I have absolutely no excuse for spending this amount on a brown belt, I have never in my life worn a brown belt and just a couple of weeks ago “realized” I needed one. That being said, how gorgeous is this belt?!?!
The story of how I impulsively convinced myself that buying an overpriced designer belt was the only logical course of action
Okay, background story: I was perusing Instagram, like every other poor, unsuspecting soul, and then I saw an influencer wearing a brown Gucci belt. I have never been interested in brown accessories, but suddenly my brain was convinced that nothing else could be bought (or focused on..) until I had a brown belt. Trying to reason with myself, I found one on H&M for a mere $19. It was even real leather! Perfect. Except, I didn’t actually like it, beyond thinking it was a brown leather belt and “I should probably try an inexpensive version before spending an unreasonable amount”. I took it home, tried it on with a few outfits and… it was… okay. Perfectly fine. But I wasn’t overcome with joy (yes, I have high emotional expectations of my wardrobe, just go with it).
And I didn’t wear it. Not even once. Didn’t even take the tags off. And I still wanted another brown belt. So, and I am sure most would agree here, I figured the only sane thing was to return it. Because despite the price not being high, it feels just wrong to have excess things. For someone else, this belt would be the one they were looking for. Now, I didn’t actually want the Gucci belt I saw on the influencer, but I did want a belt I could see myself wearing for years and years. And I wanted a big ass buckle, an obsession which should be well illustrated by my love for Gucci Marmont belts.
A two day search unearthed a ton of belts, but none which made my heart sing (and I felt another Gucci belt may be a bit much, even for me). Enter day three and the Valentino belt. It had everything I was looking for: a wider belt, a big buckle with a not-too-familiar logo, the perfect brown shade, smooth leather and perhaps the most dangerous of all: it was reversible, so in case I didn’t like the brown, I could always just use the black side! Not an approach I would necessarily recommend, but that very night I placed the order with Selfridges (they had the lowest price, even considering I had to pay £15 for shipping!).
Now, was it because the influencer had a designer belt and therefore I felt anything else might not be the same? I am open for that playing a role, the influencer was certainly how I realized I even wanted a belt in the first place. But could it also have something to do with my love for luxury goods, investment pieces and that freaking gorgeous over-the-top gold buckle? I choose to think yes.
THE BELT
So, the belt arrived two days later and I was a bit anxious to open it, wondering if I made a huge mistake. But nope. I unboxed it on camera (video below), ripped the tags off and wore it out that very day. And I haven’t stopped, it has become my new favorite belt, by far. I am obsessed with the buckle on this belt.
I love my Marmont items, I will probably always have a soft spot for them, but it feels freeing to wear a logo that isn’t as much of a cultural phenomena. For me, the Valentino belt still has the same impact on my outfits. Now I wonder how I lived without a brown belt, it opens up for so many things when it comes to styling! I haven’t even worn it reversed yet, I love the brown so much. Couldn’t have been more perfect for the season. I’ll post the video below, so you can see more details about the belt, if you are interested! Let me know if you have any questions.
A note on the sizing: I bought the size 26 (it said 75 on the belt tag when I got it, and I have an 80 in the Gucci belt, for reference). I plan on wearing this a lot high waist, but I still punched two holes to make it wider, so if you want it lower on the waist, definitely take the size up as there are only 3 holes already. Hope this makes sense!
Some other brown belts with similar features
