If you want to dress according to the latest fashion, then you will have to expect the cost of your clothes and accessories to increase drastically. This is for many reasons, but perhaps the key is the fact that each season brings a whole host of new goodies to choose from to help you feel ahead of the fashion curve and trendsetter.
We live in difficult times. The coronavirus pandemic has hit us all hard, and the financial crisis, which is fairly widespread throughout the world, has brought us even more financial difficulties. This means that, overall, we have less to spend on what might be considered luxuries, such as an ever-changing wardrobe.
If you have an eye for fashion and don’t want to completely confront your habits, there are ways to stay put without leaving your bank balance in tatters.
Here are some tips that should help you shop better and stay on the right side of your overdraft.
Shop smarter
One way to reduce your annual fashion spend is to adopt a more focused approach, so instead of buying regularly, do it on a specific date and look to buy in a way that focuses more on quality than quantity.
One way to do this is to take a more dispassionate attitude towards the act of shopping. For example, try delaying gratification. Visit your favorite online store and choose any item that catches your eye, pieces that really jump out at you and you don’t hold back. Put them all in your shopping cart and then check out.
Return to the site after a few days or on one of the pre-defined shopping days, and then view the cart again. You’ll be amazed at how you’ll now have a different perspective on each item, and you’ll almost certainly pare things down to a more manageable package.
Make accessories a key part of your outfit and outfit
Making accessories a more prominent part of your outfit choices is a great way to reduce your overall costs, mainly because they can be used in multiple outfits, and also because, overall, they’ll cost less than clothing and should last longer. good.
With that in mind, how about a pair of bespoke bracelets to add that extra sparkle to your look and help make a real statement that will turn heads? A personalized element could be a celebration of yourself or perhaps it could print your children’s names, there are many ways to go that route and you will be able to pair the jewelery with any number of outfits you can wear.
Empty your wardrobe and declutter
When was the last time you really dug into the back of your cupboards, cupboards and drawers? It’s very likely that a little spring cleaning will go a long way when it comes to dealing with the clutter.
Take a look at what you have in the darkest recesses of your cupboards and make a judgment call on what to keep and what to remove from the equation.
This serves two purposes. First, you’ll no doubt find items you’ve actually forgotten about, and second, by keeping this type of inventory, you’ll know what you really need and shop accordingly, not on a whim.
Shop at thrift and vintage stores
Shopping online is a great way to save money, mainly because stores can offer goods at discounted prices because they have less overhead. However, if you want to enjoy an offline shopping spree, we highly recommend doing so at thrift and vintage stores.
Go with a friend or two and make an event out of it. Did you know that when you shop with friends, firstly you make more informed decisions and secondly you actually spend less, mainly because your friends are there to tell you ‘that’s not you dear’.
Thrift stores, thrift stores, and vintage outlets are a lot more fun than other outlets because you’re largely unknown. You have no idea what you might find, and that’s part of the fun. In addition, the clothes you buy in such stores have far more durability because they come from an era when the quality of fabrics, materials and cuts were much better.
Manage expectations and your budget
It may seem perverse and hard to believe, but if you budget for your clothes and accessories, you’ll actually be much better off in terms of what you end up buying.
The very act of working to get the lowest price will give you a sharper eye for bargains and will teach you to shop around and therefore become a more discerning shopper at all the stores you visit online or offline.
Open a spreadsheet, determine what you need (again, not necessarily what you want), then methodically work through each item. When you find that perfect dress, pair of jeans, or gorgeous earrings that not only look fabulous, but are within your price range and budget, you’ll feel the warm glow of accomplishment that comes with the endorphins of the purchase itself.
Avoid buying items just because they are available at discounted prices
How many times have you bought something in a store just because it was cheap and how often have you worn that item? There are probably too many answers to these questions, and they don’t come very often.
Clothes, on the whole, have gone down in price, but that’s usually because there’s an intention to convince you to buy more. But remember, you’re not buying toilet paper; no need to look for buy-one-get-two offers; stick to what’s on your shopping list and you’ll soon win the fashion budget war.
