Thursday, June 30, 2011

to splurge or not to splurge?

As you know, I love a good bargain, but with a fantastic price doesn't always come great quality. How many times have you bought something from forever 21, only to wear it twice and then have the zipper break? Don't get me wrong, I worship forever 21, but there comes a time when you're shopping for basic staples that you actually want to last, and that's when you have to ask yourself, to splurge or not to splurge?


Here are my dos and don'ts of splurging, because when you try to stretch your paychecks as far as they can, this kind of stuff really matters.

DON'T Splurge On:

1) Workout clothes - yes, I know, you want to look cute everywhere you go, but at the gym? if people are paying attention to what you look like then clearly they aren't focusing on what they went there to do. Yes I don't want to to look like a total slob when I workout, but I don't need to drop $45.00 on a cute workout top to achieve that.

Soffe shorts are like $7.99 and come in every color imaginable, pair them with a free t-shirt you got on campus, and hello, that's all you need to work out in! If you must, cut the t-shirt to be off the shoulder and match your sports bra to shorts!


But I do have an exception, you NEED a good pair of running shoes to prevent injuries, skip the ones that are mainly to look cute and make sure your arch and ankles are supported. 

2) Going out clothes - this is why stores like forever 21 and charlotte russe were invented! when you go out, you take lots of pictures and go to crowded parties where people spill things on you. Thanks to facebook, what you wear every weekend is documented and no one wants to be called an outfit repeater,  so instead of spending around $70 on a hot dress from Bebe, get three from forever! Plus if your $22.00 dress gets ruined due to sloppiness, who cares? you were really only going to wear it twice anyways :) 

3) Swim suits - see "don't underestimate wal-mart" post for a bikini that was $12.00 and is adorable. swim suits stretch out, fade in the sun, get all fuzzy from sitting on the edge of the pool, you get the picture. target and wal-mart have adorable swimsuits that are $30 and under and at that price you can get three new ones every summer for the price of one designer or victoria's secret suit. 

DO Splurge On: 

1) Good jeans - When you find that pair of jeans that makes your butt look amazing, is the perfect wash, and doesn't give you muffin top? go ahead, buy them. Good jeans are something you KNOW you'll wear and you want ones that will actually last you. I tried on a pair of J-Brand jeggings at work the other day, instantly fell in love and when I put my $17.00 forever jeggs back on, I thought I was actually wearing sandpaper. Yes, the jeggings are $118.00 (originally around $160.00 but marked down for the nordy's anniversary sale!) but I know that they'll last and that I'll wear them twice a week in the fall and winter. Look for ones in a dark wash and that are boot cut, you can wear boot cuts with heels and boots (duh) and they look great with flats and will never go out of style. 

2) Handbag - you can tell a lot about someone from their handbag, I'm not going to lie, when I see someone with LV stamped all over their purse I automatically think, oh they have a lot of money, and instantly see their outfit as expensive, when really they could be rocking a dress from american eagle. a well structured, basic handbag can really make an outfit look more expensive and when they're made out of study material, they'll last forever. I'm craving this longchamp bag, it's only $145.00 which to me is a lot to part with, but compared to other designer handbags is nothing, and I know it'd be great to tote my books to the library in.





3) Hair styling tools - Chi straighteners. once you've used one, you never want to use your con-air $24.99 flat iron again. Around $100.00, chis are expensive, but I've had mine for over 3 years and it still works just as perfectly as it did the day I got it. cheap hair tools can ruin your hair, look for ones with ceramic plates that help protect hair from heat damage, because if you're like me and have been trying to grow your hair out for the past two years, you want all the protection you can get. 



Be smart shoppers<3

No comments:

Post a Comment