You want the clothes you wear, when in England, to not only match the latest fashion trends, but also to make one comfortable enough during the seasons.
The temperature generally ranges from 32° Fahrenheit [0° Celsius] in winter to 85° [29° Celsius]. Depending on where you will be staying, you may find dreary, wet weather as a constant factor towards the North or more sunshine days in the South. Winters tend to be very wet and windy with a strong gale that rips off the ocean.
Most of the year, the temperature is pleasant, however, a lot of overcast can be expected.
As not a lot of homes, cars, or public transportation units are equipped with air conditioning, it does feel a bit stuffy when the heat rises above 75°.
In the major metropolitan areas, public transportation is readily available. If you intend to make use of the system, it is totally acceptable to wear jeans, slacks shorts or skirts. You probably do not want to dress too formal on these routes as you may get ruffled.
As you head further away from the big cities, public transportation is a bit harder to find and you may have to prepare to walk a lot or take a bike. If that is the case, prepare to dress in something really comfortable. Take care of those feet!
If you have access to a car, then feel free to dress as would normally suit the occasion of your outing.
There are high crime districts within the UK. Nottingham, Hackney in London, and Mansfield to name a few. Due to the conditions of the poor, unemployed and some drug users, there are higher crime statistics in these areas. You may want to consider your clothing carefully when going to these places. Keep your wallet and purses close or wear a bum bag [fanny pack] or money belt. Do not wear extremely fancy clothing or jewelry that looks expensive. You do not have to use unreasonable fear, but use common sense. After all, these are people just like you, but many have had a lot of tough breaks in life.
Certain settings require you to wear formal clothing. If you intend to mingle in the upper class, you MUST dress for the occasion. Examples would be a cricket or tennis match or a formal dinner and dance for charity. If you show up to these events dressed as a slob or a "commoner" then you may not get in. However, if you are going to a game of football, or to the cinema, or walking around a mall dress as casual as possible.
Caring For Your Clothes Bought In The UK
If you plan on traveling within the UK, you may decide to buy clothing from one of the local stores. If you come from anywhere else in the world, the tags on the clothes may seem hard to understand. Here is the rough translation of what these tags mean:
Wash Tub - A symbol using the wash tub means washing by machine or by hand. Specific instructions are contained within the tub symbol.
Generally, the tub has a number inside indicating the temperature of the water to wash your item.
If inside the tub the number is 40, this is a low temperature setting [cool] where the water should be around 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
If inside the tub the number is 60, this is a low temperature setting [cool] where the water should be around 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
If inside the tub the number is 95, this is a low temperature setting [cool] where the water should be around 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
If there is 1 bar underneath the tub icon, that means to lower the temperature a bit from the number in the tub. If there are 2 bars underneath the tub, then greatly reduce the water temperature from the number in the tub.
Triange - refers to cholorine bleach.
The amount of bleach one should use in a typical full load is 8 ounces [1 cup]. A small load can use 2-4 ounces [1/4 - 1/2 cup]. If you see the triangle without the St. Andrew's Cross, bleach may be used on the item. If the cross is over the triangle - do not use bleach under any circumstances!
Iron - refers to ironing. Specific ironing instructions tagged within the symbol.
The iron symbol may be one of the easiest ones to decipher as it looks like what it means. Within the iron may be dots that specify what setting to use.
Three dots mean a very hot iron. Two dots mean a warm iron. One dot means a cool iron.
Circle - requires dry cleaning.
If you buy a kit to dry clean at home, an item of clothing with the circle can be used in those kits. Otherwise, if a P is in the circle, professional dry cleaning is recommended. The circle/P may also have certain codes that your dry cleaner will know about what sorts of solvents to use on the item.
Square in Circle - you may tumble dry the item after washing it.
A plain circle in a square means the item may be put into a tumble dryer after washing. The circle/square with dots are more specific. One dot means dry on low. Two dots mean dry on medium heat. Three dots mean dry on high heat.
If the St. Andrew's Cross is over the dryer symbol, it means do not, under any circumstances, put into a tumble dryer.
Other Symbols
St. Andrew's Cross - Do Not do whatever the symbol underneath tells you.
Box With 3 Vertical Stripes - Drip dry the article.
