Shopping my wardrobe in 2026

[CortieTat]

I have committed to a buying break (no clothes in 2026) and feel miserable already 🤦‍♀️.
I’m starting this thread to cheer myself up and rediscover the clothes I already own. I have been tracking CPW for all my clothes for several years but recently it has become automatic and boring.

I would like to rediscover the joy of putting outfits together, instead of buying new things first and then figuring out how they fit together! Also being more mindful about what I wear and how I feel about it.

I use an app called Stylebook to organise my clothes, it helps but I don’t think it’s necessary. If anyone wants to join me, great 😊.

This is what I wore today:

@Cantonet , @FirstDayonthePlanet I love your duvet coats and the greens, they add interest and are chic!

I missed the duvet coat opportunity - when my old functional Didriksons coat fell apart I found a vintage wool coat a couple of years ago. It’s built like a portable nuclear shelter and very warm so I have no reason to replace it. It’s my main source of CPW boasting 😊

@SwishMyCape welcome! I like your scarf, nice scarves are my weakness.

Morning everyone!
welcome aboard @SwishMyCape(maybe I should get a cape?! but obviously won’t because we’re shopping our wardrobes here )

Which is your amazing wool coat @CortieTat, the grey one?

I’ m out and about in town today (not shopping) so gone for thermal base layers, and my ‘goes with everything’ but sort of boring cashmere jumper.
Because of this thread I added the pleated mini, but I wear the jumper/leggings combo a lot.
The jumper is longer/slouchier than it looks in the image, only about an inch of skirt is peeking out - it covers my bum in leggings.
And basic bish Ugg boots; thought about knee high leather boots but they’re a bit stiff for walking around in all day. Obviously the answer to that is to wear them in…by wearing them, it’s a catch 22!

@CortieTat @FirstDayonthePlanet thanks for the welcome.

@FirstDayonthePlanet I love the skirt sweater combo. An elegant take on Clueless dressing.

I tend to do my outerwear as a separate outfit so it's 2 again from me.

@SwishMyCape your jumper today is beautiful! @FirstDayonthePlanet I also like the skirt sweater combo, you inspired me to try similar after the weekend! The coat is greyish-brown herringbone tweed (below)

I’m wearing earthy tones today, I found that the combination of browns/taupe/broadly defined mud shades in combination with blue works really well for me.

My trousers are from 2016 and H&M! Heavy duty, thick corduroy, they hold shape and didn’t fade. Only 1% elastane. This was before the H&M group discovered that they can get away with selling single-use plastic clothes.

Welcome @SwishMyCape.
I do agree with the poor quality of H&M.
A few years ago you could pick up the occasional brilliant quality item if you were selective. But now everything is so thin & the cotton is now largely replaced with Viscose.
I think I returned everything I bought last year bar one item. It's also pretty much the only shop for teenage boys in my nearest town 12 miles away. Now, they'd rather rummage thru' charity shops or Tk Maxx.
I try always to buy natural fabrics. I can't wear wool or mohair so that means no wool mixes which are often mixed with synthetics. But there's been a huge rise in expensive shops like Varley that are all synthetic. There are exceptions for me though. Brora Lace edge thermals ( last for years) & Rosie at M&S fleece dressing gowns. Very comforting at 6 am when I get up with the dog.
Outfit of the day attached for a trip to Tk Maxx as I've run out of shower gel. I buy the big bottles as they're cheaper & last a long time. Last time it was all Sandalwood & woody fragrances. Today I bought Iris, lavender & Rose as a nod to the upcoming 🌱
I also succumbed to a pair of wool cashmere mix socks for £5😳

Another vote for leaving H&M behind. I bought two cotton shirts there last summer. I think you can put 'cotton' into the search bar. I do that with Zara too. Not in 2026 though because as of now I will be making no purchases. My last sale item arrived yesterday (wool coat). That's me done.

Like @Cantonet I mostly aim for natural fibres but some areas I'll make an exception.

Two outfits today...

@SwishMyCape I love your blue trousers. The black boots look very smart, are they pointed?

I also have two outfits today, one for doing nothing around the house and the other one for going to town. I visited two second-hand stores, one is great for children stuff (bought ski clothes for DC) the other one is with designer clothes and I had to listen to my DC raving about “vintage” y2k jeans. I felt older than the Pope…

I found a black belt at the bottom of the socks drawer. I need to take pictures of the real thing because it has orange stitching irl.

I adore those patchwork jeans @CortieTat & the furry jacket @SwishMyCape. I'm really into anything furry & faux sheepskin at the moment.
Another boring comfy dog walking outfit today. I do love the colour of my jumper though. It's the perfect green for an autumnal colouring.

Channelling Claudia today for brief outing with The Teen to post some parcels and buy hair mousse (for her).
for me this seems to be less ‘shop your wardrobe’ and more ‘how many different ways to wear the same leggings and jumper!! I’ll try and go for something else tomorrow.

I like this. Pretty much any outfit looks cool when you present it that way. To be clear, your outfits are all genuinely fabulous anyway, so that isn't meant as a barb. Just that it makes things look brilliant!

@FirstDayonthePlanet I really like your outfit, the jacket (do I say jacket or blazer?) is fantastic. I had a couple of Kapital sweaters on my wishlist after watching The Traitors UK, but I have weaned myself off them (fortunately).

@ThatCyanCat I thought about posting actual photos, I sometimes take a photo of myself when I particularly like the way things work together but it’s basically putting them out there in the public domain.

I definitely agree that the mood board looks better than the actuality in my case!
But I doubt many people, including myself, would want to be posting actual selfies.
I find it much better to see a visual of the outfit and this is a good way of doing that; the individual details are more visible too. I do follow the ‘what I’m wearing today’ thread, but it’s not the same just listing things IMO.

Today has been an at home day, but a revolving cast of teenage girls are in and out (two daughters here) so I have deigned to change out of PJs.
husband announced the in laws are coming for dinner at 6pm so I’ve just swapped the tracksuit bottoms for a skirt and may even brush my hair.

@FirstDayonthePlanet I admire your dedication, I’m too lazy to add socks to my Stylebook, maybe I should do that!

🥰 the strong colour of your bottoms, I often do this too to cheer myself up.

I’ve been at home most of the day, plus a long walk with the baby and to the village shop for groceries.

Wearing mofusand for all occasions including work is my guilty pleasure. My trousers are fire engine red corduroy and again from H&M Anno Domini 2016.

Hi @CortieTati love the look of the Stylebook app but could you explain a bit about how it works please?
I’ve bought a few things in the sales and now that’s it - nothing for the rest of the year! I know I have everything I need. I work part time so my work wardrobe is on constant rotation and I’m OK with that. But would love ideas of how to put everything together - does the app do that? Thanks

Unfortunately (or fortunately) the app doesn’t suggest outfits. There is a randomiser that puts things together (at random) but it’s pretty useless, IMO. It’s a matter of finding what you like and what makes you feel good and happy about your clothes.

Some people use pinterest for inspiration, I personally don’t like it, even with all the ad options toggled off I get tons of advertisements of Chinese scam sites.

I am very easy to dress, my only challenge is that I am short. If you have absolutely no idea where to start I would search for pictures showing how things I already have can be styled on someone similar to me.

I’m not sure if the stylebook app has something similar but whereing has an outfit builder (a bit like in Clueless!) where you can experiment. (See image)

it does sometimes suggest outfits (below the item image) but this seems to be a Beta feature in testing, and always suggests something bizarre.

it really wants me to wear some galaxy cat print leggings that I wear for camping with sparkly cowboy boots (hen do) and just a tweed jacket on top, it’s suggested one that a lot 🤔.
maybe I should just let the app choose and confidently stride into the school playground in that ensemble!!

When people double take, just tell them it's an AI selection and they'll completely understand!

@CortieTat the boots have a rounded toe. They are navy, suede & leather. (7 years old, Sea salt).

Yesterday's & today's outfits from me. Those cuffed joggers got filthy on a marshy walk to a pub yesterday.

Completely agree that laying the items out on a mood board does present them very nicely. A few years ago there was a long running thread with daily outfit selfies but I do prefer the mood boards.

@FirstDayonthePlanet haha yes, that beta feature constantly pairs everything with sportswear & still has a long way to go!

I really rate Whering. I keep asking them for a feature which I think would be amazing. I want to be able to sort my clothes by 'last worn' date. It would make clear outs so easy if I could see what's not been worn for 12 or 24 months.

I'd also like to be able to put target 'cost per wear' figures for each item. I love a bit of gamification!

@SwishMyCape those all sound brilliant ideas.
I just aim for a cost per wear of under £5.
I try to buy cashmere etc new off eBay & Tk Maxx so it's not too much. Likewise wool coats and unused handbags. So it's much easier to get down the cost per wear quickly.
I really like expensive clothes & used to have a bad Maxmara habit when young. I do have a good eye for quality fabrics though. My youngest dd shares this with me & can pick up the one good quality item in a charity shop in 5 mins.
I'm in Bristol having dropped off my youngest at uni & stayed the night with my adult DD who's on nights this week. So I've spent the day cooking meals for her & will leave soon.
Wearing a Whistles cashmere cardigan that I haven't worn since last year.

I have something called “Worn history” that shows how many days something was worn, and CPW too. The game of beating the CPW would be great @SwishMyCape , I’m aiming for under 30 crowns (about 2.5 pounds) and the app shows me the best and the worst cpw but I need to check that myself.

@Cantonet beautiful cardigan and the accessories are so well put together.

At work before lunch and then changed into trousers and added a different, matching scarf for a walk with DC. Inspired by @FirstDayonthePlanet’s jumper and skirt combo I tried something similar but got cold feet and ended up wearing a shorter cashmere hoodie instead of a long navy sweater.

This thread has really helped me avoid the temptation of winter sales. I’m using the outfit feature more than ever and spending a bit of time every evening to plan what to wear the next day.

Today I wore the only thing that I bought during this sale season in December, a cardigan in my colours. Working today and then went shopping and for a walk with DC. It’s been around -10 so took out my big warm coat.

Wearing my Uniqlo wool blazer that I bought in December today. But I have had to make a necessary purchase. A pair of Sorel Snow Boots. The pavements aren't gritted around here & it was totally hazardous walking the dogs last weekend as they were literally sheet Ice. Even the hills were impossible to traverse & my old snow boots slid everywhere. Hoping these will do the trick.

@Cantonet the blazer is beautiful, I like uniqlo for basics, their wool knitwear is surprisingly long-lasting.

I had a skirt today that I bought when I was pregnant. I had not even tried it on back then but I couldn’t resist the blue/rust colour combo.