Money Matters
BFP 8/2/10 (3w5d); Spotting started 8/14/10 (5w2d); Heartbeat of 152bpm on 8/24/10 (6w5d); No more heartbeat on 8/30/10 (7w4d); D&C on 9/2/10 (8w) - Baby Boy with Triploidy
BFP 12/3/10 (4w2d); 12/8 - hCG 157, progesterone 19.4; 12/10 - hCG 37, progesterone 2; Spotting started 12/9; Natural miscarriage 12/12 (5w4d) - Unknown cause
Diagnosed with Compound Heterozygous MTHFR
BFP 3/9/11; Due November 18; 3rd beta - 14,000 on 5w5d
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
How much do you spend on clothes?
If you have a monthly or yearly budget that you spend on clothes, that would be great to hear, but I'm also really interested in what people typically spend on various articles of clothing. Of course, everyone loves a huge bargain (who doesn't love a $5 shirt on a clearance rack?), but I'm curious to know how much people feel comfortable spending on things like shirts, pants, jeans, or even bras. I was raised by a bargain shopper, which certainly is not a bad thing, but I feel like I hesitate more than the average person when buying something that is not on sale or more expensive than I would prefer. Thanks!
BFP 8/2/10 (3w5d); Spotting started 8/14/10 (5w2d); Heartbeat of 152bpm on 8/24/10 (6w5d); No more heartbeat on 8/30/10 (7w4d); D&C on 9/2/10 (8w) - Baby Boy with Triploidy
BFP 12/3/10 (4w2d); 12/8 - hCG 157, progesterone 19.4; 12/10 - hCG 37, progesterone 2; Spotting started 12/9; Natural miscarriage 12/12 (5w4d) - Unknown cause
Diagnosed with Compound Heterozygous MTHFR
BFP 3/9/11; Due November 18; 3rd beta - 14,000 on 5w5d
Re: How much do you spend on clothes?
My work shirts and pants tend to be around $50 each. My wife is working from home so she can wear what ever she wants. I tend to buy her socks and underwear when hers starts to get too many holes. As for bras, she is on the larger size so her bras are usually in the $50 range. We get 90% of our son's clothes from Once Upon a Child unless I see a real good bargain at a store.
Total for our family we try to keep our annual clothes budget in the $500 to $750 range including shoes etc. For my wife and I we usually only buy new clothes when we absolutely have to. Since we both are on the larger side of normal it is hard for us to find clothes that not only fit but look good.
I am also saving on clothes by asking for what I need for birthdays and Christmas.
Looks like less than $300 in the past 12 months between DH and myself, though a couples years ago I recall that we were averaging over $50/month.
No wonder it feels like I haven't bought clothes in forever. My closet is really full, so I've been avoiding making purchases unless I'm also getting rid of something.
The other day I bought 3 pair of work pants for $14, $6, and $4. My suits were $15-$30 each (though it's been over a year since I've bought a new one as fortunately I don't need them for work very often anymore). I typically spend $5-$15 on shirts. My last couple bras have been $2. I mostly shop at second hand stores.
Though I do splurge on wool socks from REI when they go on sale (around $8/pair). And sometimes I buy kind of expensive new shoes ($100+), though not lately. The only shoes I purchased this year were crocks.
Everything combined, shoes, bras etc, it is pretty close to $700 per year for the both of us. A lot of things we are able to buy cheaper when they are on sale. But some things, such as shoes, if I can find on sale than great. But I am always willing to spend more on a good pair of shoes.
If you were raised by a bargain shopper, it was probably someone like me, LOL.
I have charge cards with JC Penney & Macy's. I get emails with coupons & sales, plus some in the mail. I always pay any charges off on time. For new items I do the bulk of my shopping online because my size doesn't waiver much. I work at home 99.9% of the time, so the need for new work clothes for the occasional business trip or meeting is minimal. I shop in 2 colors for work, black and white, and that way everything matches everything else. When I shop online I start with the "clearance" or "sale" links to see if I can find myself a great bargain before looking at the regularly priced items. I rarely buy anything full price.
I have a teenaged daughter who now works at a women's clothing store, so she buys a lot of her own clothes now, but for the holidays I shop for her online with all the coupons & sale items mentioned above.
My husband buys his own clothes, and I'd bet with shoes and work clothes (business casual) he probably spends less than $500 a year.
I will go to the Salvation Army or Goodwill stores maybe 2-3 times a year. I have found designer blazers, pants and dresses, some with the original tags, for 1/10th of normal price. Plus, I have the satisfaction of supporting charitable organizations locally and not spending my money on new items made in countries that do not treat their workers well (my own little pet peeve).
I was raised by a budget shopper too- my mom worked retail (and was on the markdown team) so she would get us amazing deals like t-shirts for 97 cents. I have a very hard time paying retail for any clothing. I try to shop good sales and clearance racks to get everything at least half off.
Our clothing budget has gone up a lot this year- buying to get ready for baby (Babys R Us and Target clearance, and lots or great used stuff at garage sale) and maternity clothes for me which are hard to get a good deal on because the clearance stuff is the wrong season. I take advantage of sales and coupons I get from Motherhood maternity to try and get good deals. Right now for instance I want a couple maxi dresses, but I have a hard time justifying spending 30+ on something Iwill probably wear for 2 more months. I got a coupon though in the mail this week, so I'm going to justify it that way.
Our budget right now is about $100 a month for DH, getting ready for baby, and me.
I don't skimp on shoes or bras. I'm on my feet for work and I wear sneakers most of the time outside of work. I'm loyal to New Balance for my foot support. I also get good sneakers for hubby to wear because of him shattering his heel and needing ankle support. I spend $60 a bra for me, but the support is wonderful. The straps don't slip and the back doesn't ride up and keeps my chest where it belongs. That is worth it to me to make my shirts look the best.
Everything else that's needed I don't really spend a lot on. I get my work pants from Kohl's once a year (4 pairs). Sometimes I find them on clearance, sometimes I don't. I try to get my jeans from Target or Wal-Mart. I usually get my husband Wranglers or Urban Pipeline on sale.
We haven't really bought clothes in two years, so I know that our budget is going to be high this year and then level out going forward.
My first preference is always clearance or sale, but I'm not afraid to pay full price for what I need. Also remember, there are some items that you totally get what you pay for. Some items are "investment" pieces, like winter coats.
Almost nothing. My DH and I spend less than 100 a year each on clothes with the exception of shoes. DH has to wear diabetic shoes and they are covered by his insurance. I only west Crocs but I have enough pairs to last me a decade at this point, and I still only paid 15-20 a pair for most of them.
My DD is smaller than most of her friends so they give her things they grow out of. She also gets free stuff at swap meets, the city dump where her dad lives (they have an area to leave items that are still useful). I also have a friend in her 70's who is the same size as DD and very wealthy. She gives DD her old clothes and they are always really nice items in perfect condition. She has several cashmere sweaters, Brooks Brothers blouses, Lululemon outfits, etc. Last year , aside from Christmas and birthday gifts, I spent $10 on a pair of pants for her at Forever 21. She and I also wear the same shoe size so when she lives with me she usually just wears my shoes.
We don't budget for clothing as our clthing purchases are just too infrequent to budget.
Currently, we actually spend more for the kids' clothing (I buy on consignment for everything except their shoes, socks, and pjs) since they grow so fast. I think it amounts to $200-$300 about every 6 months.
DH wears a uniform so all his clothing items are tax deductible...he buys new items as he needs them. Maybe he spends about $200 per year???
I do go spendy on shoes (for the entire family) and bras, though. Like I just bought two new bras and spent $120. I'd rather buy a decent bra that looks good then an average one.
Shoes I can drop over $100 on a pair and feel fine about that. I hate having uncomfy feet and it's better in my mind to buy 1-2 pairs of great shoes then to buy 4-5 medicore pairs.
For work, I buy Express editor pants on Ebay, $15-20 each. I also buy them and work tops at consignment stores since they carry Limited, Express and Loft brands. My work shoes and summer sandals I get from Target and Payless. I spend more on bras, I use Victorias Secret. During the weekends and summer, I wear summer dresses and I buy from Maurices, Papaya or Palais Royal, I spend $20-30 each dress.
I tend to spend a fair amount of money per item but I don't go shopping that often. I might spend $150 to $200 on a dress or a pair of jeans but it's ONE pair of jeans or ONE dress and I'll wear it for a few years. I'll spend up to $400 on a purse or a coat, but again, I'll wear it for several years. I actually feel like spending money on cheap, trendy clothes is more wasteful because they fall apart or look dated so quickly and I don't want to wear them more than a few times. But a classic outfit that's tailored to fit well? Worth every penny.
Clothing is definitely one of my weaknesses. This past year has been really spendy in that department too because of weight loss. I've been spending $100-200 every other month on clothing. I've recently cut back because we're trying to close on a house, but it's rough when none of my stuff fits right anymore (thankfully I kept some of my nicer clothing from when I was this size in the past).
I never ever pay full price for anything. I tend to shop at Old Navy and I wait till they send me an e-mail saying they're doing a 30% off sale (which is just about as high as it goes) and then I'll combine that with rewards I've got from the CC I have with them.
DH hardly ever buys clothing. Neither of us work it into our monthly budget because we get stuff when/as we need it or if we see something ridiculously reduced.
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