Staples #thebasics
Wardrobe staples are your classics, jeans that fit well in multiple shades of denim. Roll neck jumpers in 5 colours that go underneath a gilet, or blazer and look great with skirts, trousers and jeans dressed up and dressed down. 2 white shirts, one fitted, one oversized. A puffer coat, a leather jacket, an evening coat, a mac, a blazer, a denim jacket, you get my drift…
If you’re the person that tends to buy a few things wear them to death, and every couple of months think you have nothing to wear, then take note!
Funnily enough recently I’ve had a little project of my own – my boyfriend… FYI he has given me full permission to write about his fashion journey with his new appointed stylist – me! Lol
When I met Mr G I honestly thought this guy needs serious help in the fashion department – picture this – muddy trainers, black socks with white trainers (I know yuck!) Jumpers with holes in, you get the idea.
One particular evening we were going to one of my favourite restaurants for dinner it was a summers evening, I floated down the stairs in a Never Fully Dressed chiffon number, Jimmy Choo wedges, hair blow dried, make up on ready for date night. I got to the bottom of the stairs and couldn’t believe my eyes, (we laugh now) but he had on a pair of mocha faded chinos, a baby blue casual shirt and battered navy suede brogues that had seen better days, I was horrified to say the least and my girlfriends certainly all got a rundown the next day haha. Luckily Mr G takes a joke very well and is super easy going, as after he chose to wear a loungewear sweatshirt to my birthday dinner at the brasserie of light in Selfridges, we embarked on wardrobe boot camp ha!
Thank god he is so receptive!
So I started off by running through staple colours
Black, grey, navy, khaki and maroon for winter
Pale blue, light grey, white and beige for summer
With strict rules not to deviate lol
He assumed we would be trawling round the shops for hours and I’m afraid I haven’t got the energy or time, plus with most men you know you only have an hour before they want to leave regardless if they have what they need or not… so I instructed him to download all the necessary apps – Zara, River Island and Topman. Luckily for him I know his size better than he does, so I filled his basket in the comfort of my own home and waited for the delivery.
Here he is – the finished product! I think I’ve done pretty well 😁
He literally needed new everything, as he is one of those people that buys something and wears it to death, initially he was having a heart attack about spending money on himself. But I’ve realised with Mr G he is a visual man the minute he puts something on and feels good in it, he is sold! So I’m guilty of picking things up and telling him he needs it without giving him a choice, and once they’re on he loves it! As we all know feeling good is such a lovely feeling and it builds confidence.
Not to go off on a tangent but there is more to this than just looking presentable, it’s about how looking good can make you and others feel. He’s a very successful man and first impressions are everything, I felt by him not taking enough notice or pride in his appearance he was doing himself an injustice. When he’s got a gorgeous outfit on I feel so proud and fancy him even more and it is about making that effort for each other. That certainly was the turning point of getting him to transform his wardrobe, it’s important to me that I make the effort for him and he wanted to make that effort too! If one woman manages to make over her man from reading this then I’m a happy bunny!
So here are my recommendations and may I add – don’t forget I’m an avid bargain shopper, Zara practically covers it all, and their summer and winter sales are great online, especially on the app!
For Him
Colours
Black, grey, navy, khaki, maroon for winter
Pale blue, white, beige for summer
Ralph Lauren outlet Braintree
Puffer coat
Body warmer
Swimming trunks
Zara
Evening coat – black, navy and camel
A Mac
Roll neck jumpers
Crew neck jumpers
T-shirt’s
Polo shirts
Casual shirts – a denim one looks great with black jeans
Shirts – white & pale blue
Tracksuits
Belts – the reversible belts are great so one side is black the other side is tan or navy
Scarves – most men may think these are a waste of time but the layering looks great and really stylish
Zara / River Island
Jeans – black, dark denim and mid denim
Chinos – all colours
Fitted evening shorts
Zara / Russell and Bromley
Chelsea boots – suede is better – black navy tan brown
Shoes – black, tan
Loafers
Smart Trainers
Nike outlet or Jd sports sale
Casual trainers
Flip flops
Havianas
Aftershave
Creed Aventus
Hermes terre a terre
Tom Ford
Investment pieces for a Man
A good watch
A smart belt
A beautiful wallet
Great aftershave
For Her
Us ladies can get away with a little more colour in our wardrobe however always nail the classic colours first.
Zara / Topshop / Monki / M&S / H&M / Other Stories / Never Fully Dressed / All Saints / ASOS / Jayde / Mango / Pink Soda / River Island / Adidas / Under Armour / Self Portrait / Pit USA / Calvin Klein / Victoria Secrets
Fur / Gilet
Macs – Zara / Burberry
Leather jacket – All Saints
Evening coat in wool – Zara / All Saints
Blazer – Zara
Denim jacket – Zara / river island
Puffer coat – moncler / Zara / Canada Goose
Shacket (Shirt / Jacket) – H&M
Chunky scarves – great for layering and texture
Jeans black / dark blue / mid blue / light blue – skinny fit, mom fit, boyfriend style, paper bag style, highwaisted, ripped, stretchy, jeggings, oversized, wide leg, flares, straight leg – Topshop / River Island
Long skirts – very in right now and elegant
Leather skirts – skater style
Leather trousers – leggings / jogging style / jean style
Combat trousers – lovely in khaki fitted at the waist and ankle – great with roll neck and military boots or sock boots
Wrap skirts – great with a vest in the summer or roll neck in the winter
Wide leg trousers – really accentuates the waist
Chinos – great with a body and blazer 
Shorts – denim / leather
The tracksuit – smart fitted lounge wear (Jayde) / hoodie & joggers / knitted / oversized / two piece / velour so many options to suit all ages and sizes – wildfox / Victoria secrets / H&M / Zara
Gym wear – H&M leggings are the one! / pink soda / adidas / under armour
Oversized white shirt – with a belt round or tie it up
Fitted shirt
Denim shirt – great with black jeans
Plain tshirts black / white / grey – can look smart too!
Roll neck jumpers – Zara
Crew neck jumpers – Zara
Cardigans – H&M & Mango
Chunky knits long and short – other stories do the best / mums handmade
Blouses – Zara
Bodies – great with jeans and a blazer when your not sure what to wear
Vests – primark
Fitted plain tops – primark
Shirt dresses – amazing with boots and a leather jacket
Jumper dresses
Formal dresses / business dresses – Zara
Maxi dresses – looks great with wedges or trainers – Zara / never fully dressed / sundress / camilla with love
Evening Dresses – Self Portrait is my fave they also do wonderful sales! I love finders keepers / cameo / the fifth / Nadine merabi / Zhivago / Shona joy / house of CB / needle and thread / mossman / dream sister Jane / keepsake the label I could honestly go on!
Summer dresses – never fully dressed
Costume jewellery – always a good accessory
Swimwear – Calvin Klein – does amazing sales always 50% off / Hunza / Victoria Secrets / Heidi Klein for the best!
Beachwear – pitusa best beach dress ever!!! / oversized shirts – Zara
Zara / shoeaholics.com / Russell and bromley / Ash / Daniels footwear
BOOTS – Chelsea boots – High heel boots – long / ankle – Over the knee boots – Chunky heel ankle boots – Sock boots – Biker boots – Military boots – Russell & Bromley / Zara / Kurt Geiger / Jimmy Choo / Stuart Weitzman
Sandals – Ash
Wedges – castaner / Zara
Ballet pumps – Zara / Chanel
Court shoes – can’t beat a Louboutin or Manolo in my opinion
Strappy heels – Sophia Webster
Chunky heel sandals – Valentino / Ash
Peep toe / Ankle strap heels – Alaia / Aqua Azzura
Trainers – Adidas have some amazing styles – I’m loving the super sleek style atm be careful with designer trainers the only ones that seems to stay in style is Jimmy Choo & Chanel but classic colours
If you have all of the above in your wardrobe you will never be short of anything to wear!
Investment pieces for a woman
A smart belt – Louis Vuitton / Hermes / Gucci
A lovely handbag – Chanel / Louis Vuitton / Gucci / Hermes if your lucky
Heels – Louboutin’s / Manolos
A good watch / classic jewellery – Rolex Cartier and diamonds obviously
I hope all the above helps anyone looking to revamp their wardrobe!
As you know I always like to share my recent bargains…
This January (sale time my fave!!!) I have bought 10 coats from Zara in the Zara sale – a puffer, a stunning black waterproof Mac, 2 long Italian wool coats in beige and grey, a gorgeous smart work coat with a huge over sized collar and a few extras lol.
As you know I go hard or go home shopping wise – last year I was on a jumper haul this year it was a coat haul as I really want to try and get away from wearing so much black.
My coats full price were: £803
I paid: £597
A GREAT SAVING OF: £206
I also had a bee in my bonnet about an All Saints evening coat I’ve wanted for years
It’s the Leni style, with inverted lapels and a leather collar, super chic and classy.
It’s £318 full price and I managed to pick it up in black and camel at £150 each! YAY 😀
In addition I’ve also restocked all my work dresses, trousers and tops paying no more that £15-30 per outfit – thanks to the Zara sale on the app, how cheap is that?! You can’t go wrong.
After my recent clear out I really wanted some trainers some for the gym and some smart.
I’m a little over designer trainers as they are always a flash in the pan and do not stand the test of time! (apart from the Jimmy Choo and Chanel classics) I love the Alexander Mcqueens but I know come next year they will be on eBay, so I’d rather save myself the £400 and get the £50 Adidas Super Sleeks that are a similar style!
I bought 3 pairs of NMD Adidas trainers at £40 each on sale, in the kids section of JDsports (always worth checking if your feet are small) – a saving of £210, I also bought a gorgeous pair of Adidas Sambarose white and gold trainers for £50 from ASOS.
Plus the Super Sleek Adidas trainers in White and Black.
Always check all websites – Adidas did an extra 20% off recently on top of sale prices, some websites have a deal on, so worth shopping around!
Secret Sales is a great website
On Black Friday they had the classic Stella McCartney Falabella chain handbags, in the large size, in various colours, with matching purses. Wait for it…
Originally – £720 per bag
I paid – £440 per bag
3 bags and 2 purses I saved a total of- £1095
So of course it would have been rude not to buy black, grey and beige LOL.
Also I went to a cheeky Sophia Webster sample sale and picked up these beauties for £150 each 😍 so comfortable and pretty!
I stocked up on some Jayde luxury loungewear on Black Friday and bagged 15% off my order!
I don’t think you can beat an All Saints leather jacket and I’ve been on the look out for some real leather trousers too! All Saints do some with an elasticated waist and are the perfect length. Then when the website popped up with a 15% off your first order, I couldn’t resist! Then I selected next day delivery because it was free, and because there was a delay with the delivery they gave me a further 10% off!
Saving me £145 in total #winning
I know it looks as those I’ve done some hardcore shopping and yes I have, BUT I have listed so much on EBay and Depop, plus given 2 bag fulls to Cancer Research.
Last but not least, it’s worth catching the dregs of the Zara sale online.
Yesterday I bagged myself over the knee black suede boots for £15!!!
And a pair of real leather jewelled biker boots, they were £96 I picked them up for £30!
I hope I’ve inspired all my lovely readers to have a good brutal clear out, and restock with the basics to mix and match with. Plus keep an eye on those sales online!
Stay tuned XOXO
Emma Mack MUA 