Dressing Well on a Budget

     People with power and money often display their power and wealth in their clothing.    While I generally find ostentatious displays of wealth in clothing, especially wearing large highly visible designer brand logos, to be tasteless, the clothing still conveys power and wealth.  Expensive clothing often looks very good, and lasts well, but this does not mean you cannot dress well on a budget.  With a bit of creativity you can look powerful and interesting and have money left over for important things, like burritos.

Nice clothing is nice and all, but not when it interferes with my Burrito Budget.

     The first step to amassing a solid wardrobe on a tight budget is to examine what you already have.  Take out all of your clothing, your shoes, your accessories, everything that you wear, and try each item on.  There could be great options buried in the back of your closet, or covered by more worn out things you already wear.  Now ask yourself, is the clothing visibly stained, worn, or damaged?  If so, can you repair it?  Can you make it look like it was intentionally torn, worn, or discolored?  If the clothing is visibly damaged and irreparable you will not look powerful in it.  If you are crafty, you can cut it up and use it for some other purpose, if not, use it for cleaning rags.

     What remains in your closet should be in salvageable condition.  Now ask, does this clothing fit?  Will it fit in the future?  Can I find a way to wear it if it does not fit?  Your weight may fluctuate throughout the year, so its fine to keep clothing that fits you appropriately for all seasons.  But don't hold onto something that fit you in middle school, or during your 8th month of pregnancy with triplets.  You won't be that size again.  If the clothing is particularly nice, or used to look good on you, it may be worthwhile to take it to the tailor to have it refitted to you.  If it would cost less to buy a replacement, don't keep it.

     If your clothing is clean and fits you, it will look nicer regardless of what you paid for it.  Now it is time to assess the clothing you actually have to work with.  Do you like this clothing?  Do you feel good in it?  Do you or will you have occasion to wear it?  Can you pair it with a different piece of clothing, or something new to make it look better? If the answer is yes, keep this, if not put it aside with the clothing that does not fit you.  The reason you are doing this is to figure out what you need, and to get you thinking about new ways to work with what you have.  You might not need to buy any new clothing at all.  Do you have enough comfortable clothing for all seasons, for work, special occasions, going out, and everyday wear?  If so, you may just need to combine your clothing in new ways to make it interesting.  If you wear the same shirt, with different pants, and accessories every time you wear it, it won't look or feel the same.

     Once you have gauged  what clothing you have, and how you can wear it, you can start plugging up any holes in your wardrobe.  Before you run off to the store, realize there are many ways to get nice clothing for free.  For more timeless or vintage options, raid your parent's and older relatives' closets.  If they still have old clothing that they no longer wear, or that no longer fits them.   Your relatives will likely be happy to let you have their old clothes.  Do not worry too much about the style, fashion tends to follow a 20 year cycle, so clothing your parents wore, could easily look current today.  For more contemporary stuff, try holding a clothing swap with your friends.  Have everyone bring clothing they no longer want (like that pile of ill fitting clothing you no longer like you put aside a few paragraphs above).  Lay out all of the clothing, and let people take what suits (and fits) them.  You can donate anything that no one wants.  Even if you and your friends are different sizes, this can be a great way to change up your accessories, which are often all you need to transform an outfit.

Remember this jacket and dress?  They were in
my last post, when I discussed spring trends.
You want to know where these current trends came from?
My mom, and my grandmother's closet.

     Now that you have exhausted your options for getting free clothing you can actually start shopping.  The amount you should be willing to spend on something should be proportional to how long you expect it to live.  Buying cheap jeans are not going to save you money if they implode after two washes.  Here are the things to spend or save on:

Spend:

• Basics (Everyday shoes, jeans, versatile shirts, sweaters)
• Dress clothing (Women can get away with cheap dress clothing more easily than men)
• Wintergear 
• Bags and Wallets (you only need 1)
• Belts and Watches (more for men)

Save:

• Workout Clothing (Women you need a good sports bra, you can skip the lululemon leggings)
• Stockings (Nice ones fall apart just like cheap ones do)
• Socks and Underwear
• Accessories
• Anything trendy

     For clothing with a shorter lifespan, explore local flea markets, and thrift stores.  These can be especially good places to find unique accessories.  Some thrift stores are associated with charities, such as Philly Aids Thrift, so you can feel good about the things you purchase.  If you have an average build and a keen eye, you should be able to find clothing in these places.  If you have a less standard build or lack patience, thrift stores and flea markets are not the place to buy major articles of clothing.  It will take some extra effort to find clothing that fits well and is of high quality in these places.  

Even if you can afford new clothing, this place is worth checking out.
You can find anything from clothing, to silverware, to furniture here.

     The next level of clothing store is a consignment store.  These often sell high quality second hand goods. You can find consignment stores that specialize in anything from professional attire to prom dresses.  This is potentially a place to look for accessories.  Visit the more high end ones for blazers and dress pants.  You can find good everyday clothing in ordinary consignment stores, and trendy clothing in some consignment stores designed to sell current fashion.   You can even sell the clothing you no longer want to a consignment store for money, or store credit.  People with non standard builds may have a hard time finding clothing here, but will likely have an easier time here than at a thrift store.

At a consignment store you can put all of that ill fitting, unwanted
clothing to work.  Instead of lazing around in your closet, you can
make it earn money for better clothing at a consignment store.

     Fast fashion stores such as Forever 21 and H&M are great for trend pieces because they are cheap.  The clothing here tends to fall apart, so don't come here for long term wardrobe staples.  Adjusting to trends can be a big drain on your budget because you may need to get all new clothing every season.  Don't waste your money this way.  Get maybe one cheap trendy piece of clothing each season to keep looking current.  If you really like a trend, or it really suits you, consider investing in a nicer piece of clothing for that trend.  You can wear old trends without looking dated as long as you are tactful about it.  If you do not want to buy a new outfit for each new season, you have other ways to keep your look current.  Getting a trendy haircut, a new accessory, or one new color of lipstick or eye makeup is enough to keep your look fresh.  You can also just ignore trends entirely and stick to timeless looks.

This highlow skirt can be worn in many different
ways.  In it's full high low form I can wear it for a
date, or fancy occasion.

If I change my top, hair, and shoes, and add a
scarf, that same skirt that wanted to party
is now ready to do serious things with serious adults.

The highlow skirt has evolved! (I wrapped the long
end in the back around my hip, and tucked it into
my waistband in the front)  Now I can wear this
skirt to a concert, a party, or to glare at strangers.

   For those timeless looks, and basics you should focus more on quality than cost.  These pieces will form the basis of your wardrobe.  You want them to be versatile and last a long time.  If you invest in a quality piece of clothing, you will save more money in the long run than if you repeatedly buy cheap pieces that quickly fall apart.  Investing in quality clothing does not mean buying designer brands, it just means being willing to look outside of standard bargain sources.  Each store and brand of clothing cuts their clothing a little bit differently.  So do a bit of research and find a store or brand known for the quality of their products, that cuts their clothing in a way that suits you.  This will be the source of your basics.  Major holiday sales are a great time to get basics you might not ordinarily be able to afford.  Many trend items will be sold out for the season, but there is no reason to expect to have any difficulty in getting basics during these major sales.

     Basics are simple pieces of clothing that you can wear in many situations.  Many people think of a boring t-shirt and jeans when they think basics.  Basics don't need to be boring or plain, just versatile. They should be a color and cut that suits you.  Some basics worth investing in are dark well fitting jeans, a navy blazer, mid length skirts, and nice sweaters.  For shirts, you want to look for something low key enough for everyday settings, but made of nice enough material that you can dress it up for special occasions.  Any basic you invest in should fit in with the rest of your wardrobe, unless you plan to do a complete overhaul.  You want the new piece to pair well with multiple articles of clothing you already own for a variety of different situations.  That versatility is what will prevent you from needing to buy many different articles of clothing, which will save you money.
 

As promised, I give you Eli, a real boy!
This is a sweater that he wears for many different
situations.  He gets bonus points for having
bought it in a thrift store.

In this picture, Eli and his sweater feel dressy and
ready for mildly formal occasions.

Sometimes Eli wears these pants to be dressy.
Sometimes he wears them to jump out from behind
trees: such versatility.

 
      With any article of clothing you get, the fit contributes largely to how good it looks on you.  So no matter where you get your clothing from, consider the fit, and the cost of altering the clothing when you decide whether or not to purchase it.  Buying cheap clothing that you do not care for, or that does not fit is just a waste of money.  Do not spend money on anything unless you like it, you can get it to fit, and it can contribute to your wardrobe in more than one way.  Now go my friends!  Go off into the World and look interesting and powerful without cutting into your Chipotle budget.