Because trends only last so long.
I could never describe my fashion style. I embrace a lot of different influences, from trendy pieces (at the moment it’s leopard print and flowy midi skirts) to more… unusual inspirations (Edwardian fashion is my favourite, and I do have a couple tops with high lace necks – but of course I do not dress according to my tastes in historical fashion.) I simply love a bit of everything! Except for UGG boots. Sorry.
My wardrobe is full of items that could be classified in different styles, some girly things, some cute prints, come trendy pieces, but overall over the last year or so I’ve found myself going more towards basic pieces and styles. I still love my one-off pieces, but those I wear the most when I put outfits together are the basics: jeans, stripes, monochrome shirts and tshirts. In the autumn I loved wearing my trench and my navy blue military jacket, and now that it is winter I swear by my camel Marks & Spencer coat. If you’re thinking about refreshing your wardrobe and going back to basics, here are the reasons why I think you can never go wrong!
BASICS ARE TIMELESS PIECES
Starting with the obvious here: basics will stay with you longer than trendy items that you may fall out of love with. Basic pieces such as blue jeans, white or black shirts, trench coats, little black boots, are always in fashion. You can always find them in the shops should you need to replace those that you have, and you will always see other people wear them too – which will also keep renewing your love for them.
With trends, you can of course fall head over heels and keep wearing that trend for years and years, but it is likely that once you don’t see them as much, and they are replaced with other, new trends both in the streets and in the shops, and then they will slowly be replaced in your mind too. Remember corset belts from a couple years ago? They must all be hiding under their owners’ beds now, in big boxes. (I never liked that trend anyway – though I love a good 18th century corset. Beautiful.)
YOU CAN PUT OUTFITS TOGETHER MORE EASILY
Neutral items of clothing just go with everything. Although to be fair, I feel like leopard print also goes with a lot of things – but you get my meaning here.
Let’s take my stripey dress from the photo above: it’s a basic from H&M and can literally be worn with anything, in any season. I typically wear it in the autumn with tights, black or brown boots (ankle boots or even higher boots) and a jacket. But it can also be worn in the summer with little white trainers. You can also wear a grey jumper on top of it. You can turn it into a top by wearing a skirt (midi, pencil, you name it) on top. It’s so easy!
Basics go together very well, and it’s easy to mix and match them so that you don’t get bored. If you pick versatile pieces, you will be able to wear them no matter the season too. It makes you think smarter when you buy, but also you build up a more curated, homogeneous style. And that’s always good if you don’t like taking hours to put together an outfit for the day.
BASICS ARE CHEAPER
I feel like this is something we don’t think about enough: basics are a lot cheaper than trendy seasonal collections! Most shops now have a basics section where you can stock up on everything for reasonable prices: H&M, Zara, Primark, and many more. Even if you’re looking for quality, basics will always be less expensive than the other collections shops bring out every season. You can find good quality jumpers in Zara or H&M for example, if you look at their basics section. Same for jeans – good ol’ blue jeans will always be cheaper than ripped and stringy trendy jeans, even in the exact same shop. Basics are more classic, and they will cost you less.
ABOUT ACCESSORIES: INVESTING IS SAVING
It is exactly the same about shoes, and bags, and to a certain extent jewellery: some come in and out of style, some are always there. Black and brown boots will always be available to buy in the shops, they will always be ‘trendy’ – and they will go with every single outfit you wear. For accessories I would suggest investing, maybe putting a bit more money, because this is how you save in the long run. I’ve had my camel M&S coat for three years now, and it is good quality as well as timeless. Instead I could have bought a trendy coat of lesser quality (like a bright pink bomber, let’s say) that I would have worn fewer times – because it really doesn’t go with everything, and I’d really only wear a coat three months of the year. The rest of the time, said coat would be in my wardrobe feeling sorry for itself.
Invest in good bags, good shoes – quality materials and neutral colours are my go-to for both – and you will: a. feel like it is a treat to wear such a nice item, and b. keep it for years and years. If you keep to basics, you won’t even need to put yourself on a shopping ban every January. And you’ll always look great. Double win!
What are your wardobe basics?
Lots of love,
Julia x
