Fashion chat- Dressed up or down??? All welcome!!

Caroline73_2

Hi Spirit - we are all massive fans of charity shops, ebay and bargain hunting. Most of us have blogs which you can access through our profiles where we list our hauls!

I'm quite new to it but it is really good fun to search through the rails/trawl listings and find something great for no money.

xxvickixx

Eeek Spirt, you have expensive tastes. I'm afraid I only know about the very cheap end, I think it would be too much of a shock to the system. What about second hand, you can get the brands you like and in great condition at a fraction of the cost, ebay is good if you have something specific in mind but a lot of the girls here find some fab things in the charity shops and jumble sales.

retro_bluebell

Welcome Spirit

have you tried looking on ebay for some of the items? Some people think its all second hand stuff but you can get good brand new with tags on items for a fraction of the cost- When I lust after something in Monsoon for example I get the product name of the website and hunt it down on ebay...could save you a few pounds- nothing feels better than wearing a bargain

ladyfalco

Eeeek! I think my most expensive purchase besides my wedding dress is about £40 on IC sale shoes!!! Im all for buying often, but cheaply lol

Oh btw Welcome, thi thread fab, enjoy!

ladyfalco

ive taken delivery of my culottes, i love them but OH isnt sure if they make me look bigger! May need to add pics and see what you all think tomorrow!

lostinrates

Spirit wrote: »

I have never posted on this board before, however the DFW board has made me rethink what Mr Spirit and I spend on clothes. Last year we spent relatively little however I need to replace a number of items for the spring/summer.

Please don't laugh I am posting my 'shopping list' with an indication of the shops they come from and how much I expect to pay. I hate clothes shopping so tend to do it in one or two bursts most of it in John Lewis . I will buy sale/outlet goods, but it has to be what I want. Advice is sought on what other brands are out there that I could try that might reduce the cost .Slippers Nordika
45
Underwear M&S
50
Bra’s M&S
48
Work Summer shoes R&B
120
Work Sandals Italian/spanish
80
Dress/Jacket Suit Minuet/Planet
300
Work tops x 2 Hobbs
90
Skirt x 2 Hobbs/Planet/Per Una
50-80 each
Home sandals Italian/spanish
80
Summer dress x2 Phase eight/coast/artigiani
80 -120 each
Casual tops x 2 east/john lewis
70



Last summer I got away with wearing jeans and flip flops a lot at home, but want/need to be better dressed this year.

The slipper brand I love. As soon as i put tehm on they relax me - mad I know. My current pair have worn out (a hole) after several years. My daughter "adopted" the previous pair and they are still in use.


Thanks

OK, I might be able to help a little bit.

OK, first of all..you came here from DFW...are you in controllable debt? This is important to address first.... (sorry but I think it worth saying.)

If you got through last year with no/few purchases, and need a lot now, why not get first what you really need. e.g. smart clothes for work environment are a priority IMO..not clothes for home.

shoes...I don't think that looks TOO expensive (the others will shoot me ) but I think work shoes take priority over casual. Also shoes, very good shoes that cost an awful lot more than that in shops, find their way to discount stores like TK Max. Italian and Spanish...for the quality...or do you go there....the discount shoe shops in Milan are hard to find but worth a trip....frankly...having lived in Milan ...I've seen more ugly shoes there than beautiful ones.

Per una/marks...have you seen if there is an outlet centre near you...much of your underwear and work attire, and probably casual attire would probably be available there at much cheaper than high street prices...although there are expensive full price items too, you need to be strong. They might be last season's though....if you want to be upto the minute they might not suit as well. For a big shop IMO they are worth drive to and day spent there: the for multiple item purchases the saving can be worth while.

edit: NO ONE will laugh at you for your shopping list. You are thinking about what you want and need: this is sensible and moneysaving.

retro_bluebell

ladyfalco wrote: »

ive taken delivery of my culottes, i love them but OH isnt sure if they make me look bigger! May need to add pics and see what you all think tomorrow!

Oh I love culottes but they never look right on me I think Im too short for them they seem to cut my legs off:o

piratefairy

Evening everyone..think I've caught up with most..

Sharona, definitely pp dispute is the way to go
Daisy, hope u managed to get the refund sorted ok and that the doctors goes ok tomorrow!

Queen, glad to hear the jumble sale and bargain hunting went well

Spirit, welcome and well done on the list, I think it's great to be able to sit down and figure out exactly where you need to spend- I agree with lost about outlet stores and prioritising where and what you need to spend on..

Vicki, not sure where the inspiration cones fro blogwise, I usually just witter on about something I'm wearing, have bought or love..personally I wouldn't include my family, mainly because I use it as an insight into a corner of my life sometimes when I'm supposed to be strong enough to deal with things and put on a brave face everywhere else - and if they knew about it they'd prob think it was stupid lol

Caroline, I'm glad to hear about your niece-definitely good news that she was well enough to move

daydreambeliever_3

I can't believe how fast this thread is moving now - leave it a day and it takes hours to catch up!
I know I'm making it worse with this post as usually I only read, but I just wanted to say that I'm loving all the new blogs (as well as the old ones of course). I don't know how to save any links so I was wondering if anyone who hasn't put their home page in their profile, could please.

Also could everyone PM me their ebay names? Although I may not prove very profitable to you as I'm the opposite to most of you lovely ladies and find it very hard to buy any new clothes. Or anything for the house - I spend so long searching for the right thing, I get fed up and forget it.

Alexnikov

Vicki - I don't know if it's sad to admit to this or not but I made a list of future blog ideas when I was bored in a meeting the other day

Caroline -glad to hear about your niece That's surely got to be a positive step.

Spirit - I think the list is a great idea, it helps focus the mind when shopping I don't know if I've skipped over it in your post but did you say that you'd had a proper look through your wardrobe to make sure you definitely need all those things? If so, and you can afford them (this being the major point), I don't see that the prices you've quoted are that high. Particularly if it's classic, well made stuff that will last you a while.

daisy - hope it goes well tomorrow morning

Sharona - definitely dispute it. Hope it all gets sorted out without too much hassle. I'd have been really annoyed to get that kind of service and attitude - what a cheeky mare she sounds!