In this economy every penny counts and a big cost for most people and most families is clothing. It is hard to resist getting the latest clothes to show off to your friends how great you look. You do not want to look like you got your wardrobe from the thrift shop, but you do not need to look like you shop on Fifth Avenue either. The key is to finding a happy medium that still allows you to look good and show off your individuality. When clothes shopping for the family, these tips will come in extra handy:
Trends come and go. What's hot today is laughable tomorrow, so do not get caught up in the latest thing to come out of Milan, Paris, or Tokyo. All too often you'll look back at your purchases and wonder what you were thinking. Develop your own style that's not influenced by the trends, but still fashionable. When buying kid's clothes, do not buy anything with a character on it. Spongebob might be cool today, but in 6 months when all the kids have grown up, he will not be cool anymore and you'll be back in the store for the latest character of the month.
Dry cleaning will ruin you. Do not buy clothes that need a lot of special care. If you are constantly having to run to the dry cleaner, you will end up paying lots more over time for the clothes that you wear. Buy clothes that you can wash at home, and that do not require a lot of special settings or care. Most clothing today can be washed many times and still looks good. If you need to, you can get the fancy detergents that resist fading your clothes so that you can wear them longer.
Accessories only add to costs. Even though many fashionistas will tell you that it's all about accessorizing, you'll want to keep your collection to a minimum. These costs will only nickel and dime you and add to your overall wardrobe expenditure. If you are smart with your accessories you can mix and match them with different outfits, and you do not need a separate accessory for every outfit you own.
You can not eat clothes. When you open your closet and see all of the clothes you have that you do not wear, this represents money that could have been spent on other things. Imagine being able to go to a nice restaurant every month because of the money you save on buying quality clothes you actually wear. It would be much better to have that life experience than having some dress you not consider ugly hogging up space in your closet. If food is not your think, you can invest the extra money you're saving and watch your money make more money, instead of turning it to more useless clothes.