Changing Tack

In the past 40 odd days since lock-down began most of us have needed very few clothes besides leggings, hoodies and for the very virtuous, work-out clothes.

The dignified among us are still adhering to the waist-up rule of wearing something ever so slightly more formal  than a pyjama top for work video calls, the rest of us, not so much. Retailers reported record high returns of occasion wear after big events such as the Grand National were cancelled, weddings postponed and celebration after celebration were put on Ice.

With spring and possibly summer cancelled party dresses just weren't needed, understandable and well within consumer rights providing they were unworn, but the refunds must have been a bitter pill to swallow for the brands fighting to keep their heads above water. 

With no place to go and no where to be, shopping in lock down has been a much more leisurely pursuit for me than before, i never NEED a new top but before we were all confined to our homes and our social lives swept from under us, we have all bought a new top for a night out, logged onto the same website we always use, quickly choose something we vaguely like, selected next day delivery and boom, in 48hrs said new top is nestling among our other clothes all shiny and exciting.

Despite having no plans, i live in hope that sometime in the future i will want to wear something other than stretchy pants, I decided to utilise the luxury of time to browse and widen my shopping horizons, ,with no need for next day delivery, and time to scroll through Instagram, I began to dig a little deeper than my usual go-to websites and rediscovered brands i had long forgotten about, new brands that i fell instantly in love with, some sustainable, some handmade, some out of my price range but great for inspiration, lots of Scandinavian brands which re-ignited my love of their aesthetic, amazing collections from British, European, Australian and American designers, plus a ton of gorgeous boutiques, and i started to make a list so i wouldn't forget about them, then i went one better, i put them all in one place, on Instagram so you can see them too @myfashiondirectory. Enjoy