A Percentage Breakdown Of My Winter Wardrobe by Brand
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Hair Ribbon- Urban Outfitters
I’ve been spending lots of time over the past couple of months thinking about the pieces in my wardrobe. It’s definitely been inspired by learning more about capsule wardrobes and although I don’t think a wardrobe that is limited to 37 pieces (or whatever the amount is) is for me, I’m trying to ensure my wardrobe is filled with pieces that spark joy, as Marie Kondo would say, and make me excited to get dressed in the morning!
After thinking so much about my wardrobe over the past couple of months, I thought it would be interesting to divide it up into brands and calculate the percentage of space different brands take up in my wardrobe. This is probably the most maths-y thing I’ve done since my GCSEs, so excuse me if there are some errors. But I thought this might be something interesting to see for other people too, as it not only allows you have a nose around my wardrobe but it means I can share my favourite brands (they’re nothing out of the ordinary) with you all!
So, before I started this deep dive into my wardrobe, I made some estimations based on what I thought my wardrobe would look like in percentages. Oh and I didn’t include shoes (as most of my shoes are by specific shoe brands), only pieces of clothing, bags and scarves. I’ve also excluded loungewear and sportswear as, again, they’re mostly by specific loungewear/sportswear brands. Here are my estimations anyway…
20% Topshop
15% ASOS
15% Second Hand
15% Zara
10% & Other Stories
10% New Look
15% Other
So I wasn’t totally off with my guessed but I definitely wasn’t 100% accurate. To do the actual ‘calculations’, I put all of the items by one brand onto a rail, counted them and photographed them (I’ve linked to any of the items that are still available). Here are my actual results, starting with the top 5 most featured brands in my wardrobe…
(DISCLAIMER: some of my clothes are at Uni but I couldn’t really justify bringing them all home for one blog post. But I’d say the clothes in this wardrobe are the ones that make up my winter wardrobe, because I haven’t missed anything that’s been at Uni for the last two months.)
Rust t-shirt* (gifted), Light Wash Kick Flare Jeans*, Black Straight Leg Jeans*, Black Kick Flare Jeans*, Navy Coat* (I used my gifted Topshop voucher to pay for some of this coat, the rest I paid for with my own money)
1.Topshop - 17%
Unsurprisingly, Topshop is the number one most featured brand in my wardrobe and Topshop pieces make up 17% of all of my clothes. I wasn’t surprised about this one, only that the percentage wasn’t higher! Topshop has always been my go-to high street brand since I started buying clothes for myself and I feel as though I can always rely on them for trendy pieces that will, mostly, stand the test of time. Plus, I’ve been partnered up with them for the past couple of months so a few of the pieces I own by them are gifted, boosting the percentage a little.
As you might be able to tell, I love Topshop denim. Four out of my six pairs of winter jeans are from Topshop (the other two are second hand). Not only is their jeans sizing accurate but they have a wide array of styles, all of which have a little bit of stretch to them, which I like as comfort is always my number one priority. I also love Topshop outerwear and I have two faux leather pieces, a blazer and a proper winter coat from Topshop, all of which I get a lot of wear out of!
I was surprised that only one of my knitwear pieces was from Topshop, although I do absolutely love this cream knit, so maybe I have been neglecting Topshop’s knitwear? Let me know what you think of their knitwear if you’ve tried it!
2/3. In joint second/third place is Zara! Again, I was kind of expecting this one. I don’t feel as though I can rely on Zara as much as I can with Topshop. But when I do have a good root around one of their chaotic stores, I always find a gem.
Clearly I’m a big fan of their neutral colour palettes, which I wasn’t really aware of until putting all of my Zara pieces onto a rail. But I also really love their t-shirts, which is something I definitely knew beforehand. Zara t-shirts are usually always 100% cotton so they last for ages and fit so well. Plus they’re so well-priced, it’s kind of ridiculous! I also love Zara scarves as they stock them in great, on-trend prints, plus, they’re usually so big that they can double up as blankets.
2/3. Sharing second and third place with Zara is my selection of second hand clothes. Some of these are vintage pieces, some of them I’ve found in charity shops and others I’ve picked up on Depop. There isn’t as much of a theme with the second-hand pieces, for obvious reasons. Although I do love vintage jeans and the two pairs featured here are some of my favourites ever.
This rail is perhaps the one I look at most fondly, as all of these pieces have memories attached to them. That’s one of the best things about second-hand shopping. I’d really like to make the second hand section of my wardrobe a bigger one, not only to make my wardrobe a little bit more sustainable, but because of how much I love all these pieces and the way they make me feel!
4. I’m kind of surprised ASOS wasn’t higher up on this list! I really get my use out of their premium yearly Next Day Delivery and I’d say most of my purchases are made from ASOS. But I realised I buy a lot of branded clothing items from ASOS (many of which make up my ‘other’ category) so my clothing items by ASOS’ own brand aren’t so extensive.
These two bags are my absolute favourite bags and if ASOS does bring them out in another colour, I will 100% be picking them up! They’re a great size and just look super chic in my opinion. I also really like ASOS knitwear for affordable options as, although their shapes and styles aren’t always the most interesting, they create really good basics that are super comfortable.
5. And finally, in fifth place, we have & Other Stories. If I had the money, my entire wardrobe would be made up of Stories pieces. But, alas I do not! So 7% of my wardrobe will have to do for now. I’m kind of surprised that it’s such a low percentage but I think it’s just because I get so much wear out of these pieces that I feel like I have more Stories pieces in my wardrobe than I actually do.
& Other Stories’ knitwear is actually fairly affordable, compared to some of their other items, and it’s such good quality and fits brilliantly. I’d really like to invest in some of their outerwear as it’s just so beautiful and of a really high quality but, sadly, I don’t have the funds for that at the moment. Maybe next year! Or when I’m no longer a student…
So those are the top 5 brands that make up most of my wardrobe but I thought I would just quickly go through some other brands that are part of my wardrobe, but feature less heavily…
6% Urban Outfitters
5% Pull & Bear
4% H&M
3% New Look (again, I must just be getting a lot of wear out of my New Look pieces as I thought this would be higher)
3% Warehouse (I was surprised about this one as I don’t think I’ve ever stepped into a Warehouse store- I think most of it has been ordered from ASOS)
2% Mango
2% COS
20% ‘Other’ (mostly brands that I only have one or two pieces from such as Uniqlo, Primark, random brands that I’ve discovered on ASOS, Nobody’s Child, Miss Selfridge)
So there we have it! My winter wardrobe in percentages, by brands. I hope you’ve enjoyed this post, not least because it took me about 2 hours to go through my wardrobe like this! But, in all seriousness, I really enjoyed making this post and going through my wardrobe in this way, so let me know if you’d like to see some similar posts!
I’m thinking I could divide up all of my seasonal wardrobes in this way (although the UK doesn’t really have autumn or spring so maybe I can just do it with winter and summer) and maybe even divide my wardrobe into percentages based on the different pieces I own (e.g. t-shirts, blazers, knitwear etc.) Please do let me know if this is something you’d like to see!
Like I said, I’m never going to have a capsule wardrobe but being aware of what’s in your wardrobe is a great way of ensuring you make more responsible choices when it comes to buying new clothes. How aware are you of your wardrobe? Do you think you could accurately guess the space that different brands take up in your wardrobe? Let me know in the comments or on social media!
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New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
I have been shopping A LOT during the month of May. Not that I don't shop during other months but I really have gone a bit crazy, for me anyway, over the past few weeks. I think it's because, firstly, I've started exercising more and eating healthier so am feeling better about what I look like in clothes, secondly, because I've been saving up some of my wages, and thirdly, because of the change in weather and the fact I'm going to Corfu this week (eek!). Because I've picked up quite a few bits in a short space of time, I thought I'd share them with you! You might have seen some of them styled already on my blog or on Instagram and if you haven't, you certainly will have in the next few weeks. I'm really happy with everything I bought because some things have filled gaps in my wardrobe and others are just beautiful pieces that I feel great in and adore.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Starting with these incredible vintage jeans because LOOK AT THEM! I picked them up from Cow Vintage in Liverpool after spotting them on my way out of the shop for only £14. I immediately grabbed them and took them to the changing rooms and they fit like a glove. This must be the best feeling when vintage shopping as it can sometimes be a disheartening process of trial and error. They're my favourite style of jeans, a straight leg with frayed hems but with this added super cool star print. I really didn't need another pair of jeans in my wardrobe but these are so cool, and a little different from your average pair, that I just couldn't leave them behind.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
After bagging those incredible jeans, I realised, to my excitement, that COS have opened a store in Liverpool and went in to have a look. The store itself is beautiful, so airy and light and totally fitting with the feel of the store. As most of the colours of their clothes are fairly neutral, this pink top stood out to me, along with its stripes as I wear striped tops so frequently. It only cost £15 and I got it in a size small so it fits nice and loosely. This top is unfortunately out of stock on the COS website so you might have to go into store for this one. They do have the yellow version online here as well as the navy version.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
I finished this trip, with the reason it started, by heading to Zara to find this dress that I had been swooning over online. I'm so into cream dresses with tortoiseshell buttons at the moment and Zara have an incredible collection. After trying on a few button down midi dresses in some other shops and just not being able to find the right one, I had a good feeling about this one because the neckline and the sleeves are a little bit more interesting than some of the more shapeless ones I've tried on. I didn't actually try it on in store because, as you can probably imagine if you've ever been to the Liverpool store, the queues for the changing room were ridiculous. So I bit the bullet and paid £35 for the dress (I had £5 left on a Liverpool One voucher to put towards it) and I'm so glad I did because I feel so great in it and I now its going to be a real stand out piece for my summer holidays. I bought it in a size XS if you're interested.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Next is a piece that I actually bought a few weeks ago now (it might have even been at the end of April but I thought I'd include it in this post anyway). I'd spotted it on Instagram a couple of times and had been eyeing it up on the H&M website for a few weeks before deciding to go into store to try it on and buy it. To my delight when I arrived at the store, it had been reduced from £35 (the price I was expecting to pay for it) to £15, which is an absolute bargain because it feels as if it's good quality and blazers can often be pricey! Baby blue is one of my favourite colours to wear in the summer and I have got tons of wear out my grey check blazer so I thought it made sense to update it for summer. The blazer is still available to shop online here but it's unfortunately gone back up to full price- I obviously got really lucky!
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
I've been keeping my eye out for a new beach cover up for my upcoming holidays for a while now and I knew I wanted some kind of shirt. This one from H&M fits the bill perfectly. I bought it in a size 16 so it fits really oversized like a dress and I think it would actually look really nice one evening on holiday. It cost £12.99 which I think is pretty decent for a shirt that can be worn in so many different ways. You can shop it online here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
This one is a bit of an unusual piece for me because animal print isn't really my thing. But I saw the dress version of this top on the Topshop website and was leaning towards it for a while. When I went into store to try and find it though, I was told that they no longer stocked it, which I was a bit gutted about. I spotted (get it? spotted? leopard spots?) the top version and wasn't so sure about it on the hanger but it's really flattering on and I actually think the top will be much more versatile than the dress would have been. It's the perfect piece for a night out and can really elevate any outfit. It cost £19 and I got it in a petite size 8. You can shop it online here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Moving on to & Other Stories, I had *a bit*of a spree in their Manchester store the other day. I absolutely love the brand and the store experience however I usually restrict myself from buying too much, or anything, because it is more expensive than your average high street store. But I really do think there's a reason for this- the clothes are great quality and trend-led but also have a sense of timelessness to them. Anyway, the first piece I picked up was this knitted black tank top with tortoiseshell buttons (if you can't tell I kind of have a thing for them). I tried a similar, more expensive, version on of this in Urban Outfitters but the quality wasn't nearly as good as this one, nor was the fit. I think I'll get a lot of wear out of this over summer, and maybe even layered up in the winter. It was £23 and I got a size 8 (I think- the European sizes in & Other Stories confuse me endlessly). It's available to buy here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
I also bought this white printed t-shirt which I was immediately drawn to because, as mentioned, baby blue is my favourite colour for summer and white t-shirts are something I get the most wear out of in the summer months. Of course, I couldn't be sure about this top till I knew what the French meant. But after a quick google translate to find out it meant 'Sunset Boulevard', I decided this was very cool and something I wouldn't be embarrassed to translate for people, which is good as it's never fun to be living in fear of someone asking what your the writing on your top means for it to be something cringe-worthy. Or even worse, you having no idea! So I've got my damage limitation sorted with this one. I also got it in a size 8 for the price of £23. Shop it here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Then I bought ANOTHER striped top (although I did actually purchase this one before the COS piece- sorry for the lack of chronology within this post). You can't really tell in the photos but this one has navy stripes and it's a bit more slim fitting than some of the other ones I own so I thought it would be nice for more formal occasions. Plus, I really do wear striped tops so often that I could never have enough because there constantly in the washing pile. Again, in a size 8, costing £23. They have it available online here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Moving on to this skirt of dreams!! I swooned over a similar skirt from & Other Stories last year but never picked it up because of the price tag. But this year, when I spotted this extremely similar one, I decided to go for it. With this classic print that will never go out of style because it isn't anything in particular and the on-trend tortoiseshell buttons (here I go again), it's really the perfect piece for summer in my opinion. Also, serendipitously, they didn't have my usual size, an 8, only a 10 but it fit perfectly, which I took as fate because I needed a bit of a push to hand over the £49 this skirt cost. They have most sizes available online here.
New In My Wardrobe | May 2018
Last but not least, I ordered this bag, a little bit impulsively off ASOS. My current go-to black bag, a bucket bag from Zara, is being held together by sellotape at the moment so I've been keeping my eye out for a new one. This satchel style bag fit the bill perfectly- it's a great size, roomy but not annoying to carry around. Plus it has croc print and gold hardware, both of which I love. Buy it on ASOS here.
I hope this post hasn't inspired too many impulse purchases but if it has, let me know in the comments! Summer styling is my favourite and it's always the time I spend the most money on my clothes so I tend to let myself go a bit wild every so often. You'll see these pieces styled on my blog and Instagram over the next few weeks so keep an eye out for that!
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