No/low buy 2025 shop from wardrobe

[Netcam]

A new thread to share 'shopping from our wardrobes' so we realise we already have nice things to wear and don't need to buy anything else.

yes! I don’t know how to do that!

I’ve just spent 4 hours (!! Bit ashamed !!) ironing all the clothes in my wardrobe that really need a press before I wear them. Absolutely every item is now wearable - I’ve looked at some for MONTHS thinking ‘can’t wear you, you’re creased’. How bone idle is that?!

I think I partly enjoy the app @AgathaMystery because all the clothes that I screen shot from the internet are ironed and looking their absolute best.
I have a heap of mending to do. I'm getting two favourite knitwear pieces professionally darned and I tried to buy some starch today.

I failed on the starch in Asda, any recommendations. It's for a cotton poplin skirt and shirt that immediately look crumpled and a linen mix that never quite looks right. I thought it might work in an old school way.

@TosstTastic waitrose!!

I also mended as I went along. It was soooo satisfying.

@TosstTastic @AgathaMystery

I taught myself to darn recently and got through my bag of stuff to mend that had been waiting for 2 years after I'd bought myself a darning mushroom, darning needles and some darning wool.

What's an iron? I must confess to ironing nothing. Thankfully I wear a lot of wool, which never needs ironing.

And somehow my few silk shirts and linen dresses are no worse for being hung up to dry very carefully.

I don't wear cotton tops, only thicker canvas/denim trousers which seem to be OK not ironed.

At least I think so, and nobody's ever complained.

Thought of my 3 words after watching the video. Mine are Classic, Bohemian & Natural. Though it made my head hurt doing this process! These words perfectly describe my style.

I'm very much a classic dresser with deep love for fringing & boho. A lot more of the boho is worn in Summer, but I'm very keen on the slightly undone aesthetic & the Californian Boho look typified by Free People.

The Natural applies to the fabrics/tones and shapes of the clothes I wear, where comfort is an absolute priority. I even like a very natural make up & undone hair. This is probably a good thing as my hair is naturally blonde, wavy & frizzy. However I'm really not natural enough to forego make up or blonde highlights.

I think this pretty much has been my style since being a teenager. When I was a head banging hippie in Indian skirts, Cheesecloth & ex-army jackets.
For work I used to veer very much towards classic tonal dressing & wear a lot of Maxmara, Marella, Jaeger & Episode. I always wore silk blouses & dresses for the evening functions.

@Cantonet, I love your 3 words. I'd be fascinated to see a selection of items you might pick for each word.

Interestingly, I kind of wanted to use both bohemian and natural in mine, but they didn't really match the 3 sets of clothes I picked out for each category!

But it kind of represents how I imagine myself!

I, too, like natural when it comes to hair and make-up, to the extent that I never wear make up or put anything on my hair, which I wash and leave to dry naturally. And that's on top of only really wearing natural fabrics.

And I guess the bohemian comes my my general outlook in life and my appearance in the 80s and 90s which was very much alternative.

I struggled to get dressed today for a funeral. My 3 words include
Colourful and Playful, neither of which seem appropriate and accordingly I didn't really feel right in my clothes. I don't own anything black so opted for a navy dress and then wished I had gone more dramatic with black and formal which is what the other women in my family wore.

Obviously a funeral isn't mainly about the clothes but I also feel like in part it IS about the clothes. I'm thinking of buying a hat with a veil and a formal black outfit to be ready for the next one.

Sorry @Princessfluffy a funeral always feels like a long day.

Emotions and grief get very mixed up and it can come out in strange ways. I think communities develop traditions or expectations to try and formalise grief, make it more predictable. It can be very visual - flowers, special cars and clothes give us all something to focus on.

I'll never understand why a relative wore a football shirt and a tatty pair of trousers to a recent funeral. It wasn't anything to do with the deceased, his interests or location. It was just really weird. It felt disrespectful. It was distracting. I don't think I've ever stared at the flowers so much. In contrast I was really grateful to others who'd not only made an effort to come but also taken care in their clothing ( not necessarily black). It felt calmer and we got on with the purpose of the day.

Thank you @TosstTastic

I completely agree. I also believe funerals are an important mourning ritual in our society and the clothing is a big part of it. The day is like a wedding; it matters. So like it or not, so too does your outfit.

I am reflecting on this as my very great friend died not 24hrs ago and she is so stylish so I’ve grabbed a smart black dress from Vinted from ME+EM. I hope it fits so I can wear it loads. Fingers crossed.

@Princessfluffy i’m so sorry you found yourself funeralling too. I too fancy a mantilla type hat thingy. My friend would have enjoyed it too.

@AgathaMystery I'm so sorry that you have lost your friend. I agree that wearing the right thing to a funeral can help to honour the person and the loss.

Although what I wore was appropriate I didn't feel 100% right with it. I think because I've done a lot of work on finding my style and have found that it makes me feel more confident and more authentically me and I lost that a bit at the funeral. The funeral itself, although of course very sad was a good one.

So sorry for your losses @AgathaMystery and @Princessfluffy. I have worn a weird and wonderful array of things to funerals in the past - sometimes black, sometimes not, guided by a vague sense of what might be respectful but also by what the person who died would have wanted to see.

@Princessfluffy and @SqueakyDinosaur thank you for the kind words. Have looked up that Suits character online and love the aesthetic. Reminds me that perhaps my ideal TV character style icon is Diane (Christine Baranski) from The Good Wife.

Love hearing people's 3 Words. Today's outfit incorporates a chocolate silk velvet shirt, as well as my gold / chocolate jacquard blazer - trying to live up to my choice of "Opulent"!

@WillaDeWord, I love seeing your opulent clothes.

Being so 'unopulent' myself, and appreciating that I always will be, I love looking at opulence in others.

Sorry to hear of those dealing with a loss at the minute. If clothes are what gives you a moment of joy at the minute, then seize it where you can.

@WillaDeWord I like that bag and the earrings 😊

Monday was a casual meeting day at work, Tuesday was a day off, embracing the colour.

Out of interest, is anyone else still wearing fairisle /esque jumpers? I feel okay in the red print jumper, but I have a navy one that I don't feel right in now. When in the year do they get retired, straight after December?

Missed pictures

And today's office outfit, with a close up to show the sheer/ sparkle detail on the shirt. Feel like I've spammed you all now, sorry.

I might have finally got some words.

Maybe Textured, Simple, Modern. Not bohemian textured though. That’s the opposite of me!

I was thinking how nice your Fairisle looks with those jeans. Mine don't get retired, I'm happy to wear them anytime it's cold.

Sounds great. Love the orange jumper with furry DMs.

@AgathaMystery @Princessfluffy so sorry for your losses.

I like the men's dress shirt @AgathaMystery - v.cool.

@Netcam - thank you, and I love seeing your use of colour. Not something I have particularly got to grips with myself - hence the tonal outfits, or black and white. But I love colours on others.

There was an amazing CEO / entrepreneur at a conference a few years ago. As well as her brilliance and passion, I still remember and often think back to her outfit: white blouse, coral / red trousers, cropped muted turquoise jacket, red lipstick. No jewellery. She looked modern, striking and fabulous.

Today's outfit. Casual Friday, all-afternoon offsite so I want to be cosy and comfortable.

Can I join you? I’ve realised that my clothes buying habit is probably linked to ADHD so I’m trying to be more mindful about what I buy. I can’t promise to buy nothing but I want to try. I’ve also lost a couple of stones so have a lot of things I can fit into again.

I’m going to go back and read the whole thread and try and understand the three words thing.
In the meantime I’m wearing a denim midi skirt from Seasalt and a lovely cornflower blue John Lewis Cashmere jumper from a few years ago that has always been too short but is just right with the skirt. Black opaques and boots.