154. How I rebuilt my wardrobe for £3 a piece

When your body changes, getting dressed can go from a quick task to a full-blown identity crisis. The jeans don’t fit. The tops don’t sit right. Nothing feels like you anymore. You don’t even know what suits you now.

Then throw budget stress, limited sizing, and fast fashion guilt into the mix. It’s no wonder so many women feel stuck.

In this episode, I’m sharing how I refreshed my wardrobe for just a few pounds per piece, and why it’s about so much more than clothes.

You’ll hear:

• Why we avoid updating our wardrobes after body changes
• The emotional and practical cost of wearing clothes that don’t fit
• How I found some gems that helped me feel more like myself again
• Other affordable, low-guilt alternatives to fast fashion

If you’ve been putting off buying clothes because you’re waiting for your body to change, this is your gentle nudge to stop waiting and start dressing the version of you that exists right now.

✨ Inspired by real experience, and packed with practical tips, this one’s for anyone who’s felt overwhelmed by a wardrobe that no longer fits, physically or emotionally.

Transcript

0:09

Welcome to the Intuitive Eating and Body Positivity podcast. I'm Terri and I'll be talking about all things intuitive eating, body positivity, and health at every size. And shaking off weight stigma, diet, culture, and food rules so that we can all have a better relationship with food and our bodies. Hello, how are you? How is your week? It is another gloriously sunny day here in the uk. Apparently it's gonna be like this all week, so keep your fingers crossed for me because I love it. And it also means that I get to wear the clothes that I've got outta the attic when the weather turned nice and then, you know, it went back to not being nice. And then I needed my winter clothes, but my summer clothes are out of the attic and I am ready to wear them. So keep your fingers crossed for me. What else has happened? I've got a new treadmill. Well, it's not a treadmill. Yes, it is a treadmill. Make your mind up, Terri. It's a walking pad. Have you seen them? It's like a treadmill, but without the handles and the big panel at the top. It's all in the pad at the bottom. Not the handle. Obviously there is no handle, but the treadmill is just, the walking pad is, it's one flat thing. Oh, stop. Waffling. I bought it with the intention of getting a bit more movement in my life. I was inspired to get this by a girl I've been following on Instagram, and she makes me smile because she gets on her walking pad and she dances. That's what she does. Turns out she actually fully choreographs all of this stuff. Well, that's far too much like hard work for me. But she gets on there and as she's walking, she's having a little bop, she's doing a little bit of arm movement. She is living her best life on this walking pad. And I thought, do you know, that would suit me down to the ground, not necessarily the dancing, although I may try that when I've learned how to not fall off it. But that would really suit me having a walking patch because as you know, I have things wrong with me, or you may not know, but I'm telling you I have things wrong with me. I have chronic illness, so I never know one day to the next how I'm gonna be feeling. And quite often for me to go out and get exercise is difficult. I can't really go to the gym now. Well, I could, if I pushed myself hard enough for, wanted to ruin the following days, I can't really go to the gym. I can't do pole dancing like I used to. Well, I don't know. I say I can't, that is a strong word. I know that there are plenty of people with chronic illness and a lot of fatigue and stuff, and a lot of pain that do do these things. So I'm not saying I can't do it. That's the wrong word. I could do it. I just know how I would feel if I did it. So I'm choosing not to, but some days it is really difficult for me to get up and do something physical. And so what I've decided is I'm gonna try and just get little bits of movement in my day. I talked a little while ago on here about taking responsibility for myself and started doing some yoga and stuff, and that is lovely. But I feel like I need a bit of cardio fitness in my day as well. I need to give my cardiovascular system a bit of a workout, a bit of a boost. And do you know if that looks like getting on the treadmill for 10 minutes every day? That is better than doing nothing in my book. So, yeah, I, I bought this walking pad. You know, I quite like it, but I'm surprised at how tricky I'm finding it. I. Because I got a smaller one. It's shorter because, you know, space saving and all that. I've nearly come off the end of it a couple of times already. I've not kept up with the belt apparently, and then I felt my foot hit the end of the belt and I'm like, whoa, keep up, move forward a bit. But it's good. I really like it and I've been on it while I've been watching training videos and webinars and stuff. I have been on there while I've been watching Real Housewives of Cheshire. I don't tend to watch all of them. I like the Cheshire one though. There is, oh, there's something about reality TV that just gets me and I love it. So yeah, I do like that. So I've been having a little walk while having a laugh at the Ladies on Real Housewives of Cheshire, and I haven't done it with music yet. I haven't got that far, but I really like it. And for me, this is a nice accessible option. Some people use them while they're working. They stand on them at their desk. I am not ready to try that. I feel like that needs coordination. Do you think that I could type or work in any way, shape, or form while also trying to walk? No. I don't think that's a wise move just yet. Who knows? We might get there. Uh, who knows? I might become a TikTok star with my new dance routines on this treadmill. Maybe not. Hey, maybe not. Um, what else has happened this week? I also won a pool competition. Whoop, whoop. Go me. And I'm pretty chuff with that. I'm really finding progress in my game and I'm really pleased that it's showing and I'm getting further in competitions and stuff, so I'm really, really pleased with that. Well, I did though, interestingly was I saw the photos after 'cause they take photos of the winners. And runners up, and I saw my photo after and I looked at it and I started to criticize. I started to point out the bad bits. I started to talk about what I looked like in my head, and I very quickly had to go, no, no, Terri, the focus here is all wrong. No, in this photo you are standing there in front of a banner at the club that you've just won a competition in. I am stood there with money in my hand. I am smiling. I was so happy. So I've got this big beaming smile on my face and my focus. The very first thing I focused on was what I looked like and I really had to adjust myself. I really had to go, no, this is not okay. Look at what you've done. Look at why this photo was taken. Look at what you've achieved. Look at the day that you had. Now tell me that that's not good. Sometimes you have to have these conversations in your head. Sometimes you have to give yourself a bit of a talking to it. It just, it creeps up on you sometimes. I know that these thoughts, they just happen. If you can recognize them and stop them and correct them, that is the way forward. I will not let myself go down that rabbit hole of. What I look like in a photo, I'm just not doing it. It is not good for me mentally. It is not good for my relationship with food. It is not good for my relationship with clothes. Nothing. There's nothing good to be had from criticizing a photo of myself. So if you do this. Just take a minute to catch yourself and stop yourself and reframe it. Why are you in that photo? Who are you with? What have you enjoyed about being there? Are you smiling? If you're smiling, what are you happy about? There's lots to be taken from a photo. There's so much more than just what you look like, and I just wanted to drop that in because it, you know, all of this is lived experience from me. All of this on the podcast is just me talking about my own experiences, and that was a real one. These thoughts still come up into my head every now and again. I am human, believe it or not, and sometimes I just have to catch myself and correct myself. So if you do that, please do, please do. Check the other things that are going on in that photo and what you can be happy about. It's so much more important. Right. Then let's talk about clothes, specifically. That weird, awkward time when your body has changed and all of a sudden your jeans are maybe digging in. You've got three tops in the cupboard that you feel okay in, and the rest of your wardrobe just wants to make you scream into a pillow. You get it familiar? Yep. You're not alone because I have absolutely been there. And this week that's what I want to talk about. I want to talk about something that's made a really big difference to me recently. I. I have been able to refresh my wardrobe without spending a fortune and spiraling into a fast fashion, um, guilt hole. Because, you know, when you use sites like Sheen and Timo and stuff, they're clothes are dirt cheap, but that comes at a very serious cost to the people producing those clothes. And so it can be really hard to, to get new clothes. On a shoestring budget, essentially without resorting to using sites like that. When you, um, when your body has changed, it can feel really hard to find new clothes, but it doesn't have to be. And I know the struggle is real. I know replacing your wardrobe is not as simple as just buying new clothes. There is so much emotional stuff wrapped up in it. And the things I hear from my clients all the time and the ladies in the membership all the time is, I don't wanna spend money on this body because I don't wanna stay at this size. Or even if it's not about wanting to change the size, it's quite often I simply don't have the money. I don't have the money to replace all my clothes.'cause it often feels like that doesn't, it feels like you have to replace everything. You look in your wardrobe and like I said, there's one pair of jeans, a couple of tops, and that is it. And you are like, well, how am I gonna replace everything? How am I going to get myself enough clothes that I have a selection, I have choices, I feel comfortable in them. Because to buy yourself a whole new wardrobe can, can sometimes just cost a lot of money, right? So that's often a big deal. I simply don't have the money. Nothing looks good on me anymore. I hear that quite a lot as well. My clothes, my style that I'm used to, everything I used to wear, it doesn't look good on me anymore'cause my body's changed. I don't know what suits me now. Everything feels wrong and I don't know what I'm supposed to wear. There are so many women that I speak to that would love to update their wardrobe. But they can't afford it or they don't know what they need to buy or want to buy. And honestly, I've, I've felt all that as well. I've been through that still trying to wear the same styles as before when I was smaller, worrying about how I'm gonna find the money to, to get new pieces of clothing. Honestly, I have been there. There's this weird pressure that if your body's changed, you're just supposed to make Do, just make do with the clothes that are in your wardrobe. Just keep squeezing into things. Layer up hide, like buying clothes that fit your current body as somehow admitting defeat if you've gotta go out and buy new clothes. And if you're buying clothes in a different size, then there's something there about giving up maybe. What if it's not giving up? What if it's not you giving up? What if it is you taking care of your body and finally saying, actually, no, this is me. This is me, and I'm gonna dress myself. Well, wearing clothes that do not fit, that dig in or make you feel terrible, that's not a moral victory, right? It's just uncomfortable when we stay in those old clothes. The ones that don't fit anymore, or the ones that don't feel like us anymore. It doesn't it get to you, grinds you down 'cause the first thing you have to do every day. Well, you know, nearly the first thing is to get dressed. And if that part of the day is exhausting, the rest of the day is not starting off on a good footing. It's awful, isn't it? You don't feel like yourself, then you don't wanna look in the mirror, and then you start your day feeling rubbish and on it goes, you turn down invitations because you've got nothing to wear That makes you feel half decent, chips away at your confidence. Really slowly, very quietly. And sometimes we don't even realize how much better we could feel if we changed the clothes that we wear. A top that actually fits, or a pair of jeans that doesn't dig in and leave a red mark around your middle. You know, you know that feeling when you unbutton your trousers and you've got, and you've got this ring around your middle that is red and sore and like, oh, all a bit crunched up because you've been wearing these trousers that don't fit. I know I talked to Samantha Harmon for an episode. Quite recently, and we talked about why you should show up and dress as you want to. And I know that my episode last week was showing up as you really want to in other different ways, but there are occasions when we don't feel like that we can do that for whatever barriers now. Let's talk about actually practically changing your wardrobe, because when I talked to Samantha, it was about the power of clothing. It was about how you show up in your clothes. It was about standing out there and being your true self. It was about dressing for your day, that sort of thing. It was about that. But what about actually getting those clothes? I've also talked before now about why you should wear the right clothes, about how it's respectful to your body. You can go back if you haven't listened, you can go back and listen to these episodes.'cause I've talked about why you should wear the right clothes. But the actual practicalities of doing that is a little bit different because it is a barrier for a lot of people. So. Let's talk about money.'cause this is, this is the crux of it a lot of the time, right? And it's where it gets a little bit tricky. If you've been clothes shopping recently, especially in a bigger body, you will know how hard it is. The High Street has got very little choice, unless you are a straight size person or a small plus size. Hmm. That's a, that's a contradiction in terms, isn't it? Small plus size. Well, it's ridiculous, isn't it? But yes, it's very difficult to buy clothes for bigger bodies on the High Street. Fact, ethical, sustainable clothing. Brands are really lovely, but my God, are they expensive? When you've got sites like Sheen and Temu offering clothes for three pound apiece or less, it's very, very tempting, especially when money's tight and you are desperate to refresh your wardrobe, but then the guilt kicks in. You know, they don't have the best reputation when it comes to how they treat their staff. Right. They pay them poorly. They treat them badly. They have them work incredibly long days. They pay them per item of clothing, and they make them work ridiculously hard to achieve their target numbers. And this is why the clothing is also not that good quality because. They're kind of thrown together really quickly so that these people can achieve their targets so that they can be paid a very small amount of money and so that they can keep their jobs. That is not good. But you also need something that fits and doesn't cost 90 pounds for one item, because let's face it, these ethical brands, these nice sustainable clothing companies. Really expensive and there's not really much middle ground, and it's a horrible position to be in, but it's one that women find themselves stuck in. You are having to choose between affordability and ethics, comfort and shame now or later that those are your choices, aren't they? So I went down a different track with this. I. I bought some clothes off Vintage. Do you know about Vintage? Have you seen it? Have you been on there? Be warned if you go on there, you're gonna lose hours of your life to this site. And it is a little bit addictive, but honestly it's brilliant. It's absolutely brilliant. So Vintage is a secondhand clothed selling site. It's a little bit like, um. I was gonna say eBay for clothes, but it's really not because it's not an auction site. People list their clothes, they put a price on there of how much they want for it. You buy it or you don't. There is the option to make an offer. So if somebody's listed something for say, five pound, and you think, no, I would happily pay four pound for that, then you make them an offer. They accept it or they do not accept it. But that is as complicated as the buying process gets. And then what happens is on top of the amount you give the seller, you pay a little bit for postage and they package it up, stick a label on it, send it to you. It's there. They have to post it within I think, four days. But honestly, I've never had anything from vintage turn up more than three or four days later. It's really, really quick on the whole, and I've been a little bit obsessed with vintage since I've found it. Now it's actually I think, becoming my go-to place if I want to just top up my wardrobe. Anyway, going back to what I was saying earlier about my summer clothes coming outta the wardrobe, out the attic rather, and my winter clothes going away. When I got my summer clothes out this year, I thought. Oh God. It's the same old, same old, same old pieces. And you know, I don't mind half of them, but I was thinking I actually don't have that many tops to wear, especially when I go and play pool and stuff like that. In summer, what I need is lightweight tops that all go with jeans.'cause I tend to wear jeans when I play pool. So I want lightweight tops that are gonna go with either jeans or light trs and that I'm comfortable in. And I really don't have that many of them. So after vintage I go, I have a little look. I find some absolute gems. I order them and they start arriving. Now, let me tell you, there is something very satisfying about ordering clothes that look like they're new, but have secondhand and they've cost you two or three pound. Because that's what I've managed to do. I've bought all these pieces for literally two or three pound each. I'm really tight when it comes to buying clothes because I don't really, um, not that I don't. Care about them. I want myself to look nice, but I don't put a lot of weight on the clothes that I wear. I am not into brands. I, it isn't my personality to only want to wear labels. I just want clothes that I think that I look nice in and that are comfortable. You can get big brand names on vintage, but you can also get a lot of absolute. Gems that have got, you know, unheard of labels or high street labels or supermarket labels or whatever. Honestly, I found some absolutely brilliant pieces and I, I genuinely didn't spend more than two or three pound a piece plus the postage. And they are in a lovely, lovely condition. When they get to you, you have the option to say yes. What they've sent me is perfectly good. It's as described or no, there is a problem with my order and if there is a problem with the order, then you get the option to return it or whatever. But I've never had to do that. I've never had to say, no, this item is not as described. You can't return things through them not fitting right. That's the risk you take. If you order something and it doesn't fit you quite right or you don't like it on, you can't just return it. But if you spent two or three pounds and you've ordered this top, if you don't like it when you get it, you just put it back on vintage and you sell it and you make your money back. I don't think that that's too risky an approach to take. And in the time that I've been buying off Finit, I think I have. I've, Hmm. I've not been happy with maybe two things, and that's just because I bought a top or two tops that were shorter than I would like. Nothing wrong with the listing, absolutely as described. Really lovely quality tops. I just didn't like them on me, so I just put 'em back on there and I sold them. The nice thing is you also get to try things. If you're only spending a couple of quid each. That you might not have tried in a shop or not that you wouldn't have tried in a shop, but that you wouldn't have considered buying. Because you know, what if it, what if it doesn't suit you? What if you don't like it? What if it's not comfortable? X, Y, Z? But this is really, really low risk. So I've felt very happy to give things a go, and quite often I've ended up really loving them. I roughly know my size, so I know how far either side of that size is comfortable or what kind of fit clothes are gonna have. But even if I didn't, I'd be all right with spending two or three pounds for something to try it because you know, sell it on after or give it to somebody else or give it to charity or whatever. I'm not being flippant about the money because I appreciate that money is tight for a lot of people, but. I'm willing to risk two pound, three pound on a top that looks really nice in a photo, and I think, do you know what? I think that might look all right on me and it's quite fun. You know, it feels like clothes shopping is actually a little bit more fun. I don't like clothes shopping. I don't like going clothes shopping. I don't even think I would like going clothes shopping that much if I was straight size. Because it is just not my jam. It just doesn't do it for me. I'm not somebody who is a shopaholic and needs to go on shopping sprees with my friends. But this maybe feels like the equivalent of what people do feel when they do that. Maybe It does. It does feel quite fun having a scroll through for longer than I would like sometimes. Um, yeah. And finding clothes that fit. And not spending a fortune in the process. And there are several bonuses to that. Obviously. I get new clothes, I've spent little money. And actually, if you're clever about this, what you do is you sell on vintage the clothes that you don't wanna wear anymore. And so the new clothes pay for themself. Brilliant, but also. It's gotta be better for the environment, hasn't it? Not buying new clothes every time you want new clothes, making use of clothes that somebody else doesn't want. Stopping clothes, going to landfill, that's gotta be a good thing, right? It's also putting money in somebody else's pocket so that they can do the same. What if they are selling their clothes to fund their new wardrobe because they're in the same position as you? Maybe their body has changed. So they are selling clothes to be able to buy new clothes for their new body, and also it just doesn't come with that fast fashion guilt. So these places that make them abroad in far off countries, I say far off because they are a long way from me. But these, these places where people are making these clothes. They feel so far away, almost like if I don't think about it, they're not real because I never see it with my own two fully functioning eyes. But the reality is they are there and it is happening, and I don't wanna contribute to that. So when I'm buying from a site like Vintage, I am supporting, um, no, it's difficult to say. Supporting those people, I'm not contributing to. They're poor circumstances, and I'm happy about that. It is not perfect. None of this is perfect, but it is a step in a better direction when it comes to buying clothes, isn't it? If vinted isn't your thing or you just want some more ideas, there are loads of other ways you can do this. There's loads of ways you can refresh your wardrobe without going down the sheen rabbit hole. There's another site called Depop, which hmm, I believe because somebody else told me.'cause I've never used it. My niece told me she's down with the kids. I'm not that. You get a lot of brands on Depop. You get a lot of designer fashion on Depop. There's also eBay. There are charity shops ever been charity shop shopping. Did I tell you about that? I might have waffled on about that. In the beginning of one of my podcasts, um, couple of months back, I did a charity shop, shop. We found some brilliant bits and pieces. Same thing. Contribute to making somebody else's life better. Get some new clothes cheap. Facebook marketplace, you'd be amazed at what people are selling locally. We've got Facebook groups locally called Quid bid, and basically you go on there, you list your item, and the bidding has to start at a pound. You list it for 48 hours. That's the rule. You start at a pound and then people bid for it, and then the highest bidder wins. So sometimes. You get unlucky as a seller and you sell something for a pound. Other times you get really lucky and people are bidding and bidding'cause they really like it. If you've got something like that, maybe that's an option. Loads of clothes get sold in our quid bid. Um, groups really, really cheap a pound because let's face it, there's also not an awful lot of bidding that goes on with clothes, so. Have a rummage around Facebook, see what's available. You will be amazed at what people are selling. Clothes swaps. That's also another option. You could make it a formal event. It could be just swapping bits with friends, but that's an option that you could try, I suppose. You do not have to overhaul everything all at once. You can just add a few pieces here and there that make you feel good. That fit your new body, your now body. That's what it is. It's a now body clothes that you can move in, breathe in, exist comfortably in, not spend your day worrying about, you know, clothes. When they don't fit, you end up tugging at them. Pulling them, rearranging them, always pulling them down. Well tops, not bottoms, obviously. You are always conscious of your clothes, so get yourself some clothes that fit you properly and then you can exist in them comfortably. You deserve clothes that fit you, not the version of you. You are waiting to be, not the ideal body that's in your head. The you that is here now, and you do not have to spend a fortune and you do not have to compromise your values. And you do not have to keep wearing stuff that makes you feel rubbish because that's what's in your wardrobe. You are allowed to feel good in clothes. You are allowed to try something new. You are allowed to enjoy how you look without apologizing for your body. So if you are in a wardrobe rut, then maybe today is the day to scroll through vintage and save yourself a few bits. You can do that. You can save things. Now be warned, if you go onto vintage and you save for something and you save it for later, it might not be there later.'cause some stuff gets snapped up. I have sold stuff on vintage and it has gone in literally minutes. So you save things at your own peril. But go on there, have a look. It's also really clever because you can change the settings. So that your feed just shows you stuff that's your size, brilliant. Maybe try a new color, maybe try a different shape, maybe try something soft and comfy and flowy. If you are usually in tailored, rigid, and jeans and things that are quite restrictive, whatever feels like a win to you, try it. And if you do, I wanna see, I want you to tag me. I want you to message me. I want you to show me your bargain, fines, and if confidence or body image is part of what's keeping you stuck. If you don't know what to do about your clothes, if you would like some motivation on a personal level. Then I'd love to be a part of that. I'd love to help you. I'd love to help you find the confidence and the better body image. I want to help you make these steps towards making yourself feel better. So the links are in the show notes. If you wanna book a coaching session with me, I would love, love, love to see you. And if you are not sure if coaching is for you, if you're not sure if this work is something I can help you with. Then why not book a free chat? That link is in the show notes. Just book a free half hour session with me. We'll have a chat, see what you need. No hard sale, I promise I don't. I just don't like it. I'm not a salesy person, but come and have a chat with me for half an hour and I'll give you some options and we'll talk about what you need and let's go from there. Right mustache things to do, people to see, places to go, no, that's a lie. I'm just gonna go and watch the snooker, 'cause the snooker is on the telly and I love it. So I'm gonna go and do that. And you are gonna go and have a look at vintage and I will speak to you again next week. Bye-bye.