As many of you know Autumn 2019 was a turning point for me in my style journey. My littlest one started school and after 6 years of working for myself as a personal stylist it was time to review my wardrobe with more gusto rather than methodically of recent years. I really did ask myself “do I REALLY like myself in this piece of clothing”. Then it either got sold, went to charity or I popped it back in my wardrobe. Autumn saw me invest money, time and knowledge of what I wanted my style to look like into my wardrobe.
But now we hit 2020, not quite Spring yet, but a transitional few weeks in the fashion / retail calendar when stores get refreshed, new pieces hit the shops and after Christmas I get excited about new styles, colours and fashions out there. It’s been a big part of my life since my career started and I can’t switch that passion for fashion off. So before I look ahead to the next season, I wanted to look back at what I had brought over the past few months and learn some lessons from the purchases I had made.
In this blog post I am going to look at my best buys of the past few months and in next week’s blog post I will share with you my lessons that I learnt that I will take forward into 2020. I want this exercise to set me up for the season ahead, make me aware of the positive buys vs the mistakes I made and to avoid those pitfalls again so that I am not wasting money or spending money on something that doesn’t fit my lifestyle.
Today I pulled out all the newer pieces in my wardrobe and thought about the things I love the most, the ones I wore the most and will enjoy wearing for years to come. I have brought more than any normal season for me (normally I limit myself to my 5 updates per season), but that was down to my circumstances, but I still made measured decisions based on what I wanted my style to be, and I wanted pieces to last me so that I wasn’t buying throwaway fashion.
I’m hoping that my list will inspire you to take a look at your wardrobe and reassess what you brought last season, looking at the good pieces and perhaps making note of some bad habits you might be in.
So here are my best buys from Autumn 2019 to inspire you to look at yours -
GRENSON NANNETTE BOOTS
These boots were by far the best investment I have made in a long time. From the moment I brought them they have barely been off my feet. I wear them with everything and any outfit I put together looks different with these beauties on. They are not for everyone and a year ago I thought they weren’t for me, too chunky, too much hype, BUT now I cannot stop gushing (or wearing!) them. Investing in a great pair of boots that you love is an easy way to update your Autumn style.
ZARA EMBELLISHED JUMPER
Zara always pulls some great knits out of the bag on the run up to Christmas that have something a little bit special on them. I dubbed this my Christmas jumper but I have worn it many times since Christmas and will continue to. With high street stores like Zara its worth investing a little bit more money into higher prices items because the quality is better, the embellishments are nicer and they will last you longer. I find that if I wait for something special to come along and spend more money on it then I love it more. This jumper has definitely been one of my biggest hits and I’ve only had it a few weeks.
KITRI STAR DRESS
I felt so fantastic when I wore this dress. I snapped it up as soon as it came out online as I knew it was exactly the kind of dress I would love and it didn’t disappoint. I have only worn it the once, so I need to start wearing it a bit more often but I perhaps will leave it for more occasions rather than everyday, purely because I love it so much, it’s a dress that I will keep forever.
TOPSHOP WHITE JUMPER
Topshop every year seem to get some pieces of knitwear just spot on and for me this was one of them. I love the cable styling, the length, its so soft to touch. Granted the colour might put people off but I have found that I’ve reached for it often as it’s one of the only lighter colour pieces of knitwear that I have in my wardrobe. It’s been great for layering over dresses, wearing with skirts and I can even tuck it in the front of my jeans - a fab all rounder.
WHISTLES PRINTED SKIRT
I was on a mission to add a new skirt into my wardrobe this season as I detoxed a couple out of my wardrobe that didn’t fit me anymore. I ended up getting this one from ASOS with a discount code and I have worn it countless times. It is so versatile with jumpers, t-shirts, blazers, boots, heels and trainers I am sure I will be continuing to wear it when I ditch the tights in the spring.
&OTHER STORIES SPOT DRESS
I had shopped this dress for a few clients on the run up to Christmas and knew how fabulous it looked on, so I ended up not being able to resist it for myself. It was a great Christmas day dress but one that’s easy to throw on in the daytime as wearing it with my Grenson boots or trainers really help dial the Christmas feel of it down. It’s so comfy so makes me want to wear it everyday.
ZARA BALLOON JEANS
As many of my clients know I live and swear by Levi skinny jeans and for years I have not shyed away from them whilst recommending them to all my clients too. But I wanted to make a concious decision to change up my denim this Autumn so I tried the Zara balloon jeans. Granted they sometimes make me look a bit bigger in size due to the volume, but they are so comfy and if I tuck in a jumper and wear a belt then my eye is drawn to my waist rather than my hips so I am happier with my body proportions. It’s been nice to step away from the skinny jeans but I know they will always be a wardrobe staple whereas these potentially won’t be right for me next Autumn.
HUSH BLAZER
I was so excited when I saw this blazer online at Hush, I pretty much live in blazers for my work appointments and wanted to add in a single breasted one that wasn’t as busy as my other double breasted check blazer that I have had for years. I waited for the right one to come along and when it did I couldn’t be happier. It is warm handle though so I won’t be able to wear in the Spring/Summer months as it will be too hot but hopefully I’ll get so much wear out of it before then that it won’t matter. A great investment piece.
WHISTLES ZEBRA JUMPER
This jumper is a really nice lightweight knit that I can tuck into skirts and jeans, and with my obsession with green I loved the colour of it. This has certainly been a go to for me this season and a buy that I can always rely on when I’m stuck for inspiration on what to wear that day.
TOPSHOP OVERSIZED KNITTED JUMPER
I have lived in this massive oversized roll neck jumper from Topshop. I have to say it is starting to bobble quite a bit now so I’m not sure how long it will last but I have loved wearing it over dresses, skirt, with my leather leggings and jeans, it’s just been an easy throw-on jumper but yet I feel stylish wearing it. I certainly got my money’s worth as I brought it with a discount code and couldn’t of spent more than £30 on it. A great buy but quality wise it probably won’t last too much longer.
So those were my 10 best buys of Autumn Winter 2019. It just happened to be 10 and whilst I have lots of other things I love in my wardrobe these items certainly stand out as my favourites, the ones I wore the most, I felt the most stylish in and were also pieces that I felt gave me a renewed sense of style.
I would love to hear what your favourite buys were last year, so please do share them with me.