Anonymous asked: Hi! I just wanted to let you know that you are so inspiring. I was just wondering, do clothes at Zara ever go on sale? I'm still in highschool so I don't have a job. The clothes there are gorgeous, however, rather costly :(

They go on sale within two months after reaching the store. I feel like their products have so little value.

Zara has one of the fastest production processes. Their clothes travel from the design table to the stores in just two weeks. It is a company based on fast fashion, their business model is based on buying and trashing, on clothes that need to be replaced quickly so you have to go back for more. Though I must say that their leather goods are pretty well made.

What I would do if I were you and if there is no way you could save up to ‘invest’ in more expensive pieces, is go thrifting instead.  Look for clothes that were made before all the mass production, <2000. You’ll notice that there is much more attention for good cuts. Also the fabrics are made to last, so even if the garment has been worn before, it will stay in good condition. You’ll find unique pieces that no one else has! Oh and it is much cheaper than Zara. Don’t know where you’re from but I haven’t payed more than 15 euros for my silk blouses, once purchased a Chanel watch for 10 euros and my perfectly fitting nappa leather jacket from the 1980s that has been confused for Acne more than once was only 25 euros.

a piece of a thrift guide I wrote in 2010:

So how to find these garments, separate the trash from treasures and find that ‘lucky’ find? Every thrift store is packed with great finds. The key is to recognize and find beauty, it is everywhere. 

1.Look for fabrics.
Those fugly neon track jackets might grab your attention so much that you overlook the black blouse in fine silk hanging right beside it. Try to discard everything you are not looking for from your view. Now, go through the racks or piles and look for prints, good quality denims, nice worn down leather, silk blouses or wool blazers. Ignore the fits and sizing. Start off by only looking at fabrics.

2.Fits
You now have a pile of garments in the right colors and materials. To make a selection on which clothes you are taking with you try to estimate the size and fit by viewing it. (Keep ignoring those size labels!) A ‘too small’ blazer for little boys could be a nice short and fitted blazer on you. A huge ‘too big’ grandpa blazer could be your next wool winter coat á la Yamamoto and Comme des Garçons. Vintage and secondhand clothes rarely fit according to their labels because they often come from another era or region. 

3. Select
Try some things on, think of how they will look belted, look for stains and damages and make a selection. Keep in mind that the garment will look more polished after washing and ironing it. Also hit up accessory section, where for sizing applies one size fits(almost) all. Belts, bold 80s and 90s jewelry, antique jewelry, leather purses, silk scarves, brooches etcetera.

GOSH THIS WAS A LONG REPLY.

maybe dedicate a blogpost to a new thrifting guide?

Anonymous asked: The lookbook on Nastygal, is that you actually endorsing it, or are they just exploiting your image?

Yes, they did ask me if they could feature me on their blog and newsletter, and also asked if I could give their readers tips on how to wear white, After this and a previous guest post for them I will be blogging for them once every month

*don’t have anything to do with Nastygal’s lookbooks though

Anonymous asked: Why are all the things you wear so expensive?

not everything I wear is expensive. the thrifted shorts that I wore in my last post were only 5 euros. I make a lot of clothes myself , and even though i invest in good fabrics it is still very inexpensive.

I like to invest in clothes that last. That are not disposable, that hopefully my grandchildren would even wear. I appreciate craftsmanship and good design, and want to support that. Sometimes that means saving up for a certain piece. I usually only buy two items,(sometimes nothing) of clothes per month. I choose to invest in one high quality piece instead of 10 low quality substitutes that will never be as nice. 

I just hate the state of the high street stores right now. They are cheaper yes, but someone else is actually paying the actual price of those garments. You buy it for 39.99 but the cost to actually make that garment is much higher, they are displacing that cost on someone else; the workers that get underpaid are paying for your shirt, the health insurance that the workers are not getting are paying for your shirt, third world countries are paying for your shirt by having to deal with the toxics that clothing factories leave on their land. Then there are ‘the design teams’ they don’t even let them do proper research or come up  with their own collections or ideas, that is too expensive and time consuming, instead they just look at the runways and cherry pick the strongest pieces and have them in stores before the original designer itself even has finished producing. It is only cheap because other people are paying for half of the production. On top of that, like I said in one of the previous answers; their business model is based on buying and trashing, the clothes are designed to be tossed away within a season. There is no story behind a garment, no appreciation for craftsmanship, no appreciation for design. Just empty superficial money making. Not sustainable. Excessive. Those cheaper clothes are in fact the decadent ones.

*Not saying that I only wear designer, I don’t; my closet is a mix of designer, secondhand, self made, lots of American Apparel and Hema basics, and an occasional good high street find.