBH I would not buy expensive makeup as I just can't tell the difference between my pound shop burgundy nail polish and that Chanel Rouge Noir that was all the rage after Pulp Fiction! It's more about skin and hair and nail care rather than expensive slap.

Jewellery - if gold, diamonds and pearls are not an option, a restrained-looking fake can make the difference. I have fake pearl earstuds that look real. Classic and groomed.

Shoes - ballet flats are also classic; I go for Clarke's leather ones which last ages, have the fabric trimmed edge that more expensive brands feature. Great for business, work, going out.

Check out @audreyscoyne on Insta

I think its a knack that some folk have and some haven't. I think well cut hair and flawless make up is a start. Maybe this small colour palette is a good idea. I had a tutor once with upswept blonde hair. She never wore anything but a mix of cream black beige and white, always looked good..

Focus on the basics. A capsule wardrobe of well fitting basics in a complimentary palette is key. And then looking after said clothes is important. Avoid logos and trending fashions, go for timeless pieces. Minimal jewellery and makeup.

You definitely don't have to be thin or tanned. I just think it's harder to find well fitting clothing if you're a larger size.

I've shared her tiktok before but this lady focuses on capsule wardrobe ideas, lots of the looks are polished and she also uses examples across all sizes and skin tones. https://www.tiktok.com/@jenknowsbestblog?_t=8cKr9RIcGMt&_r=1