On-line shopping is definitely here to stay, whether you like to partake or not. Or maybe you dabble here and there. I dabble. I do not do a lot of on-line shopping because I enjoy physically shopping, however, even though on-line shopping is the future, no one can argue the benefits of being able to touch, see and try on clothes before you buy. I just hope that there will continue to be brick and mortar stores for those of us that still like to old school shop.
For on-line shopping lovers, it may be helpful to get acquainted with deciphering on-line photos. For example, at first glance, clothes can look really good! Obviously, that is the goal, so you buy. However, because you cannot touch the item or see the quality in person, you really have to study the photos very closely and almost look for the bad before the good, if that makes sense.
With on-line shopping, there are pros and cons. I decided to list the pros and cons below to set the stage and help organize my thoughts.
Pros
- you don’t have to deal with people or traffic
- saves time if you know your size or how clothes generally fit with a particular brand
- access to almost any brand or style you want. This is the biggest pro. This is a huge benefit for myself as a Canadian because unfortunately, we are limited to what fashion we get in stores and everything seems to look the same. Having access to any brand on-line, means we can find so many cool things our stores just do not carry
- it’s like Christmas. I love knowing I am getting a package delivered, the anticipation is too much fun
- if a store has sold out of your size, you still have a chance to get the item by ordering on-line (hopefully not sold out on-line also)
- maybe can be found at a lesser price
Cons
- if you do not know the brand, your size, the quality or how it fits, it can be a fail. This is the biggest con and for that reason it surprises me how many people do it when it is such a gamble
- can be a waste of time and money if you are always at the post office returning items. Or worse, because it is a pain to return items, you don’t, and it sits in your closet. Or more worse (?), you wear it because you didn’t return it and you don’t even like it
- you can spend a lot of time at your computer looking on-line. It doesn’t take long to realize you’ve been looking for hours
- taxes, duty, exchange rates and shipping can be an issue. I have received invoices for duty and custom charges that I was not aware I would receive
Maybe there are more pros and cons but I think this covers most of them.
So now, let’s get into the on-line photos.
Read the Reviews
Keep in mind that with photos, the brand has the liberty to fudge whatever they want. Always read the reviews, if they have them. So helpful! I read them all…all. You want to focus on the bad things people say, as this will give you insight to what may not work for you also.
I have actually nixed items after reading peoples reviews. And it can be disappointing, but you cannot ignore the reviews. I do recognize sometimes it’s challenging when you see total opposite reviews. One person says the material is nice and looks expensive and someone else says the material looks cheap. When that happens, I tend to error on the side that it probably looks cheap. However, try as you may, sometimes it is really just a gamble so you can only do your best.
If there are no reviews, look very closely and keep in mind the following:
Sneaky Styling Tricks
- Colour can be altered. Either they enhance the colour, dull it down or change it ie: if an item is shown as beige, it can be pink in person
2. Lighting can affect the colour of the item. They don’t have to necessarily photoshop a colour change, however with lighting, it can be totally misleading and the item shows up at your door a totally different colour
3. Use clothespins. They can pin the back of the dress/shirt/blazer/t-shirt/sweater/coat/pants etc. It may look fitted on the model, however, can really be super boxy, loose fitting and not fit like the photo at all
4. Hide excess fabric. If a top looks fitted and cute tucked in, it could end up being very long and difficult to tuck due to the length or thickness of fabric
5. Tall models and high heels. Unless you are over 5’9″, be prepared to have to cut length off the bottom, if you even can, sometimes you just cannot
6. Photoshop parts of the clothing ie: they can photoshop out the lining on a dress
7. Photoshop the sheerness of the fabric so it does not look as sheer or conversely make the fabric more sheer
8. The way the model stands or poses can trick the eye that the fit, style or the fabric falls a certain way when it doesn’t
Here are a few examples:
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, it’s a business, so brands do what they can to sell clothes. Not that I agree with false advertising because I do not appreciate any misrepresentation. I wouldn’t be surprised if brands read reviews for what people say is an issue or anticipate an issue and photoshop to lessen the issue. For example, as mentioned above, if reviews say that a dress is too sheer, they photoshop it so it’s not as sheer. I could be wrong, it is a theory, at the same time, I think I am probably not far off. If you would be interested to see more examples, please contact me and let me know!
I hope this helped bring some awareness of what to look for when on-line shopping. I do understand the benefits of on-line shopping and that it can be fun, enjoyable and convenient, albeit a little dangerous as it is easy to overspend :).
All the best and until next time…
