Lara's high street lows

As Disability Now’s fashionista, Lara Masters’ mission was to find an ensemble – codeword Bigstyle – for under 50 quid from high street stores. Her first task, finding shops she could get into

Although, technically speaking, using an electric wheelchair means I tend to avoid actual high streets due to pesky steps at shop entrances, with a pocket full of dough, I rushed/rolled at four mph to immerse myself in the colourful cacophony of textures at North London’s Brent Cross shopping centre, like a butterfly frolicking amongst the blooms of a spring garden.

However, it quickly became apparent that this butterfly was struggling to find even a nip of sweet nectar.

I am a size six with extra long legs so not all shops cater for me but, still, of the few I could visit, nothing had prepared me for the lack of glamour and chic that slapped me in the face, like the many hangers that are so unfortunately placed at wheelchair-users’ eye-level. Ouch.

What exactly has the eruption of the knee-length, belted cardigan got to do with style? And why is there an invasion of tops that puff over the waist like a massive muffin? This season, are we supposed to be aspiring to look like the kind of barrel-shape that we are told is synonymous with heart disease? And there’s a trend for the “box” look, created by a plague of square-shaped knitted jumpers and cardies (perhaps to reflect our obsession with TV?)

I was distressed but I knew I couldn’t let my emotions get in the way; style was my mission and there was 50 quid riding on it. I pressed on through Top Shop’s rows of harem pants (apparently it’s Hammer Time again, double yay! We can give the illusion of having saggy crotches and make our thighs, knees and calves look like one uninterrupted sausage). I elbowed a path through Miss Selfridge’s rows of skirts with large side ruches (just in case a muffin-top, pendulous private parts and salami legs wasn’t enough illusion of excess weight, in these you can easily add a stone to your hip area and, voilà, you are the Michelin Man).

I went to Next, next, and found some 40s style clothing, which I highly approved of, but was either out of my price range or out of my size. I had noticed an abundance of checked fabric proliferating throughout the high street so I flirted with a checked shirt which made me look like Dolly Parton, minus the magnificent bosom to detract from the fact that I was wearing a table-cloth.

In H&M, the cheapest store, I found the fabric quality was poor and the clothes ill-fitting. I was practically hysterical by the time I reached River Island, grabbed a sales assistant and dragged him around the store, asking him to find me size sixes which kept him running to and from the stockroom. It was a painful process for us both and we needed a little sit down after.

Metaphorically speaking. Obviously I am already sitting down; I had a mini Twix.

Revived, I headed for TK Maxx and its vast jumble of end of lines, incorrectly sized and packed into tight rows. After a good hour’s sifting I found a top that was cheap enough and small enough for me but still I was bottomless. Propelled by the fear of being laughed out of the style section by having to model in a top and just my knickers, I raced to my last bastion of hope; Jane Norman. Here I found an oasis of good quality, if slightly expensive clothes that are made to fit a woman’s body and purchased the perfect black pencil skirt (£30.)

I scraped together two outfits. Pairing the skirt with a “Love to Death” tattooed basque (£16.99, TK Maxx) and choker (rose £2.99, Claire’s, pinned to ribbon) I went for a punky/goth look.

Then, for a more demure style I wore the skirt with a cream, sleeveless, frilled blouse (£19.99, River Island.) Ultimately, finding style on the high street for under £50 was not the walk in the park I anticipated. Fashion is currently missing its style chip but that is no excuse for us all to go around looking like boxes and muffins.