Signature Wardrobe Clothes Shopping Outfit

Signature Wardrobe Clothes Shopping Outfit
Georges Department Store (Collins St, Melbourne) c. 1945 – 1954, via State Library of Victoria

The weather is changing, the shops are selling off old stock, and you’re adapting your wardrobe for the new season. It’s time to plan a Signature Wardrobe Clothes Shopping Outfit.

Of course, before you shop, you should review your wardrobe plan then your wardrobe before you write your clothes shopping list. And remind yourself why it’s important to stick to the plan and your list.

You might want more than one outfit for clothes shopping:

  • Specific events, for example, weddings, dinner dances, awards presentations (etc.)
  • End of season sales
  • Replacing work clothes
  • Replacing casual clothes
  • New season reconnaissance
  • New season purchasing

Today’s post concerns one you will wear when you start trying things on.

Climate/Location/Activities

You’ll probably be indoors in a climate controlled mall; most likely it will be hotter or colder than the weather outdoors.

There’ll be walking, carrying bags while walking, and dodging other people while walking. And standing to rifle through clothes racks, pulling garments out to examine carefully, and holding them up against you. You’ll be getting dressed and undressed as you try things on. And standing and queuing to pay for your purchases.

Hopefully, there will also be sitting while you drink coffee (or tea) and eat cake. Or a glass of wine with something more substantial.

Presence

Comfort is your keyword for the day. But don’t think that just because you want to be comfortable, you can’t be stylish too. Sales staff generally steer you towards clothes that match what you are wearing, or if your presentation is lacking, ignore you altogether.

You should wear the colours and styles that you are trying to match; particularly something you love and know suits you perfectly. Then you can easily compare your old with the new to make sure that they complement each other. And you can test love at first sight impulse items as well. If you know they don’t work, you can skip trying things on altogether!

Try to get good sleep the night before so that you don’t look grey with big black bags under your eyes. Then you can get a better idea of how the proposed colours will look against your skin tone.

And remember, when you start getting grumpy and are prepared to buy anything to get it over with, it’s time to beat a gracious retreat and start afresh another day.

Clothes

Wear clothes that you can easily get on and off. Ideally, that might be a dress you can just pull over your head, but a top with a bottom will be less confronting when you are trying a series of tops (or bottoms) on their own. This does rule out tight clothes, things with lots of fastenings, and lots of layers.

Underclothes

The undergarments you wear should match the style of clothing you are looking for; everyday undies for everyday clothes and sexy undies for sexy clothes. Different styles and purposes of bras have different lines and structures, and you will probably want to confirm you can live with the amount of exposure. Do not wear a sports bra if you are not shopping for sportswear because they are enormous and compress and constrain your breasts differently to non-sports bras. You will not get a realistic picture of the movement of the garments you are trying.

Shoes

You should be comfortable standing and walking in your shoes. Some of you will be happy in 5″ (12.75 cm) heels, others will want something flat. If you are shopping for clothes that you will wear with heels but aren’t shopping in them, take the shoes with you. Heels change your posture, and changes in posture change the way garments hang.

If shoes are on your shopping list, do them last so that your feet are nicely swollen and give you a more accurate idea of what they are going to be like after a day on the go. Again they should be easy to get on and off, and lots of straps, buckles and laces will make this difficult.

Make sure you wear appropriate hosiery – if you are buying hiking books, make sure you try them with your hiking socks and not a stocking sock.

Accessories

Given that you will be getting dressed and undressed, you may want to keep jewellery to a minimum to lessen the chances of losing your special pieces. If you are event shopping, you should bring your jewellery with you to check that it sits nicely with the clothes.

You are likely to end the day with a lot of purchases to carry, so empty your wallet of all but the essentials and take your smallest and lightest handbag. Or copy my friend Katy and use a small suitcase on wheels to pack the clothes as you go.

Grooming

You should fix your hair and makeup as you would if you were wearing the clothes you are shopping for (everyday v fancy again). Then you can assess the overall picture you make. For example, whether the colours of the clothes are strong enough to balance your red lipstick. This is especially important when you are hat shopping.

Wrap Up

I suppose that your outfit for clothes shopping is more or less your most favourite everyday outfit. Or work for work, and casual for casual. Do you think about this stuff when you put together your outfit for clothes shopping?


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