One of the truest cliches is that, when it comes to fashion, men and women don’t understand each other.

If you ask a member of the opposite sex for a recommendation on which of the latest fashions you should buy, chances are you will get a lukewarm response akin to asking an anarchist whether they enjoyed the royal wedding.

To generalise even further, women like to shop in the company of other women, they love to try lots of things on and are eager for the opinion of others in helping them make their decision – it is a social occasion rather than a practical exercise to find things to wear. Men tend to get frustrated if they can’t find what they want within seconds of walking in to their chosen shop and definitely do not want to get the opinion of their mates as to whether they should buy something or not.

In fashion though there is so much choice – even if men tend to want to buy a newer version of what they are currently wearing – so how do people make their choice?

The average high street is stuffed full of shops offering seemingly unlimited fashion options, yet window shopping is only one means of deciding what is going to make it in to this season’s wardrobe.

A mass of newspapers and magazines report on fashion with glee and in lots of detail. Editors of fashion magazines are celebrities in their own right. The gossip magazines are as much about fashion as they are about gossip.

In short, fashion is incredibly important.

Also important are recommendations. Particularly given the bewildering number of options available. The Telegraph has introduced an I-Spied section on its website, which is effectively a tiny online shop, with the journalists pick of the day, or week's, items. You can also find these recommendations on LoveThis. Quality vs quantity.

Even better is to get this type of expert advice and the advice of your trusted friends, which of course, you can get from LoveThis. Just don’t ask your boyfriend or your husband, even if they are a trusted friend.

James.

P.S. - The rest of the LoveThis team share their thoughts on the social recommendations space at blog.lovethis.com