Clothes Old Style

Chipps

My wardrobe is based around navy blue, with t shirts etc in brighter colours (that will team with navy. I don't need lots of smart clothes as a stay at home mum, but do like some nicer things for church on Sunday & other occasions.
I usually buy in sales, or charity shops. But a few weeks ago there was a jumble sale which I decided to have a look in. Got 2 dresses & a 2-piece in very good condition for 50p each. Wow, 3 outfits for £1.50!

Rage_in_Eden

And when you go in charity shops don't be afraid to ROOT. I've found loads of fab stuff over the years - in fact OH has a suit which is handmade and was £12 from a charity shop - 2 piece - handmade in London and could have been made for him. E-bay as well. Love that place......... careful on some of the sizing though - ask for exact measurements of garments if you are interested - i bought a skirt and, nice as it was, there was no way it was the size it said it was - for a start i couldn't get it round my btm......! (and it's not THAT big ). and never forget accessories, claire's or charity shops are great. above all adapt what you have - a new set of buttons on a cardigan for instance can make the world of difference. happy rooting!!!

Lillibet_2

A few years ago I was working part time in an office & studying part time from home & I scaled down my wardrobe dramatically, partly for ecnomical reasons & partly so that it was easy to care for. I think it was a reasonable wardobe for a 24 year old :


2 smart short summer dresses :
One black & white, good for work/wedding/christenings/funerals/smart dinners etc
One pale green, good for work/holidays/smart casual

1 long floaty summer dress, good for BBQs/casusal wear/holidays/lounging around in the garden

2 skirts :
1 short wrap round pale blue skirt, good for work, holidays, smart casual etc
1 long floaty pasiley skirt, good for lounging around, casual wear, holidays

7 Pairs trousers:
1 pair smart black trousers, good for everything & worn to death at work
1 pair smart beige trousers, good for smart casual but mostly worn for work
1 pair pale blue jeans, good for casual wear
1 pair black jeans, good for casual wear, evenings out etc
1 pair cream jeans/chinos, good for smart casual wear, evenings out etc
2 pairs tracksuit bottoms, strictly for lounging around at home, house work etc.

2 smart jackets
1 black, one navy blazer, between them went with everything, both good makes (Next I think?) both dry cleaned once a year & sponge cleaned as necessary. :Lasted years & I still miss them!

1 Winter coat
Grey wool midi length double brested, fairly classical design, super warm & I still have & use it, cost £6 in a chartiy shop! From Principals & gets dry cleaned every year, pockets now worn out & need replacing

1 Fleece :
Speaks for itself!

Tops :
6 mixed white/cream/beige T shirts/vests in various cuts/designs, went with everything
1 red/1 pink/1 white/1 blue long sleeved tops, again went with everything
1 black cardigan
1 cream hand knitted arron cardigan
3 cheap sweatshirts used for everything casusal from housework & walking the dog to extra layer in bed in winter!
1 Mauve roll neck jumper, good for smart causal wear etc.
2 smart black party tops, one beaded for posh evening ear & one very sexy slinky thing for parties, dinner parties etc.

1 pair shorts supposedly for summer causal wear, whatever was I thinking?!

1 pair huge balck dungarees from my college days, used for decorating & gardening, also a couple of mens shirts for similar purposes.

Also a selection of a few old worn out t shirts/long sleeved tops/jeans which were worn for house work etc. Old T shirts were also re-cycled as night shirts.

Enough shoes to shod an army, they were a hang over from earlier days & I couldn't bear to part with them whilst they were in good condition, I am still working my way through some of them but am trying to get them down to less than 15 pairs!! I still have to buy a new pair of black court "work" shoes every 6 months or so, but I guess these do get worn to death 5 days a week.

I think the key to a smaller wardrobe (I know the above looks big but it isn't when you see it hanging up/in the laundry basket, espeically when you're in your early 20's) is to be strict about work/going out/good clothes versus home clothes versus old clothes and to never ever wear good clothes when less than best will do. I didn't automatically drop dry clean items but kept a select few which were classical styles & good cuts beacuse I knew they woudl last longer if well cared for. I was also able to dress clothes up/down by choosing how I wore my hair.

Wish I had stuck with the minimal theory, these days I can hardly close the wardrobe door, I still never have anything to wear & the laundry is a constant battle. Oh well, maybe I can start again once I'm out of maternity clothes........?

hilstep2000

I agree with racht, Ebay! I buy Jacques Vert, Frank Usher (for posh going out) and Windsmoor. I've never bid more than £20 for anything, if you don't get it one day, there'll always be another! I'm always being complimented at work for how smart I look, and all my collegues are now doing the same thing!
£200 suits for as little as 99p are definately worth it!!!!!!

pavlovs_dog

i can also sympathise with racht.

when i first started my saturday job, it was the only form of 'pocket money' that i got. my mum was on benefits, and money was tight, so i hated having to ask her for money. i loved the financial independence, and also being able to 'afford' trendy clothes that i never would have gotten if my mum was paying for them.

whilst i would never have paid a huge amount for anyone item, it was considerably more than i would pay now. i am much better at not impulse buying (which resulted in a wardrobe FULL of illfitting/totally unsuitable clothes), and only buying things that

a) fit properly
b) are flattering to my figure

if in doubt, i may buy it, only to try it on at home, and 'live' in it for a little while. if i grow to like it, i keep it, if not it goes back to the shop and i get a refund.

im off on holidays in a few weeks, and am in need of a summer wardrobe. having never really been even remotely girly until recently, i am distinctly lacking in all the basics (skirts, vest tops etc) that most girls my age have accumilated over the last few years. i am building a summer wardrobe - and a fairly extensive one at that, on a bduget so small as to be barely nonexistant. not because im tight or short on cash, but because of some of my bargians (details below), i begrudge paying full price for an item. for example

(praise be to t k maxx, lord of all things fashion and bargains!!!!)

kronk skirt - RRP £40. TKM standard price - £16. reduced to clear - £4
levis cropped jeans - RRP £50. TKM standard price £20. reduced to clear £6

h&M - denim skirt reduced (time and time again no doubt) RRP £10. i paid £1

tog24, mccarther glenn retail outlet. 2 length skirt. RRP £50. i paid £5


and those are just a few!

admittedly, im not a slave to the lastest fashion trends, but i do like to think of myself as having my own quirky little style. i am comfortable with my body, and i think this reflects in the clothes i wear.

but when you can get 'designer' clothes that cheap (bulked out with dresses, tops etc from tescos, primark amongst others), im finding it really hard to justify paying RRPs when i know that not only did it cost a fraction of that to manufacture the item, but that come the end of the season it will be selling for peanuts.


theres no need to spend a fortune, so long as you look after what you have, and wear it well!

grunnie

Last weekend job was to tidy my wardrobe It's all perfect now except for the large heap of SHOES. Any ideas anyone They all fit and I won't throw them away :j

pavlovs_dog

so long as they are in good condition,

1) friends and family - can anyone you know make use of them?
2) its either the salvation army or red cross that has a shoe recycling bank
3) donate to a charity shop
4) ebay?
5) young relative for fancy dress?

pavlovs_dog

forgot to add... so long as you have space, and they are stored well, i dont think it is necessarily a bad thing having too many pairs of shoes, so long as you get the wear out of them.

if you can honestly say "well i haven't worn these since aunt mavis' wedding, and i dont know when i'll wear them again", then theres no point keeping them. you just have to be ruthless about these things

johanne

and dont forget when you buy clothes off ebay if you get an item in like new condition and look after it you can re-sell it again a few weeks late and get some money back!

ive done that a few times...Ive just sold a topshop tshirt i bought a few months ago dont know exactly how much i bought it for but it would be for a maximum of £5 (i wont go above that) - probably had about 10-15 wears out of it.. and i just sold it back on ebay for £3! So i got 10-15 wears of a topshop top for £2!!!

ocemeer

Unfortunatley I have a huge amount of clothes (alot though are all work based and I cannot get rid of them as at some point I end up wearing them). Luckily my mum and my lil sis and I are roughly all the same size...so when one of us is bored of something we pack it up and send it to my mum to either have or to pass on to the next one, as long as it is not trousers (half mast on me from those two) or short dresses (indecent!) it works pretty well, get new clothes every year and get value for money. If none of us will wear them then off to a charity shop.
However you have to hide anything you want to keep when they come for a visit and a rummage.
Still got loads of clothes (some from 12 years ago) so have relagated stuff to the loft to come out when I've worn the rest out, seems to be working.
Just trying to work out what to do with the huge amount of eveing dresses I seem to have accumulated over the years, none have ever made me look elegant though the attempt was there, still always look as though I have had a close encounter with a bush.