Investment shopping is a really popular topic in the fashion world.  It pretty much means spending tons of money on an item of clothing and wearing it heaps and heaps for the next 10 years plus, meaning that the cost per wear is quite small.

I can fully understand this concept but the idea of spending that much on one item makes me break out in a cold sweat.

From my recent experiences, times are changing with lots of high street stores leading the way in the fashion stakes. People like my friends no longer want to hear you spent a small fortune on an item.  Now it’s much cooler to say that you found your new pretty skirt from ASOS for $30 or Primark for $15.  People get very excited sharing their snazzy, sneaky, shopping ideas or tips with their friends or just random people they meet, who want to know where you got that skirt or pair of shoes.

Now that fashion is moving so fast (last week it’s leather and this week it’s peplum tops) it’s nice to be able to keep up, while not spending a fortune in the meantime.

I think even magazines are getting on board.   I absolutely love the Australian mag ‘Shop til you Drop’ – the pages are filled with items from K-Mart and Target to Cue and Country Road (the UK equivalent of high street stores).  Affordable items fill the pages, instead of higher priced designer items.

There’s definitely still a place for investment pieces in a wardrobe but they are better left for the staples, the pieces that are timeless. I had this dream ever since I was young to buy a designer handbag.  Every now and then I think about owning a vintage Chanel handbag.  However in real life, I know that the second I turn my back, my two little boys would have filled it with red and blue play dough, used it to play dress ups or decided that it needed to go in the back of the toy pick up truck, with the dirt and stones! So for now, I think I’ll stick to places like Oroton and Witchery which sell beautiful handbags in a price range that makes it easy to replace if the inevitable happens.

So what’s your thoughts, investment shopping or not?

Mary x

Mary is the person you want to take shopping and is the younger, but way more grown-up, sister of Eva. Mary has two cute little boys and spends all of her spare time during the day (a whole 30 minutes) reading up on the latest fashion trends, browsing ASOS and lusting over the Kardashian’s wardrobes. 

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