Overspending can happen. Especially in late August, with fall fashion are hitting store shelves.
I have to be careful when it comes to my budget, because there are few trends I don’t like. Every fall season I pick up about a million garments to try on in the fitting rooms of my favorite stores. And when you’re in love with the polka-dot blazer, the boyfriend jeans and the color-blocked top, it’s so hard to put anything back. And if you do this store after store after store…
Yeah. Your wallet usually ends up yelling at you later on. And the real shame is that you can definitely avoid this.
If you don’t know how to stop dropping all that money each season, then consider this your handy-dandy guide to wallet protection. Trust me. You don’t want that thing yelling at you later. It’s deafening.
1. Plan ahead. Set aside a specific amount of cash you are going to spend on fall fashions, and stick to it! You know how much you can afford. And if you have a number ready when you enter the store, it will help you exit without all the excess buys–the things you won’t wear all that much.
2. Ask the cashier to hold items. If you want to check out another store’s goods before you make a final purchase, ask the cashier if she’ll hold your loot for an hour. I’ve never had an employee tell me they wouldn’t do that before… and if you could care less in an hour about what you’ve got on hold, or scored big at another store, you can just head on out the door and save your cash. The employees will put your on-hold items back on the floor.
3. Make a super-specific list. After sifting through blogs and magazines, there are probably a few pieces you love and a few you can’t live without. Make the differentiation between them. Place “Can’t Live Without” items in column one, and “Love” items in column two. Make sure you budget so you can hit all the pieces on the first list, and then use whatever dough is left over to grab a few other favorites.
4. Sleep on it, especially if you’re online shopping. Online shopping is fabulous for a couple reasons. You can sift through multiple stores at once and compare prices easily, while also having the advantage of saving gas money and time. If you’re loving an item but aren’t entirely sure if you can swing it with your current budget situation, or just aren’t sure if you’ll love it that much tomorrow, bookmark that baby and sleep on it. If you still need it in the morning, snap it up!
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