This week’s post is a short one, as I’m away on holiday. I plan to take the next couple of weeks off, but probably can’t stay completely of Substack.
Allison Bornstein talks about your Love to Buy, Hate to Wear-pieces - the clothing or accessories you keep buying, but you never end up wearing.
Today I want to talk about my Love to Wear, Hate to Buy pieces. Items I love wearing, but that I for some reason or another detest to buy.
No.1: Jeans!
Jeans are such a staple, and I love them for their versatility. I work in a pretty casual environment, so I can easily wear them to work, but they are just as appropriate for a super casual family day with my nephews and niece, where you want something that will hold up to jumping on a trampoline or sitting on the floor.
BUT I hate, hate, hate having to buy them. So much in fact that I only have one cropped beige pair at the moment, which isn’t the most versatile. Finding the right fit seems to be a nightmare with them being either too tight in the waist or around the hips. Not to talk about sizing that isn’t consistent even across the same brand. I have too many times bought a pair with the expectation that they would stretch a bit, and then they haven’t. And other times you buy a pair that fits right now and then they end up stretching a lot! It doesn’t help when the 20-something sales assistant is saying that they need to be so tight that my organs are getting bruised. “Don’t worry they’ll stretch.” No, they won’t because I’ll end up never wearing them. Funnily enough, I want to feel comfortable and be able to breathe, thank you! I really would love to have a new pair, but I dread having to go to the process of getting them. I’m trying to gather the courage energy to go into a store and do a huge try-on…
No.2: Jackets and shirts
I love wearing a classic trenchcoat and a button up shirt. They make me feel polished and very much like myself. A button up is basically my security blanket. Depending on the material it can work for any scenario from the beach to the office.
This might be very specific to me, but finding jackets and shirts that fits across my broad shoulders, but don’t create a massive tent around my waist can be really hard. I prefer to feel unrestricted in my clothes and go about my daily activities without feeling like I can’t move freely. In a lot of brands a US12 or 14 is the largest size and they might very well not fit over the shoulders. I haven’t totally given up yet, but it’s caused a lot of frustrations. It is a bit easier with oversized fits, but it can still be challenging.
No.3: Shoes
Unless you prefer going barefoot, I guess most of us have to wear some form of footwear. The shoe choice set the vibe of an outfit and can change it from feeling quite casual to more dressed up. So not having the right shoe can make getting dressed challenging.
I’m blessed with wide feet (with the right being slightly wider than the left to make it even better…) and I truly haven’t figured out why a lot of shoe producers think that if you have wide feet, you want to wear ugly shoes! It has gotten easier to find some options over the last couple of years, and I tend to stick to brands where I know some of their collections work like Gabor, Ecco, GreenComfort and to a degree Clarks. But it’s still a limited choice and if they don’t have what I’m looking for? Then I’m really struggling!
No.4: Practical items
Okay, hate to buy might be a bit strongly worded, but I tend to find practical items like gum boots, rain pants etc. boring to buy. There are so many functional criterias that need to be fulfilled that it can be hard to combine all those with a bit of flair, something that makes you exited about the purchase. I do my best to find practical items in a interesting colour or cut, but it isn’t always possible. Mostly these purchases tend to be replacing an existing item in my wardrobe that either got too small or too worn out, so it’s not like they add something new. This is also the category where I’m most likely to settle for something I don’t truly love as long as it fulfills all the functional criterias. Because I don’t particularly enjoy shopping for these, I sometimes end up putting it off for months, when I probably just should get it done…
What are your ‘Love to Wear, Hate to Buy’s and why?
Love how you flipped this on its head! My hate to buy but love to wear are white tank tops, t-shirts, and any sort of "practical" item like sneakers!
Haha I have the same with jeans and summer shoes/sandals. I have two jeans in total, but they can use an upgrade. I tend to wear more trousers in general and they are easier to shop for.