Clothing in London

Ever since I can remember, my mother has called me a "shop-o-holic". I love purchasing a new outfit for special occasions. There's a certain type of joy that comes in buying a new outfit for school, holidays, birthdays, etc....My mother was not too thrilled when I told her I needed a new wardrobe for London. If I was there for a few weeks, I wouldn't have bought anything new. However, living there for 4 months required a shopping trip. When I was packing for London, I stuffed a duffle bag inside my checked luggage because I knew that the shopping in London was top of the line.

My university was located on High Street Kensington. This is a very posh area that is known for its shopping. During my breaks in between classes,  I would walk down High Street and browse the shops. By the end of the semester, I had to pay $200 at the airport for my extra luggage that was filled with all the new clothes that I bought. The style in London is completely different from where I grew up in Connecticut. At home, my style is preppy, classic, and clean-cut. I wear bright colors like salmon, turquoise, pink, blue, and some neutrals. I bought a trench coat, hunter boots, and a Barbour Coat before I left for London because that is what I believed to be the style there. When I arrived in London, everyone was wearing black. Some people wore dark jeans, black nike running sneakers, and either a neutral or black top. Don't get me wrong, there were some people wearing trench coats, Hunter boots, and Barbour Coats. However, when I travelled to Scotland, the style there was much more of what I expected it to be in London.

The shops that I went to in London the most were Zara and H&M. Although we have these stores in America, the type of clothes in the European version of these stores are made with much better quality and are a little bit cheaper. My favorite pieces of clothing that I bought from Zara was a black peacoat and 3 fall patterned scarves. My favorite piece of clothing I bought from H&M was a black long sweater with leather sleeves from the Venice, Italy store.

When I came back to America, I incorporated my preppy style with my London style. This turned into me wearing my tall brown boots, dark jeans, the sweater from H&M, and my Barbour coat. I now believe that I found my style that I will wear for the rest of my life and one that is truly me.