With it being October now, it is also time to slowly start building a autumn/winter wardrobe and like most people, I love going shopping for these A/W 2018-2019 wardrobe staples. Over the years that I have created the ‘wardrobe essentials’ posts on my blog, I have come to quite a few realisations as to how you get the most out of your AW wardrobe essentials. In today’s post I thought it would be fun to share the process I usually go through whenever I go start to go shopping for the new season and my upcoming AW wardrobe essentials post.

Clear out your entire wardrobe

The first step I usually go through is clearing out my entire wardrobe. I usually pack away my AW clothes from last year in March or April to make room for my SS clothes, so by September or October I have forgotten most of the clothes that I owned during last years AW season. So the first thing I always do is clear out my SS clothes and then also go through all of my AW clothes from the last couple of years. Doing this will probably leave you surprised in how many items you forgot about and can start wearing again. I always donate all the items that still look great, but I don’t think I will wear again.

Going through your wardrobe is such a great way of finding new items we love. It’s such a fun way to ‘go shopping’ as it does not break your bank whatsoever, since you already paid for the clothes!

Spend a little bit more money on knits

If there’s one thing I have learned over the years, it’s to spend a little bit more money on my knits. I always try to find a few more curated, longlasting items every season that I know will last me a few years. Back in the day, mostly when I was still in high school, I used to think that I needed to own a jumper in nearly every colour that was available. Thankfully I learnt my lesson, as most of these jumpers did not even make it all the way through the seasons.

Like I said, since the last couple of years I have really tried to invest in knits that I know will last me a little longer than just one season. This also means spending a little bit more money on knits. When I say I spend a little more money on my knits, I don’t mean that I immediately spend €100 on a knit. As much as I would like to buy myself all the cashmere jumpers, I’m only a student, and my budget definitely does not allow me to do that - just yet. It means that I don’t spend any money on €15 knits from Primark, but would rather invest €40 in a ZARA, Mango or H&M knit that has a bit of wool in it and I will know that will last me a bit longer.

Invest in a warm coat

If you live anywhere where it gets below 15 degrees Celsius, you need to invest in buying yourself a coat that definitely keeps you warm. Without a warm coat, you probably won’t survive most of the colder autumn and winter days. My dad always told me it’s best to spend the most money on a coat you know will keep you warm. Bear in mind that he knows nothing about fashion and could not care less about looking ‘on trend’. He likes to dress practical for every season and always invests in buying just some classy items instead of buying a lot of clothes. As much as I like to think I have a ‘minimal wardrobe’ or ‘minimalist style’, he’s the true minimalist in this family.

So anyway, my mother always told me to invest in a wool coat and I could not agree more. To me a wool coat is such an essential inside every gal and guy’s wardrobe, so I always like to invest a bit more money on wool coats. They keep you warm during the AW seasons, but they also always look great on everyone. A wool coat might break your bank at first, but if you take proper care of it, it will last for such a long time, which means it’s such an investment!

Invest in pair of (vegan) leather boots

There are two pieces of fashion advice my dad always gives me when it comes to fashion. It is: ‘Buy yourself a warm coat’ and ‘Always buy yourself a good pair of quality shoes’. I find buying myself a pair of quality shoes is especially during the AW season. So every year I try to make a little list of boots I know I want to walk around in. This usually ends up being quite a classy pair of boots. Two years ago for instance I decided I wanted to invest in a pair of Chelsea boots and last year I invested money in a pair of lace up booties. Both of these are such timeless pieces that I know I will get a couple of years wear out of.

Both of these pairs of shoes are made of leather, and I feel like boots made of leather last me the longest. I have always wanted to try a pair of vegan leather boots though, as I have heard so many lovely things about vegan leather and the longevity of it, but I have yet to stumble upon a pair of vegan leather boots.

Create an wishlist

So once you have cleared out your wardrobe, and you know what items you need to buy again, it’s time to actually start doing some shopping! Before I go shopping, I usually would have created a list of things I want to get for this season. I always try to write my own wishlist of items I want to invest in for the season. So I usually write them down in my notes on my phone. It’s easy to write down on your phone as it’s probably the only thing I always carry around with me everywhere. By creating a little list of items you want to have, you always can go back to this list whenever you're shopping.

Pre-shop before going shopping

Once the wishlist has been written it’s time to start looking for those items. I am probably the only person you will come across that hates going shopping in physical shops, as I cannot deal with large crowds, the overwhelming amount of clothes in every store or the pressure of having to find something cute when you’re in town.

That brings me to my next point. I usually go online to look for the items I want, before going into town. I call this my little pre-shop session. If ZARA, Mango or H&M for instance have any good stuff online that are on my wishlist, I decide to go into town and see if they have it in store so I can see how it looks on. This way I am always on a mission whenever I go into town instead of just having a wander around town and feeling annoyed at myself for not finding anything.

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