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Top 10 Smart Ways to Save Money on Clothes


The average household spends about 2% of their budget—around $1,600 every year—on clothes. While it's not the biggest thing we spend our money on, it's still over a hundred bucks a month that maybe we could trim back. Here are at least ten ways to save money and still have great clothes.

Perhaps you're thinking "just don't buy any more clothes!" Clothing, unfortunately, quickly gets worn out or outdated, and work and other special occasions will require us to invest in our wardrobes. Gaining weight, losing weight, and/or trying to clothe children who grow like weeds are also challenges. We can, however, make our clothing budget count more by keeping the clothes we love last longer and also spending less on new clothing.

10. Buy Better Quality Clothing

Wait, spend more money on clothes? Yes, in general, you'll get more value (or cost per wear) out of decent clothes that actually fit you and will last you longer rather than doing the "fast food" approach to new clothing every year. Feel free to disregard this advice for kids, though.

9. Buy Clothes at the Right Time

Time your clothing purchases right and you'll save hundreds on your clothing expenses. January and August (for kids) seem to be the best months to invest in clothing, Thursday is the best day to shop for clothes, and there are certain days of the week that might be best for specific apparel types. In general, buying off season usually gets you better deals than buying what's hot and trendy right now, price-wise.

8. Buy Clothes When They're the Lowest Price They're Likely to Be

Buying clothes during sales events is a popular tactic, but not all sales are equal. The same shirt or pair of pants you're eyeing could be significantly less a week or so from now. How do you know if it's the absolute lowest price it'll go? The secret price codes.

7. Don't Wash Clothes as Often

This sounds bad. And smelly. But washing your clothes less often will help them last longer (and save you time and utility costs), which means you won't have to replace them as oftem. Sturdier clothes, like jeans and sweaters, can be reworn a few times or simply aired out before needing to be washed. Wool in particular seems to be stink-proof, besides insulating.

6. Take Care of Your Clothes Better

It's sad when you take your favorite sweater or shirt out of storage only to find it has been attacked by moths and now looks like Swiss cheese. Protect the clothes you love and have bought with vacuum storage bags or canvas storage containers and mothballs or cedar blocks. Also, know how to protect your sweaters, properly clean your "hand wash only clothes," and wash your "dry clean" clothes at home. Preserve your favorite clothes nearly forever by knowing how to wash and fold them properly.

5. Make Your Jeans Last Longer

Perhaps no piece of clothing gets more care and attention than jeans. We convert bootcut jeans into skinny jeans, revive faded old jeans with $5 dye, wash jeans with vinegar to increase their lifespan, and even freeze them and otherwise treat them like precious objects.

4. Know Whether You Should Buy an Item of Clothing

It happens to the best of us. You see a piece of clothing in the store and it's tempting. Before you make that impulse buy, consider whether that piece would work as part of at least three other outfits in your existing wardrobe. Otherwise, it's probably not worth it. Also remember the "meat and potatoes" rule: 70 percent of the clothes you own should be the everyday clothes, the essentials you need from day to day. If your wardrobe is veering too far from the rule, you should probably put it back on the hanger.

3. Get Creative with Your Current Wardrobe

Even with a minimalist wardrobe, you can mix up your look every day. One scarf can be tied 25 ways and a tie can be tied over 100 ways. If you check out fashion inspiration to make the most of the clothing you already have, you could probably stretch your clothing budget farther.

2. Tailor Clothes to Fit You

Finding clothes that fit you perfectly and look best for your body shape is the ideal, but even if an item is too long or too wide or just doesn't fit quite right, it can still be of use. Instead of buying new, take it to a tailor. (If you find a great item on the clearance rack just a size up or down, it could also fit you after tailoring, depending on the garment.) It's cheaper than buying new and will look better on you than the default size. In a similar vein, you can get a quality pair of secondhand shoes repaired for cheaper than buying new.

1. Buy the Clothes That Suit You Best

Buying clothes that fit you and look good on you will ultimately end up saving you the most money because you won't need to buy clothes to replace the crappy clothes that don't work for you. That sounds obvious, but with so many clothing options, it's easy to accumulate a mismatched wardrobe of clothing that you don't end up wearing. One of the best strategies to keep your clothing spending on track while also buying new clothes occasionally is to keep your closet full of clothes that match, and when you find a piece of clothing that you love and looks good on you, buy multiples of it. You can create a work-friendly wardrobe on a budget or any other kind of wardrobe by focusing on the essentials.

Title illustration by Tina Mailhot-Roberge. Photos by Kent Wang, Kim MyoungSung, Daniel Hall, McArthurGlen Designer Outlets, Brittany Lynne Photography, Carl Mueller, Cris Rice.


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