Finding that perfect summer dress is tough as it is, let alone finding one for less than £25.
It's no doubt that prices of clothes have shot up in the past few months, making it hard to style summer outfits on a budget. I've recently found supermarkets such as Sainsbury's and Asda have really upped their game in terms of affordable summer wear - but what about the high street?
I took a trip to River Island, John Lewis, H&M and New Look to see if I could find summer dresses for less than £25. Let's just say, it proved a bit of a challenge.
READ MORE: River Island selling £40 dupes for £1.5k Chanel chunky sandals
As expected, town was already heaving with crowds basking in the summer sun sipping on cocktails. Liverpool ONE was not much different, filled with people mooching around the shops hoping to find a summer bargain.
I was one of those hopefuls, but I knew it was going to be tough. I decided to visit my current four favourite high street stores, and my mission was definitely easier in some shops than others.
River Island
As I sort of expected, it was super hard to find something in River Island for under £25. I even spotted a cute Lime Green Swimming Costume I thought would be a good find, but even that was £33.
There was a lot of different holiday options in store, but even dresses in the thinnest of materials were pretty expensive. I did find an absolutely gorgeous Blue Patterned Kimono Wrap Midi Dress that would be absolutely gorgeous for a Greek holiday, though, which was priced at £45.
I was actually really surprised when trying on this dress, because I ended up fitting into a size 8. I haven't been a size 8 in years, so I was pretty chuffed to say the least.
It would've been nice to see a few smaller floatier dresses for a smaller fee, but sadly, that was not the case. River Island is definitely one of those places you can't visit on too much of a budget - because there are definitely too many temptations.
H&M
My trip to H&M was definitely more successful. I spotted an adorable Smock-topped dress and genuinely couldn't believe the price - £13! It comes in three different colours and was super comfortable to wear.
I tried on the pink version, but I'm already planning on buying the green one too. I'm not usually a big fan of dresses with spaghetti straps, but I thought this particular dress looked really nice because of the frilled, trimmed bodice.
It was super flattering and flowed really nicely. I think the gently flared skirt made it extra airy and cool, which makes it a great option for the warmer weather.
I also found this absolutely gorgeous Off-the-shoulder cotton dress priced at £25, which was in a gorgeous colour. It gave me Belle from Beauty and The Beast vibes, and would no doubt be great to wear on holiday.
My only criticism of this dress would be the material, it wasn't the most comfortable. It was a little stiff and felt like there was a lot of material to move in, but that could be because of my 5'3 frame.
John Lewis
Now, I absolutely love John Lewis, but let's be honest, it can be expensive. The quality of dresses are always great, but it proved virtually impossible to find a dress for under £25.
I took myself to the John Lewis ANYDAY section in hope that I might bag a bargain, but sadly, I didn't. I did come across a gorgeous floral midi dress in the reduced section, but it was still £89 - ouch.
New Look
As expected, New Look had a fair few options for dresses that were very hard to resist. I saw a couple of gorgeous little dresses for £20.
I'm obsessed with the combination of red and pink at the moment, and saw a lovely t-shirt dress with a v-neck. The dress was down from £29 to £20 in-store, but I couldn't seem to find it online.
In fact, New Look had a whole section of dresses under £30 to browse in-store and online, which was something none of the other shops offered.
You can browse the section online here.
The winner is
It was a very close call between H&M and New Look, and although I preferred the styles of the H&M dresses on offer, New Look had a larger quantity of bargains. I was really impressed with both stores and their amount of offers, but New Look takes the crown this time round.
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