A WARDROBE DETOX IS THE BEST NEW TREND

‘SHOULD I THANK my overdraft? The awful weather? Or the lack of sartorial pizzazz on shop floors? I have been ‘clothes sober’ since Christmas — attempting to stay loyal to my no-buy January resolution. The truth is, I’m mostly uninspired by new Spring collections.

January and February have traditionally never been the most thrilling months in fashion — most of us are carrying extra Christmas pounds and frankly not that excited about dressing ourselves. A lack of funds doesn’t help matters either.

I have spent most of my time in thermals, woolly tights and a blanket coat that is donkey’s years old. I’m suffering with wardrobe fatique and yet I have no desire to go shopping. It would be a different story if I was jetting off on holiday or a fancy wedding abroad, in which case I could wistfully browse the Cruise collections instead of the stale remnants of winter left in stores. For those of us who lead less globe trotting lives, the prevailing trend so far this year has been to spend less and wear what you already own. Now there’s a dose of New Year reality.

I’ve waxed lyrical on the therapeutic joys of wardrobe detoxing for a long time. It’s one of the most effective ways of rekindling the love for pieces you’ve forgotten about and reinventing new ways of wearing old favourites. Growing tired of those worn-to-death winter pieces is common at this time of year — as I write, there’s a beige trench coat covered in red wine stains, staring back at me, hanging sadly on my kitchen door. Maybe I’ll fall in back in love with it again, but right now I’d rather brace the cold without it. A cheaper and more ethical way of refreshing your wardrobe starts with recycling older staples — remember the old tartan duffel coat you bought three years ago? These are the treasures that will add depth to your February wardrobe. I rooted out an old vanity case recently in search of an Alice band (yes, I’m jumping on the bandwagon) and I cannot you how much of my life sits in dusty boxes underneath my bed, languishing without love. I’ve resurrected some beauties; bow-embellished kitten heel mules that I’ve been wearing with skinny jeans; a cream and mocha Hermes scarf (a 30th birthday present) and a vintage faux crocodile belt that I found in Parisian vintage shop once upon a time have worked their way back into my daily edit adding zing to slouchy boyfriend jeans and black dresses.

So I suggest having a good old rummage through your wardrobe — and while you’re at it, you could sift through your boyfriend/husband’s too. I’m a sucker for all that masculine-feminine styling, especially at this time of year when there’s not much else happening in fashion. If your other half has a penchant for hoarding – like mine – you’ll find plenty of pieces that spark joy.

“I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH OF MY LIFE SITS UNDER MY BED IN DUSTY BOXES”