Anyone interested in forming a "shop more wisely and less compulsively", "no more expensive mistakes" and "make the most of what you already own" thread?

[LetThemEatCake]

There seems to have been a digression from the original intention of Penth's very worthy thread so, rather than cause anyone any offence or detract from what Penth and others were setting out to achieve, would anyone like to do a thread in a similar vein? Discussing potential purchases (advising each other for/ against in sensible fashion!!) and talking about how we're wearing existing pieces etc

Am off to Sunday lunch with friends but will check back in later.

Wearing purple Tam Tam dress, grey opaques, grey slouch suede boots, charcoal travelwrap for discreet bfing. Pretty exited about the sunshine so nearly cracked out the new OP sunnies but am saving for summer proper

have a good day all

Hi Mrs Juan - you've come to the right place - we have some styling afficionados here with seriously honed shopping skills . I think you may need to tell them what you are aiming for otherwise you might end up being too far out of your comfort zone again. Can you think of a sleb whose style you like?

mrsjuanyou are definitely in the right place...there are loads of fashion clued ladies on here..

ltec,hanaflower and tulpe have particularly inspired me so hang in there for your own personal shoppers.

it might help to post a piccie to give everyone more idea a proper nose of what might suit(not that i am brave enough to do that).

b.t.w...whoever mentioned leather hotpants on this thread..how forward thinking are you?..only in this months vogue tipped for summer along with lace/waists(both undoable during preg. and bf..thanks)and double don't for my colouring..pastels..i don't own a single pastel item..

Thanks - as others have said I like how Jennifer Aniston dresses. Also Cameron Diaz (although she's tall and skinny so I don't know how hers stuff would translate to my stumpiness )

I'm just off out now but will come back later and consider putting a photo on my profile (agghh - please be nice )

MrsJuan if I were you I think I'd make an appointment with a personal shopper in somewhere like Selfridges.

You've got a decent budget and would be good to get someone else to suggest some stuff for you.

But to begin with - do you work or are you at home with your DD?

Today I am wearing white vest top, nude coloured long sleeved top and charcoal grey cashmere cropped cardi and roxanne jeans. Also wore my comptoir bargain sale mac which did look jolly nice if I say so myself.

Went shopping for jeans for ds2 and had a quick look in gap adults and god - what a load of utter rubbish.

Hoxtonchick, we haven't - but it is a lovely name (and place). I heart your dress! I think I need something like it but much much cheaper....

Just posted on other thread but love talking about clothes like ltec so will post again
White Stuf brown/cream/navy/purple tunic from winter 2009
Brown Limited Collection leggings
Cream marks and spencer vest
Navy Kew cardigan
huge cream and gold cuff bracelet
cream and gold Peacocks scarf,worn loads!
Noa Noa cream wool coat.

Hello all, good idea for a thread, will dip in and out (have resolved to spend less time on MN... am so behind with work!)

But I just have to share my brilliant experience. A few weeks ago I sorted out my wardrobe with my DH. Initially he was just supposed to keep me company. I kept asking what he thought and he was very reserved at first, obviously scared that it might be taken the wrong way. I reassured him that I wanted to have a good clearout and that I would understand that he wouldn't be criticising me but just the clothes. It's amazing - I donated three bin bags of clothes to the charity shop and the marylebone womens homeless shelter - I didn't even think that I owned that many clothes, I only have a tiny narrow wardrobe and two drawers in a chest of drawers so I don't know how I fitted it all in. I haven't shopped in ages so I thought I needed to go shopping. Instead I haven't bought anything, but suddenly I have a great wardrobe. When I was umming and ahhing 'maybe I should keep this just in case...' DH just said 'Do you feel fabulous in it?" "Well, no." "Well you are fabulous, so there's clearly something wrong with the shirt, isn't there?"

Now everything in my wardrobe hangs straight without touching anything else - about 2cm space between each hanger - and I just have things that I love and that fit me properly. Everything that I don't truly love has gone. DH said 'Don't save things for best because you love them, wear the things you love every day, and throw your 'it'll do' stuff away'.

I've done wardrobe clearouts lots of times before, but never so ruthlessly and never with my DH's help before. I was amazed how strongly he felt about my clothes - he'd never said anything besides the odd compliment but once unleashed he was a fashion guru. Maybe he should reinvent himself as a less bitchy version of Gok Wan... Anyway, I'm going to be much more discriminating about buying stuff in future, as I've realised that owning less clothes has actually made me much better dressed.

Mrs Juan, I'm butting in momentarily to bang on about your first step being to have your colours 'done.'
In fact, if you've got a wad to spend , you could have an image consultation as well.
You'll find out the styles and shapes of clothes which suit you as well as the colour, and will be set up to spend that money wisely.
The downside is you do feel a dick gettjng your little wallet out in the shops, but you get to the stage where you can judge for yourself and just double check in the changing rooms.

Becstar . That dh sounds like a good asset indeed. I would love to spring clean my wardrobe........

'Afternoon

I started a (another) wardrobe cull earlier but was thwarted by dd waking up and coming to do a poo on me (bad nappy rash, no nappy on, where better to poo than on mama ). Luckily I was in between trying on outfits and a quick shower disposed of the offering.

I did get to try on about 1/2 my wardrobe though and think I have created a few new outfits. I started writing them down in the little book I always carry with me so when I am in a rush I can have a flick through and see what I fancy wearing. I do that for my holiday packing usually and it makes getting dressed a lot easier.

I realised 3 gaps in my wardrobe that need filling for me to get the most of my current clothes. I need a grey belt, a late winter/early spring jacket (I knew this already) and some flat shoes to wear with straight leg jeans and other trousers. This is the holy grail for me and I have never found the right footwear.

I own 3 pairs of converse which I occasionally wear but make me feel like I am wearing flippers as I am a size 7 with thin legs. I own a array of black boots which I just don't like. I own a beautiful new pair of Nike gold/bronze trainers which I admire daily but have no idea what I can wear with. I own another probably nigh on 100 pairs of boots/shoes but none are right for with straight leg jeans. I've tried ballet flats a few times but they're just not comfy as I have no arch in my thin long feet. So over half the new outfits I found today will be unworn unless it is an occasion where I can go barefoot .

The other thing I think I need is some earrings. I own a few pairs but hardly any compared to most women I know. What kind of earrings do you all wear day-to-day.

Can someone link to the hairstyle you've been discussing? I can't find a photo of it and am nosey. I sympathise with the other mum of a little hair puller. My hair is my d's comfort blanket and she can only get to sleep with it twisted so hard round her hand it comes out at the scalp. Feels wonderful.

Right, off to buy a new pram!

MM

I laughed at your poo story - then realised something equally disgusting would no doubt happen to me now as punishment!

I'm feeling quite pleased with my outfit today. I have a lovely black wool shift that I bought for £12 a few years ago. It's got a bit of a 60s feel to it. It's too smart for every day but too short for meeting clients so I've only worn it once.

Today I've layered a grey l/s tee under it, raspberry pink tights, pink and grey scarf and grey slouch mid calf boots with a stack heel. It looks really nice. And now I can get some wear out of my bargain dress. Yay!

Ourlady please don't feel too about my budget - it certainly isn't a regular thing - I have never spent that much on clothes in my life (probably why I've got myself into such a poor state now

I've thought about getting a personal shopper but I think I would be too shy to make the most of it IYSWIM. I'll look in to getting my colours done though if you think it's worthwhile.

I am currently at home all week with DD but will be back at work 2 days a week from the end of April. Work clothes need to be reasonably smart but fairly robust, non revealing and easily washable.

Right-I'm going to have a look though my photos and see if there are any that I can put on my profile.

Bec Your DH sounds excellent! Do you hire him out?

Bec I completely agree with the concept of fewer clothes but more outfits,ifyswim.
I was drowning under 'stuff' mos tof it 'ok' not 'fantastic'.
Have ebayed the beter stuff,and will continue to work my way through the pile.Sent 3 bags to the charity shop.
Now haven't bought anything for a while,good going for me when parcels were ariving every few days.Nothing since before xmas now.
But I have ,perversely, more clothes to wear

Wow..you're superpretty Mrsjuan..from your(obviously v skewed)description you would never guess what a cutie you are..i'm sure the more experienced S and B girls can take you from a nine to a 10 with some good wardrobe tips..you just need a lot more self belief.

in other news ladies...i found a black vanessa bruno l/s cotton t on outnet site..another good staple/essential,non?for under my new bf dress(before it's even arrived)

will look to feb. for better shopping abstinence and 'shopping' current wardrobe as keep telling myself jan. is birthday month(who do i think i am with the nonstop celebrating thing..kate moss or the queen)

ooh just got the bf dress parcel..off to rip open

Hi all - what do you think about these for summer?

LOVE those harem pants. Add a white vest, a knit waistcoat, some beads and a slouchy bag and you'll be off to the souks of Marrakech in no time.

Am back from the hairdresser, btw. Am please, I think...

Will reserve final judgement for when DH gets back later, and will get him to take a pic too.

I like the pants..but i'm not into grey trousers for summer,though pcs idea of beads and white vest would definitely lift them..or are you thinking for work?

hello everyone , welcome new ladies, looking forward to doing some virtual shopping for getting to know you Oh and mrsjuan - nice to see you here - you'll be easy, you're lovely

v. frustrating day for me today - parking ticket when dropping dd off at nursery, ds1 being challenging, ds2 being grizzly, all topped off by needing to post some ebay sales .. got to first post office 20 mins after it shut (no biggie except when you factor in the hassle of hauling dcs and parcels in and out of car) and then in 2nd PO, ds2 had a lie-down-on-the-floor tantrum (bc I'd said no to mini eggs )

all of which made me think even more that I need to shop more carefully in future as whatever small ££ you recoup on your 'mistake' purchases does not compensate you for the hassle!!!!

my tee arrived today and although I wondered about it, I love it in RL and it really does look good Perfect length, cut and weight and I love the sleeve cut detail.

I also bought a l/s black top at a charity shop for £2 - it's M&S, BNWT but nothing special other than that it boasts sleeves exactly like this which just sets it a cut above your average black tee. I'm thinking with straight leg jeans & my leopard print ballet flats...?

porridge - gorgeous harem pants.
bods - any joy on the bf dress?
mm I wear diamond studs everyday, I'm not an accessoriser at all. Same jewellery day in, day out. On the flat shoes front. how about some metallic flat sandals for summer? I am coveting these

well done on the haircut Plum

Right -photos on - that took aaaages! They've all got DD in too so you can always say how cute she looks if you can't bring yourself to be rude to me

I've had a quick google for colour consultants and found one fairly locally so I'll email her.

Very excited about all the shopping

I really like the harem pants. I have two similar pairs I wore loads last summer. They're very comfortable & can easily be dressed up or down.

LTEC I love those sleeves! I'm wearing a black l sleeve tshirt & straight leg jeans today (no shoe dilemma as Ive not been out) and it feels nice and simple. Love the sandals. I had a similar pair I bought two summers ago from Zara I think. I loved them & looked for a better quality pair to replace them last year. These look good.

I'm depressed having found the perfect jacket with a not so perfect price tag. It's a Rick Owens grey leather one and it is beautiful. Can't link properly from iPhone but will try later. Far too expensive though. Buying a new pram this evening, just booked driving lessons & hope to be pg next spring so can't justify the cost .

I'm interested in the colours discussion. I wear grey, black, beige, brown & occasionally some cream, navy or dark green. If I wear anything brighter I feel uncomfortable though I am starting to think the neutral colours drain me a bit.

My lovely sis has just bought me a grey jersey jacket from Zara I wanted that she found in the sale with £40 off. I'm getting spoilt this week.

mrsjuan, you're both lovely and you have a nice figure. I am not great on choosing colours for people, but maybe get a couple of pairs of trousers, a good pair of jeans, some dresses and tops. You have a good budget.

LTEC, it is nice making money off eBay but I also hate the trips to the post office.

Monkeysmama, Russell and Bromley do great ballet flats, really comfortable.

hana both links went to the dress - can you re-link to the shorts? Like the dress very much. Classic but not a boring colour and you can accessorise them with tonnes of stuff.

I like shorts in summer with wedges or sandals, a vest and some chunky jewellery. Have some khaki ones that have a safari feel to them so I don't feel like they really should be on a teenager. Having said that, I also have some tiny bright green jersey shorts with yellow edging so you might not want my opinion They are for bikini days though... promise!