Where do you buy your clothes?

[bitchstewie]

So next on the wardrobe overhaul is underwear.

Same question cheap as hell M&S or as you (hopefully!!) wear them every single day of your life is it worth spending a little more?

[bitchstewie]

BunkMoreland said:

Tom Ford has 3 rules

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sGkqBWnR_A

Yes because this is how everyone on here chooses underwear isn't it

[bitchstewie]

For anyone interested I ended up with a bag full of CDLP briefs and socks as it was either half price or heavily discounted at Frasers.

At £14 for briefs and £10 for socks that felt acceptable for something supposedly premium quality that's made sustainably in Portugal or Italy and first impressions are good.

I wouldn't say I'm a particularly superficial person as if I was I guess I'd have gone for stuff with visible logos but I must say it's interesting how wearing nicely made good quality stuff does make you feel a bit better about the world and yourself

[bitchstewie]

So three and a bit months on and other than not throwing my old stuff out it's pretty much a new wardrobe.

Asket hoodies and merino jumpers
Allsaints Tees
Sunspel Polos
Luca Faloni Chinos
CDLP briefs and socks
Tripe Aught Design shirts

Bit pissed off that it's winter so the tees and polos have literally just sat on the rail since Black Friday and I don't see any befit paying for better base layers as the Mountain Warehouse stuff I have is cheap and toasty.

I'm struggling with jackets as I seem to like functional outdoor stuff with a hood like Montane but it's not the smartest but the smart stuff like an Epsom jacket just doesn't seem as "wrap up warm" as the functional stuff.

Any suggestions?

[bitchstewie]

I'm not a banker bro and I don't have a blazer

I think "field jacket" or "utility jacket" is the sort of thing I'm leaning towards.

https://www.piniparma.com/en-gb/products/green-sol...

But probably a bit "plainer" looking.

Same issue around how to avoid "made in Bangladesh" or whatever.

[bitchstewie]

The Sherlock?

Tempting as it's on sale and I quite like the simplicity.

I think I struggle a little bit to know where to stop with coats - like above I could easily end up with a wardrobe full of the things.

[bitchstewie]

Yeah I'm pondering a "Sherlock" from Percival.

Seems to meet the build/quality criteria and not too badly priced and looks reasonably practical given some of the concerns over form v function.

[bitchstewie]

Anyone know if there are any bank holiday sales or anything on?

Flannels have 20% off everything but it's all a bit too "visible" designer.

Now the sun it out I could do with another hoodie and possibly a couple more Sunspel polos or some nice plain tees.

Annoyingly Asket are out of the hoodie I want until August which is a bit odd for something so mundane.

[bitchstewie]

BunkMoreland said:

Sunspel are doing a 20% off on their website. I'm tempted by them, but I want to go to one of their stores in a few weeks, and get some face to face advice, to find which of their range works for me. (Classic or Riviera range)

The more I see of Asket the more irritated I get by their advertising. Particularly their "environmental impact" stuff

https://www.asket.com/gb/transparency/impact/impac...

The small print is ridiculous! In their online ads the water consumption is measured against somewhere that's basically a dry desert for 99% of the year! I also dont buy their own numbers in general.

Is that a general 20% as I'm not seeing it?

I did find an email with 30% off some styles and colours so I'm mulling on that one.

I've only had a couple of hoodies from Asket so far and they seem decent.

To be fair I'm not so big on the environmental impact stuff as I am on trying to just buy a bit better and less often.

If you're looking at Sunspel perhaps look at Luca Faloni too though I expect if you're near London or somewhere where they have a store you're probably spoiled for choice.

[bitchstewie]

Quite a good article on the quality v price thing.

‘Is this what people wear now?’ Sewing Bee host criticises M&S jumpers and socks

[bitchstewie]

I've heard of him but don't know much about him other than he articulates my thoughts better than I probably do

The amount of "Premium" and "Autograph" and "Italian Collection" stuff you see where when you flip the label over it's made in Cambodia or Bangladesh no doubt for absolute buttons is scary.

[bitchstewie]

Louis Balfour said:

He wrote a piece for the guardian a few weeks ago. Admittedly it will have been playing to the crowd to some extent, but it left me with the impression that his business nous is lacking.

Oh very possibly. I just think there has to be a middle ground between a steady stream of Vietnam, Cambodia, Bangladesh, China and buying Loro Piana

I notice Asket have pulled a stunt today that has me scratching my head.

"For almost a decade, our unwavering commitment to timeless design has produced a permanent collection of quintessential wardrobe staples. Garments so uncompromisingly timeless, we believe they're able to transcend the need for visual representation. To put it to the test, we've temporarily removed all garment images from asket.com, instead inviting you to use your mind's eye and envision the pieces in our permanent collection."

Nice hoodies but how utterly fking pretentious is that