If anyone knows how to mix high street and luxury fashion pieces, it’s Sara Donaldson (aka. Harper and Harley). Her fashion influencer career began when people started losing it over how she would wear mainly affordable fashion, then invest in one luxury piece and manage to work it into loads of outfits. It’s relatable considering most of us can’t afford head-to-toe Gucci, but would love to get their logo tee and work it to death in our wardrobe.
These days, Sara’s wardrobe is a little more luxe than it was back then – after all, she co-owns The Undone, which specialises in curated classics that might set you back a few pennies, but are the definition of investment fashion. She still nails working in a cheaper piece and making it look expensive, though, so we hit her up for her top tips.
INVEST IN THE THINGS THAT LAST
Jackets, coats, leather – these are where you should be spending the majority of your hard-earned cash. They’re things that need quality materials and attention to detail in order to fit well and last years. Scrimping here will only see your statement jacket start to look, well, shit within a year.
“Blazers and any leather item I find through experience is where I like to put my money,” says Sara. “A poorly made blazer and cheap leather is a waste of your time and money.
Also, be wary of knock-offs. Plenty of high street brands make replica items from the fashion week runways, but don’t go there unless the quality of material is high and the cut is good. And don’t even think about trying to make those dodgy fake Chanel bags you saw in Bali work ok?
SAVE ON BASICS
You do not need to be throwing down major cash for plain tees. Same goes for shirts – obviously, get something that fits well and is cut correctly, but plenty of affordable stores stock great shirts and tees that won’t swallow your entire bank account.
“Uniqlo knitwear and their white shirts are some of the hardest working and most versatile pieces in my wardrobe,” says Sara. “They are simple yet refined and don’t look high street. And definitely t-shirts, even when I invest in them they don’t have magical powers that prevent them wearing just as fast as my low priced t-shirts.”
IF YOU CAN MAKE IT WORK ON THE REGULAR, SPEND $$ ON IT
If you want to splurge on an item that is a bit of a trend piece and doesn’t have the longevity as, say, a black blazer, go right ahead – but make sure you can come up with multiple outfits involving it.
“I have a pair of cropped leather pants that I wear almost weekly,” says Sara. “Yes they were an investment, but this is exactly the kind of piece you should invest in.”
KEEP A BALANCE
The art of high/low is making sure you balance out your cheaper items with more expensive pieces. If you’ve been investing right, your pricey stuff’ll make the lower-end items look more expensive than they actually are.
“Two of my favourite high/low combinations are Uniqlo shirting (low) and designer denim (high), or vintage denim (low) and a nice jacket (high),” says Sara.
GET SOME STATEMENT ACCESSORIES
The great thing about accessories is they usually cost less than high fashion pieces, but they can make literally anything look chic.
“Your accessories are your greatest tools to dress up a simple outfit,” explains Sara. “My go-to dinner with friends outfit is a white Uniqlo shirt and simple blue jeans dressed up with an investment earring and heels.”
A pair of quality earrings or a designer bag are incredibly wearable and work with everything from workwear to your go-to party dress, so you’ll get great price-per-wear.
Got a side hustle project involving wardrobe essentials, or something fashion-y? You should enter our comp c/o Set for Life – you’ll win $5k to go toward your side-hustle, plus a luxe weekender in Sydney where you’ll meet ultra boss lady Eleanor Pendleton of Gritty Pretty.
Image: Instagram / @harperandharley.
