Vicki Notaro shops online to see if high fashion really is there at the touch of a button
I may be on the sofa ostensibly glued to The West Wing next to my partner, but in reality, I’m inhabiting many different worlds via my iPhone.
I tweet, I Instagram, I even play
Candy Crush. But one of my favourite things to do on my phone is shop online.
Well, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I love to browse online shops, scouring the new arrivals and adding them to my basket. However, I’d say I only buy about 10% of the time.
Online shopping is still scary to many. Buying something is very often a tactile experience; we like to hold, stroke and try on an item before committing to it.
However, it’s thrilling to be able to buy a dress at 1am on a Thursday using your mobile, and we also know by now that if we hate it once it arrives, it’s not a Herculean task to return it.
For me lately though, it’s become risky business and that’s simply because I’m not the girl I used to be.
When I was 23 or 24, I’d log in to ASOS and buy a body-con mini-dress with sheer cut outs without a second thought, confident that because it looked nice on the model, it would look nice on my small size-10 frame.
Sometimes I’d even buy an 8 because, you know, it looked big.
It’s fair to say that many online-only stores cater to the young and lithe — short, inexpensive skirts and cocktail dresses, skin-tight tops and high-waisted jeans abound on the TV ads from the likes of Boohoo.com and Missguided.
These are clothes for people like the girl I used to be, ones that know they can pull shredded leggings off without question.
Now that my 30th birthday looms and I’ve settled at a size 12 though, I’m just not as confident with my picks.
Sure, the caped jumpsuit looks stunning on the model and maybe I could pull it off… but in all likelihood my lumps and bumps might ruin the effect.
My chest has ballooned to a 36E in recent years too, so what once suited me now looks quite indecent; to prove the point I tried on an ASOS dress I wore for my 24th birthday last week and my boyfriend actually spluttered when he saw it — “you couldn’t go out in that!” Quite right.
So I decided to conduct an experiment.
I would order an entire outfit or two from four popular online only stores in a size 12 in order to see how the garments fit, what the quality was like, and whether the cut was acceptable for a 30-year-old woman who didn’t want to be mistaken for a lady of the night.
I also included shoes in my experiment because along with bags, they seem to be a relatively innocuous thing to buy online — they’ll almost always fit, anyway.
However comfort and quality are key with such buys, so I wanted to put them to the test.
I tried on size 12 items in Marks and Spencer and River Island the same week as a control — M&S was a little roomy, River Island a perfect fit.
Full disclosure: I’ve been a long time ASOS shopper. Those purchases I make 10% of the time are mostly from here.
This time I decided to choose items I would normally steer clear of, and only from the own-brand range.
I’d been ogling a studded leather jacket for months, but at €276.50 it was a little rich for my blood, especially because it seemed to be cut at an awkward angle for anyone with big hips.
I took the plunge here, along with a jumper dress I feared would be shapeless, the aforementioned caped jumpsuit and a suede shirt dress.
I also got adventurous with shoes, picking some unusual leopard-print brogues I never normally know how to style.
The uber-trendy suede shirt dress wouldn’t close over my bust.
I got the feeling it would stretch, being suede, but I didn’t want to risk popping open every five minutes so it was discarded.
The jumpsuit was cut down to inches above my navel meaning I’d have had to go braless — not a hope — but it zipped up fine and fit well.
However the jacket, jumper dress, and shoes were all dreamy.
Beautifully made, comfortable and cosy, I fell in love with all three.
Excellent. ASOS is the big daddy of this kind of online store, and it’s easy to see why.
Most things! They make some fab basics, well-cut coats and gorgeous dresses.
Easily navigated website, good prices and a speedy service, as well as a good fit — the best of the bunch.
I’d never used this site because the vibe is very young and sexy, with lots of skin and hard bodies.
However, since I made my order, they launched tall, petite, and plus size collections.
Still, I don’t fall in to those categories really, at 5ft 6in and a bit and a 12.
My boobs may be plus size, but my body is standard, hence the awkwardness.
I ordered badly here, perhaps a little intimidated. I went for a casual dress and a tighter, cocktail style one.
Neither worked, the former too shapeless and the latter too tight.
However the faux suede coat I ordered, both rust and fringed (ticking those trends) was fabulous — nice and heavy, and very cool.
Still, I had to wear my own jeans and t-shirt for the photo which was a shame — I should have thought about this one more carefully.
The accessories were great too, good quality, stylish shoes that fit well.
Again, I think I ordered to suit the site rather than my own style, as I’m not a high heels kinda gal. I think I was the problem here more than Missguided.
Quality: Good for the price point, which is somewhere between ASOS and Boohoo.
Coats and shoes.
A little too young for me, but perhaps their new verticals will help with that.
I was nervous with Boohoo because it’s famous for its short, tight dresses, and when I bought a guna from it a couple of years ago, it wouldn’t go near me.
Also their prices are so low, you wonder what the quality is really going to be like.
I was really pleasantly surprised. I ordered a soft, butterscotch oversized shirt in suedette, leather- look trousers, a stylish bomber jacket, and some fringed ankle boots, and they were all gorgeous.
The only thing that didn’t fit was a fringed suedette dress I ordered as a back-up — I got it on over my boobs thanks to another pair of hands, but they were squashed and it was difficult to breathe.
When I had it in my hands, it was clear it was made for a younger, more trendy lady than I. The boots were my favourite. A gorgeous colour, great fit, and really comfy.
Great, from head to toe. Well-made clothes that didn’t feel like they’d fall apart after one wash, and the cheapest price point of all the websites.
Shirts and shirt dresses, and shoes.
I’ll be back!
This Irish-run website is not exactly the most glamorous of the bunch — the site is relatively plain and the model’s pictures a tad catalogue. However it’s easy to use, and the clothes arrive promptly.
I chose a Sixties look — a polo neck swing dress that’s both warm and flattering, and a fabulous coat in autumn’s hottest colour, rust, with a flowing collar and belted waist. To complement them, I picked out a pair of ever-so-trendy thigh high black boots in leather-look.
The clothes fit. The dress was on the short side, but it looked good with tights and I suspect the swing style is meant to skim the thighs.
So far so good, until I went to try on the boots.
On first impression, they were quite pleathery. I knew they were made from PU with a rubber sole, but at €65 I didn’t expect them to smell quite so plastic.
Then, to my shame, I couldn’t get them on. They wouldn’t zip past my calf, and I’ve never had that sort of trouble before — my calves are relatively small compared to my thighs!
My boyfriend tried to help me get them on, while telling me they were a bit Pretty Woman. But no, they wouldn’t obey.
The clothes were good, the boots were not.
Coats, although the one I bought was one size and would best suit a size 10 or 12.
I shopped pretty smart here, avoiding anything too tight or structured — still, the final result was good.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
