5 TIPS FOR BUILDING AN ANTHROPOLOGIE WARDROBE

Five tips for building an Anthropologie wardrobe

A few years ago, I worked with a stylist and did my own one-day version of “What Not To Wear.” Anybody else out there still wonder “what would Stacey and Clinton do?” when they go shopping for clothes? I learned so much from that show - about fit, shape, finding clothes that flatter, and the wonderful world of alterations.

In 2017, a year after I had my son, I found my closet filled with pre-baby clothing that no longer fit, was out of fashion, and wasn’t at all flattering. As a petite, mid-sized woman, I really struggled to find clothing that fit properly and also said, “I’m not a boring mom, I’m a cool mom who does cool things!” - and by “cool things” you know I meant watching Moana 50x a day, every single day. Just keeping it real.

Anyway, I met Rebecca, a fashion stylist, through my local Rising Tide Society, which I was leading at the time. With a big photoshoot coming up for Sincerely, Jackie, plus this new desire to love and dress my body with love - I knew it was time for a wardrobe overhaul. I wanted a wardrobe that contained the basics, that I could easily mix and match, that was good quality, and that fit my body to a T. My goal was to be able to grab anything from my closet, at any given moment, and know it would work for me. It seemed like an impossible mission, but Rebecca proved me wrong.

After purging my entire wardrobe, Rebecca brought me shopping at Anthropologie - one of my “someday” stores. You know, the store I absolutely loved and hoped to someday be able to to shop at. Knowing I was going to build an Anthro wardrobe was a little daunting - could I afford it? I was cool enough for it? Was it sustainable?

Three years later, I can firmly say YES, YES, and YES! I still own, and wear, every single item that Rebecca and I purchased that day. Well, except for one sad shirt that met with a diaper explosion and couldn’t be saved. Poor shirt.

That one day with Rebecca has carried me through the past three years and created the ground work for me to build a beautiful, versatile, trendy, comfortable, flattering wardrobe.

Here are the FIVE tips I have for anybody else looking to build a wardrobe (or just to shop) at Anthropologie.

I want to add that NONE of this post is sponsored, nor are any of the links affiliates. I make zero commission from my Anthro love. I truly want to share what I learned, because it made me a more confident woman, mother, business owner, and shopper.

Find Inspiration: I created a Pinterest board with all the fashion and clothing I loved. When creating it, I tried to be true to who I actually was, and what I needed my wardrobe to be. I adore formal attire, but that’s just not realistic for my day-to-day. So I tried to narrow it down to pieces that looked comfortable, easy to wear, easy to dress up or down, and figure flattering. I pinned a lot of plus sized fashion. While I’m not plus sized, I’d consider myself mid-size, and found that the shapes on plus sized models was more realistic, and easier to imagine on my own 5’2” curvy frame.
Use Anthro’s FREE styling service: While Rebecca worked with me for an entire day - including donating my existing wardrobe, helping me hone in on my style, and doing some spiritual color work (so cool and new to me!), she also worked for Anthro and shared with me that ANYBODY can request an in-store styling session with an Anthro stylist. How cool is that! Working with a stylist is so beneficial. They’re able to look at you objectively, which allows them to see your shape in a way most of us can’t see for ourselves. Rebecca opened my eyes to styles I thought I could NEVER wear, like rompers and halter styles. But you know what? Those are two of the most flattering silhouettes on me, and I would have never discovered them without her help. So yes, YES, yes, work with a stylist and take advantage of Anthro’s free service.
Learn your size, shape, and proportions: While working with Rebecca, I tried on dozens and dozens of clothing pieces. Some worked, and some didn’t. Rebecca quickly figured out the sizing, shape, and proportions that worked for my body. And since she worked at Anthropologie, she knew the way specific brands/lines were cut and would/wouldn’t work for me. She showed me exactly where the shoulder of a piece should hit me, where the rise on pants should land for my body/shape, how to accentuate my hour-glass shape, and when to opt for petite proportions. A lot of her advice was brand specific, which was knowledge that helped me continue to shop long after our styling session. For example, I know that dolman styled blouses by Maeve or Dolan tend to be larger on me, but are short, so I always go down a size in regular sizes. Whereas most jackets and outerwear need to be ordered in petites for me. One thing I really love about Anthropologie is that they work hard to keep their sizing consistent across regular and petite sizing. So if you’re usually a medium, you’ll still be a medium in petites. I don’t know about you, but I LOVE that. I’ve found in many other stores that, when I order petite, I need to go up a few sizes. Because for some reason people think petite means “small all over” instead of “smaller proportions”.
Try things on: I know. Going to a store these days is HARD. Maybe you’re a busy mother, a working mother, a working woman, in school; whatever the reason, we all know that online shopping is easier/faster, and it’s a big commitment to get to a store. However, I highly recommend working with a stylist for your first shopping trip, and trying on ALL THE THINGS. Ask questions about the fabrics, the cuts, the shapes, the sizing, etc. Practice putting together outfits, layering pieces, and mixing and matching items. It’ll give you a foundation to be able to take all that knowledge and buy pieces in the future (especially when they go on sale!).
SHOP. THE. SALES: This is clutch, friends, clutch! Anthro has regular sales on sale items. The best being an additional 40% off sale items (sometimes it ends up being 70-80% off the original price!). There are some things that don’t go on sale, like my beloved denim jacket (which I wear I a LP), but are worth every penny anyway. But nearly everything else goes on sale eventually. I have AnthroPerks, which is an insiders account, and does indeed have its perks. It’s totally free to join, and gives you free shipping on orders over $150. It also allows you to create wishlists (although I think you could do that with a regular account). I add my favorite non-sale items to my wishlists, and then log in every week or so to see if anything has gone on special sale. I often use sales to stock up on different colors of my favorite pieces. For example, I originally purchased this sweater for 30% off the full retail price. Then it went on sale, and then it went on 40% off sale sale, whoa! So I got it in every color. It’s one of my favorite pieces - comfortable, versatile, easy to layer, has the right fit/proportions for me, and looks polished with a simple pair of jeans.
Read reviews online: Alright, so this is a sixth tip, but it was too important for me to leave out. Anthropologie’s reviews tend to be spot on, so they’re worth a read. If something has a bunch of 1 stars, it’s probably not worth trying. On the flip side, I’ve found things that are flagged as “Top Rated” tend to be universally flattering, and have very accurate reviews. The reviews will let you know if an item runs big/small, tall/short, true to color, and more. Reviewers often share photos of themselves in the items, and tell a bit about their body shape . I also love when a review says something like “this would work for an hourglass shape” or “this doesn’t work with my hips, would probably be better for a more narrow woman”. These types of reviews help me make my buying decision when shopping online.

There you have it! My top tips for shopping at Anthropologie. Again, none of this is sponsored in any way shape or form (buy hey Anthro, if you see this and want to dress me up, please reach out!). I truly love Anthropologie’s clothing and have found their pieces are typically of great, long-lasting quality. Here I am in some of my recent Anthro favorites. Some of the pieces are a little older, but I’ve tagged similar items available now.