My first is a leather jacket. For years I bought 'pleather' jackets and there's nothing wrong with them, I regret getting rid of my PU one, you never know when you need one. But the amount of time I would wear one, then the amount of money I would spend on them replacing them once they started to crack and peel, it was time to put money into a real leather jacket. For me I can spend lots of money on bags & shoes but when it comes to clothes I don't like spending too much. My mum would always say, you're out wearing a £1000 handbag and you jacket is plastic.. fair point, but I do think you don't need to spend lots of money on your clothes to look stylish and just invest in your accessories. For my first leather jacket, I didn't want to pay the All Saints prices of over £300, so I went to Zara. They had a TRF real leather jacket for under £100, which to me was still a lot but it was the best price i'd found. I ended up getting a size Medium which was still quite tight (for reference I'm a size 8-10) everyone said you need to get your jacket quite tight because the leather will stretch. Well, mine didn't. And not even an exaggeration I HATED that jacket. Which then lead me straight into the arms of All Saints, where I should have gone all along, and I found my lovely leather jacket (ill find it and link it below if your in the market for a new leather jacket). The leather is so soft and you definitely get what you pay for.
My next must have is jeans. One in every wash (maybe that's a little excessive, I have 21 pairs of jeans..). I was very much a black skinny jean wearer, and recently I was experimenting with different colours & washes when it came to denim and even different shapes. I was a die hard Joni gal, and I don't know what made me do it but I found a mid wash ripped boyfriend jean in the sale in Topshop and I was converted. That lead me to getting 3 different colour of boyfriend jeans in H&M and discovering probably my favourite jeans from Stradivarius which turned out to be a straight leg with the most perfect length (5ft 3 me was very excited because I cant usually get jeans from Zara or Stradivarius) and the most perfect wash. I then went on to buy the same style in white and then I loved them that much I decided to get them in the darker wash, but when they came they were completely different to my old ones, the length was far too long for me and they just didn't look right (heartbroken). So I now have jeans in Skinny, Straight Leg & Boyfriend fits in a whole array of washes & colours, Black, Coated Black, Grey, Off White (Ecru), White, Light, Medium, Dark & everything in between wash. I've never really spent more than £40 on a pair of jeans but I do think I could invest in a more expensive black jean as I wear black the most then maybe expand into a light/medium wash. Where would you recommend getting jeans from?
On to the next, a black leather skirt. I am more of a mini skirt wearer, so I'm talking about mini but midi skirts look so chic! I'm using the word 'leather' lightly because I have only recently invested in a real leather skirt and it would be the most expensive item of clothing I own if I didn't get it in the black Friday sales. All of my other mini skirts are not real leather and I love them and I actually wear them more often then I do my real leather one. My real leather one isn't just a plain black a-line mini, its got white stitching and is more fashion forward (I will link it below) so I am on the look out for a fairly priced real leather plain mini skirt that I know I will wear endlessly. Even though I have always owned skirts for years I didn't wear them, I would wear my jeans everyday and I would hate when it would get to hot and I couldn't wear my jeans for work. I have a black skirt from Topshop (not leather) and I only took the label off it last Christmas and I love it! And now I can't find a skirt like that anywhere, my favourite faux leather mini skirt in my collection is again from Stradivarius (linked below). I have been LOVING leather shorts, I have ones from Stradivarius which are more of a baggy fit (I sized up as I didn't want booty shorts) and my others are a paperbag waist from New Look. Because I've been wearing my leather shorts so much, even throughout winter I decided to purchase some real leather shorts from River Island (there was two style I was deciding between I shall like them both below. The are really well priced for real leather) these are becoming a must have in my wardrobe.
A lace cami.. black, white, nude. I love a lace cami. They can be silky, cotton or jersey, a cami with a lace trim can instantly make your outfit look more put together. In the colder months you can wear it under a v neck jumper for that little added detail or alone with jeans and a leather jacket, I personally love a lace cami.
Roll neck/high neck jumpers (thin knit). For the longest time I didn't like anything high neck, roll neck, polo neck, it just wasn't for me. Then I was looking for some basic black items for work and I came across one in Primark and I thought, well ill give it ago, and I loved it! It looks so chic and classy. The Primark one is such good quality and was such an amazing price but I've never been able to find it since. I am now on the hunt for another and in more colours!
Plain & Patterned Blouses. I'm not being very specific because this would just depend on your style. Me personally I love a ruffle blouse and floral print, something that can change your jeans to something more. There's so many different variations and I'm always on the look out for more. I also love a lace/Crochet blouse that you can layer over a strappy basic cami (a must have). I'm going to link down below ones I'm loving as the ones I have in my wardrobe I don't think are available anymore. And if your into something more plain, a cold shoulder blouse is perfect for adding abit more effort to a plain outfit. We all need plenty of options for when we need 'jeans and a nice top'.
A T-Shirt, plain or with a slogan on. I'm a huge sucker for anything 'French' related, a French word, the Eiffel tower, I'm there for it. A basic tee with jeans and a leather jacket is one of the most classic outfits. I love a V neck with layers of necklaces, its a very chic and easy way to look stylish.
There's the obvious Black Dress. Mini, Midi or Maxi whichever suits your style more. I do like a midi dress with some ankle boots. I find because I'm short if I do a midi dress it would have to be a shirt dress or have to have some slits up the sides so the dress didn't take over my body. For a mini dress I can do any. I love a basic jersey swing dress with some over the knee boots, something so plain and simple can look really expensive. A ruffle wrap dress and a lacy dress are other wardrobe staples.
Down below I have linked most things I've mentioned plus some other items. I've only mentioned a few key items because I didn't want it to be too long a read, plus I would have probably ended up listing every item of clothing that I love!
The items would sometimes change depending on seasons, but these items I think would work in a wardrobe all year round. Just adding in different pieces for the different seasons. For example, I love my denim jacket in summer, but I wouldn't be bale to wear it all year round!
Instagram - @ellietaylorrxx
SHOP
All Saints Leather Jacket - https://www.allsaints.com/women/leather/allsaints-balfern-biker/?colour=5&category=25
Jeans - Topshop Jeans https://www.topshop.com/en/tsuk/product/clothing-427/jeans-446/black-jamie-jeans-8112464
H&M Jeans - mid wash https://www2.hm.com/en_gb/productpage.0534357002.html
light wash https://www2.hm.com/en_gb/productpage.0534357008.html
Stradivarius Faux Leather Mini Skirt - https://www.stradivarius.com/gb/new-collection/clothing/shop-by-product/skirts-%26-pinafore-dresses/view-all/faux-leather-skirt-with-zip-c1020047067p301027939.html?colorId=001
River Island Real Leather Shorts - https://www.riverisland.com/p/black-smart-leather-shorts-730961 (The ones I purchased)
River Island Real Leather Shorts - https://www.riverisland.com/p/black-leather-runner-shorts-730962
Stradivarius Lace Cami - https://www.stradivarius.com/gb/new-collection/clothing/shop-by-product/tops-%26-bodysuits/camisole-top-with-lace-trim-c1020206052p301054491.html?colorId=001
Topshop lace Cami - https://www.topshop.com/en/tsuk/product/clothing-427/camis-vests-6864668/lace-cami-8645558
River Island Lace Blouse - https://www.riverisland.com/p/black-lace-peplum-hem-lace-top-723539
In The Style Blouse - https://www.inthestyle.com/myrol-cream-floral-frill-cold-shoulder-wrap-blouse
H&M Shirt Midi Dress - https://www2.hm.com/en_gb/productpage.0738202001.html
Boohoo Dress Asos - https://www.asos.com/boohoo/boohoo-basic-scoop-neck-long-sleeve-swing-dress-in-black/prd/8801745?clr=black&SearchQuery=&cid=12936&gridcolumn=4&gridrow=5&gridsize=4&pge=1&pgesize=72&totalstyles=61
Topshop Tee - https://www.topshop.com/en/tsuk/product/clothing-427/jtaime-t-shirt-8718640
Missy Empire Tee - https://www.missyempire.com/lydia-white-spice-girls-graphic-t-shirt
& Other Stories Eiffel Tee - https://www.stories.com/en_gbp/clothing/tops/tops-t-shirts/product.cotton-tee-white.0601330007.html
V neck Tee - https://www.zara.com/uk/en/v-neck-t-shirt-p04873270.html
