Grant it, I am young, I am only 26 years old. And yes, I haven't really earned the prize of "giving out wisdom", BUT there is one thing I do know and that is how to have a large and decent wardrobe on a very low salary...I know how to find good clothes that will make you doubt where I got them.
Every girl has her 'thing', for me it's clothes. I could really care less about how many purses, scarves, coats or shoes I have but the one thing that is guaranteed to put a smile on my face is a new outfit. My family growing up never really had money for spending sprees. So I usually got my new clothes at Christmas or my birthday and all my other clothes were hand-me-downs. I was one of the few young girls in life that LOVED getting hand-me-downs. Why? Because that was new clothes to me. So over the past decade I have learned to work with what I have and shop for, ask for, and use what I will not regret.
Since I been married the budget in my life has been some of the most strict I've encountered. But the thing is, we've never approached a single week where we broke down wondering how in the world we were going to pay our bills or survive. I never felt like having a date was out of the question or splurging on a pizza and a rental movie was impossible, we have never once been in any kind of debt either and yet between the both of us put together we've never made a salary more than $24,000. So then, how am I able to have a decent wardrobe when I've always been under the poverty line? Because I know what to look for, I know what to do, and I know how to make what I have work...
My Rules:
1. Never pay more than $25 for a pair of jeans.
2. Do not go over $10 for a top. (I usually don't go over $7 unless I'm desperate)
3. Never pay more than $15 for a skirt or dress (unless it's mind-blowingly amazing then I may squeeze it to $25 for a dress).
4. Shoes are not to be bought for more than $15...preferably no more than $10.
5. When unable to choose between items, go with the practical one that can be used with the most outfits.
6. Coats are to be bought at the end of the winter season during sales. It needs to be lasting, practical, and considered stylish for a handful of years.
7. Be eager to buy used...I love thrift store shopping. I've found some of the most amazing things when picking through thrift stores.
8. Be stylish, modest, and you.
9. Name Brands do not matter.
10. Only spend money on it, no matter how small the price, if you truly like it and see yourself wearing it. If you have ANY doubt whatsoever about buying the item, then don't buy it.
11. Don't pick something that will not last very long in it's "fad" state. The styles that you choose need to last a good handful of years and still keep you looking stylish. Things such as brightly colored floral pants aren't the kind of thing that lasts in style very long.
12. AND MOST OF ALL....DON'T GAIN WEIGHT! -Gaining too much weight is expensive because then you have to buy a new wardrobe that will fit you. So, staying the same dress-size is what will help keep your expenses down because you won't have to buy new clothes nearly as often.
-Exceptions are understood.
*Please Note: This pricing budget is just my own. If you want to expand your budget then that's perfectly fine. It's more important to follow the advice without the budget prices such as numbers 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11.
11. Don't pick something that will not last very long in it's "fad" state. The styles that you choose need to last a good handful of years and still keep you looking stylish. Things such as brightly colored floral pants aren't the kind of thing that lasts in style very long.
12. AND MOST OF ALL....DON'T GAIN WEIGHT! -Gaining too much weight is expensive because then you have to buy a new wardrobe that will fit you. So, staying the same dress-size is what will help keep your expenses down because you won't have to buy new clothes nearly as often.
-Exceptions are understood.
*Please Note: This pricing budget is just my own. If you want to expand your budget then that's perfectly fine. It's more important to follow the advice without the budget prices such as numbers 5, 7, 8, 10, and 11.
Where can such cute clothes with low budgets be found? Most usual places...but instead of heading straight into the new stuff that the store very manipulatively set up for you to draw you in, walk straight past that and go to the clearance section. Stores purposely make the clearance section look messy, unorganized, and overwhelming because they want you to give up sifting through it so you will go to the new and more expensive stuff instead. So be a rebel and pick through the clearance section piece by piece...only look for what you went in for and follow the budget -just because something is on clearance doesn't mean it's a good buy, so follow the given budget.
P.S. The Kohls clearance is amazing and if you use a coupon it will make it even better, I've gotten stuff for free before because of how low the sale price was and then throwing the coupon on top of that. The Old Navy clearance is my favorite though, but only because it's more my style.
I imagine that you may very well be saying right now..."What!?! That's ridiculous. There isn't anything good to be bought with that budget." Oh contrare my friend, there is. You see 'names' do not matter. There can be just as good of quality and cuteness from something bought for 5 bucks than the same kind of thing bought for 50 bucks. Why? Because 'names' don't matter. Name brands are usually what you are paying for, not the actual item. You just need to study the item you are looking at and make sure that it won't fall apart within a few washes. Most clothes, even from dollar stores, will last a good long while if they are treated with care.
Here are some very informative sites on the psychology stores use on us:
Psychology of shopping for bargains
10 Ways your local grocery store has hijacked your brain.
5 Ways stores use science to trick you into buying 'crap'.
10 Sales tricks you keep falling for.
Sales tricks to make us spend.
Here are some very informative sites on the psychology stores use on us:
Psychology of shopping for bargains
10 Ways your local grocery store has hijacked your brain.
5 Ways stores use science to trick you into buying 'crap'.
10 Sales tricks you keep falling for.
Sales tricks to make us spend.
Every closet needs AT LEAST these things:
-Black Skirt
-Black Dress
-Black Dress Pants
-Sun Dress
-White/Cream Cardigan
-Blazers of all sort...unless it is boxy with shoulder pads, that's a no no.
-Long Nice Jeans
-Casual Jeans
-'Dirty' Jeans
-Turtle Neck -the ribbed ones -They look great on women of every size and shape.
-A Decorative Scarf
-Jean Skirt
-Fitted TShirts
-Belts to be worn around the wast (black, brown, white, tan, etc)
-Overload of Undershirts/Camisoles
8 Budget Shopping Tips for Plus Size Women
Stylish Solutions for Plus Size Fashionistas
The Best Fashion Advice I found for the Plus Sized -Very detailed
What have you found that you always need in your closet?
and
What have you discovered that helps you with shopping wise?
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