I’m loving using Whering which Anna Newton recommended this month on substack. It’s helping me understand cost per wear and what I can potentially get rid of / have amended into something more wearable
I am OBSESSED with Whering - honestly, I cite it as the app that helped me quit instagram because it gave me such a dopamine hit that scrolling insta became dullsville.
I started the year with a trip to the tailor: he turned two wool coats with slightly too short sleeves into two Uber chic gilets which actually suit my current climate better. I wore the camel one over a black turtleneck and black vegan leather pants (never said I wasn’t a basic gal) and felt like a billion bucks! My next tailor trip is going to be turning out dated sheath dresses into chic tunic tops (by adding side slits).
absolutely love this - sounds like you're channelling Shiv Roy, can we see a picture? Can you do that on Substack Notes?! Finding a good tailor is everything. Also these stealth luxe pieces should really last, they are not going to date at all
Absolutely no desire to buy anything yet and have unsubscribed from all my favourite fashion brands so I'm not being bombarded by daily temptation. Busy selling stuff on Vinted which I'm finding incredibly satisfying. Having said that, I'm not generally a sale shopper so new season will be when it gets hard for me.
I use Pinterest to log and track my wardrobe. Nothing fancy. Selfies, wardrobe, shoes, bags and clothes I’ve sold all has its own boards. I have yet to repeat wear my clothes. I do have too many but I do wear most of them and rotate them around. Living in Singapore, there is only hot and humid or raining as seasons. So I don’t even own a winter coat. When I travel to colder countries I layer. :) trying to reduce purchases to just 5 this year thanks to a Tibi Fan posting your article. It’ll be a challenge but not going to be a perfectionist about it. So far a week in, I’ve started to reframe how I see online purchases. Renting is difficult because I’m a US size 10, and Singapore has only one company that rents clothes and they only carry sizes up to a US 6 and the choices are limited. There is a few swap and second hand shops tho and I do use them.
Pinterest is a great idea actually. Hot and humid weather is quite hard I think because you have to do so much washing - you just go through outfits quicker. Great work on online - try and buy something in an actual shop after you have tried it on. The only thing I bought on online last year was from Vesitaire Collective and it arrived missing a button and with a pull in it. So disappointing.
Yes indeed. The challenge is different to 4 seasons countries. As for shopping in an actual shop, another unfortunate case that Singapore is very conventional and loved their chain stores. Individual, unique brands with a point of view is a difficult rarety, and the quality isn’t there. I’m an advance magpie having been in the fashion industry in London and New York. But to your point, VC or TRR aren’t great and has its risks, but I end up doing lots of magpie-ing there or vintage shopping when I’m in Europe and Japan . :)
It's a fashion and sustainability store I co-run in Ibiza. We curate local and independent brands that are doing their best in responsible and sustainable practices (with a smattering of luxury brands going the extra mile eg Chloe, Stella). You can check it out on Instagram @agora.ibiza
On the topic of the perfect tee - I decided to learn how to make one in the end. It's surprisingly not that difficult, can be done in an afternoon and you can have more control over the fabric quality that way (at least in my experience). Of course, if you're as bad as sewing as I am then on the inside it looks like Quasimodo - but who needs to see that!?
Yep I used a pattern from an old uni book (Metric pattern cutting for Women) and allll the youTube sew-a-longs. I'd say I'm quite lucky that in Berlin there's still a few decent haberdashers still in existence and they do love their organic cotton here. Next time I'd like to try and source some headstock fabric. Oh and there's also loads of people who 'clone their wardrobe' i.e. trace from currently owned clothes to create their own pattern - WithWendy is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A90PmZLvwFM
Already bought two of my five. A black tank from Able and a pair of shorts from Alex Mill. Starting the year by figuring out the holes in my closet meant that when both brands had their early January sales it was actually perfect timing that saved a fair bit of money. Next up will be a black Kule turtleneck when they have their sale. Core wardrobe covered! My rule for the remaining two items is going to be that they have to be bought in person at a neighborhood boutique (which will be a lot of fun!).
also heres another thought - if you see something you want to buy do that 2 week cooling off period. If you still want it as much after two weeks, its yours
Thank you for these good ideas, Tiffanie. As you are well aware after having the initial satisfaction of finding the just right things it sunk in that there are still 11.5 months to go and that this will actually be hard. I’ll be taking your advice. Publicly commenting, even if we don’t know each other IRL, establishes accountability so I’ll let you know how it’s going later in the year. Good luck to everyone!
SarahT you need to stay away from sales!! Ha ha. Try and not buy anything for the next 4 weeks. Try and satisfy the need for something new by mending or altering something in your wardrobe. Is there anything you have that doesnt fit or doesnt work? Can you find a good local tailor and see if they can do something? Lmk how you get on!
Hello! New to The Rule of 5 and it is both fascinating and inspiring. I have a modest budget so my buys are mostly out of season pieces in high street sales. Last year I concentrated on buying classic pieces like a trench, white t-shirt, wide trousers and blazer to fix all the gaps in my wardrobe. I’m so glad I did as I can look at my wardrobe proudly and not feel the need to panic buy things for events. The only thing I’ve bought so far this year is that ‘must have’ polka dot Zara dress from a few years back, second hand from eBay. It may be passé but it fits so well and will be a perfect dress for spring! Thank you for the inspiration!
No purchases yet, but I have a trip to the Galapagos in March (rescheduled from 2020). I'm hoping not to have to buy anything new for that and make due with what I have. But, if I do, this seems like a worthy event for a purchase!
I’m loving using Whering which Anna Newton recommended this month on substack. It’s helping me understand cost per wear and what I can potentially get rid of / have amended into something more wearable
Great- this one? https://whering.co.uk ... you're inspiring me
I’ve started using it and it’s a great tool! I’m a data nerd so Whering is right up my alley
I am OBSESSED with Whering - honestly, I cite it as the app that helped me quit instagram because it gave me such a dopamine hit that scrolling insta became dullsville.
I started the year with a trip to the tailor: he turned two wool coats with slightly too short sleeves into two Uber chic gilets which actually suit my current climate better. I wore the camel one over a black turtleneck and black vegan leather pants (never said I wasn’t a basic gal) and felt like a billion bucks! My next tailor trip is going to be turning out dated sheath dresses into chic tunic tops (by adding side slits).
absolutely love this - sounds like you're channelling Shiv Roy, can we see a picture? Can you do that on Substack Notes?! Finding a good tailor is everything. Also these stealth luxe pieces should really last, they are not going to date at all
Absolutely no desire to buy anything yet and have unsubscribed from all my favourite fashion brands so I'm not being bombarded by daily temptation. Busy selling stuff on Vinted which I'm finding incredibly satisfying. Having said that, I'm not generally a sale shopper so new season will be when it gets hard for me.
Strong start!
i’ve been doing poshmark but wondering if vinted is where more people shop these days... are you able to compare the two??
I use Pinterest to log and track my wardrobe. Nothing fancy. Selfies, wardrobe, shoes, bags and clothes I’ve sold all has its own boards. I have yet to repeat wear my clothes. I do have too many but I do wear most of them and rotate them around. Living in Singapore, there is only hot and humid or raining as seasons. So I don’t even own a winter coat. When I travel to colder countries I layer. :) trying to reduce purchases to just 5 this year thanks to a Tibi Fan posting your article. It’ll be a challenge but not going to be a perfectionist about it. So far a week in, I’ve started to reframe how I see online purchases. Renting is difficult because I’m a US size 10, and Singapore has only one company that rents clothes and they only carry sizes up to a US 6 and the choices are limited. There is a few swap and second hand shops tho and I do use them.
Pinterest is a great idea actually. Hot and humid weather is quite hard I think because you have to do so much washing - you just go through outfits quicker. Great work on online - try and buy something in an actual shop after you have tried it on. The only thing I bought on online last year was from Vesitaire Collective and it arrived missing a button and with a pull in it. So disappointing.
Yes indeed. The challenge is different to 4 seasons countries. As for shopping in an actual shop, another unfortunate case that Singapore is very conventional and loved their chain stores. Individual, unique brands with a point of view is a difficult rarety, and the quality isn’t there. I’m an advance magpie having been in the fashion industry in London and New York. But to your point, VC or TRR aren’t great and has its risks, but I end up doing lots of magpie-ing there or vintage shopping when I’m in Europe and Japan . :)
OMG we need to open an AGORA in Singapore...
What’s that?
It's a fashion and sustainability store I co-run in Ibiza. We curate local and independent brands that are doing their best in responsible and sustainable practices (with a smattering of luxury brands going the extra mile eg Chloe, Stella). You can check it out on Instagram @agora.ibiza
On the topic of the perfect tee - I decided to learn how to make one in the end. It's surprisingly not that difficult, can be done in an afternoon and you can have more control over the fabric quality that way (at least in my experience). Of course, if you're as bad as sewing as I am then on the inside it looks like Quasimodo - but who needs to see that!?
omg - never heard of this before! Do you have a pic you can share? Did you use a pattern? Also how did you source the material?
Yep I used a pattern from an old uni book (Metric pattern cutting for Women) and allll the youTube sew-a-longs. I'd say I'm quite lucky that in Berlin there's still a few decent haberdashers still in existence and they do love their organic cotton here. Next time I'd like to try and source some headstock fabric. Oh and there's also loads of people who 'clone their wardrobe' i.e. trace from currently owned clothes to create their own pattern - WithWendy is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A90PmZLvwFM
Already bought two of my five. A black tank from Able and a pair of shorts from Alex Mill. Starting the year by figuring out the holes in my closet meant that when both brands had their early January sales it was actually perfect timing that saved a fair bit of money. Next up will be a black Kule turtleneck when they have their sale. Core wardrobe covered! My rule for the remaining two items is going to be that they have to be bought in person at a neighborhood boutique (which will be a lot of fun!).
also heres another thought - if you see something you want to buy do that 2 week cooling off period. If you still want it as much after two weeks, its yours
Thank you for these good ideas, Tiffanie. As you are well aware after having the initial satisfaction of finding the just right things it sunk in that there are still 11.5 months to go and that this will actually be hard. I’ll be taking your advice. Publicly commenting, even if we don’t know each other IRL, establishes accountability so I’ll let you know how it’s going later in the year. Good luck to everyone!
SarahT you need to stay away from sales!! Ha ha. Try and not buy anything for the next 4 weeks. Try and satisfy the need for something new by mending or altering something in your wardrobe. Is there anything you have that doesnt fit or doesnt work? Can you find a good local tailor and see if they can do something? Lmk how you get on!
Hello! New to The Rule of 5 and it is both fascinating and inspiring. I have a modest budget so my buys are mostly out of season pieces in high street sales. Last year I concentrated on buying classic pieces like a trench, white t-shirt, wide trousers and blazer to fix all the gaps in my wardrobe. I’m so glad I did as I can look at my wardrobe proudly and not feel the need to panic buy things for events. The only thing I’ve bought so far this year is that ‘must have’ polka dot Zara dress from a few years back, second hand from eBay. It may be passé but it fits so well and will be a perfect dress for spring! Thank you for the inspiration!
This is great shopping tactics! And I love the polka dot dress for a bit of personality to layer on top of your wardrobe classics
No purchases yet, but I have a trip to the Galapagos in March (rescheduled from 2020). I'm hoping not to have to buy anything new for that and make due with what I have. But, if I do, this seems like a worthy event for a purchase!