6 Fashion Purchases I No Longer Make (They Were Wasting My Money)

I've become a much pickier shopper now that I'm in my 30s, not necessarily because I have more discipline, those impulse purchases do sometimes creep through, but because I've learned to stop buying clothes and jewelry and accessories that create more work than value. And it's not just about buying fewer things, it's also about buying the right things, the pieces that make putting together outfits so much easier. So starting with something that I know a lot of us might be guilty of, and that is buying an entirely new holiday wardrobe. I know, I think we've all been there, the temptation is so real before every holiday. We think of all the pictures that we want to take, and we think of all the other people that we've seen at this destination, and they're perfectly curated videos and pictures. And suddenly you convince yourself that you need that dress, you need those linen co-ords, and a new pair of sandals, and a new handbag, maybe some new sunglasses too, because that's the person you want to be on holiday. But you don't need a whole new wardrobe to have the perfect experience. I used to buy loads of new pieces before a trip without ever really thinking about what's going to happen when I come home. What are these items going to do for me? And then once I got home, those items just didn't fit into my everyday wardrobe. And I think what I realised is that I wasn't shopping for clothes, I was shopping for the feeling that I hoped the holiday would give me. It was never about the clothes, it was me trying to match up to these expectations that I have seen on social media that are really just false and untrue. So now when I go on a trip, I obviously start by looking at what I already have. And I think about the outfits that I genuinely enjoy wearing, and how I can adapt them for the trip. And if I do want something new, because, you know, I'm still a human being that likes to shop, obviously I have a fashion YouTube channel, I try and limit my purchases to one or two things that work with what I have, and help make my existing wardrobe feel fresh. And I try to ask myself, can I style this in a way that I can wear it in London? So again, I'm not against buying one or two new pieces for a holiday, but I just am trying to be more discerning. And I try to not let that expectation of how I think I should look on holiday get the better of me. Another thing that I've stopped buying is jewellery that doesn't last. I used to treat my jewellery as if it were disposable. I would buy something inexpensive for a particular outfit, I'd wear it a couple times, but then it would start tarnishing and I would have to throw it out. And now I approach jewellery in a very similar way I approach the rest of my wardrobe. I would rather own a smaller collection of really well-made pieces that I can wear and restyle over and over again. And my go-to brand for unique, high-quality jewellery is Ideal, and I'm so excited that they are sponsoring today's video. I've been a huge fan of them since the beginning, and I've worn their pieces nearly daily for the past five years. Ideal is a luxury jewellery company that uses hand-selected lab-grown diamonds, and I think they create some of the most distinct designs in luxury jewellery. I have three new pieces to show you today, which I am particularly excited about. They originally appeared in past limited edition drops, and I never got my hands on them previously because they would sell out so fast, but now they're part of Ideal's permanent collection. So the first one is the Anais. It is one of Ideal's signature designs. It has a diamond drop that just sits really beautifully below the earlobe. If you're new to Ideal's concept, they are a modular design, which means you start with a base stud, and you can use that stud with any of their add-ons to create your own combinations. So here I've paired with the Liv Ear Climber from my existing collection, and I love how playful this feels while still looking very elegant. The next new addition is the Elsa, and this is a complete showstopper. It features a marquee and a pear-shaped diamond, and it creates a three-diamond cluster when worn with the base stud. It makes such an impact when worn on its own. But the other day I paired it with the Kaya, which is the one I'm wearing now, and I must say the Kaya is another one of my all-time favourite pieces since I got it maybe two years ago now. And it has three pear-shaped diamonds that frame the earlobe, and I was honestly speechless when I put these two together. Just when I think my ear stacks can't get any better, I discover a pairing like this, and I think it might be one of my favourites. The final piece is the Camille, which features three oval diamonds that again sit beneath the earlobe. So you see what I mean when I say that this is kind of like Ideal's signature, they just do this so well. And they move and they glint and they catch the light in the most beautiful way. And again from my own collection, I've paired it here with the Venetia, which is a delicate pear-shaped diamond against the stud. And this combination is perfect if you want something a little bit more subtle but still extremely special. And I think that's what makes Ideal pieces so great. You can make them as dramatic or understated as you like, depending on what you're wearing, on where you're going, on how you're feeling. And the modular designs allow you to create different looks using the same core pieces. And that versatility is exactly what I look for in my jewellery. I want pieces that work with the clothes I already own. I can wear them to weddings, I can wear them to the office, just everywhere. And I can restyle them without constantly feeling like I want something new. So instead of buying lots of short-lived jewellery for individual outfits, I now look for quality, versatility, and pieces that I can imagine wearing for years and years. And if you're interested in any of these pieces, everything will be linked below in the description box, and you can use my code ADELINE10 for 10% off. So thank you, Ideal, for being the epitome of exactly what I'm looking for. The next thing I've stopped purchasing is anything on sale that I wasn't already planning on buying anyway. I love a good sale. Some of my favourite pieces in my wardrobe have been bought at a discount. But there's a huge difference between buying something you wanted when it goes on sale, and buying something because it's gone on sale. Back in the day, I used to troll through the sale pages, like, pages and pages. I would maybe filter for, like, my size, but that was it. That was the only filter I applied. And that is the worst way to shop ever. I would justify a purchase by saying, well, it was 50% off, as though the discount automatically made it a good decision. I've learned that sales don't create a need, it creates a sense of urgency. And to be honest, this still kind of happens to me. The old habits creep in. I was on the Everlane website recently, and I saw that one of the sweatpants that I have been eyeing up for, like, a year, or maybe over a year, actually, went on sale. It was a really good sale, too. It was, like, 115 down to 40 or something. And so I added them to my cart, obviously. And then I thought, hmm, why don't I just have a look at what else is on sale? And the next thing you know, I had added in a skirt, a top, a dress, because it seemed like good purchases. And I thought, well, I'm already placing an order, so I might as well just add these things to my cart, too. Thankfully, I waited a beat. And when I came back to my cart, I was like, why am I buying all these things that I don't really want? I only really want the sweatpants. And so, past me, 100% would have purchased without thinking twice. But now that, you know, I'm a little bit more mature, I deleted all the other stuff that I just kind of added because it was on sale. Ended up just buying the sweatpants. Great sweatpants, by the way. I actually ended up getting them in two colours. And that's all I needed. None of the extras were, you know, adding anything that I didn't already have in my wardrobe because I hadn't thought about these purchases. I was just adding them because it was a good discount. So now I'm happy to wait with my purchases and sit and think about it a little bit more. And my rule is the price for something shouldn't be the number one reason for wanting it. One thing that I really do try to avoid are coats and knitwear that is made out of predominantly polyester or acrylic or things like that. Now, this isn't a blanket rule that all synthetics are bad. There are situations that can make sense. For example, I like a little bit of elastane in my cotton t-shirts so that they don't wrinkle as much when you take them out the wash and they kind of, you know, can hold their shape. But when I'm buying a coat or knitwear, things that are supposed to keep you warm and regulated, I do prefer fabrics such as cashmere or wool or alpaca or mohair. I just find these much more comfortable to wear. And not only this, but I find that they can age better and last longer. In my experience, well-made wool knitwear can be repaired and refreshed and it can last for years and years. And the same is true for a beautifully constructed coat. There is an argument that when it comes to really good quality knitwear or outerwear, you get what you pay for. And I do think that is true to some extent. However, buying pre-loved is one of my favourite ways to get better quality items at a lower cost. One of my favourite knitwear brands is Andorter, but it goes without saying they are very, very expensive. However, every piece I have from them, I either bought pre-loved or during their sales. And the same goes for coats. I recently bought this absolutely incredible tiger print coat from a vintage furniture and flea market in London. This was like the height of the heat waves we were having in London and I bought a coat. It was like, didn't make any sense, but I saw this coat and I had to buy it. It's made from beaver lamb, which despite the name, it's not beaver. It is a type of lamb's wool that has this very dense and velvety texture. And this is a very, very heavy, thick, warm coat. So it's from the 1950s and here it is 70 years later, still looking absolutely fabulous. And I bought it for £80. A brand new coat from the high street could easily cost you double or triple the price while still being a synthetic blend or constructed to a lower standard. And finding this coat just made me think about how long genuinely well-made clothing can survive. Of course, this doesn't mean that every wool coat is wonderful or every vintage item is superior. The construction, the lining, the finish and the condition all still matter. But if I'm choosing between two well-made coats, I will without a doubt go for the one that is made of natural fibres. The next thing I've stopped buying are items that need other items that you don't have in order to work. So let me give you my example of this. Last autumn, Cos brought out this midi-length wool wrap skirt that had tassels on it. And I saw this skirt and I thought, wow, this is amazing. I need this. I want to wear it now. And I was so close to buying it until I realised, what am I going to wear it with? I don't have anything in my wardrobe that goes with this skirt. And so suddenly what I thought was, you know, an amazing skirt was about to turn into a £300 outfit. I think what I appreciate about the favourite items that I have in my wardrobe is that they are really easy to wear. They don't ask me to buy lots of other things to go with them because they already match with a lot of the things in my wardrobe. And if I'm honest, I think that I was more intrigued by the idea that I could be the type of woman that wears a skirt like this. But in terms of practicality, it didn't really go with the rest of my wardrobe. But as with everything in fashion and life, this is not a hard and fast rule. Not everything you buy has to match perfectly with your wardrobe. Sometimes you do just need the item that is completely different from what you would normally wear. And I wholeheartedly encourage that as well. Perhaps you're intentionally taking your wardrobe in another direction or you're going through some, you know, lifestyle changes and you have to buy something completely different. Or you need something unexpected to make your clothes feel creative again. And so, of course, those are exceptions to the rule. But for the vast majority of my purchases, I do want them to be able to easily slot into my wardrobe and I don't want them to demand that I buy more things for this item. So now when I do bring in something new to my home, my wardrobe, I don't take the tags off immediately. And I don't just imagine the outfits I could create. I actually put the item on and I have a play in my wardrobe. And I try and see what outfits and scenarios I am going to be wearing this new item in. I don't follow a strict rule of I have to be able to make three outfits or I have to be able to make five outfits with this item. Because it kind of depends on the item itself and what purpose it is trying to serve in your wardrobe. But I do make sure that I have shoes that go with this item and maybe like a jacket or a piece of outerwear that works with this item as well. I find that those are the items that generally determine if an item is going to work for me or not. And if I can't make outfits with the item or if I'm just finding it really hard to style, then thankfully I didn't take the tag off yet and I can return it. Some of the worst offenders in my wardrobe, so dramatic, are clothes you have to babysit. You know the pieces I mean. The skirt that keeps riding up. The top that's like a little bit itchy in places. The ones with the straps that keep falling down. The trousers that you keep having to adjust. I think when I was younger, I used to think that that was just part of the clothing experience. If something looked good but you had to keep, you know, adjusting here and there, I didn't care. But now that I'm older, actually I care about that a lot. If I'm constantly thinking about what I'm wearing and how it looks, I'm not enjoying myself. I'm not there. I'm not presently there because I'm just thinking like, does this look good? Should I, do I need to pull this down? And that's just not how I want to live my life anymore. When I buy something, I pay much more attention now to how it behaves on my body, not just how it looks when I'm standing in the mirror. And again, this is something that you can check before you've taken the tags off. Sit down in the item, walk around, raise your arms, check if anything is moving in a way that it shouldn't be. Something looking nice is no longer the only criteria that I have when choosing something for my wardrobe. It has to be functional. I have to be comfortable wearing it. It can't just only look good, you know, it's gotta make me feel good too. Looking back, I haven't stopped enjoying fashion and I certainly haven't stopped enjoying buying things. I still want my wardrobe to be interesting. I still want to experiment and I will still leave a little bit of space for that impractical purchase that brings me so much joy. But for the most part, I want my clothes and my accessories to fit easily into my life. I'd love to know if there's anything that you've stopped buying as you've gotten older. Is there anything that I missed from my list that you can educate me on? If you are interested in building a wardrobe that you will love for years to come, then I think you will really enjoy this next video on screen. And as always, thank you so much for watching and I will see you in the next one. Bye!