The Items You Need And The Items You Don’t
We have all recently been inundated with fashion bloggers pushing the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. We have even said out loud on more than one occasion, how are they affording all of this? And hey, I get it. Sales are exciting. New fall clothes are exciting. And I fully admit that Shelby and I purchased quiet a few things at the sale ourselves. But we also have been budgeting for these purchases basically since last year’s sale. We are very strategic with what we buy, not just at the Nordstrom anniversary sale, but with every fashion purchase we make. Each item needs to serve a purpose, and needs to be something we know we will get a lot of use out of. As we have honed in on our personal style over the years, we have developed some tips and tricks on building a wardrobe on a budget.
Step one is to go through your closet and organize it. You decide what system works for you, but I prefer my closet organized by color and by season. I find this the easiest way to have a grasp on what I have, and what holes I have in my wardrobe. Any item of clothing you have not worn in the past year should be sold or donated. Once you determine what you have, create a strategy to figure out how to get what you need. Don’t try to buy everything on your “need” list at one time. Determine a monthly budget for yourself, and stick to it. For some people this is the hardest part.
When shopping, ask your self questions like “what in my closet can I wear this with”, and “is this a trendy piece I probably won’t wear next season or a classic piece I will wear for years to come?” Quality of an item is also something to consider, as if you’re investing a lot of money in a piece you want to calculate your cost per wear.
We love picking up a few trendy pieces every season, but we never spend a lot of money on them. These pieces never get worn more than a handful of times, so if we don’t spend a lot of money on them, we don’t feel as bad about donating them at the end of the season when we get tired of them. A good pair of jeans, well made leather shoes, a nice coat- these are things we invest more money in as we will wear them season after season.
If you’re really on a budget check out some local vintage shops or websites like TheRealReal or Ebay to score some great deals.
Just remember, this is a marathon not a sprint. Good closets take time to build. The biggest thing to remember is to assess your needs based on the season, and to slowly accumulate these key pieces over time. Be mindful of end of season sales, as you can score some great deals on classic pieces you’ll for sure wear the following year. This is a great time to stock up on basics. Or in the case of the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, you can score great deals on new fall pieces that just arrived before they go back to full price. It’s not too late, there is still time to shop this year’s sale if you are needing to add a few key pieces to your fall wardrobe. You can check out what we purchased here, and there are some great key pieces you can click thru below.
-Ash