Do you buy everything that looks good on you?

Transcona Shannon

Nope, not by a long shot. Just because something technically looks good doesn't mean it suits my style, my needs, my lifestyle, etc. And sometimes even though something looks good, I just don't like it.

12 years ago

Joan Joplin

Active Member

Absolutely not, at least for me. Often the easiest things to fit and flatter on my body are basic, classic pieces (not button-downs, but basic knits and so on.) that's not at all my style, so I bypass things that I know will flatter in favor of more bohemian pieces, and take my time finding flattering looks. I wouldn't have a defined style if I kept everything that flattered. Also, if its a question of what my friends say looks good on me, I'll take it with a grain of salt, since they often are less picky, have different priorities in clothing fit, or a very different style.

12 years ago

Diana

Veteran

Oh, goodness, no. It might be uncomfortable, or not my style, or impractical for my lifestyle. I might feel too self-conscious in it. Maybe it's just a color I hate. Or maybe I have poison eye for the style. Or it might not go with anything else in my closet. Many reasons.

Oh, and it definitely depends on whose opinion I am asking. My husband might have ulterior motives for liking something. A non-fashion friend might not be particularly critical, or might not want to offend me. My mom has totally different taste than I do. I have to say I trust you guys more than most when it comes to telling me whether or not something looks good.

I probably wouldn't bother to show it to you guys in most of those cases though. I do occasionally ask about things that I am confused about how to style or whether it works with my wardrobe. (Case in point: the VC midi skirt, current source of much pearshape angst.)

12 years ago

Nicole D

Veteran

I keep about 80% of what looks good on me. Would have to be a real duplicate item or not practical at all for me to leave it in the store. Probably a bit of a problem for me!

12 years ago

Echo

Veteran

No, of course not. There are a lot of things I try on for fun, knowing that the item probably wouldn't fit my lifestyle.

On here, it appears that people give reasons beyond the simple fact that they don't think something looks good. Often the statement, "That looks great! You should keep it!" implies that the item fits with what the board knows about someone's personal style, lifestyle or coveted wish list. There have been plenty of times I have seen the board say things like they think whatever item fits well and looks good, but it doesn't fit that person's style or it isn't quite up to snuff in terms of what they have been searching for. So I think there is a lot that is implied but goes unsaid when someone declares that someone should keep an item.

12 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

No. I don't keep it just because it looks good. It has to satisfy a whole lot of other requirements, too. Does it fill a need, is it practical for my climate and lifestyle, do I feel happy in it, does it work with the other stuff in my wardrobe, does it express what I want to express, is it comfortable? Looking good is only the first criterion.

But I confess there was a time when I wasn't sure how to evaluate things other than by whether they fit and looked good, and that is partly why I ended up with a discordant closet.

12 years ago

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

HAHAHHAAHAHHA, no, because then I'd go broke in Anthropologie.

12 years ago

rae

(website)

Veteran

Hm. No, not really. But then I try not to try on things that I don't like or need enough to want to buy in the first place. The exception is stuff for work, since they require us to know about fit, and I don't buy very much from there in general just because I have a lot of work clothe already.

12 years ago

Marley

Veteran

No. I consider the same things that Suz mentioned (above.) I've even got a bunch of Angie's guidelines on my phone, so I can pull them up and review if I'm unsure about something!

12 years ago

Susie

Veteran

When we see something on here, I would assume that in most cases the poster has already assessed the item in terms of liking the style/color, knowing it fills a need or works with other pieces, their lifestyle, weather, etc.

So fit and figure flattery might be the only question remaining for them.

12 years ago

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Ditto Suz and Susie. Years ago I did buy whatever was cheap and looked 'cute' on. Not anymore. As Suz mentioned, it doesn't lead to closet unity and cohesion.

12 years ago

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

I would have the closet the size of Toronto airport (and a very empty bank account) if I bought everything which looks good on me
(see my NAS report for the evidence)
In addition to things mentioned by Suz I also check for an additional outfit potential. Because I want to keep my closet under a tight rein I do not want to have item close enough in function and look so they can be interchangeable for a similar look. For example I would not get 2 black blazers unless they are very different in style - otherwise they will not provide enough versatility in my closet.

12 years ago

cciele

Veteran

Definitely not -- it needs to fill a hole. I actually think I look the best in structured clothing like suits and also certain dresses, but they have absolutely no place in my lifestyle and thus no place in my closet.

12 years ago

DonnaF

Veteran

I don't have that kind of budget! Pre-YLF, I used to buy lots of stuff that I thought looked good on me, was a good price, and was a color I could wear. Now, I also consider how it fits into my style. I must say, several months ago on a lark I tried on a Michael Kors striped T that I saw on a sales rack. It wasn't on my list, but it looked so good, no excellent, on me that I bought it.

I've returned a Bailey 44 bandage dress and Vince Camuto bandage top that I thought were pretty flattering but way too body con for my comfort level. I've never done body con, even when I was young, so I'm not about to start; just gotta make sure I'm not in loosey goosey frumpdom.

12 years ago

deb

Veteran

Only if it feels like 'me'.

12 years ago

Firecracker (Sharan)

Veteran

Not by a long shot. I actually find a lot of things in stores that look good on me, but I don't always want them in my closet. Which creates a problem sometimes when I shop. I like to try on different styles and see how they look on me. I kinda know when I drag some things into the dressing room that I'm just playing, seeing what I might consider wearing and what I wouldn't. I don't always try on every item with the express purpose of finding something to take home with me, in other words. So when the sales associate says something is absolutely fantastic on me and I don't buy it, I feel bad. I tell them it was a different style for me and not something I'm ready to adopt yet, or whatever the case is, but their reactions sometimes make me feel like I've been a bad customer.

12 years ago

Caro in Oz

Veteran

Ditto Suz & Susie too.

There are whole categories of clothes that I don't buy too like pencil skirts & heels - I have one skirt that is the bottom of a suit & three pairs of heels for formal occasions unless they wear out (unlikely) or become dated I won't be buying any more even though they look good.

12 years ago

Deborah

Veteran

Nope! The reasons I would leave it behind would be:

It doesn't fit my style persona
I don't actually need it, may already have something that fits that hole
I recognise it looks nice but it's not practical, ie. I probably wont wear it

Lots of things look nice, but I am looking for more than that.

12 years ago

ManidipaM

Veteran

Not any more. Well, actually, even when I didn't demand more of my clothes, my budget put a bar on it.

12 years ago

Lyn D.

Veteran

First answer is YES- as I get older there are less things that 'look good'
Really though, I am now far more aware of what will end up unworn if I buy.
I am now less likely to even try on an item that might look O.K. but won't work. Then there are items that are off-budget too.

12 years ago

Agnes

Active Member

I often find clothes that look good on me are too conservative for me. And I am finally learning not to buy them because I just won't wear them. But if its too wild/nutty then I have trouble finding times I can wear them. So I am searching for that middle ground and have found buying fairly neutral items of clothing but more interesting accessories and jewellery is doing quite well.

12 years ago

anne

Veteran

I'm with Lyn D. Rather inclined to say Yes! I'm very fussy and find so little I like that if I do I tend to buy it. But l am very disciplined, and like others don't even try things on if they haven't already passed the hurdles of price and suitability in my wardrobe. But if I took a bunch to the change room and two looked good and I had only planned to buy one I'd go with the best.
I too assume that people have made a sensible assessment before they post here for k/r advice

12 years ago

Hil

(website)

Veteran

There is loads to consider other that whether it just looks good on me. Do I need it, does it fit into my evolving style and current lifestyle, is it filling a hole in my wardrobe or am I duplicating something that already works? Is it in a fabric that I like? Is it in my budget?

12 years ago

Anonymous

Another no from me. A piece of clothing has to fulfil lots of criteria as Suz, Deb, Sveta, etc. have mentioned. I have to feel happy and like me in it.

12 years ago

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Oh heck no. There are plenty of things that look "good" on me that don't necessarily warrant a place in my wardrobe. Like Firecracker, if I heeded every sales associate, my wardrobe would overflow my house.

I've even returned items to the store that got rave reviews here (so obviously they looked good), because a piece was uncomfortable, fussy, did not fit my life well, or I realized I just was not going to find it useful.

12 years ago

Traci

Veteran

I think I'm with Rae on this one. I'm not a lover of trying on clothes, so I really only try things on that strongly appeal to me, and I have a use for in the first place. I post even less, so if I've tried it on, and then gone to the posting phase it usually means that I like the style, and I need it, but I'm a little unsure of how it looks or fits on me. So by that point, yes, if I'm told it looks good, I'd buy it. I also don't tend to try on things outside my budget, so that's not a consideration once I'm in the item either.

12 years ago

RoseandJoan

Veteran

If this was my only purchasing criteria my credit card would have turned into a molten puddle of bubbling plastic. I need for an item to please me, for there to be an occasion to wear the piece, for it to fit my budget and for it to flatter my body or my ego depending on my mood.

12 years ago

BlondeAmbition

Active Member

Yup! Hands down whatever looks good on me I buy. Provided I can afford it, price would be the only factor that holds me back.

But If I picked it out at the store then I did so because it suits my style, budget, and needs. Considering that only about 5% of what I try on actually fits me and looks good on me then yes, you bet I'm going to buy it.

12 years ago

Anonymous

Yes, as someone earlier said less and less looks good on me, so first a good fit, than colour then I think really hard if it works for my life/style/budget

12 years ago

Category