No idea what to wear - please help

ollow

Hi I am a 37 year old and I have no idea what to wear/what suits me etc. I am small busted (desperate for new undies), and larger hipped.

I haven't bought clothes in over a year. I live in sweats in the house and jeans and sweatshirts out of the house. I have really lost my way. I have become a single parent and I feel I owe it to my little ones and to myself to start makeing an effort and taking some pride in myself. Please can anyone offer some advice. I have between £50 - £100 to play with.

ellies_angel

I love ASDA for underwear, its cheap but well made. A couple of bras will get you started off. I love my jeans and they can easily be dressed up with a nice top, or shirt. I love Primark and they have a fabulous sale on just now. I have recently got some really nice blouses from there which people have commented on. New look is also great as is ASDA and Tesco. To balance your top half with your bottom half be bold, you can wear bright colours, scarfs etc which will draw the eye to your top half away from the bottom half. Heels also lenghten your legs even if they are only 1 or 2 inches. Remember makeup. Just spending that 5 mins in the morning, putting on a bit of mascara and lipgloss can make you feel better.
Don't knock charity shops, head for the posh area of town and go looking in the charity shops. You wouldn't believe the stuff you can get from there, lots new still with the tags on. As a child I was one of the better dressed children in my school. I had a huge wardrobe full of clothes with 3 chests of draws and nearly all my clothes then came from jumble sales.
Now I mix and match my wardrobe is full of clothes I've bought from ebay, charity shops, supermarkets, it is also full of clothes I've bought from large department stores, Frasers,(when I go to Glasgow) Selfridges (on a trip to Edinburgh). If I like it I like it,

ellies_angel

ps I am 42

mickey54

Selfridges (on a trip to Edinburgh). If I like it I like it,

Where is Selfridges in Edinburgh? Never seen it!! Would love it....

doodoot

OP I'm the same age as you, but my bust is big so am envious of you.

First off, keep the sweats for night time when you are chilling - they are a sure fire way of making a woman look terrible during the day.

Keep the jeans and work around them with funky t-shirts, jumpers and cardigans (chunky and thin waterfall).

I have approx 5 pairs of trousers (grey, pinstripe etc) that I wear dressed up/down with heels or converse - team them with a v-neck tee and cardi with heels, or funky tee and converse.

Knee length skirts with chunky tights and boots - again with tees, jumpers and/or cardi.

Have a look on H & M's website for some ideas - there's loads of sale items and there's always a discount voucher on the boards here for money off.

ollow

Thank you for you replies, I think I'm just a bit scared you know buying something that'll be to young for me, or buying stuff that I'll only be able to wear once or twice without it going out of fashion.

ali-t

Ollow, for new undies have a look at Claire's (Blue_Monkey on here) website. she has loads of bargains in premium branded undies at amazingly low prices (I am not on commission - honest!). http://www.lingerie-heaven.com/

This thread should help too http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=2632089

ellies_angel

mickey54 wrote: »

Selfridges (on a trip to Edinburgh). If I like it I like it,

Where is Selfridges in Edinburgh? Never seen it!! Would love it....

Sorry not Selfridges, Harvey Nicols only been in twice (when I was down that way for concerts)

podperson

ollow wrote: »

Thank you for you replies, I think I'm just a bit scared you know buying something that'll be to young for me, or buying stuff that I'll only be able to wear once or twice without it going out of fashion.

I would tend to go for things that are more classic or that suit your body shape rather then just things that might be in fashion at the moment. I had a similar thing earlier this year, hit 30 and realised I had no idea what really suited me, I felt a lot of things I had been wearing were either scruffy or were getting to be a bit too young for me - but I also didn't want to look frumpy. I ended up having a few days of going round shops and trying on piles of things - especially items and styles that I had been unsure about before. I was quite surprised to find that some things I hadn't really considered before actually suited me and my body shape.
I'm on quite a tight budget as well so am building up a wardrobe of staples - mainly cheaper stores and charity shops - and changing it up with accessories.

x_Bunny_x

Firstly have a look on websites. Ones like new look, or marksandspencer, as it'll keep you up to date with fashion. im not saying you have to keep up with it, but it'll show you what clothes there is now, like everyone wears those ballet shoes, or loafer shoes, and most women now have a cardigan, some have gone onto leggings and long tops.

i think jeans are good, and a small heel on a shoe, and a nice top and a cardigan, have a look at the website, and try to imagine the items been worn together that you like, and yeh, charity shops are good, and sometimes you find stuff new with tags on, and much cheaper then high street shops

ollow

Thank you. I have had a good look at the mentioned websites and have a few items in my baskets, still can't decide on tops though. LO's go back to school tomorrow so I'm hoping to spend a few days popping into the larger town and trying some stuff on.

As for bras I'm stuck there, the last time I was fitted I spent about 3hrs in John Lewis as I'm such an odd size. Where is the best place to get measured? I've read about not going to m & s.