THE NET RESULTS

Once upon a time, devoted style hunters would have to search long and hard to find that perfect piece, those fashion items that were unusual, quirky or detailed, and definitely not something you were likely to spot others wearing on every street corner.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th Jan 2010, 09:19 BST
Updated 20th Jan 2010, 09:19 BST

They would seek out independent boutiques (which they would then keep secret), or head to the big city to snap up designer pieces, but not any more. Thanks to the internet, that "something a little bit different" is just a few clicks away.

Asos.com celebrates its 10th birthday this year and continues to be at the vanguard of niche fashion shopping. Asos stands for As Seen On Screen, and the company began by offering copies of celebrity looks. Now it offers a broad range of fashion from designer to workwear, and nurtures young design talent from throughout the country. Leeds-based Aqua Couture, which has a shop in the Victoria Quarter, has its designs available to the rest of the world through Asos.com.

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Asos.com also has a fashion blog, where customers can post their own photos and opinions on fashion trends and items. It's all about creating a community of fashion devotees and High Street retailers such as Topshop have followed suit.

There are also websites that specialise in high-end designer fashion, in particular Net-a-porter, which also celebrates 10 years this year. And then there are the hundreds and thousands of sites and online boutiques that bring new and different pieces to fashion shoppers.

For starters, try A Gift From The Gods, which grew from the '90s dance music scene, and offers club-style handbags, belts and T-Shirts; Glamour247 offers its Wizard jeans for those in search of something to lift the bottom and make you look slimmer; BrandAlley.co.uk offers designer brands at bargain prices, often flash promotions – like its Vera Wang Lavender sale with savings of around 70 per cent, starting January 29, for one week only.

Then there are the online companies that cater for fashion shoppers who are not all size eight-10 and under 30 – Fiftyplus.co.uk offers a wide range of wearable fashions, as does Marisota.com (which is a great place to go for a flattering swimsuit). And increasingly, established home shopping names are evolving and changing their offering. Littlewoods.

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com (part of Shop Direct Home Shopping which owns Additions, Very and Woolworths.co.uk) now has brands such as Miss Sixty, Love Label, Firetrap and Diesel. Its sister company Very.co.uk has ranges featuring the likes of Fearne Cotton and Holly Willoughby. Bradford-based Kaleidoscope also has a surprising range of great fashion, particularly for older women.

Can't find what you want in the shops? Then go online, because it's all out there waiting for you.