Financial difficulties. No nice clothes to wear, old and used. Wearing husbands t-shirts to get by...HELP!

[Memyself212]

So we are in financial difficulties due to buying a new house recently and me and my DH are in debt of about £30K which we are slowly paying back but as soon as the pay cheque comes through, I save some for groceries and immediate bills and stuff whilst my husband does the mortgage payments but we have very little left to do some decent shopping.

My clothes are really depressing though! I have been wearing the same clothes for the last 2-3 years and it's so uninspiring, boring and every time I wear it, I just feel more depressed. I am grateful I still have clothes to wear though!

I have a couple of black leggings, 2-3 sweaters and 2-3 hoodies and 2-3 skirts and maybe 1-2 jeans and thats pretty much it. Have 2-3 loungewear which my husband is kind of sick of me wearing it (mean it in the nicest possible way) but I just dont know what to do with our current situation.

Getting dressed in the morning feels like a chore now as there is no excitement to getting dressed.

I wish I had so many clothes that I can switch up every time after having a shower so it feels new new but sadly thats not the case at the moment.

Any ideas??

Charity shop? Vinted?

Can you discuss it and agree to add a small amount to the grocery shopping and get some new tops from the supermarket?

Do you have anything you can sell to make some extra money to spend on clothes?

Do you have any family members or friends who might have clothes they no longer use?

Vinted, Facebook, supermarkets.

If you are overpaying the debt perhaps skip one month and use it to buy some new bits!

See if there's a clothes swap or Swish near you?

I will try that, thank you guys :)

Are you likely to get Xmas presents from anyone? You could ask for a voucher for a clothes shop you like if anyone asks what they could get you.

Just a thought, any friends a similar size to you sending clothes to charity? If I knew a friend really needed some clothes I would definitely hand some over rather than send them to charity!

Yes I would happily give clothes to a friend who was the same size as me. Anyone you can ask or hint to?

I agree with mentioning to friends that are similar size. I clear out my wardrobe twice a year and there is usually a bin bag or 2, I'd happily give to a friend rather than charity

I have got clothes that are 20 years old🤣

I get all my clothes (bar underwear!) from charity shops & vinted. Vinted has some amazing things, just got 3 really lovely & quirky outfits from there for £22 delivered.

definitely vinted! Make a list first of things you would like to add to the new wardrobe…. Maybe even if you add here we can help? People here may even be getting rid of bits they don’t wear and would be happy to donate?

I'd ask some friends if that's an option. It's nothing to be ashamed of and if a friend came to me with this and asked if I had anything I was getting rid of I would happily pass on any or all of it.

Not quite the same circumstances but I had a friend over recently and we were talking about a clearout if just done that I needed to drop off. We're the same size and I told her to help herself if she did want any of it before I bagged it up. I was really pleased when she took a few bits, why not, and it's less to carry to the charity shop.

Just totted it up and over the last year I've spent £235 on Vinted and I've bought basically an entire wardrobe. If you narrow down the brands and sort from low-high, then look at the seller's other items and make up bundles with discounts, you can get lots of stuff for a few pounds each. You can even be fancy and search for BNWT stuff. There's so much Primark on there BNWT I don't think I'll ever buy new from the shop again! Everything I'm wearing today is from Vinted. I love having lots of clothes but I don't like paying a lot. I wanted to treat myself to something new and ordered a sports bra from Sweaty Betty. It was £40 and when I tried it on I didn't even like it much. So I returned it and bought practically a whole new gym wardrobe for that same £40!

TBH OP, I don’t think wearing clothes that are 2-3 years old is that unusual or problematic. Most of my wardrobe is at least that old, with classic or favourite items closer to @StarDolphins 20 years. The turnover of fast fashion is way too regular and most people could do with buying less frequently and disposing of their older stuff in more ethical ways (vinted etc). You’ve had some good suggestions on here but I would try to use this as an opportunity to rethink your buying strategy as and when your finances recover.

Personally I would try to increase income, taking a second job if necessary in retail or hospitality.

Drive to a posh town like Cambridge / Winchester / Guildford / Tunbridge Wells etc, go around their charity shops, you’ll find nice clothes for very little money. Think of it as recycling while donating to charity.

Now might be a good time to get in 6 weeks of work one day a week in a pub/restaurant, when they're busier and need someone.

Have you approached StepChange about the debts?

I'm wondering how you've managed to buy a new house when you have such a big debt.

Have a look at your local freecycle/free stuff facebook pages. Ours often have people putting up bags of clothes they want to get rid of and local charity shops are not taking donations.

Charity shops. You get amazing items for a fraction of the cost. Good for your wallet, good for the environment and good for good causes charities support

Definitely charity shop, there's some bargains to be had.
Car boot sales.

Even cheaper than charity shops are rummage/jumble sales. Our village one is dirt cheap - usually well under 50p per item.

Is it worth unpicking WHY this makes you feel depressed and whether it's really about the clothes? Like PPs, I have been wearing the same clothes for a long time, much longer than 2-3 years, and it doesn't occur to me to feel one way or the other about them - they're clothes, they fit, they don't have holes in, I have enough of them to wear different ones a few times a week whilst washing the others.

This is exactly what I was going to say.

There is no issue in wearing things that are a couple of years old. There is a big issue with having a huge debt.

I'd be doing what pp suggested and doing a 2nd job in the run up to Christmas at least, to start tackling the debt, LONG before I worried about not buying new clothes on a regular basis.

Yup - looks down at clothes I am wearing, none of which I have had less than 5 years, but this hoodie is from 2012.

what size are you? i’ve been having a sort out and would happily send some over :)