https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Sat, 11 Apr 2026 00:10:10 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864473 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 18:16:13 +0000 Angie 1864473@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>*APPLAUSE*</p> <p>Very nicely done, Princess Penny Dress.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864468 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 18:05:49 +0000 Penny 1864468@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thank you, fashiontern! &nbsp;</p> <p>Although I was fortunate that my wardrobe still worked post-baby, there were many items due for a refresh. &nbsp;My closet still looks very similar to the prior posts - more pared down and with a more neutral palette, but with lots of the same beloved workhorses in addition to the new items. &nbsp;Appreciate your kind words.</p> <p>Yes, my hope is to generally continue this approach , although it's organic - less strict planning than a recognition that it's okay to spend more on a piece that I'll wear 3-4 times a week at the office (like a great blazer) or items that can multi-task (as you noted, often accessories). &nbsp;In contrast, a very dressy piece will really need to knock it out of the park to earn a place in my wardrobe because those items are worn less frequently and I already have plenty of variety. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</p> <p>Good catch on jewel tones - I adore them, but it's so hard to find just the right shade! &nbsp;Especially because I prefer very deep jewel tones, which also pair better with my black tights and boots in colder months. &nbsp;Fortunately, the dark wine of my handbags gives me that hit of deep color, along with the dark purple of one of my winter coats (plus jewel tones in many of my scarves). &nbsp;Definitely keeping an eye out, though . . .&nbsp;</p> <p>You've made lots of progress on your own style journey, and I look forward to hearing about your continued success! &nbsp;We all learn so much here. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864448 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 16:38:52 +0000 Stagiaire Fash 1864448@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Wow, that sounds like a snappy work wardrobe! I’d love to see wiw pictures. </p> <p>I don’t know where you were at the start of the year, other than the baby. This sounds like a good allocation of funds for starting from scratch. I notice that your “multi-use” category could also be labeled “accessories”. What are your priorities going forward? Do you plan to spend in the same proportions for each category? </p> <p>I’m way behind you, have only a rough notion of purchases this year. I can say, however, that I stopped at Anthropologie and Nordstrom Rack yesterday and returned nearly $500 of No, a quarter of it fancy pants for my son, the rest of it for me.</p> <p>ETA: I just looked at your post from a year ago. What a serene, unclogged closet! I love the patterns you have, but I hear you in this post, that you are working on thinning those out. You also mentioned jewel tones in that post. Is that a focus for the coming year, now that the foundation of black and navy has been laid? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864384 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 12:54:06 +0000 Penny 1864384@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Thanks so much, rachylou, harmonica, Sisi, Style Fan, and Sterling!</p> <p>Sterling, yes, I mix navy and black almost daily - thanks to advice I’ve seen on this blog and others, I try to do it with intention. For example: navy dress, black patent belt, black blazer, black shoes. Another example is black dress, tights, and shoes, with a navy blazer. It makes me feel polished and sophisticated, and definitely makes dressing easy!</p> <p>Appreciate the support, and I love following your style journeys. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864366 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 11:40:07 +0000 Anonymous 1864366@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>What a great post!!!!!!! &nbsp;You had a plan and you stuck to the plan. &nbsp;Congratulations to you for that alone!!!!!! &nbsp;</p> <p>I love that your base colors are navy and black. &nbsp;Do you mix the two or are they separate and unique capsules? &nbsp;If you mx them, any advice? &nbsp;</p> <p>Only 5 percent of buying mistakes is stellar. &nbsp;</p> <p>You did amazingly well. &nbsp;I feel motivated and inspired just reading your thread.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864360 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 10:39:00 +0000 Style Fan 1864360@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Excellent!&nbsp; Finding a uniform for professional life makes getting dressed so much easier.&nbsp; Dresses are a great way to feel polished and professional.&nbsp; </p> <p>I do my budget from September to August.&nbsp; Being part of the YLF community and reading Angie`s blog has made such a difference to my spending habits. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864355 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 10:00:10 +0000 Sisi 1864355@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Compliments! You have professional shopping skills!&nbsp;You seem to know perfectly what you like and flatters you -&nbsp;and lucky enough to find it. Beautiful pieces!</p> <p>I have done a pre-review of my year in these past days ( I'll do the final one in January). Results: &nbsp;improving, but not as well as I would. I wish I had a 5% of mistakes only! :)</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864351 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 09:41:45 +0000 harmonica 1864351@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Looks like a great shopping year! I like how you have broken the categories down in your budget. I track wears in the StyleCloset app and find it very useful. When it comes to budgeting, I'm very random. I'd like to improve, though. I'm following this post to get some inspiration. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864335 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 07:09:02 +0000 rachylou 1864335@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>That sounds very successful!</p> <p>I refreshed my ‘normal pants’ this year, and am wondering if that was a mistake. They’re making me feel dowdy... </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/budget-breakdown-a-year-in-review#post-1864324 Fri, 01 Dec 2017 05:03:59 +0000 Penny 1864324@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>With the end of the year almost upon us, I tallied my purchases and was<br /> pleased to see that all the planning and analyzing inspired by YLF has<br /> worked.</p> <p>Here’s how things shook out for a year in which I doubled my budget to<br /> make some upgrades and to reflect lessons learned for my style preferences:</p> <p><b>51% of my budget went to professional wear</b>, where I wanted to invest the<br /> most:</p> <ul> <li>Six (!) navy dresses and one black dress (navy and black dresses are my work uniform – make me feel polished and professional, look good with black tights in the winter, and only rare patterns strike my fancy, so I made a conscious effort to purchase this palette)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>High-end cropped blazers (navy and black, worn almost daily)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Coordinating suit dress (worn with the navy blazer for my formal legal work)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Navy and black cardigans and a black cashmere wrap (worn when not wearing blazers)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Black pumps and wedges (worn daily year round)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>New work travel bag (Lo &amp; Sons, identical to one I’d worn out after years of use)</li> </ul> <b>25% of my budget went to multi-purpose wear</b>:</p> <ul> <li>A double-strand pearl bracelet (worn at least weekly)</li> </ul> <ul> <li> Several pairs of Rothy’s flats (black, beige, plum:worn constantly, especially for commuting and long weekend walks, love that they’re machine washable)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Black wedges, tan flats, and black winter boots (lots of footwear replacements since I didn’t buy shoes last year during my pregnancy; thankfully, my feet stayed the same size)</li> </ul> <ul> <li> A black patent bow belt worn almost daily with work dresses (plus a duplicate)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>A small wine-colored bag, already a staple, as I love burgundy and pewter bags with my predominantly navy and black wardrobe  </li> </ul> <b>10% of my budget went to weekend wear</b>, where I tend to prefer just a few options to throw on for errands when not dressing up, which I tend to do whenever possible:</p> <ul> <li>Five navy dresses (yep, preferred uniform on the<br /> weekend, too)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>A few pairs of sandals</li> </ul> <b>9% of my budget went to dressy wear</b>, which I adore but tried to purchase sparingly: </p> <ul> <li>Two navy dresses and one black dress (both fit-and-flare dresses that can work for day or night, not cocktail-level dressy, as I’m covered in that category)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Graduated faux pearl necklaces that I wear together as a double-strand necklace</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Metallic pumps that I had long been meaning to upgrade and replace</li> </ul> And finally!   <b>5% chalked up to buying mistakes</b>:</p> <ul> <li> A grey wrap dress and grey cardigan (revelation: grey does not make me happy; avoid!)</li> </ul> <ul> <li> A navy-and-black blazer (good idea, but my higher-end navy blazer looks far better with a black dress than this one; would reach for the navy every time, so on it went)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Scalloped blush flats (felt trendy instead of me, passed on after about a dozen wears)</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Tan leather flats (these just wore out from use over the summer, replaced!)</li> </ul> So there you have it: I didn’t set out to achieve these exact allocations,<br /> but tracking and planning helped me achieve my overall goals, and I learned a few things along the way.  A few of the purchases are illustrated in the finds below.  Looking forward to enjoying these purchases<br /> and having a good foundation for next year.</p> <p>How did things shake out, if you’ve been keeping track, with your<br /> purchases? </p>