An unconventional fashion blogger trying to find her place on the internet

You’ll probably have gathered from a lot of my posts if you’ve been a follower of mine for a while that I’m all about saving as much money as possible wherever you can – and fashion is the one thing that I strive to save money on. Yes, I have personally been a victim of impulse buying (the recent Michael Kors bag purchase is an example of this – but I of course can justify it as an investment!)
It’s very rare that you’ll see me dropping a lot of money on a single item and I like to try and revamp what I already have to save the pennies. Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves as the old saying goes!

So I thought for the sake of my readers that I would share a couple of things I do personally to save money on the clothes that I buy (in a list, because who the hell would I be if I didn’t do it in a list?!) and what I always consider before making a purchase;
1. Wait before purchasing an expensive item
This is something both Aaron and I do regularly (Aaron more than me lol) when buying new clothes – if you want something in 2, 3 or even 4 weeks time then go for it. Mostly you’ll find that you go home, think about it and realise that you don’t actually need that floral, zebra, leopard print fur coat that was on sale for £100 (but uh reduced from £300 – god) and you’re glad you didn’t impulse buy! When you’re having a sort out of your wardrobe, I’m sure that these impulse buys are the ones that are tossed on the “Get the hell outta here” pile.
Another pro of doing this is, if you go back you might find the item is on sale! Aaron invested in the fittest coat from Debenhams a few weeks ago (not gunna lie, definitely fancied him even more than I already do when he put it on – he’s a beaut), we’d gone in there for a mooch around and he instantly fell in love – but at £150 he wasn’t willing to impulse buy. So he decided to wait a few weeks (didn’t stop going on about it) and when we went back I told him to buy the bloody coat! He had the hump with me for a little bit (because it cost him a lot and it was all my fault he bought it of course- I was just sick of hearing about it lol), but it had been reduced by 20% and once we got home, he was really happy!
2. Consider how much value this item is going to add to your wardrobe and will you throw it out next year?
I normally do this when I’m considering buying a trend led piece – I have a personal rule where if a trend item costs more than £15 then I won’t buy it. This is obviously reflective of how much I want to save and personal circumstances, but definitely something worth baring in mind when you’re convinced those plastic see-through boots are DEFINITELY going to be around next season.
I also take cost per wear into consideration when investing in something – for example if something costs you £100 and you wear that 100 times, it’s costing you £1 per wear. A pretty good investment in my opinion, but base that around your own circumstances to make it work for you!

3. Have you got something similar in your wardrobe already?
I’m guilty of duplicate buying and am standing here putting my hands up to that. But I intend on practicing what I preach, so am starting to introduce this question during my shopping hauls. Do I have something similar already, do I wear it and if I buy this – should I sell the other one on? I wrote a post a while back about duplicate purchases which confirms my guilt

4. Can you get this cheaper elsewhere?
I always try to find an alternative item or place to purchase before dropping my cash on something – regardless of whether that’s a basic white tee or that on trend jacket that everyone’s rocking. Shop around to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth! I also recommend checking for items second-hand in charity shops, going online to places like eBay, Depop, Vestiaire or Vinted!
5. How well is the item made and is it going to last?
This kind of goes hand in hand with how much wear are you going to get out the item and cost per wear – if you spend £2 on a top that’s not made very well in Primark, you might only wear it twice before chucking it in the bin. But buy the same item from say Topshop that’s made to a better quality, you’ll probably get more wear and better fabric. That’s not to say you can’t get bargains in Primark and cheap shit in Topshop, but something worth considering.
6. How much are you going to wear/ use it?
Back to cost per wear as mentioned above, definitely a point to consider! If you’re buying something to only wear it once, it might be worth re-considering how much that’s going to cost you and whether you could be putting your money towards something that’s going to last/ is timeless.
7. Can you fix/ alter something you’ve already got to save you money on buying new?
I personally do this as I’m quite dandy with the sewing machine – but it’s also worth seeing a seamstress to alter/repair something you might want to replace as it could be cheaper than buying new! I didn’t do this too much before I started getting little sewing jobs from friends and family, but make a point of fixing whatever is salvageable!

8. Sell some of your old clobber to fund the new purchase
This is something I’m in the process of doing (not to buy something else, just to add to my savings) having done a big sort out of my wardrobe. Proud moment when you’ve listed 10 items on eBay before lunchtime! There are loads of places online where you can sell your old clothes, accessories, general stuff – eBay is obviously the go-to place for everything (including those dirty knickers you saucy minx 😉 ), but make sure to check out apps which offer clothes selling services – Depop and Vinted are worth a look at!

9. Wear what you already have
This is a really easy thing to do and you could even get your friends/family in to help you out if you’re lacking inspiration! I’ve set myself challenges such as wearing an item in four different ways, wearing every single item I own which has really helped me make better use of my wardrobe. If you want some inspiration, make sure to check out some of my one item styled four ways series on white trainers, khaki bomber jacket and striped maxi dress
I hope you found this helpful and hope you’ve got some extra tips for saving money on fashion! Let me know if you’ve got any additional tips and whether you’ve tried any of the ones I’ve mentioned!

bloggerclothesfashionfashion blogfashion bloggerfashion inspirationfashion reviewfashion trendsfbloggermoney saving fashiononline shoppingreviewsaving moneytopshoptrendswardrobe staples