Wardrobe Planning 2014 Reasons and Resolutions

Randomly assembling nice things to take a bloggerish wardrobe planning picture. To be precise this is my new phone (yes, really..) &OtherStories sweater, purse, necklace I bought in Berlin and coated Zara jeans that I bought in November and that has become a staple for evening activities

I had somehow banned this topic more or less from the blog, but for the new year I want to bring it back. While I had thought I had found “my style” in the last couple of years, the first half of 2013 was full of being open to new influences in the new country. I wanted let my surroundings inspire me, and – on a less metaphoric level – I wanted to take advantage of the British stores that we don’t have here. This lead to more shopping, and sometimes less well-thought-out shopping. Still I was able to get a lot of wear out of most items and also bought lots and lots of useful basics. In the second half I was wearing my winter “uniform” that I had mostly bought for Scotland – warm cardigans, Timberlands, my NorthFace Arctic Parka. I still really like every single item of them, but by the end of the year I had to realize that I had lost all that fun, that comes with creating outfits, integrating new things into what you have, I was even too lazy/caught in every day life to think about accessorizing. Then I started loading more outfits onto instagram, and a bit of the “old spirit” came back. For 2014 I hope to be able to bring this fully back. While I had thought that overthinking shopping and clothes would not be useful for me – who knew so well what she wanted – ehum not – I hope that planning my wardrobe more, will help me. Not only to make my outfits more interesting – also to inspire me a bit for everyday life. After Scotland I realize how my city here does nothing to inspire me to anything on its own. So I need stimulate that a little, myself…

So I had to think about a new concept – and came back to an old one. I had written about the French Five Pieces wardrobe, what feels like a long time ago, here. I’m not going to limit myself to a number of items (I’m rather thinking about budgets, but not sure, yet), and I’m not going to sell things only to be allowed to buy new ones, or to keep my overall number of clothing pieces limited. But I still think that the basic concept of the Five Piece thing is quite useful. I’m going to write another posting on what I need, or think I would need, which is not much. But for now here are just a few general remarks:

Basics vs. “Specials”

I don’t want to stop myself from buying things that don’t fully fit into my closet, that are somewhat special and not too easy to combine and that are “trend”. To keep it short, items that are not purely reasonable investments. I just hope I won’t feel like buying them too often. But I for example got that Zara trf egg-shaped coat, which for sure is no great quality and terribly overprized. But I like it soo much, like to “combine” it with my things (even though it’s just outerwear) and feel so well in it. I believe that buying “irregular” items is also foreseen in that 5 piece thing, otherwise you wouldn’t really need the 5 pieces, but buy only basics.

Brands vs. High Street

To explain my feelings here, I need to tell you something about my current situation: I started working last fall, not in a regular job, I’m still some sort of trainee student, but finally have a lot more money left, than I used to (no regular salary, though). My first thought was to “invest” in more expensive items. But actually I realized that, if doing so on a regular basis, I won’t have more money left by the end of the month, than I used to. And I was looking forward to saving up money for other things than just clothes. Moreover, unfortunately I haven’t always got a better quality for a higher prize in the past. I can’t afford the really expensive stuff, and got poor quality at brands like COS or Tommy Hilfiger. And I believe that you especially don’t get thaat much out of the “cheap designer” section, also nobody can really tell you how it is with topics like child labour in this field. I for sure don’t want to discourage anyone from buying things that are not high street. But I don’t think that one “cheap designer” item that you might buy for the ratio of prize and name, is always better than one well-thought-out thing from h&m. And I also see how many of the “usual suspects” like Zara, h&m or Mango are among my all-time favourite clothes. Still I like to buy good fabrics, timeless cuts, and also from time to time something more expensive, like I currently would like to get an AllSaints leather jacket.

Sales

Many say, that if you don’t buy something right away, you don’t like it enough. I don’t know. I’ve had “I want it now” moments, but I also can’t afford whatever I see and often don’t buy things right away, even though I really liked them. Sometimes I wonder whether it may also depend on my mood in that very moment (and circulation), if I buy something or decide to rethink it, not just on “how much I like it”. And I believe that being able to wait for something in general does not mean that you don’t want it. Therefore trying to get things for a lower prize totally is on my shopping agenda. Apart from end of season sales, stores offer more and more discounts during the year. And by shopping online you also avoid the busy stores during sales time. And finally if something is sold out by the time of sales, one should always remember that it is just clothes. If I reallyreallyreally need to have something and I can afford it, I may  just buy it. But I’m so tired of those people who “can’t live without getting this and that thing” every other week.

Online Shopping

This brings me to the subject of online shopping, and here I’m really torn. I see the dangers of randomly ordering stuff because you’re going to decide what to keep, later, and everything’s just one click and so on. Moreover I personally would rather not send something back that I would not buy at the store at all, if I’m uncertain. Because I’m lazy. In addition there are issue of ecology and working conditions of delivery services. On the other hand I’ve been increasingly become tired of all the in store shopping stress, I most of the time don’t feel like trying something on, which leads to no shopping at all (good!) or buying things to try them on at home, and then – see what I just said, being too lazy to return them (not good). Another benefit comes with the just mentioned easier sales shopping. After all, I believe that I’ve found my middle way of sometimes buying things in store after having tried them on, sometimes ordering things that I really want and where I can more or less foresee if they will fit me. I don’t want to have parcels coming in and going out, daily, but that’s not the case, here…

Transparency

Another little aspect is, that in December I started a detailed housekeeping book (don’t ask how I did it till now…) I hope that its bare numbers, combined with the considerations on this blog with help me organize my shopping investments better. I never know what and how to cover “shopping” on the blog. On the one hand I don’t want to be all “look what I just got at the chemist’s” on the other hand I want to cover more of the things that I felt worth investing in.

To wear or not to wear the pretty, expensive things in everyday life

This brings us somewhat back to the introduction of this posting. And here I really don’t know. I tend to have nicer things that I don’t often wear, and cheaper, very basic stuff for class etc. I was totally raised like that. My maternal family comes from a farm in Romania, my grandma had a closet full of pretty clothes that she’d never wear, and walked around in her smock frock and apron. (Apparently my Great-Grandma was kind of into fashion and nice things, we obviously don’t only share a forename). I think that to some extent this approach towards things is very grounded and modelst. I don’t want to have to randomly wear my pretty things, therefore wash them more often, and replace them regularly. I could not afford to do that. On the other hand I have so many pretty things that I hardly ever wear. To this comes to whole mood issue. Yes, I do rather dress in random old things when I’m not overly happy. But would pretty clothes make me happier or isn’t that rather a one way street? And I don’t want to let my clothes, make-up and so on influence my mood and power. I know it is very popular nowadays to say that you’re feeling better during the day when wearing nice underwear. Don’t know. To me all that sounds vain and driven by a certain lifestyle. Maybe there’s a middle way. If I find a solution to this problem, I’ll let you know…