For the third Stevenage NWR meeting we had a change of venue to the charming Chequers pub, where we sat in a cosy quiet area away from the main bar. It was great to see a couple of new faces, welcome!
The topic of discussion was clothes, but the conversation diverted into all sorts of wonderful directions away from clothes too.
In preparation for the meeting, we had considered what our favourite outfit was, it could be from the past, one of our own, an outfit worn by someone famous or a historical outfit. We also asked ourselves if we had an outfit that we keep even though it is unlikely we’ll ever wear it again.
We talked about our favourite outfits – the glamorous 1920s flapper girl, clothes that are simply comfortable to wear – sneakers, jeans and a T-shirt. Some outfits we’ve kept for many years, one member recalled the shock of realising just how long when looking at old holiday photos.
As to the question – do we have anything we keep despite it being unlikely we’ll wear again? The answer was a predictable yes! These ranged from a favourite outfit of her mother’s, their 1990s clubbing outfits and a spontaneous purchase whilst on a cruise down the Nile.
Some of us enjoyed clothes. Some resented having to wear a uniform to work. This led to a discussion about school uniform – it is a good leveller, but children always find a way to differentiate themselves. It is expensive, but would it be more expensive dealing with the pressure to buy the right brands?
We admired the clothes one member had bought on Vinted. Her tips: look for favourite brands, vintage clothes and clothes that are new with labels.
The conversation also covered sizing of clothes by shops and how that has changed over the years, the quality of clothes and the changes in fashion.
All in all it was a very pleasant evening with good company. We’re looking forward to meeting up again next month.