I am starting to get sick of the word ‘credit crunch’. I am sick of reading about how to feed a family of 4 for under a fiver, how to get a stylish outfit for under £10 and how to have a night out for under £15. Maybe it can be done and maybe in the current economic climate, this is the sensible approach. But lately, I have been getting an overwhelming urge to have the mother of all spending sprees, the night out to top all nights out and live off smoked salmon, champagne and very expensive icecream.

The whole recessionista wardrobe thing, where you invest in classic basic items that you can wear for years to come, has always been my approach to dressing anyway. But since the credit crunch, all I want to do is get the latest fashion that I know come next year I will never wear again. Classic and basics are really boring me so here is my anti credit crunch shopping wish list.

Alexander McQueen embroidiered shoes

Aimee McWilliams high waisted white silk trousers

Ballantyne Cashmere Scarf

Not wanting to harp on to much about the current economic situation, but as many will be feeling the pinch, including myself and especially in the run up to Christmas, here are my ideas on how to update your look without buying a whole new wardrobe of clothes.

Cinch in with a belt - All sorts of outfits can be updated by cinching in with a belt this winter. Try it with coats, dresses and tops. Skinny belts will look really up to the minute. I love this Costume National Belt with a dimante detail.

Glam it up with costume jewellery - Big, bright and sparkly is the way to go with costume jewellery. Try cocktail rings, statement necklaces and long dangly earrings for a bit of added bling.

Evening wear in the day - You can get away with almost anything for daytime wear this winter. Try wearing last years evening wear including ruffled, chiffon, sparkly and lace tops. Try layering over a polo neck jumper or under a chunky knit for added warmth and to dress down the look a bit.

Coloured tights - coloured tights are every where this winter. Buy a variety in bright pinks, purples and blues. Wear with  last years sweater dresses or any other dresses for a easy on trend look.

Since the whole credit crunch, recession thing started, I have read countless articles extolling the virtues of buying good quality basic clothes over lots of cheap high fashion, through away clothes. For the most part, I absolutely agree but there are times when only a bit of cheap high fashion will suffice.If you do decide to take the quality over quantity stance, which is probably also more environmentally friendly and ethical than the cheap high fashion option, you will need to ensure that you take really good care of your fashion investments, so that you get plenty of wear and your moneys worth out of them. If you really do get fed up with them, you can sell them second hand.I once invested a very gorgeous, soft and warm cashmere jumper which I loved wearing in the winter. I wore it constantly for 3 winters in a row. The forth winter, I got it out of my wardrobe to wear on a particularly cold day and to my horror, found a  moth hole the size of a 50p right in the front of it. I was devastated and couldn’t understand why despite cedar wood balls a moth had managed to nibble it. My advice to you, if you do choose to invest in cashmere is to go completely overboard with the cedar wood.

It is also very important to store you investment properly.  Choose nice hangers to hang items and if folding and storing use acid free tissue paper. Keep your investment spotlessly clean. If it is dry clean only get it regularly cleaned pointing out any stains/ marks to the dry cleaner in advance. If you do need to remove stains, there are some great tips on Fabric Link

I would definitely invest in this lovely boat neck cashmere jumper, but I would look after it better this time.

If you are suffering from the effects of the credit crunch or struggling with the size of household bills and cost of living you will probably be finding that there is not much money left to buy new clothes. But panic not! I love buying expensive designer clothes as much as anyone, but when stagflation hits don’t let it get you down you can still look stylish.

Style is not really about what you wear it is about how you wear it and spending lots of money on expensive clothes is not the only way to look stylish. In fact quite often I find that most stylish clothes that I own were probably bought when I did not have much money to spend so took a lot longer considering what to buy. The result - less impulse buys, more well fitting, carefully considered clothes that make me look and feel great.

So it really is true. You don’t have to spend loads of money to look great and in many cases  those that do spend loads of money on clothes, don’t look at all great. You only have to look at Go Fug Yourself for the proof.

For some great Credit Crunch Style try shopping online and don’t forget to compare prices to get the best deal. My favourite bargain is a tailor made shirt fitted to your body measurements.