What I didn't buy this month, and why
A short one
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If you’ve stopped by before, you’ll know that I post like clockwork, on a Sunday morning (UK time), and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. This week was the first time I dithered about not posting, due to a whole host of life reasons, including my husband having more hip surgery (following a hip fracture last year) and the poor hamster popping her clogs! But I couldn’t bring myself not to, so instead this post will be slightly shorter than usual.
Right let’s get to it. I’ve un-bought (i.e. bought, pondered and returned) some items this month, moved some into the ‘must put on Vinted’ pile and moved more off my wish list. A seasonal clear out, if you like. Here’s a whistle stop summary - more next week, I promise!
What I didn’t buy this month
The biggest wardrobe decision of the month was… drum roll please… to return the Jil Sander sling backs! These have been on my wish list since spotting them on
. Then I only went and found them for 70% off on Malfords of London - it felt like it was meant to be! So it’s been a very tough decision to return these, but ultimately, these shoes fitted with a life that I don’t have, rather than the one I do. They are very beautiful and very comfortable, but just a bit too directional for my day to day life. I took sage advice (see below) to ‘prove it’ by creating several outfits with other items in my wardrobe.Tip Two: Prove it
This second step is going to look different for everyone but since I use the Whering app, I upload an image of the item I’m considering and I make myself create several outfits with the other items that already exist in my closet. If the outfit that I want to make with this skirt also requires new shoes and a new shirt, it’s not a worthy purchase.
Here’s my various looks I created from my own wardrobe. I kept my top half very simple with a preloved grey cashmere jumper originally from Uniqlo (similar here) and switched up my bottom half with neutral trousers from Zara, my COH Ayla, my COH Marcelle, an old floral skirt from H&M (similar here) and a preloved leather midi skirt originally from Selected Femme (similar here). I actually really like all of these combinations but I still felt that they weren’t quite right for me. Such a great exercise!
What I moved off my wish list
The red footwear craze, fueled by another stellar Jil Sander creation (see below on
), caught me for a few hot minutes and I added these beauties from Massimo Dutti to my wish list. I dipped my toe (excuse the pun) by purchasing a similar but preloved pair from Arket, which proved to me that red is not my colour, anywhere on my body! And so, the Arket pair were sold onto a happier life, and the Massimo Dutti ones were happily removed from my wish list. Is it weird that removing things from my wish list gives me just as much of a buzz as adding to it?! It feels as though I’m learning more about myself, my style and my wardrobe in each decision.
What I have bought
The soldout.nyc white tee has been on my wish list for a few months now, after spotting it and also their incredible looking vests on
. I just can’t bring myself to pay customs and shipping from the US for it! But behold the Leset Margo, which I featured last week, bought and love. What attracted me to this white tee in particular is it’s slightly boxy shape (shorter than normal but not cropped), it’s thick retro style neckline, and it’s slightly sheer textured finish. It’s a classic.
If you remember from last week, I had just bought the Faithfull the Brand Antipas linen top and was patiently waiting for it to arrive. Well it has arrived and it is fabulous! It’s got the best of a waistcoat, that structured silhouette, slightly synched in at the waist, but without the (fussy) buttons. I love the look of a waistcoat on others but know it’s not quite my style but this ‘tunic top’ is a great alternative for me. I’ve been feeling inspired by all of these similar looks (see below) and plan to style in all sorts of ways.
Spying pistachio green on the runways this Spring, and seeing
styling her Maison Margiela sling backs reminded me that the Anine Bing Lyla sling backs have been in my mental wish list bank for the last few years. So, as an antidote to this and to missing out on the Jil Sander sling backs, I made a preloved purchase of these ‘non-colour’ Zara leather slingbacks. Irene describes this muted green as a ‘non-colour’ and in this post she describes how to play around with styling these non-colours with black, bold colours and neutrals, using the Tibi colour wheel - I will definitely be reading more on this, so fascinating!
I’ll be back next week with more tips, thoughts, inspiration and wish list pieces - if any pieces even get that far! I’m getting very selective 🙌🏻 Hope you’ve a lovely week and to see you here next weekend, Jenny x
Jenny, I feel such kinship because I also get a buzz taking things off my wishlist 😂 it feels good to realize that “no, in fact, this item is not a good use of my money!”
I loved your post and I’m glad you found the “prove it” exercise as helpful as I do. I think you, ultimately, made a great decision with those shoes. I think shoes, more than anything else, are hardest for me to square my desired lifestyle with my actual one.
I loved all your ‘prove it’ outfits but like Irene said only you know what will work for YOU! You always provide such great looks! ❤️