My Daily Dollars

It must be something about fall, but it seems that people have wardrobes on the brain these days. Maybe Sarah Palin’s $150,000 shopping spree has us all secretly salivating at the idea of buying clothes. For most of us, it’s time to be much more frugal about our clothes shopping. I’ve come across several great posts on frugal wardrobes, including this one from Almost Frugal and this series by Lifestyles of the Organized. Also, Finance Gets Personal had an amazing list of “must-haves” for a wardrobe.

In DC last week, I finally able to squeeze in a little fall shopping.  As I mentioned before, fall shopping used to be a consuming process, but this year I condensed it into one short weekend.  Once you have a decent wardrobe in place, you really shouldn’t need more than a weekend to shop.  I especially love shopping when I travel.  You have more time and can enjoy new stores.  Also, if you wait until you travel, you’ll come home with souveniers that fill a real need.  Finally, you can mention your travels when you receive compliments.  I happily spent $265 for the season, a serious reduction from my constant-shopping days.  Here’s how I did it:

First of all, think carefully about what you have and what you need.  I’ve got a simple three-piece black suit from Banana Republic, several more pairs of slacks, a couple of cute skirts, and several dresses.  For work, I can mix these items with a few button-down shirts, silky shirts, good quality t-shirts, and sweaters.  For shoes, black ballet flats and black boots, and brown boots cover most of my needs.  I also have t-shirts, jeans, and cordory pants for the weekend.  So, I felt good about my suit, shoes, and bottoms for this season.  Mainly, I wanted a new jacket, a black cashmere sweater, and a cream silk shirt.  I also have fallen completely in love with the current scarf trend.  I have several, but wouldn’t mind one more.

Prioritize your checklist.  I knew that I really wanted one boxy, 1960’s style jacket.  I could mix it with pants and skirts without it looking like a ladies-who-lunch suit.  They’re everywhere this season, so I have a feeling they will still be sylish for a few years.  While I wanted a cashmere sweater, I knew that I couldn’t really afford both, so I was willing to wait on the sweater.  I’ve got two that are in pretty good shape.

Try shoppnig for in a single color family.  If you’re just shopping for a weekend, try aiming for one new color.  If you buy several pieces that work together, you’ll get more mileage.  Odds are that they will also fit in with what you have at home.  I tried on a deep plum turtleneck at Benneton that I just loved.  I ended up getting a jacket at Zara in the same shade, plus a patterned silk top that matched.  Then, at Urban Outfitters, I found a silk scarf that picked up on the plum theme.  Now, I can mix and match these items with several of my skirts, with black slacks, or with jeans.  The shade is very “now,” so it perks up my whole wardrobe.  Since I bought everything on one big spree, I could make sure that I was buying things that accented one another.

Once you have basic pieces in place, fall shopping really can be about picking up a few good items.  I firmly believe in the buying only pieces that will last several years.   The price difference isn’t that much anymore, especially if you buy on sale.  I got the jacket at Zara for $59, marked down from $89.  I only spent $19 more than I would have spent at Target for a jacket and got a much better quality wool and a silk lining.  The jacked should last, and, most importantly, I love how I feel wearing it!  As we all know, frugal does not equal cheap!

How have you managed fall shopping this year?