I fell off the wagon...

I was doing so well, it was so far off my mind, the idea of relapsing was absurd and then one day, it happened. I went back.

A while ago I wrote about how I finally came to my senses and said ‘goodbye’ to my obsession with Free People. The one-sided fashion relationship where, in exchange for my money and adoration, I received clothes that held the promise of more style and panache than they actually delivered.

My main gripe being the cost; these products that sit at the higher end of the high street price point in the main didn’t wash or wear that well, ended up looking tatty quickly or just sat looking pretty in my wardrobe rather than being worn.

Free People, if you aren’t aware, is a bohemian apparel brand so think 70s vibes, Stevie Nicks style sleeves and flourishes and styles, cuts and shapes you simply won’t find in more mainstream stores. If, like me, you grew up in an era where the clothes you wore were how you expressed yourself and what you wanted the world to see, Free People is the brand that, in my mind, made the wearer seem a little more interesting, as though there was more than meets the eye.

I spoke about why I had to cut them off in this feature and I really thought I was done and dusted. I was proud of myself for finally coming to my senses and choosing to spend my money elsewhere. I will say that Free People is still a brand I love to look at but, as I explained in my Dear John letter to them, I could no longer tolerate spending so much with them when I got so little back.

For a few years there, I was obsessed. Every time I went into London and had time to spare I’d find myself in the boutique on Regent’s Street and inevitably a bralet would come home with me. Or, I’d go for a browse in the Westbourne Grove store, which also stocks the activewear line, Free People Movement, and would leave with a crop top of some sort. Even when I went to LA last year, one of my first stops was a Free People boutique because I was giddy at the idea of what the American stores would have that was different to the UK ones. As it turns out, nothing.

Recently, I have walked passed all these places without even glancing in the windows. I have had supreme confidence in my decision to walk away and I have been focusing my attention on brands that do offer quality and don’t make me feel like a fool for spending my money on them. Brands such as Holland Cooper, Intimissimi, Albaray, Mint Velvet and Mango to name a few.

The thing that finally woke me from my Free People reverie was signing up to Vinted. I realised my wardrobe was full of hardly worn clothes and I wanted to salvage some of the cost back so I could repopulate my closet with much more wearable and high-quality clothes.

At last count, I had sold over 150 items on Vinted, including a huge batch of my Free People haul, and it has been a wonderful experience. In selling Free People on Vinted, I realised how much of it there was being sold on and how much of it looked tatty and weathered with price tags so low you’d never guess what the actual recommended retail price was.

However, by accident the other night, I happened to search Free People on the app to gauge an appropriate asking price for an item I was selling and I stumbled upon the fact that if I searched ‘Free People’ in my size with the condition ‘new with tags’ Free People suddenly opened up to me at a price I was willing to pay for it.

I’ve long been a fan of their sports crop tops but £28 for something that offers little to no support is a bit much, but I snagged two brand news ones for £10.50 on my commute home the other night. I’m not saying I’d had a champagne with lunch, but on that same train ride, I also bought a vest top that retails at £18 for £5 and a corset bra that should have cost over £50 for an absolute steal at £6. Furthermore, it felt fantastic to be participating in breaking the cycle of fast fashion and to find new homes for clothes I’ve loved but have plenty of wear left in them, as well as buy a few bargains of my own.

Now, they do say that recovery isn’t linear and mine hit a peak on a weekday morning when I bought a pair of denim short dungarees before 7am. The fact they retail at £88 and I got them for £7 is neither here nor there. It had gone too far and I have, dear reader, managed to pull myself back.

I can’t lie, I had a moment of extreme satisfaction where I felt I had beaten the system but, the fact is, I’ve just found a way to buy Free People at a price that feels appropriate for what you get in return. And, there’s the rub…

The whole reason for having the Vinted clear out and committing to compiling a better quality wardrobe was about making better buying decisions, spending money wisely and getting more in return for the clothes I bought. Even though these Free People bargains feel like a steal, they also steer me away from my original goal, which is why I’m implementing a hard ‘stop’.

It was fun for a few days and it felt good to pay what I felt the clothes were actually worth, but it’s just repopulated my wardrobe with the kind of quality I was trying to eject from the rails.

So, back I go on the wagon.