She Works Hard For Her Money (& Spends It On Clothes)

One of the more challenging parts of being unemployed has been the lack of shopping. I used to shop all of the time, whenever I got out of work early enough, from the comfort of my couch while wearing my PJs, while out competitive shopping for my job. I love fashion. I love clothes. But that's probably pretty obvious seeing as I was buying clothes, on a very large scale, as a career. But now it's a simple equation: lack of incoming income to my bank account equals lack of incoming dresses and shoes into my closet.

Sure, I've added a couple things to my wardrobe since this chapter in my life has begun. And I've done a lot more window shopping at all of my usual haunts. Bloomingdale's, Anthropologie, H&M, Urban Outfitters. Lucky for me, and my savings, I haven't seen a lot of stuff in the stores lately that has caught my fancy. And for the things I have seen that I like, I already own a variation of from some point in time. A pair of gladiator sandals I picked up at TopShop when I was in Stockholm a few summers ago still can't beat anything I see in stores now. A white lacy dress from H&M I bought years ago still gets me tons of compliments. My beat-up denim jacket that I had to leave with my design team for a few days last year because they wanted to check out the natural wear and destruction on it. The lightweight AE army jacket I bought ages ago with money my grandmother sent me for Christmas is just like styles that are showing up on Who What Wear and Refinery 29.

So now, I've been digging into the back of my closet and finding things I completely forgot about. New goal: put together different combinations and get a completely new look out of items that have been in my wardrobe for years. And it's working! For example, when going out last weekend, instead of using that as an excuse to go shopping, I dug around in my closet. A Forever 21 dress I bought for Halloween 3 years ago that still looks as good as new (maybe because I'd only worn it twice before, yikes!). My favorite Dior high-heeled booties I picked up year and a half ago. The army jacket I mentioned before. A purse I picked up at TopShop in NYC last summer. Random accessories, some of which I've had since high school. An outfit that made me happy and all from things I already owned, and nothing that was even close to being new. No need to go out and spend more money as I would have 6 months ago.

So maybe being unemployed is teaching me something: how to be more responsible with my money. I still love fashion, but the trick is to know when to spend, when to save and what to hold on to. As long as pieces aren't extremely trendy or over-designed, it's usually worth keeping stuff in my opinion, which is partially why I save so much.

And contrary to popular belief, you can still be fashionable and not spend a fortune.

People who come to my apartment are often amazed by how much stuff I have. I have a hard time taking anything to Goodwill. My closet and dressers are overflowing and I've just about exhausted places to store shoes and purses. But the trick is to buy items that you know you're still going to like and that will hold up through the years. And it doesn't have to cost a ton. I get compliments on my clothes often and get asked where they are from.

Me: "Thanks, the dress is Marc Jacobs."
Girl X: "No wonder it looks so good!"

Me on another night with another dress: "Thanks, it's from Forever 21."
Girl Y: "You're kidding, right?! I ever find anything like that there."

Yes, Forever 21. It's not about the price or the brand or the store, I buy plenty of stuff at H&M and Forever 21, the trick is picking items that are well made and don't look cheap, which is entirely possible. And it also helps to mix lower priced trendy items with higher priced classic pieces.

Going forward I'll still always spend good money on shoes, purses, jewelry and classic pieces of clothing, but I'll definitely think more before dropping money on random stuff that I just "like" that will only get worn a couple times like I have in the past. The amount I used to spend on clothes per month sounds embarrassing now. And always remember, it's much smarter to spend $500 on a pair of classic shoes that you'll wear all of the time, than a trendy $60 dress that gets wore twice.