A refreshing alternative to designer labels (H&M)

Member Name: maddip

Product:	H&M
Date:	20/05/03 (4103 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The range, The price

Disadvantages: Its a big cluttered, sometimes bargains are hard to find

THE SHOP

For years, my town (beautiful Nottingham) didn't really have anything like H&M. All the clothes shops were segmented into little groups; the designer ones (FCUK, Ted Baker, Diesel) that were too expensive, the tacky teenybopper ones (New Look, Reveal), the middle-of-the-roadies (Topshop, Warehouse, Kookai) and the "mumsy" ones (Gap, C&A, Next). There was nowhere to let loose my rebellious daring-to-be-different self without breaking the bank. I was surrounded by friends wearing exactly the same jeans, tight t-shirts, Addidas trainers and casual jackets. Where exactly was i supposed to find something a little different?

And then C&A closed down, and they opened up a shop i'd never even heard of - H&M. The first time i ventured in there i was like a kid in a candy store. There was a huge, messy mish-mash of clothes, often one-offs that you couldn't find anywhere else in the store, squished in with the requisite jeans, plain t-shirts and jackets.

H&M is a treasure trove just waiting to be explored. You enter the huge, overcrowded, dusty shop like an explorer, armed only with the cash that is burning a hole in your pocket and your lipgloss. You dart from shelf to shelf, rack to rail to hanger, diving in and out of the piles of disgarded clothes, sorting through the rubbish - because sometimes they go a little too far into the realms of the unknown, the different - to come up with some little beauties.

I am referring to the belted bathrobe-style jacket/jumpers that were so stylish last season - a full two months after H&M were displaying them. The long flared skirts made from different materials. The baby's bonnet wool caps. The explosion of funky make-up, crazy bags and over-the-top jewelry.

I fell in love with this shop, and never really fell out. I can still while away the majority of a saturday there, trying on outrageous styles, the newest fashions, the coolest trends - but all with
that little bit of uniqueness and difference that makes them worth it. I will experiment with their huge, over-sized sunglasses or chunky hair pieces for hours, just choosing the perfect one.

And yet, dispite all the amazingly unique and weird fashions, H&M is big enough to hold normal things to fit my unconfident, middle-of-the-road self. I have bought plain white shirts, simple t-shirts and unadorned jumpers, plucked from obscurity among the wild designs.

It is this that makes H&M great - the huge, expansive range that shows that it can be outrageous or plain, hip or strange, without losing its comfortableness in its own skin. H&M knows what it does, but isn't afraid to experiment. All these cool things, for some of the lowest prices i have seen - it is a label-phobic shopaholic's paradise.

BEST BUYS

A plain black 3/4 length sleeve jumped £12
A flared pale denim skirt with a swirling brown pattern across the waist £20
A floaty cross-over pink t-shirt £12
Combat trousers in a range of colours around £25-30
Plain t-shirts £6
Tight shirts made of multicoloured army print £12

Summary: