The 5 Fashion Brands I Buy Since I Broke Up with Free People
Talk about landing on your (fashion) feet!
A few months ago I sensationally quit Free People. Now, I say sensationally because for me it was equivalent to a break-up, but a break-up with the kind of boyfriend who you are infatuated with to the point you are willingly oblivious to all the things about them that are bad for you.
It was a ‘hard out’ though because as soon as I realised the often ill-fitting and sometimes poor-quality clothes were a drain on my finances and made me look and feel uncomfortable, I packed Free People’s proverbial bags and threw them out. Well, I put over 100 of them on Vinted so they could find new homes and I could claw back some of the not-insubstantial investment I’d made over the four years I’d thought they were the bee’s knees.
Where I had been so monogamous, I didn’t know quite how to dip my toe back into the fashion pool, but these are the five fashion brands that have proven themselves with their quality, style and affordability to be worth my time and money. If we’re leaning into the boyfriend analogy, these are the brands that text back straight away, wash your car when you’re at work and send you a kissy-face emoji at bedtime.
MANGO
Mango has been around since the 80s, but I can’t say I've ever been that taken with the offering until recently. It caught my eye when I was browsing the ASOS app and saw some styles that looked effortlessly smart/casual (I do love a wardrobe I can dress up or down) and fit my budget perfectly. I took a punt on a halter dress, which is now an absolute firm favourite and, keen to find out more, took a trip to the Oxford Street store to try on a few more items to get a sense of size and fit and picked up a few staple pieces that I love. Style-wise, they are very much in my comfort zone of nothing too ‘jazzy’, good quality for the high street and the kind of styles that’ll last season after season.
SCOTCH & SODA
My most recent discovery, I was lured into the Scotch & Soda boutique on Carnaby Street a few weeks ago via a black lace slip dress in the window display and then found myself elbow-deep in the rails. My main takeaway was that I want all the dresses and will almost certainly pick up one of their printed bomber jackets when Autumn rolls around.
I tried on a pair of high-waisted, wide-leg trousers and the fit was pretty amazing although I’ll need to get anything altered to accommodate my short legs - a wee 28 inches. All in all, the choice was a haven of smart/casual but with flare colours and styles and a few patterns thrown in.
Annoyingly, their website doesn’t seem to feature all of the collection and is only available in Euro (€), which makes it tricky to get a sense of what the brand is about unless you go into a store like the one or Carnaby Street or the larger store in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush.
ODD MUSE
I might have only made my first Odd Muse purchase in the last few days but I’ve been eyeing up their wares for a few months now thanks to some impressive social media marketing. I’ve said it already but my style is fairly simple; I don’t much like prints, my core wardrobe colours are black, white, grey, blue denim and leopard and I will always be drawn to clean, simple pieces rather than elaborate or extravagant ones.
Odd Muse is a capsule collection of dresses, tops, skirts and trousers that are so simple in their execution that each piece is an instant classic. Like the Halter Top, £55, I bought to get a sense of the look, quality and feel of the brand to the Collar Dress, £125, I'm almost certainly going to buy in the not-too-distant future.
Currently, each piece is available in either white, black or sage - although some pieces come in a lime, lemon or olive tone.
HOLLAND COOPER
I visit this website like it’s a news feed; checking in regularly in case there’s a new drop and poring over what I’ve seen before a hundred times. When I first had my massive wardrobe clear-out, it was evident I had a lot of black roll-neck jumpers, I just didn’t have one I loved.
Once the imperfect ones were despatched on Vinted, I bought the Victoria Cashmere Roll Neck, £159, - the removable shoulder pads meant I could use it to create a sharp shape or take them out for something more casual, plus the military style buttons are an effortlessly stylish motif. Indeed, it was the Victoria Magrath collaboration that drew me to Holland Cooper in the first place and her collection, in particular, is the kind of thing I’d happily fill my closet with.
I’m currently deliberating about whether to buy a wardrobe of the Relax Fit Tees, from £39 - again those military buttons smarten up an otherwise basic piece - because I am most often found in tees and these are the best I’ve seen.
ALBARAY
This is one of those brands that feels like home. Everything fits so well, washes like a dream and feels like you’ve had it for years from the first wear. I’ve worn this Jersey Vest Dress, £75, (pictured) so many times and it has the greatest feature for a dress known to women - pockets!
I went to the press day a few months ago and the trio behind the brand has their finger on the pulse of what women want and, with each collection, they are delivering elevated, high-quality basics in styles that flatter. They have some great satin pieces in their latest collection and though they don’t do prints, as such, their flare colours are denim and leopard, which is another reason to love them.
Definitely add Aligne to this list xx