How to elevate your style during weight loss?

[lostinthememory]

I am now a size 18-20 after spending most of my life at a size 26-28.

I'm in my mid twenties and just have no idea how to dress myself. All of my clothes are too big, I just look a bit raggedy.

I can't afford £50/60 on a dress, I'm more on a primark budget.

How do I sort myself out for summer?

First of all, really well done! Secondly, I think trying stuff on is key. It is the sales now, so you might pick some items reduced. Or you could try an upmarket charity shop, or a vintage shop.

You may not need much, if you are planning further weight loss, this might just be a stage.

Enjoy it!

The weight loss is definitely planned to continue! I just have no idea how to dress nicely because I never have before

Shein and well done xx

I've been losing weight as well and didn't want to buy lots of new clothes yet, and have adopted a simple 'uniform' of things I bought on vinted. For me that was Seasalt cord trousers, jeans in black and blue, white linen shirts (with some shape), and cheap cashmere jumpers (because I'm freezing all the time now!)

Maybe something like this would work for you?

I think tops with some kind of shape/tailoring are important.

Well done on your weightloss.

I've lost a lot in the last 6 months and have had the same wardrobe issues. A few things that have been useful.

I spent a day going through my whole wardrobe and trying everything on in front of the mirror, deciding what I liked or didn't like about each thing and writing it down. (Having spent my whole life being told, larger busts look better in v necks turns out, I hate them, I look infinitely better in polo necks - fuck you trinny and susannah)

I spend idle moments scrolling pinterest and pining everything that catches my eye, do it long enough and patterns start to emerge, you then have a guide of what to try on when you shop to see if it suits you.

Now I've lost a lot of weight I don't care what size clothes I buy, the number is now meaningless because it doesn't have any guilt or value attached to it. Once I let go of that and started buying what fits rather than what I can squash myself into everything I buy looks a thousand times better.

A good vintage or charity shop is a gold mine for good quality stuff at cheaper prices, check the label for fabric content and look at the menswear, I've bought some really good knitwear that was all in the men's section.

Amazing, I love this attitude!

I do have a lot of outfits saved on Pinterest but they definitely seem to be skinnier ladies than I am, but I will go shopping!

I went from a 24 to a 12 and I wore the same stuff which is 1950s

Keep the clothes relatively cheap and simple for now and splash out on great accessories. A cool bag/ scarf/ hairband/ necklace/ earrings etc will fit now and as you continue onwards and downwards. As a fluctuater, I'll pair a cheap dress from somewhere like Tu with beautiful gold jewellery and a statement bag and sunglasses.
Well done on the weight loss and enjoy dressing that new figure!

I've done a similar thing recently and I found that trousers especially look really terrible if they are too big, though dresses and tops are a bit more forgiving. But I know what you mean about looking a bit raggedy. I've just sold a lot of stuff on Vinted and then used the money to buy, also mainly on Vinted. Some sellers will do a bundle so you can pick up several tops or dresses with just one lot of postage and sometimes a discount.

I use Vinted, eBay and charity shops. There is a European shop called Ullapopken and there is a lot available on eBay. The standard is good quality.

Second hand market for sure. Think about what are your go to items for example jeans and jumpers and concentrate on those and I agree about the accessories comment. Also what I found when losing weight is that my shoe size changed so spend on new shoes or BNIB( you get the idea) for those.

I'm going through this at the moment. I have gone from size 22/20 to 14/12

Nothing I owned fits and I have to rebuy everything but obviously don't have the budget.

I also dress smartly for work so need work clothes.

I have tried to figure out what suits me, not everything I like works. For example I have lots of loose skin on my stomach so can't wear fitted things there. But dresses that are fitted on my waist and flare out are great as they skim over my stomach.

I have also gone shopping and tried on clothes so I know roughly what works for me in shops I like, and then looked on Vinted. For example I needed a winter coat, tried one on in joules to figure out what size and then bought a great one from Vinted for £30 which sells for about £160. Anything you buy on Vinted just upload straight to sell again if it doesn't fit.

Last summer as I was losing weight, I wore dresses as they are more forgiving as you lose weight, and I felt 'nicer' in them and I bought 1 x a pair of black linen trousers, and 1 x lined shorts. I wore them both with bodies, which I dressed up or down. This worked well as it showed off my weight yet was a wardrobe staple.

I agree with the other poster who said be careful as even shoes size changes as all my sandals were wide fit and dont fit me anymore !
I find Vinted nicer and better quality / fit than shops like primark or SHEIN.

Ebay is your friend. I did this during lockdown and people sell stuff on there cheap as chips. I just search for brands i like.