Investment vs Bargain Fashion

For so long I have bowed down to the shrine of hard and fast fashion, that is, cheap and in bulk. There's no greater feeling than looking at your bags after a days shopping and rejoicing in the fact that you got 20+ items for practically nothing.

I like adding good quality designer pieces with my high street heavy wardrobe.

Now I'm not saying that I don't do that anymore. You'll see plenty of Primark, H&M and charity shop finds on this blog, and 90% of my wardrobe is made up if affordable high street pieces. But as I've got older and have a bit of a disposable income (not a lot though!), I've started looking to have items that will last over multiple seasons, and more importantly over a number of years. 

Let's do a bit of fashion maths:

1 high street polyester bag = £50+ and lasts (in my experience, a maximum of 18 months of weekly usage).

1 designer handbag = £300+ and potentially lasts a lifetime (most designer stores will always fix or replace a genuine item no matter how long you've had it).

Certain things that I use on a daily/weekly basis need to last and I'm fed up with replacing things so frequently. Frequent items for me include a black handbag, black boots, brown boots, winter coat, summer coat, sunglasses and black flat shoes. Over time I'm planning to get these pieces as investment items, but will not be replacing everything I own with stupidly expensive versions as I don't need to and more importantly can't afford to!

I wrote recently about how to get these items in sample sales, and I stick by this being the best way of finding designer pieces without breaking the bank. I found a pair of Miu Miu real leather biker boots (see first pic above) at one for £70 which is about 90% off RRP, and are hands down the warmest, comfiest boots I've ever worn.

I've also recently bought a couple of full price items (I can't stress enough that I've been saving for these for well over a year to be able to afford them!). My Miu Miu sunglasses and Mulberry Del Rey bag may make my Mum's eyes water, but I know that they will last AND go with whatever high street pieces I wear with them.

What's your opinion on designer vs high street fashion?

How to Survive a Sample Sale

Moving to London was a revelation for me in shopping terms. I'm not talking about the little boutiques and independents that are hidden down unassuming alleyways, or even the big well known markets and shopping streets as all of these can be seen on any visit to the city. Any savvy London shopper will tell you that the best bargains can be had at a sample sale, that rare event where a brand needs to get rid of all of their excess stock that may be used, damaged or left over from the sale. 

Usually held in a town hall or boring looking office blocks, I've been to some brilliant (and awful) ones for brands including Urban Outfitters and Accessorize, as well as designer brands, and you really can get some unbelievable bargains. 

Some recent sample sale bargains include Pierre Hardy, Swedish Hasbeens, and Miu Miu boots!

Here are my top tips for surviving a sample sale:

Have an idea of what you're looking for
By the time you get in it's likely clothes will be on the floor, sizes won't be in their allocated areas, and there will be more left shoes than right. Go with an idea of what you want rather than aimlessly rummaging through everything with the vague hope of finding something or anything.

Don't buy for the sake of it
I found an amazing Alexander McQueen leather dress recently and picked it up quickly before anyone else nabbed it. Then as I walked around I started realising that I had only picked it up because it seemed like a good purchase. It's never a good purchase if you're not going to wear it!

Take a bag
This isn't a civilised shopping experience most of the time, and there aren't baskets or sales assistants. I've ended up with armfuls of stuff that I've been hardly able to carry and seething with jealousy at the clever woman who brought her Tesco bag for life. 

Plan your arrival time
If you get there first, you're in with a greater chance of getting the best quality bargains, and things that are more likely to be on trend now. However, if you get there late you can benefit from final reductions and offers as retailers don't want to take anything back with them.

Don't expect brand new
These items are likely to have been used in photoshoots or window displays, or have been returned as faulty. It is highly unlikely that you'll find a brand new, never worn item, so go with the expectation of having to sew up a hole or put up with a small biro mark. It's a small sacrifice to pay to the bargain gods!

Do a second circuit
I took my boyfriend to a sample sale recently (his first) and he quickly said that he couldn't find anything. After convincing him to do a second circuit while I still rummaged, he ended up getting 3 pairs of shoes for about 1/5th of their retail price. People put things down or you could purely have missed something the first time around, so go back just in case.

To find the best sample sales I recommend signing up to your favourite retailers' newsletters and Twitter feeds as they are often announced online. I also use http://samplesal.es/, which is specifically for London sales.