Middle range brands are ruling the U.K. high street at the moment. Reiss, Jaeger and Whistles are all receiving lots of publicity in the fashion press and rightly so. Their lines are elegant, fashion forward and refined. The problem for me starts with the prices. Yes, in designer terms, they are affordable but in terms of high street, mass produced clothing, they are not. £185 for a party dress at Reiss, £600 for a Jaeger coat…all a little too much for me. I did buy a fabulous dress from Reiss in the summer, paying £165 but so did a lot of other people! I think Topshop has marred my view of what affordable fashion is. Their stock is updated several times a week, it is still fashion forward, maybe not sooo refined, maybe worn by hundreds of other people…but at Topshop’s prices, most definitely affordable and disposable. That brings me to the Whistles dress above, aptly named “Watergarden.” A very Balenciaga inspired design yet at the very un-Balenciaga price of £130. For me that’s still a little too much for an on-trend look, although I sense florals will transend the seasons, as they always have. To see it “in action” on Vogue.com’s Street Chic, does make it seem more appealing. The only question I have to ask myself is, should I buy it and if I do, am I buying into the escalating prices of these middle of the range “brands?”