On Chris's "where to invest hi or low" thread, Runcarla made a comment that I thought might deserve its own conversation:

"A quick look through my closet reveals nothing really 'high end' or expensive, and hardly anything a full price! How do I break through this mind set?"

She's is not talking about a person whose finances will not allow any "higher" end purchases. I don't think any of us would want to encourage profligate or irresponsible spending. She's describing the woman who could afford at least some mid-range or even higher end items -- but who persists in shopping as if she is still on a student or minimum wage budget.

Ummm...that woman sounds familiar...

I'll bet there are others here as well.

I don't think there is necessarily anything wrong with this, mind you. Maybe fashion isn't your spending priority! Maybe you'd rather spend on savings, vacations, your sporting hobbies, donation to charity. (There are a lot of great ways to spend!)

Or maybe you enjoy shopping thrift or consignment for the "thrill of the find" and it suits your style.

Here's the thing, though. If you actually want to "elevate" your style and your style is not strongly vintage influenced, it is pretty hard to do it on a nothing-but-the-cheapest budget.

Anyway...what are your thoughts on this? Has anyone found any tricks to break out of the "I don't really deserve nice things" rut?

I admit this has been a lifelong struggle for me. Pre-YLF I really didn't have much disposable income and I had hardly bought clothing at all for more than a decade.

Even after I had a bit more money, though, I hesitated to spend it. And the first step was spending more on something that I unarguably needed and would use. In my case, that was a winter coat. I mean, I live in Canada, people. Winter coats don't really "date" very quickly. This is not something I was going to shove to the back of the closet and forget! Spending money on it seemed like a very low risk.

As it happened, I ended up getting that "more expensive" coat on sale (after the fact, in a funny coincidence of events) and it wasn't all that expensive in the end. But the feeling of luxury it gave me enticed me to spend a bit more on a pair of jeans so I could experience their improved fit and feel. Then it was footwear -- another purchase that made sense in my environment -- and I chose a pair of iconic booties -- Chelsea boots, which for me are a kind of signature item, and therefore very low risk.

So for what it is worth, that is my advice: if you'd like to treat yourself to a few higher end items (whatever "higher" means to you) then begin with items you'll certainly wear. Wardrobe "essentials."

I have yet to learn how to spend on what I still consider "frills" like jewellery or even handbags. This is really, really hard for me and I need help on it.