Clothes for winter - what to wear

[miss direct]

The weather's getting cooler, so it's time for me to buy some winter clothes (I moved back to the UK in June, and only have thin trousers, t-shirts, trainers and a few jumpers.) I haven't been in the UK for a winter for a very long time. How cold will it get? (I'm up north...) Let's say I want to spend under £100, including a winter coat - where should I go shopping? Of course it's now not allowed to try clothes on - ok for tops but terrible for trousers/dresses. I hate clothes shopping

 

[Supine]

Puffer jacket. Essential item

 

[bimble]

I’d say spend all the money on one really good warm coat that you like, then the rest you don’t need to worry about, you don’t need a load of ‘winter clothes’ if you have a proper coat.

 

[miss direct]

I don't suppose I'll be going out much this winter anyway, come to think of it. The only job prospects I have are online, for now. So maybe just some warm pyjamas.

 

[andysays]

you might want to consider buying a really good set of thermals, something like Icebreaker's merino wool stuff.

That will serve you back about £100, but it's money will spent IMO, particularly if you've been foolish enough to move somewhere up north

 

[killer b]

I haven't needed to wear thermals in a couple of winters and I live in the north, dunno how much of a great investment they'd be tbh. Maybe if you're working outside all day, but otherwise they're not really on the must buy first list.

If you're wanting to stick strictly to a hundred quid you've not got a lot of great option I don't think miss direct - you could get an entire wardrobe from charity shops, but you'd have to get lucky. Otherwise, it's the red label section in TK Maxx or Primark if you want to get more than a handful of items.

 

[Plumdaff]

Like bimble I'd spend nearly all on a good warm coat, and anything left on some good thick tights (I'd recommend Snag online, pricier, but they will a/fit you properly and b/ last years), everything else you can layer.

P.S If you tend to walk everywhere, make sure you get a waterproof coat. The warmest coat is cold if you're drenched through.

 

[BristolEcho]

It took me years to buy a proper winter coat as I've always been skint and it's not been a priority. I did eventually buy a waterproof ski jacket type coat from Sport and Ski and I don't regret it. I've got a small autumn jacket too which I already had and was always my winter coat that I used to layer which also worked to be fair, but really looking back probably wasn't great.

I'm out a lot though cycling around all day every day so was a bit more important.

I don't think you need thermals unless you're out all the time. I would agree with getting a decent winter coat and then some hats, gloves and jumpers in the charity shop. The coat is a long term investment if it's good quality and I've struggled to find anything like it elsewhere.

Sales in cycling and hiking shop can be good too? I got a nice Reggatta (I think) waterproof that packs away which I've now upgraded but was reasonable at £20 on sale. They are usually to pricey out of sale.

It's taken me a few years to build up my winter clothing.

 

[kebabking]

I want to say hit the charity shops somewhere a bit posh - I've had some absolute bargains - but I'm not sure if many have opened up...

TKMaxx is often worth a punt.

The things are cheap, dead easy and will have an immediate impact are hats and gloves - a couple of pairs of 99p magic gloves from the market and a £5 woolly hat will make you feel vastly more comfortable in a cold, damp, windy northern winter.

I'd get a couple of fleece tops, with one of them oversized so you could double up the layers.

A £20 pac-a-mac will keep the wind and rain out - and I know they can look a bit dorky, but waterproof trousers (a tenner or so) have almost magical properties against driving wind and rain.

Wool socks stay warm even if they get wet.

 

[killer b]

I want to say hit the charity shops somewhere a bit posh - I've had some absolute bargains - but I'm not sure if many have opened up...

they're all open again

 

[campanula]

I don't wear coats, but for winter, a wool jumper would probably cost £100 but is my most essential winter garment. A good wool jumper ( spun from sheep from a cold climate ) should last for decades (I have one which is over 40 years old).
I have taken up sewing. Have just made a tunic and trousers from a pair of blue linen curtains (£2.50) from the Salvation Army - the ONLY charity shop in my town which still prioritises poor customers instead of checking Ebay prices and selling to middle class shoppers who think a £60 second hand coat is a bargain. When Primark is cheaper than Mind, Cancer Research, Oxfam, The Heart Soc., various animal charities (some of the worst), it was the final nail in the coffin for shopping in charity shops ( not that I could really overlook their willingness to sign up for workfare arrangements, exploiting volunteers, charging huge sums of money despite paying nothing for either stock, workers and even premises). Anyway, I found it was easier to find cheap (good) fabric while yarn for knitting costs around £70 for enough wool to knit a jumper. Even the nastiest, environmentally dubious yarn tends to be more expensive than some shop-bought, fast-fashion tat.

Tbf, my (wealthy, privileged) home-town has a vast gap between social classes, with impoverished people not really being served very well at all.

I don't buy new clothes from anywhere.

 

[purenarcotic]

New Look do a good range of coats; they last relatively well and aren’t totally extortionate. I like a parka type affair and find their ones nice and warm. Quite roomy too which helps with lots of layering. I find that as long as my feet and hands are warm, the rest of me tends to be okay, so I get good gloves and socks. You can get socks that have a tog rating which are lovely.

 

[spanglechick]

Do you drive? The need for an ultra warm coat recedes enormously if you’re not standing outside waiting for transport to arrive.
I’d go with second hand. If there are any styles or brands you like there’s probably a dedicated buy/swap/sell group on fb. You can post up an ISO (in search of) post for warm clothes in your size and see what people offer you.

 

[miss direct]

No, I don't drive. I walk and cycle these days.
I'll have a look on FB for some selling groups. Good idea.

I bought a few things in the sale from New Look online today.

 

[chilango]

I'm not sure I'd bother with a super warm jacket. I sold mine cos it wasn't getting worn, even in the mountains.

 

[kebabking]

Yeah, I'd echo chilango - some Uber warm jacket might be fantastic for sitting on a mountain top under a gun clear sky at -30c, but in chilly, damp Britain they are limited in their usefulness. It's far, far better to have a windproof/waterproof shell layer and an assortment of warm layers to go under it - we do get very cold days, but we get more where it rarely dips below freezing, where a fleece and a shell is far more appropriate than 5kg of goose down.

 

[chilango]

...and you'd have to take your super warm jacket off once walking/cycling.

 

[Hellsbells]

yes just wear lots of layers. You'll get hot and can then take layers off when you need to.

 

[chilango]

Decent waterproof + fleece/woolly jumper.

 

[LDC]

I'm not sure I'd bother with a super warm jacket. I sold mine cos it wasn't getting worn, even in the mountains.

Same here. The most I ever wear in the UK during winter (unless out in the hills or something) is a tshirt (maybe long sleeved), trousers, a thin wool jumper, and a synthetic filled hooded jacket of some sort. Maybe a waterproof if it's wet, and maybe thermal top and bottoms if it's really cold.

I'd buy a set of cheap thermals, wool jumper or 2 (Uniqlo do good ones or charity shops are full of them), a hat and gloves, couple of pairs of thick socks, and a cheap waterproof if you haven't got one. If you can stretch to some thin synthetic filled coat as well that'd be the lot I think.

 

[miss direct]

Maybe I should go to Decathlon and get some thin fleecy type things from there? I plan to do lots of walking in the Peak District so sporty type outdoor clothes will be useful.

 

[kebabking]

Decathlon are fantastic. The sizing can be a bit of a minefield however - for blokes the template seems to be long, skinny, and with no discernible man junk. Not sure about how they build women's clothes, but I'd assume they aren't going to be 'standard'.

 

[campanula]

Mmmm. there is a lot of 'technical' clothing around - various synthetics designed for outdoor pursuits. Whilst Gore-tex and ir's relations have their fans (especially if children and vast amounts of laundry are involved), there is nobody who can persuade me that organics have come to the end of the line. No amount of fleeces can begin to compare to wool...although even buying a simple jumper can be an ethical and environmental minefield. I do not wear merino or cashmere because of various husbandry issues (such as mulesing and some brutal harvesting of yarns (notably angora). Not would I wear synthetic fibres. Alpaca, while warm, is not very durable but British wool, from black-faced Leicester, Wensleydale or Shetland sheep is stupendous. Wool from the Peruvian highlands, Iceland, Finland, Norway etc. can also be a good choice. For lighter wear or thermal underlayers, silk is, to my mind, better than merino base layers and takes colour without the intensive chemical processes recquired for cotton and other cellulose based yarns (linen, bamboo, hemp etc.). Anyway, there is a whole debate around the brutalities of fast fashion but at the very least, it would be my choice to buy with longevity in mind. Also, good wool (with natural lanolin) does not need washing.

My daughter bought some cotton jumpsuit thingy for £12 - bad enough...but when she announced she was buying one in every colour, I put the phone down on her because this is wrong on so many levels.

 

[chilango]

I love the idea of wool, but aside from merino blends find it too itchy.

 

[Kanda]

Got the same problem, haven't worn shoes for 7 years, I own 'island wear' ... and move back to the UK this weekend lol

 

[Aladdin]

Warm boots and a warm coat..hat of some sort, gloves and scarf.
Check out second hand or online.

If you have t shirts and jeans plus a jumper or 2 then that's you sorted.
Oh...and socks.

Eta a set of thermals ie. Long sleeved thermal top and bottoms. They'll see you through winter under your lighter clothing.

Coat needs to be warm, windproof and if possible water resistant.

Boots need to be warm, water resistant and insulated with good grips.

 

[chilango]

I moved back from Sudan at "short notice" (let's not go there) some years ago and found myself sat outside the coach station in Birmingham for about 4 hours waiting to change National Express buses at 1 in the morning on Christmas Day dressed only in shorts, t-shirt and crocheted woolly hat.

I was very cold and very miserable.

 

[killer b]

ouch. that coach station is bleak at the best of times.

 

[chilango]

ouch. that coach station is bleak at the best of times.

I could hear the Christmas Eve revellers leaving the pubs as I sat there penniless and shivering

 

[Thora]

I get lots of stuff in New Look (I’m also limited in that I have to buy short people clothes) - jeans, jumpers, ankle boots and a long hooded parka get me through winter.