2018 looks like a big year - YouLookFab Forum

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Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

2018 looks like a big year

anne

Veteran

My clothing buying tends to a pattern of a few years of relatively low number of purchases followed by a year of buying a lot ("big" years included 1996,1999, 2002, 2008 and 2013). After making my list for the upcoming year I think I'm up for another one

In terms of goals, I want to buy at least 2 "ethically produced" items. I know that isn't much, but it's a start.I also want to buy 2 statement items, as I tend not to buy them

Here's the list as it stands so far:

Left over from this year's plan
summer tee to wear with shorts
summer tee to wear with white skirt

Work
work dress
work short sleeve top
work long sleeve top
work black mary jane shoes
striped skirt

floaty dress *
Wild card *

Cosy casual
tracksuit pants
long sleeve tee
sweatshirt dress *
leggings
Pale blue sweater

Gear
sports bra
running shoes?
One more outfit?

Other
winter PJs
trench coat *
lightweight cardigan

* indicates not a replacement (i.e., the rest are replacements)

Any comments welcome!

Shopping

19 replies

Latest reply was from 3style

Staysfit

Veteran

Your list looks very thorough. How did you decide what you want? Does your wildcard allow you to pick up one new trendy item?

anne

Veteran

Hi Staysfit - yes the wildcard could be trendy (and I hope it is!)

I went back and put * on anything which isn't a replacement - indicating that most things are. Some aren't strictly speaking (e.g., I haven't bought a new work dress for 4 years and I'd just like one - but will still wear the old ones sometimes)

Some are things I wanted in 2017 and didn't get around to buying - most of the others are upgrades or replacement for items that haven't been bought for awhile.

I've wanted a well fitting, quality trench, in a non black colour, for some years, and thought this might be the year to look again. My black puffer, (not USA winter weight) which currently functions in the space of "raincoat" is maybe 6 years old and showing it's age so not great for wearing into work.

Anonymous

Very well thought out.

Bijou

Veteran

Anne, whilst it does look like a long list, given the majority of items are replacements, it shows that you know your style and can pin point exactly what you need. It looks like a good balance between being open to something new and what you need. I have a 3/4 length trench coat (purchased many years ago) and that is something that I have found incredibly useful to own.

You have summer t-shirts on your list. I have bought a few online from Uniqlo and love the quality and price. I buy size small (I am a Australian woman's size 8).

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Nicely thought out. A plan, but a flexible one if something else creeps up.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

Looks a good plan. Just checked your profile: says you're a stay-at-home Mum. What kind of office job do you have, do you just need tidy office clothes? I think your "big years" are not like some Fabbers' big years! We seem a bit more minimalistic down here in the Antipodes than in the US. Even my larger wardrobe has had around 30-35 items added per year not more. I'm proud of this year's 18 items since I am trying to reduce the size over time.
I'm excited about your statement and wildcard items and to live vicariously through your choices of those in 2018!

Style Fan

Veteran

Good plan. A trench coat is very useful. I have had mine for over 10 years and love it. It is a warm beige colour.

DonnaF

Veteran

Good plan! I have noticed that when *I* shop too much from a list I get so excited about being able to cross an item off that I don’t notice that it is only a *7* instead of a *9* or *10*. Your list looks general enough that you won’t fall into that trap.

anne

Veteran

Bijou - thanks - I'll check out Uniqlo. (thanks for the size info - I'm an 8/10 depending on brands) And yes I'm pretty sure that the trench coat will be a classic. I always start wanting one around May when our rainy weather begins. I'm not at all sure I'll be able to find one that fits though, with my long torso problems. I had one a few years ago that wasn't great quality and was black - and I like more cheerful colours for outerwear.

Thanks Angie. My plan isn't limited to those items - but I do want to include them. And if I put "wildcard" on the list, I'm more likely to buy it - I want to do more emotional shopping this year.

Jenni - yes, sorry my profile is out of date - I've been back at work outside the home since 2013. I work in an office for 3 days a week. 2 days of that I need "office clothes" and the other is casual Friday, where jeans are ok, and which I tend to wear smart casual for (it's a slightly different capsule from what I'd wear at equivalent temperatures outside, because of the aircon) I agree with you about your observation about people buying less here than in the US, at least as far as I can tell in terms of people repeating outfits in the office. I think some young people buy a lot of fast fashion for clubbing etc though. You'e been doing really well on your cutting down; congratulations!

Style fan, your trench sounds lovely and has shown it's longevity. I can imagine beige looking great on your complexion. It's not a great colour for me though, I'm thinking navy maybe? I'd like suggestions actually. I wonder if metallic trenches exist?

DonnaF - I DO know that trap - last year I fell into it several times!

Suz

(website)

Veteran

This looks like a great list, Anne. It's practical to replace what you need and there is still a bit of room for fun or branching out. And yes to some emotional shopping for you!

ETA...just a little warning from one who did not used to shop emotionally at all (or really, to shop at all, for years, anyway...). My first forays into emotional territory felt like massive fails...I ended up not liking the items as much as I had hoped. It took a while to educate my emotional palate, as it were. So if that happens to you, please try not to be hard on yourself!

3style

Veteran

As far as Australia and New Zealand folks having smaller wardrobes, I would think that much of it is climate. I'm one of the people in arctic freeze today. I'm wearing 10 garments plus shoes all told, just including items for indoors today, and this is pretty typical of my winter habits. If I understand correctly, it doesn't get that cold down under?

Jenni NZ

Veteran

True, 3style. I think it's a mixture of that and also a more minimalist attitude brought on by hardy colonialism and "making do" for generations. This has been changing gradually since the 1960s but I think it hangs on for some of us!

3style

Veteran

I have a few Aussie relatives via my husband's side of the family. To hear them tell it, it's more about two other factors. One is clothing being roughly twice as expensive on average, so that they tend to stock up when they visit. The other is that even average people have a much stricter sense of being on-trend and polished and less RATE and tend to gravitate only to the latest fashion from the best designers that they can afford.

anne

Veteran

Suz, that warning about emotional buying from your experience is very interesting!! I appreciate it. I think where I'm coming from is not liking very much when I shop, and even less when I try something on. So if I do manage to find something, I should go for it. I can't remember if you were around for my search a few months ago for a dress that could work for a wedding and work. While shopping for that I found a dress that was great for work, though we (YLF) decided it wasn't so much a wedding look, and I went for another one (that broke the evening of the first day I wore it) Anyway, I went back to look for the more office-y look and it had gone back from sale price, which I could just afford, to being out of my price range.
Where was I going with this... My surprise that I would like TWO dresses that close to each other! (though actually this happened last summer as well when I was looking for casual hot summer dresses, and you encouraged me to get two, and I did, and that was a great decision!)

3style, yes I agree that price of clothing, and not needing the whole warm clothing for super cold climates does affect clothing numbers. I'm less sure about how widespread the other factors that Jenni (making do attitudes) and you mention are. Though the attitude Jenni describes is very strong in my own family - I'm quite the extravagant one by their standards, and I agree, in older generations.

I'm not sure that I would particularly say that my own experience agrees with 3style about

even average people have a much stricter sense of being on-trend and polished and less RATE and tend to gravitate only to the latest fashion from the best designers that they can afford but then again, Australia is a big country with what 20+ million people, so there's lots of diversity and I may just not have met these people! Although I work in the city centre in the professional services space, I live in a relatively unfashionable area, with many students, recent immigrants and some poorer people. (There's a hipster suburb a few kms down the road though :-))

Suz

(website)

Veteran

That is very interesting, Anne, about running aground due to not finding what you like in the shops. If I only shopped locally (and not online) that would also happen to me for sure simply because my options in town are very limited. And in fact it used to happen to me all the time before YLF.

That "make do" attitude was certainly one I was brought up with, having parents who lived through the Great Depression. But I do think 3style is right that a climate of extremes demands at least a somewhat bigger wardrobe, no matter what. Much much more outerwear, and also inner layers for warmth, at minimum -- plus at least a few dedicated hot weather clothes and clothes for temperate weather, too.

3style

Veteran

Anne, what I am trying to describe might be easier to see from the outside. I will give you an example, and see what you think.

A few weeks ago I was sitting on a bench inside a major urban hospital. A woman walked by wearing a very normal looking short structured coat which ended at approximately her navel height. On the bottom half she was wearing pink tights so sheer that I could see that her underpants were white and bunching slightly. In my experience of other countries, such absurdity wouldn't happen no matter how poor someone was. Here this type of thing is ubiquitous. Correct me if I am wrong about this regarding Australia.

So what I am trying to say is that average pride in one's appearance is at all time low. The woman I tried to describe will typically own say 6 pairs of $5 pants. In the rest of the world, as far as I have observed and researched, most people would buy two pairs of slightly nicer $15 pants for the same budget. The problem scales up with people who can pay significantly more for their clothing but often chose quantity instead. It becomes difficult for the middle market retailer to survive in this environment.

anne

Veteran

Suz - I live in a major city (in Australian terms) so I don't think I lacK for B & M shops (which I prefer owing to shipping costs etc) but I think I lack imagination about what can work for me! And I'm over perfectionistic, especially about trying to combine wardrobe goals in one garment - e.g.I wanted my wardrobe to go in a lighter direction AND I wanted a floaty winter dress - not many available in that combination, especially since I was trying to avoid cheap options at the bottom of the market.

3style your explanation does make more sense. I think I was confused about your words "latest fashion from the best designers" in your earlier comment - I was thinking it described an interest in "designer" level clothes that I don't think is there in the Australian population at large. I can say that the move towards fast, cheap fashion is definitely apparent here too. I haven't been to the US for over 20 years -perhaps some Aussies/Kiwis who have might be better able to compare.

And -I've already decided to add to my shopping lists. I see now that I had forgotten to add fashion sneakers, which may well need replacing if my $15 kmart kids dept silver ones don't last.

I also think I need a hiking shirt with a collar and long sleeves that can be rolled up. The inadequacy of my wardrobe for outdoor pursuits is clear (and one reason I need more tees - I need some shoulder coverage) . I run in the morning and wear tanktops and singlets but if I'm spending a day outdoors I need the sun protection.

3style

Veteran

Anne, yes I think that we understand each other now. I didn't originally mean that everyone was interested in "luxury brand" but more that people were on average more interested in having a cohesive personal style, and having a slightly more elevated sense of appropriateness, even if norms are relaxed, like sleeveless tops for the office.

3style

Veteran

Also, if you have Columbia brand down under, I highly recommend them for hiking shirts. Truly indestructible.