Remember my new year resolution post where I mentioned I would be doing a post about all the clothing I bought for 2018, just like I did last year? Well, this is it. In order to do this clothing audit post I kept a note of every item of clothing I bought in 2018 on my phone but this year’s list also includes all items I got as press samples as well as items I got as gifts.
What surprised me about this clothing audit list is how less I managed to spend compared to last year (I think so?). You will also note that many of the items are speciality items I needed to buy for our hike on the Inca Trail. Of course some of the items I bought for the hike overlap with stuff I wear in normal life but sadly some don’t. And needless to say, for some of them I wish I hadn’t bought them at all. Ok. Now lets get to the actual list.
1. Prana track pants – £60 > I got these for the Inca trail hike but honestly they aren’t exactly a good fit for me so I don’t wear these ones often. For the Inca trail I needed two pairs so used these but on most other hikes where I need trekking trousers I just wear the Karrimore ones.
2. Karrimore track pants – £30 (I don’t remember how much I paid for this but I just remember it not being too expensive) > ended up buying this on a whim when I went into Lilywhites one day but so glad I did. This is definitely the trekking trousers I reach for the most- they fit me the best.
3. Adidas white tee – £10 > again, this is one of the hike buys. I had only one sweat wicking tee and needed another one picked this up. But honestly I wish I hadn’t bought this one. I didn’t really need it but our stress about the hike made us buy so much stuff – some of which we didn’t need.
4. Basket bag from Morocco (worn here) – £15 (approximate price since I don’t remember) > so glad for this souvenir! I was particular about buying one of these basket like bags but also very particular I didn’t want to buy it from a fast fashion store but a more traditional store. All of these bags are traditionally made in many communities and copied by fast fashion stores with no credit or licensing from the local artisans so try and buy these kind of trend items from small businesses if possible.
5. African print cotton dress (worn in the first picture as well as here) – £45 (appriximate price since I dont remember the exact price I paid) > I was hunting for an cotton dress with African tie dye pattern since these are so gorgeous. I did look for store in Cape Town while there but didn’t end up finding any but eventually bought this from a store in the airport. Not ideal but the best I could find. I wear this when on holiday and plan to wear it a lot this summer.
6. Underwear from Calvin Klien – £30 > again one of the trek buys since we needed cotton underwear.
7. Leggings from Lululemon – £45 > this was a Bicester Village find since no way I could afford to pay full price for Lululemon. I do love the leggings but I am not sure if I would think they are worth the full price. I am very happy with these ones I have although I didn’t actually choose the pattern and picked up whatever I could find in my size.
8. Gucci belt (similar) – £110 > this was such a good buy! As you have probably seen I have worn them a lot. I got this from Bicester Village on a shopping trip. The one I originally saw was a light pink and black combination but finally when I came back to the Gucci store to actually buy it I spotted one which could be used as red and black – perfect for my wardrobe colour palette. I have used this belt so much and it was on my wardrobe essentials so I am quite pleased with this.
9. Berghaus hiking boots – £90 > hiking shoes was an issue for me. Most hiking shoes are quite ugly in my opinion and these shoes are items you use for years so I wanted something I would actually enjoy wearing- not dread wearing. The original hiking shoes I wanted were Danner which were expensive but gorgeous. Sadly they were only available in the US and has to be exported here. Since there was no place for me to try the shoes before buying them I gave up on these. DJ and I went to the Blacks’s store in London and I ended up doing something I never do – saw these shoes in the store and bought them right away. (Black’s is a fantastic store and they price match the item against any other store). I knew I wanted leather hiking shoes so these were perfect. They were excellent during the hike and I would highly recommend these if you are looking for hiking shoes.
10. Uniqlo heat-tech full sleeve tee – £12.90 > this was definitely one of my best buys for the trek and beyond. I wear these a lot – under my blazer or a jumper during the winter.
11. Uniqlo heat tech leggings – £12.90 > again, bought these for the trek just in case. I only used them once or twice while in Peru and Bolivia. But these were a big relief in the winter in London and I ended up wearing them under my trousers to work!
12. Uniqlo fleece (worn above and in this post) – £13 – this was actually a men’s sweatshirt which I bought in the XS size. I loved the colour but not sure why Uniqlo doesn’t make the same for women.
13. Bershka animal print skirt (similar) – £20 > I have been a fan of animal print (the leopard only though, I am not a fan of the snakeskin) so picked up this skirt to celebrate my new office casual dress code! I like this print since ai can wear with both black and white.
14. Wolford tights (2) – £30 > I have a pair of Wolford tights I got from Bicester Village almost 4 years or so ago and they are still in perfect shape. So when I went to Lyon last summer I bought a few Wolford tights which were cheaper than what I found in London. Sadly, I can’t give a good review for these since these tore quite easily. I received these tights which are the ones I plan to re-buy in the winter to replace any that I need to discard.
15. Hugo Boss coat (similar) – £400 – I don’t think I need to say anything more than this.
16. Apricoat jacket (worn here) – £115 > Dj was obsessed with this jacket and we got matching ones. We bought a black and an olive one. This jacket is insane and has a hundred pcokets and is super techincal. I like the jacket but honestly, its just not comfortbale for me. They are just too long for me (they don’t have petite sizing). Once its zipped up its not too comfortable. But its a good jacket if you want to be as hands free as possible.
PR samples
These are the items sent to me as samples from various brands so I don’t really know the prices of these items.
16. Toby Long mauve jumper here – I loved the colour and wore this quite a bit in the winter. Its a good look with the belt and boots by itself or over leggings which gives it a chic oversized look.
17. Toby Maroon maxi lace dress here – I wore this in Morocco and I am really looking forward to wearing it in London this summer. Its the perfect romantic summer dress.
18. Toby Red jumpsuit – I cannot wait to wear this in the summer. Jumpsuits usually don’t fit me well but this one is so perfect for me! I wore it for a friend’s wedding in Greece last year and can’t wait to wear it for a night out in summer.
19. UK Swimwear Cream shell dress here – such a sea side dress. I am looking forward to wearing this in the summer. The good thing is this one can be dressed up or dressed down.
20. Ice cream lolly bikini (shown here) – I loved this one but sadly, is too small for me. I donated it on – hopefully it will be used.
21. Black one piece swimsuit (shown here) – I love this suit! Its super sleek.
Gifts
Appears that 2018 was not a great year for gifts for me!
22. Maxi dress from Haddes – I saw this dress on Instagram and really liked the look of it. I casually mentioned it to DJ but didn’t think of it anymore. Till DJ surprised me with it for our anniversary. Sadly, I still haven’t managed to wear it yet (now worn) since it was too cold then so this has been allotted for the summer as well. I had to get this hemmed since it was way too long for me.
So the total for that is £1153.80 (not counting PR samples and gifts) which is a lot compared to last year! I am not too pleased about that.
And I think we are done! Let me know if you have been keeping track and doing an audit of your yearly shopping? I would really recommend it since its quite a good way to reduce your shopping. Once you keep checking your list and seeing the items you have bought you realise even without trying how much we all end up purchasing.
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– Anisha
This is such a good idea to note down all your new purchases, I think for me it would shock me to realise how many new items I buy x
Yes! This is the second year I have done this so the first year was a shock for me! I think I may be cheating a bit since I buy thinking about what my audit post would look like.
A wonderful way to record the purchases you make as well as seeing whether they are something that you use often or weren’t such a great buy
Yes – its a really good way to audit your wardrobe and see what you wear. Thank you!
You’ve rocked some fabulous outfits over the last year. Looking forward to seeing this years edition xxx
Thank you so much! This year the list is going to be substantially shorter – I hope!
That’s s really varied selection of clothing . What s good idea to keep an account of your purchases.
Thank you! Variety is good I guess!
You’ve got quite a number of clothing from PR samples. I’m sure you’re into another round this year.
Hey! I did get some PR items but I have tried to limit these and now only take stuff I absolutely love. I live in a tiny flat so dont have space and really don’t want to fill my space with stuff I don’t love.
So many great outfits in this post. I love your style!
Thank you so much!
I love this idea! I think I need to do it in an attempt to control my spending! It must be fun to look back on your purchases.
Thanks Jennifer. I would highly recommend it. Its a good reality check and also easier to remember and keep track of what you have.