Late 40s, petite size 4-6 for reference. I shop almost entirely online at:

Anthropologie
Nordstrom
The RealReal
Saks

Anthro is great for petites, Nordstrom and Saks have a nice mix of designers I like (AG, Paige, Veronica Beard, L'Agence). All have great sales when I make most of my purchases. Nordstrom and Anthro have free shipping and are super-easy for returns, which is key as I have to return a fair amount to get the right sizes. I like that I can return Nordstrom items to Nordstrom Rack stores since there is one right by my house.

TRR is great for getting great prices on higher-end items that are new or like new (I only buy things rated Excellent or Pristine and have never been disappointed in the condition). Returns are fast and easy but you have to factor in the cost of shipping both ways.

I google the thing I like plus vogue - get a sense of the ideal style of it and brands then try to find it on eBay

50 year old - Most of my clothes are from Madewell. I also get a lot on Poshmark, Thredup, and eBay, too - different brands, including Outerknown, Alex Mill, Faherty, Athleta (I like their sweaters), Madewell, and some others. I got a beautiful Rachel Comey sweater this year for about $30 on Thredup - it's so thick and luxurious.

Used to get a lot of clothes from Everlane and J Crew but I haven't gotten anything from either in a while. I still like what they have but I really hate navigating their websites.

This is super random, but I get some sweaters and t-shirts from a Swedish brand called Dedicated, and some summer dresses from an Australian company called Karma East,

Anybody shopping old town Alexandria boutiques? I’m interested in the price range but haven’t been in any of them.

I do most of my shopping at boutiques that carry brands I like (I no longer live in DC) where I can easily go in and try things on. Online shopping does not work for me. Maybe 10-20% of what I try on fits well. Other than boutiques, I do a fair amount of shopping at Saks and I go to Nordstrom for shoes and lingerie.

Once upon a time, I shopped at stores like J Crew and Ann Taylor, but the quality is so bad these days that I avoid them.

You can’t guarantee a store has your size, so I tend to order online from a brick and mortar store, and then go return in person anything that didn’t fit or looked horrible. I tend to use Ann Taylor and Talbots. I’m vindicated by the fact that when I make an order, it comes to me from multiple stores - had I gone in person to my local store, the stuff I bought wouldn’t have been there anyway.

Ann Taylor
JCrew
Loft
Tj Maxx
Macys

I order online for the most part. Last purchases were a Reiss wool coat ($650, meh quality), BR and Club Monaco sweaters (wool ok, cashmere atrocious quality at both) and Clarks shoes. I also bought $350 heels that were supposed to be anatomically correct and very comfortable but were awful so went back to their Italian maker.

I have been wearing either really old jeans or cheap Nautica jeans because I can’t be bothered to try on the fancy brands. I guess I should order some from Nordstrom and return to the store if they don’t work.

In person, I like COS

As I mentioned in previous post, I now have my best luck at Talbot's Outlet. I also have some luck at Ann Taylor Outlet. I do also shop Ann Taylor Loft. Before that I had luck buying separates from J Jill. I live outside the DMV and these stores are only about 30 minutes away from me.

I can't explain why I have better luck at the outlets. I think it might be because the main store product lines have unfortunately trendier styling and higher prices plus mainly dry clean only clothes (I like clothes that can be hand washed according to the care instructions.)

Visiting Macy's in person in combination with follow-up online shopping works to overcome the many problems with current Macy's (uncertain quality, size sold out, etc.).

Many of my friends swear by Nordstrom's but I am petite and their petite departments have always been pathetic. I bought a $150 open weave sweater from there last year on 50% sale and it began to stretch out with the first wearing. In contrast, a cheap cotton ribknit Macy's sweater I bought for $20 still looks perfect (could pass for a Talbot's preppy style item). This is part of the nonsense of contemporary fashion. Quality is poor and the price-value relationship is broken at department store prices and below.

I have never considered stepping up to a higher price point because the professional environment I'm in wouldn't recognize the expense or effort. Also, it wouldn't get me out of the continual dry cleaning bind. I enjoy reading threads about where national-level female politicians get their suits and dresses. If I had unlimited funds, that's probably how I would style myself.

Anonymous wrote:In my 50s, and head straight to the sale racks at:
J Crew
Talbots
J Jill
Ann Taylor
Chico's
White House/Black Market

I can't remember the last time I paid full price for anything. If you're willing to hit thrift stores, I've found great deals on Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Kors, and more

How do you find the time for this???

Trying on clothes in a store is gone. Even being in a store makes me mad. Like walking into a department store, the store knows how many clothes it has in my size. But instead I’m supposed to paw through a zillion racks, find something that looks like it might work, and then paw through some more to see if my size happens to be in stock? What gets me is that it’s such a woefully inefficient use of data. Online shopping needs to get better at communicating the details of clothing and the fit, but at least it gives me more of the info it does have.

Stores are just silly. Like I find a black tee shirt but it’s not in my size but there are 4 other black tee shirts that would fit me in the store but to find them I have to walk around scanning all of the clothes in 15 different brand sections to see if they even have black t shirts and then see if it’s in my size and then find out by surprise that it has rhinestones on the back or something? No thank you.

Late 40s. Nordstrom for jeans, which I desperately need to do as my middle section seems to be expanding and basically loft for sweaters. I don’t buy that many clothes and am still wearing my j crew from a decade ago. Time to make some changes in 2024.

In my 50s, and head straight to the sale racks at:
J Crew
Talbots
J Jill
Ann Taylor
Chico's
White House/Black Market

I can't remember the last time I paid full price for anything. If you're willing to hit thrift stores, I've found great deals on Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Kors, and more

TJ and Marshall’s post got me thinking. Where do most of you shop for clothes? I used to buy things at Target or the mall but I hate clothing from Target now and also don’t like paying retail prices for cheaply made clothes, even from some stores like j crew and banana. Now, I have waited for sales or sometimes shop online but I like actually trying on clothes.