Has how to look expensive / polished changed?

[Newpeople]

Inspired by the Chanel bag thread which is a great read.

The many previous threads on here describe (to me) what seems like a very dated look. Even a bouncy blow dry now seems old fashioned.

Anyone fancy discussing what makes someone looked polished / expensive these days? In my experience (people I know and have met) it’s vastly different and much more casual these days.

And every time I go to m and s I'm always drawn to the jaeger stuff...

A natural looking face is so obviously coming back in. Age complicates this though so any facial enhancement needs to be subtle. Slim frame, natural fibres in simple shapes. Expensive shoes and bags. I can spot rich and polished a mile off.

Natural fabrics and nice cuts are classy and always have been. Anything else is just bling. It’s the blingy style that’s changed.

Polyester can be ok as long as it's not obvious. Wool blend with polyester for a coat is better imo.

Avoid stretchy things though. For exercise etc leggings and stuff still looks polished.

She’s a simpering fool. What’s with the soft whispery girly voice? Bleugh.

When I think of polished I think of Jennifer Aniston. Whether she’s dressed up or dressed down she just always looks together. Shiny hair, lightly bronzed skin, healthy body. She never looks like she tries too hard.

Subtle perfume

I have a a very smart cream-coloured silk blouse with a cowl neck that I bought at LK Bennett years ago that I save for special occasions such as dinners out and job interviews. I took it to the dry cleaners recently, explaining that it's silk and therefore needs careful treatment. The lady politely pointed out that it is 100% polyester

So yes I think polyester can be sophisticated (in my wardrobe anyway)!

Good teeth . Not the hideous celebrity fake teeth. It doesn't matter how gorgeous and understated your handbag and shoes are if you have a higgeldy piggery mess of teeth when you smile.
Wearing clothes that need ironing that have actually been ironed .

I also disagree with PP saying you need to be thin to look polished - that’s utter nonsense. Some of the most polished women I know aren’t slim. They dress beautifully in clothes that fit well and are very flattering - think lots of Pleats Please and Issey Miyake with statement jewellery. They have a kind of gallery curator style rather than a minimalist Scandi style. There’s more than one way to looo polished and it’s incredibly narrow minded to say someone only looks polished if they’re slim!

I think regardless of ethniticy, skin colour, hair texture or colour, height, weight whatever, you can look weel put together. I think the key elements are
-you look as though you care about your appearance, so skin looks healthy, hair is groomed (in whatever style suits you an your natural texture) and any makeup is well applied
-your clothes fit, colour works on you, dont have loose threads etc
-you look confident and relaxed

My style is boho/gothic swamp witch according to my DH - think Steve Nicks goes corporate and i am not rich or thin or tall, but i often get compliments on how i look because I love the clothes I wear, they fit and suit my shape (and I am fat) and I am confident in myself. Perhaps we need to focus less on the traditional idea of 'polished' and look more for confidence and women who know their value? I am now thinking of all the wonderful women I know who inspire me from all different backgrounds.

You almost sound surprised 😕

Don't agree, those petite teeny people who live in Chelsea look very elegant and polished and they ain't tall by any stretch

I reccommend eating more cookies. you soon stop caring about anything else once your blood chocolate levels reach an all time high

also... consider a face tattoo... that's where it is at these days...

I was recently at a charity lunch where tables were probably the cost of a couple of Chanel bags and the common themes were:

a lot of Chanel, mostly bags but a smattering of jackets

blow drys still going strong but more of the beachy wave variety

Judicious use of Botox, some filler.

and like it or not pretty much everyone was thin.

Hmmm…let me think
~ don’t be fat - above a size 10 in MN land
~ don’t be disabled - that wheelchair will never look classy and expensive even if it’s custom built Permobil (£20k+)
~ don’t be menopausal - sweating like a pig might look shiny but never polished
~ don’t be poor - less than a six figure salary and you just don’t get it dahlings

Why can’t this discussion ever be had without people throwing their toys out of the pram when people express views they don’t like.

No one is saying don’t be fat, FFS, it’s a discussion about a particular aesthetic.

My instagram is full of women with amazing curves who have hundreds of millions of followers and who have amassed great fortune from their looks, but I don’t go round playing the victim because I’ve got no tits and arse to speak of. I just accept I do not look like that and get on with my life.

I don't think there is any one definition. Will depend on your background, culture and other factors. My definition of polished is not Jennifer Aniston because I do not like what she has done to her face ( though I like her as an actress and person). Certainly, there is a movement away from thin, white and blonde.

Just make an effort. It hasn't changed.

This is such a weak argument. If you want to advocate for the right of someone to give their opinion then you have to advocate for everyone to give their opinion, you can’t say ‘people should be allowed to say thin people look polished but you aren’t allowed to say you disagree’. You either advocate for free speech or you don’t, you can’t adjust the narrative to suit you.

What has looking expensive got to do with weight? It hasn’t. Rich people come is all shapes and sizes. The particular aesthetic the OP is talk about is ‘expensive’ and ‘polished’. You do not need to be thin and have straight hair to look this way, there are plenty of women who are larger than a size 10 with non-straight hair who can look expensive and polished.

Is it really a big deal? Most of us here don't look polished, I'm willing to bet. We're all just musing about what it looks like to us.

There's other ways to be attractive and look nice without being polished/expensive.

Quite.

Because some people associate the polished/expensive look with thinness / blondness / whiteness / general Jennifer Aniston-ness, that apparently means the rest of us are ugly and worthless to society…. 😬

I look nothing like the aesthetic being discussed on this thread, but like most adults, I’ve made peace with how I look. Clearly some people haven’t reached that stage yet.

Some folk are reaching in an entirely different direction…

Because the idea that only thin/white/straight haired women can look expensive and polished is fully loaded. It’s emotive because of the connotations it has.

People on here can say that’s reaching or over sensitive or whatever, but it’s not. The suggestion that looking the opposite of that means you aren’t able to achieve that look isn’t something we should be continuing to promote as ‘just an opinion’.

Oprah isn’t/wasn’t thin, white, straight haired. She always looked IMMACULATE… polished and expensive. Imo she was well groomed, well dressed, perfect hair and makeup.