Hmm, I don't really think of Soft Surroundings, J Jill and ... as classic and preppy.

Nope, they are not. As I mentioned above their clothes are not tailored but I've leaned toward softer edges over the years as my taste has changed.

Chico's clothes do nothing for me. They remind me of retirees on the beach. I suspect they appeal more elsewhere in the states than here.

Mrroger, I love the forth picture down. Love camel and black together (although that might be a dark denim). Camel and white always look nice as well. It's what I think of when thinking timeless.

What is it about the French? I had a lovely friend from France who was also named Ines. She shopped at the Goodwill, had four kids under the age of 10, was MISSING A TOOTH and still looked 10 times better than me.

(She was waiting to go back to France to get her tooth fixed because it was thousands of dollars less expensive.)

I have her book:)

Definitely an inspiration. Anthro is not in my way usually..you mix this and that

(I do have some "girly" days though..going for longer dresses and skirts..that's when I feel very quiet inside. Or want to project that I feel quiet inside? Well both I guess. There's something very calming about long skirts and dresses. Unless they're formal, but I don't own formal and don't want to.)

I love jeans(well I'm almost always in jeans. unless I'm in a dress lol), blazers, sweaters, tees, scarves..wear almost exclusively flats

I wouldn't call it "preppy" though..preppy is a bit more structured? here, as in Ines de la Fressange, you look like you just thew something together. in a nonchalant way. yet very elegant, at the same time

French, yes, they know how to live..including how to dress

I was quite happy when I felt like I fit when in Paris. Real French probably wouldn't care about it-that's the difference:) But I was younger, and quite obsessed then..learning language and all..that was my dream that came true. It started with songs-I felt in love with some songs and consequently, with the language..so I started learning..and then I obviously was passionate about going there. It was beautiful. I watched people like crazy(I always do though)..it was very freeing too ..you blend with the crowd..you just wander the streets for many hours..and I must say it was easier to smoke since most people there do..you don't feel like a sinner.

I'm a bit hesitant to go there again(been twice)...it was so amazing I'm afraid I'll chase this feeling-and it won't be the same..

I also forgot so so much of my French..makes me so upset. Oh I still can read if the book is not difficult. But it's not the same..

(i LOVE camel

my favorite coat is camel plus black. some brand I never heard of before? very cool. Found it on a big sale, these flash sites I forget which. OK I went to check the label-Sono DRS. Check them out. but as it was several years ago they might have gotten worse too..))

Another Revolve lover here too! I've been exposed to lots of designers I would not have know about through Revolve and ShopBop. Like Amanda Uprichard, AQ/AQ, Cinq a Sept and Pexioto for bikinis.

I love the French style. Timeless, tailored and interchangeable.

My closet is only 5' wide. Everything that goes in there has to mean something to me. Or at least be something I'm really going to love. Unfortunately my weight issues mean that I have two mini wardrobes for when my body picks its own size.

April, on the days you go look at furniture at SOCO - and have lunch at Pueblo- you should head to the Costa Mesa Rack and Off Saks - in the old Loehman's location. That was the best Loehmans ever. I will now cry a little.

edited to add I drive from North OC to Laguna Hills to get my nails done. So my perception of what is far is different from others.

Oh I know where it is. I mean-I saw the sign.

My hair stylist is in West Hollywood..:)

the difference: I don't drive. For years already. So I avoid everything that can be avoided..since I depend on others...also am so tired after all the tile stores and slab yards and whatnot...sitting it out, all of it. Didn't go out for my birthday. and probably gonna skip Mother's Day brunch too..well we'll see since it's about my MIL as well.

When it's not about me-then I'll make an effort. Guests, family, etc.

Hair stylist-still go. Just not often. Remind myself how Lord Mortimer was shaving with ice cold water when locked up in London Tower, lol..question of dignity. There are routines that should be kept..

I wonder if you might like the youlookfab blog?

I used to like Christopher & Banks, until a couple of years ago I was looking around one of their stores and thought a LOT of their things were old-lady things. I'm 61, and I thought the things were too old for me.

Remember that thread - I think it was this forum - when somebody posted a knit floral 3-quarter-length-sleeve top and asked if it was too old-lady? That's what I see at Christopher & Banks.

crl. I do like that blog. The author is close to my age and lives nearby. I haven't read it in a while; I should revisit it. Thanks for the suggestion!

I purchased a few things at Boden. I'm not sure of their sizing, so we'll see.

By the way I'm turning fifty this year, so if anything I'm posting seems age-inappropriate, feel free to stage an intervention now. :)

1929, I'm with you on Loehmanns. Daffy's too. I once purchased a Giorgio Armani suit at the Aventura Loehmanns for practically free. I still wear it all these years later. Plus, there was the thrill of the hunt. I'd hit up Loehmann's in every city I visited. DC had a great one. In Beverly Hills women would cut to the front of the line while their limo's waited and the other customers would practically start a riot. Those were the days, lol.

I had never heard of Chico's until Michael Phelps' mom was all over the Olympics in it. mtn, fake nose and glasses—too funny.

mrrogers, no intervention necessary. Cute choices!

I don't know if any of you live in the Southeast, but I usually go to my local Belk flagship store and have pretty good luck there. I do need to go because I like to get some new business casual clothes before my main conference at the end of the month.

My former boss' wife told me about some great Columbia and ExOfficio pants she got that are wrinkle free for travel, so I need to go check them out.

I also recently bought an Untuckit shirt and they do run a little small, but I like the look. The white linen is pretty sheer and I'd need to wear some sort of nude cami underneath it. https://www.untuckit.com/collections/women

I got lucky in Marshals the other day with a $29 Ann Klein 3/4 sleeve shirt and. $14 cardigan to wear with my crop jean.

Wow April. Not driving in So Cal! I'm impressed.

So you need to use the lure of good food to convince others to drive you. Pueblo would satisfy that, but the food in south coast plaza generally sucks. We do want to try Vaca for tapas

I would live to live in a city with great public transportation and lots of stuff in walking distance. But I joke with my friends in NYC that I couldn't last six months without a back yard and some quiet.

I love Foxcroft no iron shirts. I have recently spent over $60.00 for them at Nordstrom. A couple weeks ago I walk in to Costco and there was a big table full of different colored Foxcroft 3/4 sleeve shirts for $ 14.95. Irritating to see them at that low price after spending more. I bought 4.

Wow Maddie, I'm in Costco all the time and never look at the women's clothing. Will have to check it out.

I do agree one doesn't always have to spend a lot. I needed something for light trail /forest walking while on vacation but wanted something cute.

I already had these $15 shorts but bought this waxed vest for $17.99 and an eBay scarf.

Top $9.99

Not my exact hat but it's like this but collapsible. Cheap from Venus.

If I lived in another state where I would get more daily use of items above I would invest in better quality. Sometimes though, it doesn't make sense to go crazy.

A good friend always gets great things at Costco. But she goes weekly. Sometimes she will call or text me to see if I am interested in something while she is there.

I hate shopping for clothes. I actually think I might hate clothes, period. I'm insecure about clothes, so I think I intentionally don't try very hard.

But...mrrogerscardigan, can you provide links to those striped tees and the gray cardigan?

I didn't know Chicos was gauche until I read it on the 'Net. I like bohemian stuff and they occasionally have something I like. But not lately. There's a fine line between boho and bad ho . . . was that too off color??

My problem with stores like Chicos is that I don't buy outfits. If I buy something and it doesn't work in with the pieces I already have, then it goes back.

My fake French self would disapprove.

"Bad ho." I love it.

I can't go into my local Chico's because they pounce on me and won't leave me alone. No matter what store I'm in, I want to be left alone until I need help, at which time I will ask for it directly. If they stalk me, or call out to me across the store, I'm outta there.

Hah, except Banana Republic where, apparently because of my age, I'm officially invisible. A guy I know who's in his 50s and very boyish looking told me the same thing happened to him at BR. Even when I get into the dressing room, no calling out, "how are we doing?" Nothing. Although the lighting in their dressing rooms is the most flattering I've ever seen.

"Bad ho" hehe

Sure, here you go Linelle:

Cashmere crop cardigan

Long Sleeve Short Line Breton

Essential Boatneck

I bought something in Chico's only once. I was young and pretty. I was..29 maybe? Our first time here.

Anyway. It was a jean jacket, all embroidered with different color flowers:) I wore it a lot. Especially with white jeans-I used to have white jeans then.

I never got rid of it. I don't wear it anymore(even though maybe I'll try one day..) but my daughter does.

She loves more my other jacket though(I also loved it more and wore it constantly)..this thing I bought when I was 22 and pregnant with her. It's a fall jacket in plaid..I found it by chance in some small shop in Jerusalem, and the label said "Topshop"-had no idea at time what that brand was.

I don't want you to count exactly how old the jacket is lol..but let me tell you -they definitely did better job making clothes then.

Chico's pants fit me very well. I buy them in black and white -NEVER their tops! Occasionally, they have a nice tailored blouse in a solid color.

I like Garnet Hill for sweaters. Eileen Fisher makes the occasional nice, simple dress. For total classic prep, I would go to Brooks Bros - need a little more comfort. I love LLBean's cotton sweaters - cotton sweaters are so hard to find. I have their zip, cable cardigan in 3 colors. J McLaughlin is nice but pricey and runs small.

I have my "good" clothes made by a dressmaker. I chanel the Queen for these but my jewelry isn't up to her standard!

I like both Garnet Hill and Eileen Fisher. But they're definitely for taller women

It helps to know what works for you that's for sure. Brands, sizing. I hate dressing rooms..I'd rather stick with what I know, look for it online. Of course takes some time to figure out which brands what size..especially when you move..

but some stuff I know by heart. as in : Vince(that runs big)- xs, Saturday Sunday(Anthro's lounge-y stuff) xs , Philip Lim 3.1-size 2, AG-size 27, Cop. Copine-36..38 might work occasionally..very convenient.

Helps to know what runs big what runs small. If I'm not sure I look up reviews on the web.

Some shoes are tricky. For example I wear Repetto a lot and their sizing is allover the place(but very very comfy so I stay loyal to the brand..and they're good for narrower feet..I can't wear ballet flats made by anybody but them..and I wear almost exclusively flats). so while all the other shoes are 6/36 for me, with them I learned that sandals should be 36, and ballet flats should be 36.5, and all the rest should be 37. A bit of a PITA but then it makes life much easier..you sit at home you click a button and you know also when they have "Friends and family" etc to get it on sale too.

It's rarely that I want something new and interesting lately. I want to repeat what I've got and like lol. But they have tendency to change it so it becomes less versatile. Some also would change the content of the fabric. Looks similar, yet feels differently. Taught me to check the content of the fabric too..

I'm not crazy about shopping for clothes, so I buy most of mine from the catalog/website Soft Surroundings. Some from Talbots, as well. I have short (6 1/2), wide feet with high arches so my go-to shoe place is Clarks.

I tend to like brands sold in smaller, non-chain stores. I like the brands Cut Loose, Habitat (sometimes), Flax sometimes...agh, drawing a blank on other brands. I like Lucky Brand, too. I'm not a preppy dresser, though. I'm all about comfort, mixed with a fun/interesting detail. In tops, that is. My pants are almost always jeans or black pants.

I like Eddie Bauer sometimes, too. And Boden, Sundance, and Anthropologie.

LOL "they remind me of retirees on the beach. "

Yeah, they have a lot of awful stuff. But like a poster said above, they do have some nice button-downs.

Another who is not preppy - at all. I do like classic, or timeless but love unique pieces such as a jacket, top or even a great scarf or necklace to jazz up an outfit. I do not like to shop and buy much of my clothing online or in local boutiques/shops. I love to find something "different"! I'm not big on department stores although I occasionally order from Macy's (we don't have one here) or Belk.

I went to Talbots and Chicos on Saturday. Their things look very nice but they are huge! Everything in Chicos fit me like a bag. I can wear tops from Talbots, but never the bottoms. I ordered a pair of pants from Soft Surroundings,same thing, HUGE.

I get most of my ( NYDJ) jeans on eBay, I have a 34inch inseam. I would love to find a store that carries pants to fit me.

I hate clothes shopping and would prefer to spend my $$ on my house then on cheap clothes. And clothes are very cheaply made these days...hard to find a retailer that offers good quality. I'm a very casual dresser at home but prefer to wear dresses at work; tried looking last weekend at the Bay and all of these pretty dresses were made out of 100% polyester. UGH.

I hate clothes shopping too, and can't even recall the last time I went out with great purpose, determined to add to my dressier wardrobe. (It may have been two or three years ago, when I had to dress very professionally on a business trip.) I'm not even sure what "my" style is anymore. It's definitely not preppy but it's also not frou-frou. I'm starting to become more and more aware of patterned fabric, and the way that it so often seems to wear a person, instead of the person wearing it. I have kind of an affinity for the flowy, gypsy style of Stevie Nicks but feel like I'm wearing a costume whenever I wear even one piece in that genre. So I remain unmotivated to shop for clothes, and would much rather buy for my home or add to my jewelry collection.

Isn't it refreshing that we aren't all the same? How boring life would be if we were.

My favorites stores are Marshall's, TJMaxx, Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack and a boutique store near our house that sells Habitat, Cut Loose, Parkhurst and Tribal. I do like Chico's for their skinny jeans. Also love NYDJ and Michael Kors clothing. I sometimes score on Eileen Fisher, depending on the style. She has great marino wool dresses for travel. I wear scrubs to work but have a huge weekend clothing wardrobe.

I'm not so much into the flowing, sack like styles that I seem to find everywhere. I guess I'm more into the preppy/classic/fitted look. The picture above of the dark jeans and brown V-neck sweater is just my style. I also like jeans with a fitted T or sweater that I can tuck in and wear a nice belt. I like jeans that fit and aren't all baggy but I do not like skinny, tight jeans. Some of the stuff I see on people makes me uncomfortable just looking at it.

Along those lines I've noticed over the years that regular women's tops often look more like maternity wear of days gone by (tunics, princess waist, unfitted, flowing, etc.) and maternity wear I see on people is fitted and tight. Go figure....

bonnie_ann, I work at home but I've always been envious of people who wear scrubs to work.

I'm with Sueb20...same

oh, and because I am over weight, I love flowy tops and skirts. Skinny jeans only look good on truly skinny people IMO. I wish I could find a pair of jeans like the ones I wore years ago from Aeropostle, the were straight up and down, no tapered leg. Years ago, they were considered straight leg, not anymore...

I also had a pair of Levi's that had the wider leg, they were so adorable, all torn up & patched, just like I would have done to my own in the 70's. I gained too much weight & gave them away...I wish I had kept them.

I hate tight clothes, esp. tops. I don't want to feel the clothes constraining me when I move. Tight sleeves are everywhere.

Even though I'm thin I like a slightly boxy fit. I love the colors and fit LL Bean has for men, esp. outerwear, but the equivalent for women has frou-frou colors and is nipped at the waist.

I have 2 pairs of Levi "curvy fit" jeans from a couple years ago. They are perfect for my pear shape...so of course they changed the "formula" and newer ones don't fit me well. I wish I had bought 10 pairs of the previous model!

I hate tight clothes too. I tend to wear things on the loose side, which isn't terribly flattering on me, but I really don't care most of the time!

I have long, slender legs with narrow hips and a small bottom so skinny jeans and leggings look good on me. I love them, but wear them only with blousey tops that cover my bottom. At my age, anything else would look inappropriate with them, IMO. I'm not considered overweight, but I have to admit that menopause has done a number on my waist and I would so love to tone it up. I started running on my eliptical again, and doing sit ups to help . . . but instead, gave myself a major abdominal strain that put me out of commission for 3 weeks. That was so incredibly painful! My DH said that I was lucky I didn't give myself a hernia! As for tops, I don't like to wear the tight ones. Those were all well and good when i was young and wider cut slacks and jeans were in style, but for me, not now. As I mentioned earlier here, I buy a lot of my clothes via Soft Surroundings online. I'm just not liking the very long backs that are showing on many these days. I have a few that I'm actually taking to a seamstress this week to have shortened some.

As for my style, I went through a kind of hippie stage in my teens, but even then my jeans were always clean and pressed (lol). Then "surfer girl", living on the ocean in Florida in my Twenties. My 23 y/o daughter would tell you that I've definitely dressed "preppy" for as long as she can remember. Most likely, Southwestern Preppy, though! That is, except when I'm gardening. Then, my style runs heavily towards bag lady!

High quality and good fit, the holy grail of women's clothing, rarely achieved. Which is why I so loathe clothes shopping. Hours of shopping and I end up getting one thing, maybe.

Exactly the reason I go for what's tried and true..even though years pass by-and one day it's not true anymore lol

So many brands just don't cut it anymore yet the prices continuously go up..

I like second hand because it was made earlier..or I like boutiques since they're still about quality looking for their niche..still about some standards..but that's gonna cost you of course

on the other hand I'd rather pay once for something I'll love for years.

the difference-once, you didn't have to pay that much and you could still wear it for years

Ditto, Ida. Ditto. :-(

Ida, that is absolutely the thing that bothers me the most. I don't mind my "smile lines". I can live with thinner lips. I can color my hair. But losing my waist makes me sad sometimes. Yes, humbling is exactly right. I always thought if I kept my weight down, my shape would stay the same. It's like my middle sucks the shape out of my rear and legs. And then laughs when I try to wear an old favorite pair of pants. The butt and legs look baggy and no way is the zipper going all the way up. Sigh