Struggling with style since I lost weight- help!!

[QueenMabs]

I have lost a lot of weight -4.5st- and now the smallest I have ever been since I was about 10 years old! I have always love clothes and fashion but what I used to wear looks awful on me now. I used to wear midi dresses and skirts and tops and they look dreadfully dated and frumpy. I’ve lost 15 inches from my waist. Her is an AI generated picture. it makes me look a bit slimmer than I am!

I don’t have tons of money and keep buying things from Vinted but they are just not right.

shirts and wrap dresses always gape despite having a modest bust, and I always get a back gap in trousers. My legs are ok in tights but years of being overweight I would not go bare legged in short dresses. I have an apron belly too.

also need flat shoes and this is an issue too!

I’m very much the high street end of the budget.

Congratulations on your weight loss.

But yes - it’s never a good idea to buy a lot from Vinted if you don’t already have a strong idea of what’s stylish and what’s being sold in fashionable shops.

‘Old style’ wrap dresses are both horribly dated and completely irrelevant (now) to slimmer bodies.

Buying flat shoes should definitely not be an issue. There’s an infinite number in all sorts of styles - loafers, ballet flats, Mary Janes, brogues, mules, clogs …

Have you had a good look at

& Other Stories
Cos
Massimo Dutti
Arket
Mango
Zara

recently? It’s hard to go wrong if you focus on their new collections and look for natural fabrics where possible. Pay attention to how things are styled - colours, proportions, layering. Always have a tape measure to hand while you’re browsing, and use all the measurement guidance provided for each individual garment.

Experiment to find which brands fit your proportions best - but it’s also a good idea to know where your best local alterations service is, as no mass market brand can make clothes to fit every body perfectly.

I lost a lot of weight a few years ago and realised that I didn't have to stick to the same old style but like you I was just lost for where to start.

The only thing that really worked was going to lots of shops and trying things on. Randomly picking up loads of clothes that I'd have once overlooked because they'd have been unflattering. I often just tried stuff on, took photos in the changing rooms but didn't buy anything. I just went away and mulled over the photos for a while, and figured out what I liked and how different brands fitted me.

I think you need to just go into shops and get trying on, maybe ask shop assistants for help- years ago I went into m and s and was so shocked at what suited me. Could only buy one or two things but it really stuck with me what what you think looks good means you’re ignoring so much else because you’re assuming they’re not for you! Enjoy!!

I’m in a similar boat although still a stone to go.

We have an independent shop in our town which sells decent mid-range brands (st Tropez etc). My plan is to go in there and throw myself at their mercy. In the past the have been great at suggesting things I wouldn’t pick up. If you have somewhere similar it’s definitely worth trying on a quiet afternoon

Wow you look amazing. I list 5 stone last year and Im still figuring out what to wear. Ive made a lot of mistakes.

I think you don’t know what suits you now.

Wrap dresses always make me think of Gok Wan and Trinny and Susannah as that’s what they put every woman in on tv. They are dated. Or can be dated.

I lost some weight recently and love my wide legged jeans as they make my waist look tiny. You need to try on everything and anything but also look online for inspiration about what works and goes together. Tik tok and instagram are great for this.

I’ve picked up some great clothes in Tesco in the last year, so it doesn’t have to be expensive.

To back up the list I gave earlier:

The best high street brands, as picked by our fashion director

https://www.thetimes.com/article/1f0ba2ad-4e6e-4ffd-a1cb-533ba5bec360?shareToken=2c593b8a80c890c8f9c5c29fa5e0ef6e

Tesco have some nice co-ords at the minute.

I’m 5 stone down and stuff I liked before looks terrible on me before. I knew how to flatter my figure but that doesn’t work anymore!
id echo going to shops and trying stuff on, but id do it bit by bit. Where’s the gaps in your wardrobe? For me, I could get away with tops in my old size for ages but bottoms were harder. So I started with jeans. Go to a couple of shops - maybe M&S and next (but this does depend on your style - TikTok has loads of ‘new in at…’ videos where you might find your drawn to a certain shops clothes more so than others.
grab 4-5 styles of jeans (including ones you’d never have worn before) in ideally three sizes. The size you think you are, the size above and the size down. You don’t want to ponder if another size would look better and not be able to get it. Take plenty of pictures. Buy nothing unless you love it, but sit on the pictures for a day or two and look at them really objectively. If budget is an issue, buy one pair and keep an eye on vinted for the same brand / size / style.

once you’ve got a couple of things you feel good in, you’ll likely find more things catch you’re eye and you gradually get more confident in what will suit you, what things call out to you, and more importantly how to narrow down what will work from vinted!