I mentioned in a prior post that I was good in January and didn’t buy anything. Well, that has all gone out the window in February. I’ve only bought one thing so far (it’s on the way and we’ll see if I keep it). However, I’ve walked into a lot of stores lately. I’m sliding back into my old habit of indulging in retail therapy when I’m feeling a little down.
Part of it is retail trickery. I know the tricks, yet they still get me sometimes. For example: J.Crew sent a $25-off-any-purchase-of-$25-or-more coupon. So, I feel like I have to use it. Because free money, right? That’s silly because unless I spend exactly $25, I’m still going to be paying out of pocket for something, something that I probably don’t need.
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Still, I find myself looking at leopard print sweaters and browsing the sale section. J.Crew is a brand I’ve shopped less at in recent years — partly because I’m trying to shop more ethically (and they are not an ethical brand). But also, because their style doesn’t speak to me as much anymore.
They do carry petite sizing though, which is why I sometimes find myself taking a look. (If you know of any ethical brands that offer petite sizing, let me know in the comments.) I’m heartened by the recent news, though, that J. Crew and their sister brand Madewell are now producing fair-trade, more environmentally-friendly denim. They’re utilizing the same LEED-certified factory in Vietnam as Everlane, Saitex.
I also have about $30 in store credit from Oak and Fort due to their crappy return policy. You can return for store credit, but not a refund. So, when I’m nearby, I pop in to browse. I’ve been doing this for more than a year and a half now and I always leave empty-handed.
While I like their minimalist aesthetic, the quality of some of their items is meh. Other times, I pick up something that seems promising, then look at the fiber content and put it down because there’s nylon, acrylic, or polyester in it. Sigh. The hours of my life I have wasted trying to spend my $30! Lesson learned: always ask about the return policy when shopping in a new place.
Also, I blame social media. Looking at other’s people’s outfits and blogs, there’s always something that catches my eye. Suddenly I’m on a website looking at something. This is how I ended up ordering this Madewell sweater (not ethical, but it’s 100% cotton, and it was on sale). Then there’s this Modern Citizen dress that keeps popping up as an ad in my Instagram feed. Damn, Instagram, how did you know? (Well, I bet it wasn’t hard. They targeted women around my age who live in San Francisco, New York, and a few other cities who have used the hashtag #minimalism and who also follow Everlane and well, there I am.)
But of course, I can only blame myself. No one is making me look at websites or walk into stores. So what I’m going to do right here is make a list of wardrobe gaps — things that I feel are missing in my wardrobe that I’d wear a lot. I’m also going to put this list on my phone. And then I’m only going to shop for those things.
I might also try something that Xin from An Invincible Summer does, which is to pin items on a Pinterest board when you’re thinking about buying them, then coming back to them later to see if you still really, really want them. I already walk away from things when I first see them to determine if I’m just caught up in the moment. (Unless I’m at Nordstrom Rack.) That was my tactic upon seeing the Everlane V Heel for the first time. (I ended up buying them later.) But I like the idea of keeping a visual board too.
Up to no good trying on this J. Crew sweater.
Winter Wardrobe Gap Wish List
1. A short chunky cardigan
A few years ago, I realized that I never wore any of my cardigans because they were the thin kind and I didn’t like how tight they were on my arms. So, away they went and now I only have one thick cardigan. It’s long, but I feel like that limits me to wearing long coats over it. I find myself wishing I had a shorter one. Everlane released their texture cotton cardigan recently, but it’s too chunky looking for me. (It’s suspiciously similar-looking to the pricey Babaà cardigan.)
2. A cozy pullover sweater
I’m thinking something a little oversized and warm for chilly days, but chic and minimalist. Something like what Vince would make, but proportioned for petite me and ethical, if possible, but also not $400.
3. Other sweaters
Even though I live in a climate where layering is a necessity and where it’s not warm, I strangely don’t own a lot of sweaters. I could use more. I wear my Everlane cotton boatneck a lot, so I might just get it in another color.
4. A blazer
At one time I owned somewhere between 8 and 10 blazers, but last year I got rid of almost all of them. Most of them were cheaply-made fast fashion blazers and they looked cheap. I only have one cropped blazer left now (similar in style to this). So I’m looking for a regular-length one that I can wear with almost anything.
5. Ankle boots
I have a hard time with shoes and it seems like every year I’m buying a new pair of ankle boot. That’s the problem with shoes. You never know if they’ll work out for you until you’ve worn them for a while. I recently sold three failed pairs of boots on Poshmark. And while the ones I have now are not bad and have arch support (I even got them in two colors), I realize now that they’re a little too tight in the toe box for me. They squish my poor pinky toes. Plus I don’t love how they’re kind of distressed on purpose in front. I’m intrigued by Hopp Studios’ boots since I find their wedges comfortable, but they’re almost out of sizes.
6. Rain boots?
My shoe woes extend to my rain boots. I have a short pair by the Spanish brand Igor that’s handsome, but again, a bit narrow for my wide-ish feet. They seem fine at first but a few hours in and my poor pinky toes suffer. I wore them out in a downpour recently and water got into them, completely soaking my socks. I don’t know if this means I should get taller boots. Tall rain boots just seem like a lot of inflexible boot. Or, do I just need to find a short boot that’s better designed? I’ve read that the new Everlane one are comfy but I don’t really like the rugged look. Alice + Whittles is an ethical brand that makes a fair trade rain boot that’s more in line with my style, but they look narrow.
But maybe I don’t really need a new rain boot at all. I bought a tall La Canadienne boot at the Nordstrom Anniversary sale in 2017 that’s supposed to be waterproof, so I should test them out the next time it rains.
Stretch Goal: An Awesome Coat
Come on, gotta put a splurge on here for fun. True, I already have a decent number of coats and jackets, but I want something really high quality that goes with everything. Stylewise, something timeless like a long Max Mara coat in a dark camel color like this.
Well, we’ll see how this goes. I’ve kept a list of wardrobe wants on my phone before, but honestly, I’m not sure it helped keep me from shopping. Then there are those things you stumble upon that you end up loving and I wouldn’t want that to completely go away either. But I do need to put some measures in place. What are some ways that you keep yourself from indulging in retail therapy?
First Image: Laura Fleischmann/Unsplash
I have the Alice+Whittle rain boots and totally recommend them. I have wide, flat feet and went a size up (normally an 8, got them in 9), swapped in a Superfeet Black insole for added support, and they are a dream to wear. I’ve worn them almost every day this winter, because they also work as a snow boot. This was not obvious to me when I bought them but has been a very pleasant surprise… for those days when there’s leftover snow/ice/whatever on the ground, these keep my feet dry, look much sleeker than my tall Sorel snow boots, and are super easy to slip on and off to, say, change into sneakers at the gym or run out to get the mail, etc. I feel they are a great value!
Oh, that’s good to know! So glad to hear they worked out for you — and that they can double as snow boots. I’ll take another look at them.
My general inclination after years of wearing them is that tall rain boots are usually overkill, but that’s partially because of weather patterns here (it rarely rains all day long, so I might need rain boots in the morning or the evening, but not for both legs of my commute; and then if I wore the rain boots out, I get annoyed about the bulkiness during the time of day when it’s dry). I haven’t found the ones I owned in the past (two from Target in college, two from random brands via Gilt or another flash sale website years ago) to be too inflexible in the shaft/they’re reasonably comfortable to wear. I do get annoyed if I put them on and then need to wear them all day if the weather turns out mostly dry, but that’s just me being fussy. The extra bulk doesn’t actually affect my usual activities (getting around the city, clambering up and down the subway steps) that much! All other things being equal, I’d rather wear leather boots or booties or sneakers on those half-rainy/half-dry days and hope for the best, though I end up with wet feet sometimes if I opted for sneakers. (I don’t take especially good care of my leather shoes.)
I don’t think rain boots need to be tall/almost knee length to keep socks dry. My LL. Bean boots which are mid shaft height, with the goretex and thinsulate, and they generally keep my socks completely dry/stuff from the sometimes substantial puddles or precipitation have never really gotten in. (Though the short bootie-style rainboots seem a bit too short to me because they may not be long enough to keep the hem of long pants dry… I don’t think I’ve seen a lot of mid-shaft height rainboots out there, either.) I think the only way I’d buy a pair of rubber rain boots again is if I thought I’d use them as snow boots, which I used to do by layering thick socks. Now that I’ve worn a pair of real, insulated winter boots, however, I’ll never go back!
Good to know that the tall ones aren’t too inflexible if I go that route. The short ones I have, while pinching me, have mostly kept my feet dry. It was just this one time during a massive downpour that my socks got soaked. But I was out all day and it was so unpleasant to wear wet socks most of the day! My rain poncho goes to my knees, so I wonder if water just slid right down my jeans and into the boots. Maybe I have to use the poncho AND an umbrella. (I was trying to avoid the umbrella as I don’t like holding it and it’s useless in the wind.) I used to walk to work and my solution back then was just to keep an extra pair of pants at my desk. Ha. I haven’t had to wear snow boots in a long time, but now I know what to get if I need a pair. 🙂