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Category in which you make most mistakes

anchie

Veteran

I am curious if you have a category in which you consistently make mistakes. For me it used to be shoes. I would buy them hoping that they would become more comfortable with time, or that the heel is not too high, or that I need this color, and then would end up not wearing them at all. I am now much better with shoes, making sure that they go the distance. But currently I am making lot of mistakes with jeans. It seems that I just can’t get them right. I would get them little bit tight thinking that they would stretch but they don’t, or they would stretch too much. Or I would get the basic style and then feel frumpy in them, or would get trendy style and then feel like trying too hard.
How about you? Do you learn anything from your mistakes?

General

33 replies

Latest reply was from Teresa

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

For many years, if I couldn’t figure out how I’d wear a top, I was easily swayed by the “or toss it on with jeans” argument. It took a while for me to realize that because I rarely wear jeans, I wasn’t wearing those tops either!

I’m with you on the jeans train. I’ve always had a pair or two in my closet. Stalwart, basic jeans, that felt like nothing special. These days I have a couple; they are different kinds, abd I’m considering one more, with yet a different cut. I’m curious if I will start thinking of them differently and wear them more often than I did my basic basics.

Olive Green

Veteran

Bras. Have large band size as very short waisted and all ribs to the pelvis. Not that you hear of anyone finding a truly comfy bra, so there is that. Bralettes, wire, padded, unlined, etc are expensive to shop for, tiresome to try on, and never really work. At this point, don’t think its me, its the bras. Bras are a mistake. Cue feminist diatribe.

Dee

Veteran

I'd say I make the most mistakes with buying dresses. I have several dresses mostly casual summer, a few I even bought this year, thinking they'll be the perfect ones and yet I still haven't worn any of my dresses.
I love how they look on everyone else and they are easy to wear, just slip them on and go but I just never choose them. I'll pick a skirt over a dress every time.
They are flattering but for some reason as Anchie said, I feel like maybe I'm trying too hard when I wear them. They seem more precious or something.
I've been trying to find the perfect so called house dress in a cotton, that's button down, short sleeves and mid-length but if I ever find it, will I actually wear it, I'm not so sure.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Footwear

I do ALL the right things after YEARS of practice and experience with my high maintenance feet and walking lifestyle. I am as careful as I know how to be. But sometimes, you just can't be certain until you've walked in new shoes for a couple of hours outside going about your day. And then they don't work as well as you had hoped, and you can't return them

Also, shoes that I happily wore for a couple of years, can suddenly become uncomfortable. It is what it is because feet change and new sensitivities develop. At least I wore them for a few seasons though!

And in my defense, I make MUCH fewer mistakes than I used to!

Anchie, let us know if we can help you with jeans.

LJP

Veteran

Jeans .

Anonymous

I would say jeans as well. I keep trying to style them differently and sometimes that does the trick. Other techniques I use is shrinking them and/or hacking them with mixed results

ChristelJ

Veteran

T-shirts. It's odd, because it seems like it would be so easy, because I wear the all the time, and I have been wearing them all my life. They are mostly too long for me, or poor quality fabric. I used to just give up and wear them anyway. I have now finally limited myself to just petite or cropped styles in brands with better quality cotton.

However, even when I find a brand and style that has the right length, fabric quality and fit, I have been having trouble with colors. I order those that look like "my colors" online, only to find they are quite different once they arrive. I tried to make some lovely new t-shirts work recently, because they were great quality and fit. The colors were just not good on me, though, so I kept only the white and grey ones. The others had missed the return window and so had to be donated.

I guess I have learned not to try to make colors work that don't quite feel right from the beginning. Easier said than done, because I wasn't completely sure how they looked on me, and thought maybe it was just my mood, the wrong lighting, or the wrong styling.

nuancedream

Veteran

Footwear. I used to wear shoes that were eye-catching but frankly, painful to walk in for more than two city blocks and I walk a lot. Those shoes ended up being minimally worn and I managed to create a shoe museum. I jettisoned 20 pairs of uncomfortable shoes over the past 18 months. Now I'm happy with the shoes I have.

Irina

Veteran

Purses. I’m not impulsive when buying bags, I usually spend time considering color and function. And yet, I only know if it works for me after using it, sometimes a perfectly good bag sits in closet and in theory, it should be a workhorse.

Star

Veteran

Shoes. Even though I am way aware of how picky my feet are getting and am very careful in-store I still end up with shoes that hurt.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

It was always shoes, same as you Anchie. Because like you I like to have colours that will go with my outfits and I have learned the hard way. YLF has helped me so much to think about *everything* about each pair, not just heel height and colour but are they tight, are they slides which might slip off or “slap” on the ground, will the buckle rub, will the straps squash my toes, etc etc etc.
So far, since 2018, so good. Have passed by many shoes I loved the look of and am wearing those I have bought.

Sal

Veteran

I would say tee shirts too. Quality, fit, cut etc…. I haven’t quite given up but have reduced to a very very small number.

Bonnie

Veteran

What Olive Green said!!!

SarahD8

Veteran

Sleeveless tops. The measurements *seem* like they should be right, but then I put the thing on and the armscye is too tight or too loose, the neckline is too high or too low, the shoulder seam slides back or slides forward, the bust point is too high or (more commonly, as I'm short) too low. Just vastly harder to fit than sleeved tops. I know, I know, I've been whining about summer tops for years on this forum. And yet! I probably ordered half a dozen this year and the best I got was "meh, this will do for now I guess."

doggeh lover

Jeans...I mostly wear them, but tend to keep those that are 'somewhat ' too tight, as can usually button/zip on the 1st try but I feel the pressure. Then some quickly become too tight, where I feel as though they are like sausage casing With my Stage 3B Chronic Kidney Disease (and having only 1 deformed kidney, functioning around 30%) I tend to have a lot of swelling, puffiness I mentally don't want to allow for, as I am large anyway (size 16/18) but it's causing real damage in my pocketbook, and am unable to do hardly any in-store shopping due to my other debilitating pain issues

Echo

Veteran

Yes to shoes and jeans. I have tried to be better about shoes recently, but it can still be tough. I have a hard time giving up on heels that are higher than what I should buy. They're normally chunky heels with a slight platform and in the form of a boot, but even so, that can be problematic. So I normally wear one pair and tuck another in a tote, so I can change midday if necessary. Not ideal, but it allows less comfortable pairs SOME wear.

Jeans... I haven't ever really loved jeans, regardless of my size or the style of jean. They're just not comfortable for me. I've never been able to identify a specific fit concern, so I've never really known what to try to "solve" about the issue, so I mostly just stopped shopping for them and wearing them. I did buy a couple pairs after my weight loss, but even so, the issues I have with jeans have not gone away. I STILL don't like them! So those were definitely "hopeful" (but unsuccessful) buys that I hope not to continue making.

Runcarla

Veteran

In the past - bags and purses. I’d be drawn by all the fun colours and styles, only to become disenfranchised by bags that were too heavy or stiff, zippers that scratched my hands, straps that were too narrow or flimsy, etc. Frankly, most weren’t even right for my transitioning (work to retirement) lifestyle. Identifying what works in a bag for me, and what doesn’t - seems to have resolved that problem, and saved me $$ since bags can be spendy!

I just did my annual closet audit today, and when I look at items that have been edited earlier than I would have projected (or wanted ) it is denim based pants. Like you and others, I’ve run into the problem of disappointing denim that fits at first, but grows over the course of the day and becomes uncomfortable and ill fitting. It makes me very shy of straying from my basic traditional Levi jeans and venturing into trendy jean territory!

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

What Angie said exactly about shoes! They really need to be put through their paces before I know if they will work for more than a fun sitting option.

Sally

Veteran

What a lot of people have said about shoes rings true for me. I need really comfortable shoes or I wont wear them. I aim to find one shoe a season that fits really well and I generally wear them all the time.
I used to struggle with trousers that weren't jeans, but have had more lucky lately.

Joy

Veteran

Pants and especially jeans are the cause of most mistakes. I have gone down a couple of sizes because they get too loose in the waist and hips, but that still happens. I need to stick to elastic or stretchy waists. That really limits colors. Some of my pants, especially full length winter pants, are neutrals. Ugh.

Barbara Diane

Veteran

Items on sale that won’t be available again. I always overlooked something, whether it was that slight itch, or the close but not great color or silhouette, or the fancy sleeve I liked but it was on the t-shirt body, so it never was quite fancy enough for a fancy occasion. When I got caught up in the deal. Luckily only one recent purchase fit that category. And maybe one more that time will tell, as it is fall/winter weight for me.

This is completely different from most of my wardrobe, which I have bought on sale. That is, if you count as sale items that start at a price that is quite high for the item but is guaranteed to go on sale if you wait a few weeks.

Jessikams

(website)

Veteran

Here’s a frustrating mistake related to jeans: once I found the perfect pair and had them hemmed before I washed them. Of course they shrank after washing and looked too short. Gah.

Jessikams

(website)

Veteran

I also seem to end up with a lot of bags that are too small for my needs. I accumulate a lot of odds and ends during the day as I go about my urban walking life, and I need to be able to wedge everything into my bag!

Anonymous

Transitional shoes and jeans/non elastic waist pants are problematic to fit, but they don't compare to the mistakes I've made in spring shopping. As soon as it gets to about March, I'm tempted to lighten and brighten up. So I've bought things that are really not in my Dark Autumn palette. I'm definitely better than I used to be though!

anchie

Veteran

Footwear is leading as the category most prone to mistakes which was kind of expected.
But surprisingly number of you are making mistakes with jeans too, it seems that I am in good company.

This question was prompted by my latest jeans mistake - I recently bought a pair of very stiff jeans that I only wore couple of times and then I washed and dried them on high by mistake and now they are too uncomfortable to wear.
So I think I learned a lesson here - it seems that I don’t like too stiff jeans that don’t have any strech, especially if they are also very fitted. But I also don’t like jeans with too much strech that loose shape quickly. It is like Goldilocks - not too little and not too much, but haven’t found perfect yet.

gryffin

Veteran

Sizing - not one category. I've had a history of keeping things that were a little bit too big or not trying the smaller size because it's all mail order by now. Or the "not quite right" place holder category. Where I really want something but I can't find exactly what I want, I finally find the "I think it will work for now" and then I hate it and donate it. Close is never right and I have to learn not to compromise. Also I need to be mindful of not buying what I love on others but is not my style. I've been better about that but it's something I always need to be aware of.

Roberta

Veteran

What a thoughtful question. Pullover sweaters for me. I have at least two dozen and every winter I roll my eyes and weed four or five of them. Too snug, too floppy, too long, too cropped, too chunky, too thin. Or the neck is too high or too low. They snagged, pilled, or unraveled.

Last winter I bought hoodies instead, which are warm and cute and machine washable, but sometimes I need something a little smarter that is still warm. I bought a sweater at Anthropologie two years ago which has been a winner (the Maeve Carys), but one good buy every two years isn't a great success rate.

approprio

(website)

Veteran

Interesting question!

I agree with others that shoes are the hardest to get right. My strategy for ages had been to buy infrequently (no more than two pairs a year) and look for the highest quality I can afford. Even this is no guarantee, but my hit rate is much better than it used to be.

After that, bags. The problem there was failing to identify my needs correctly. I do much better when I think of them as luggage, and ask myself what problem am I trying to solve? Now I have a small collection of really good cross-body bags, a massive pile of lightweight totes, and various solutions for carrying computer equipment.

Lastly, and this is crucial, I think I make the most mistakes when I go looking for specifics and settle too soon on something that does not make my heart sing. And of course, there will always be things I love which don’t love me back (all those dusty neutrals) but I think I’m getting better at spotting them.

Zaeobi

(website)

Veteran

I sucked at shoe shopping back home, but my on-foot commuter lifestyle here has now forced me to forgo all 'sitting only' shoes. It also helps that I've finally found brands that consistently work for my wide forefeet.

Same with bags - I now refuse to buy one unless it can fit my phone & has at least ONE handsfree option.

To be honest, I never understood the appeal of jeans - or any 'hard' pants (beyond workwear). They usually require alterations for my waist-to-hip & rise-to-inseam ratios (the joys of being on the cusp of 'not-quite-petite' but with long(er) legs!) So I try to avoid buying 'hard' trousers - which of course means I continue to suck at buying them

TL;DR: 'Hard' pants in general are the biggest category in my alterations pile right now - mostly 'just' to trim waists & shorten hems, but I keep putting it off. Give me a stretchy waisted skirt instead, any day of the week!

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