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did some accounting...

crazyone

Veteran

and I discovered that this year (7 months, because I'm not going to spend any more in July), I've spent almost $1000 on clothing! eep! I can mostly definitely afford it, but it makes me somewhat sheepish...I really need to donate a bunch of my old stuff and concentrate on wearing all this stuff I've bought more recently. This total includes the new NAS order (around $200), which I haven't yet received, so it could be lower...and I'm hoping that it will cause me to spend less in fall or winter. It includes clothing and accessories, but not shoes (well, maybe one pair of shoes, now that I think about it), because I've only bought about 3-4 pairs of shoes in that time and they've all definitely been shoes I've *needed* and wear all the time. Some of the clothing was *needed* too but most of it was just wanted...

General

36 replies

Latest reply was from lynne

taylor

Veteran

NOT even going to total a year to date...I would probably have a heart attack...or my hubby will!!

You got lots of FAB stuff though!!

Katiepea

(website)

Veteran

Crazyone, I also had heart palpitations when I added up the cost of my Autumn collection (just past), however like you, I had a lot of gaps in my wardrobe to fill. I've decided to develop a list of must haves and try really hard to stick to it this upcoming Spring/Summer.

Kate

Veteran

Yeah, I'm at about $1,050 on clothing (but at least $150 of that will be going back to nordstrom since I ordered several items in multiple sizes or colors), $240 on shoes, and $125 on jewelry/accessories. I'm WAY over my $100/month budget I don't even want to calculate what percentage of my income that is.

Here's to seriously cutting back in the coming months!

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

LOL, I am with Taylor, I can't even calculate it! But I do have a LOFT Mastercard and all my clothing purchases, no matter where from, go on it. So I do know, deep in my lizard brain, how much I am spending yearly since I pay it off in full every month. And it helps me see monthly what my clothing bill is without having to do any math.

crazyone

Veteran

Taylor: yeah, keep the total away from your husband! You definitely always make fab purchases, for me I'm not so sure.

Katiepea: I hope you stick to the list!

Kate: if it makes you feel better, I could easily see that you were in a transition when it came to the way you viewed your style/color palette. I think you'll probably get a lot of use out of what you bought...

But amen to your last sentence!

Kristen: that's a convenient way to do it. I do buy everything using credit card, which I pay off in full every month, but since it has everything else I purchase on it, I had to go back, look at the statements, find every entry that was clothing, and add them all up.

Kate

Veteran

Crazyone, this post actually prompted me to go back and itemize every clothing, shoe, and accessory purchase I've made this year. And even though it adds up to a lot, there's very little I would change. I had about $25 of stuff that I bought, kept, and eventually gave to my sister. The rest was pretty solid purchases.

My most expensive 3 purchases so far this year were:
La Canadienne boots (on ebay) $81
army green swimsuit (jcrew) $60
strapless bra (fig leaves) $57

These were all crucial purchases that will last a long time and be worth every penny.

That doesn't include my NAS purchases, since they haven't arrived and I'm not sure what I'm keeping yet, but whatever I do keep that's more expensive will also be a wardrobe staple.

Anyway, long story short, looking at what I actually bought made me feel better about the money I've spent, and you're right that I definitely have been transitioning my wardrobe in a big way. It's still pretty overwhelming though...

Louise

Veteran

I daren't even add it up!!! I've spent £80 today and I only went out to take some stuff back then to Birmingham so BF could show me the way to the big station for my train to London in a couple of weeks! x

lynne

Veteran

I only add up on a monthly basis, I can only handle so much information when it comes to numbers. I think this is the same reason I don't weigh myself. I'm not a digital gal, I prefer analog.

Isabel

Veteran

I went a little ( ok alot kooky ) this Spring since it was my first full season with YLF ( you know, the crazy infatuation of new love, ahhhh ). The good news is that I look good and feel sooooo much better about myself ( this also came on the heels of a near death experience over the winter, so YLF was great during my recovery ), even my doctor said I was looking really good !!! I didn't have the heart to tell him it wasn't his fabulous medical abilities, but rather all of you ; )

I am going to get a couple of things for Fall and that is it !!! Or I need to find the money in the budget elsewhere. I am thinking about cutting out the allowance for my husband's lunch - yay or nay ????

JennyK (NC)

I feel a little sick at my stomach when I think about this subject, so I'm just going to very quietly move along...

Tanya

Veteran

I am with Jenny ...

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

Me, too...(-:

agrace

Crazyone, this is actually a very timely topic for me.

I realized yesterday I spend about $1500, maybe a little more, a year on my family of 4 (including myself) clothign. I have no idea if that is excessive but I'm thinking it might be for us. I'm a MOTG who until recently didn't work outside the home at all, my husband requires very little formal clothing for work or anything like that and my children are forever getting clothes passed down (they are 1 and 4) or gifts from relatives, etc. So a good 75 % of that is me.

I think that's excessive for me and yes, it made me sick to my stomach. I did a painful thing and looked at my credit card's year end summary and realized that LAST year (2009) I spent about $800 on all my beauty treatments - cut, color, waxing, so on. I've spent maybe a fraction of that this year so there is some improvement as I feel that was excessive for what I got (brassy highlights!)

Point being, everyone is different and has different circumstances but I am very curious if where I/ my family falls is normal or excessive. Not that it matters terribly, I'm just curious. I know for me, I will be ceasing to shop for a good while as I simply do not need anything.

Scarlet

Veteran

I am not big into feeling guilty about this stuff. We all have to be sensible in living within our budget and planning for the future and the unexpected, and beyond that pffff.
Anyway, Crazyone, maybe this is bad advice, but you are young with no family obligations etc. and I imagine just for the first time in life able to build up your wardrobe. (I don't know that. I don't know anything about your circumstances.) So I think it is normal to spend more when you are building up a wardrobe and missing a lot of basics. Later on purchases are more, let's say, therapeutic as opposed to necessary. But you should definitely wear all your nice clothes and not hold yourself back because you are surrounded by schlobs. Otherwise it really is a waste.

Sorry if I have falsely projected onto you your life circumstances

agrace

Okay, so is there a 'norm' for a budget for clothing and how often people buy? I mean, I have some friends who will go 6 months and not buy a single thing. Me, it's rarely 2 weeks go by that I haven't added some little something.

I guess I could google this to find out. I just am curious where the median is for this type of thing.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Hah! I keep a record of what we spend per month on our wardrobes and I just updated it five minutes ago.

Around my birthday and the NAS I do the most damage of the year. I feel sick for less than a second and then move on.

Kristine

Veteran

Agrace, I think that's actually really frugal for a family of four!! I never really allowed myself money for clothing and now give myself about $100 a month. So you're spending only $25 more for a family of four! You should be proud of that actually.

A very broad rule of thumb I found online is 4% of your take home pay (range 3-10%). Obviously that's going to vary a lot depending on your individual situation.

I'm debating whether I should save my budget and just make a few big trips a year. Of course I'd advance myself some money for fall shopping.

Maya

Veteran

I'm going to continue ignoring this thread...

Isabel

Veteran

Maya - this is not for you ; )

Ahh, stats, I love them. The "average" family spent almost $1900 on clothes in 2008, the results have not been tabulated for 2009, but with the economy in a shambles, it is expected this will be a much smaller expenditure last year. That is a family of 4 earning around $60 K ( before taxes )

I don't spend every week or month. I have big times of the year : Fall ( school and me ) and Spring this year. I also tend to spend on clothesif we are going on vacation ( there is always something one of us "needs"). I also have alot of patience in waiting for something that I love to come along, and that it is affordabel - sometimes I save all year for something.

Suze Orman, the financial guru, once did a worksheet on how to determine what you should spend on clothes. And it broke down in two ways :

After you save 10 % into an emergency fund and max out your retirement fund - go at it with the rest

or

Once your emergency fund is fully funded ( 8 months worth ), as well as your retirement account, split whatever is left 50/50 and spend half and save half.

( Of course for those of us with children, she HIGHLY recommends putting money away for college - also this doesn't include work clothes - if you NEED a suit, then it should be a priority. )

I think that it is a good rule of thumb, personally......stop peeking Maya !

Maya

Veteran

Well in my defense, I do buy a lot, but I also return a lot :p

Louise

Veteran

Maya snap just today I returned £100 worth of stuff! x

Edit - oops though some new stuff jumped out and hung onto my ankle and wouldn't let me leave the store without it x

Lisa

Veteran

I plead the 5th to my shopping at the moment. Since this is my first fall/winter with YLF I expect there is major damage to the wallet. There certainly was so far this summer. I am hoping after a year, my wardrobe will be in shape, my purchases will be one in and one out rule and my spending will be less hectic. So for this year I am turning a blind eye.

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

Realistically, there is no way that YLF as a group will spend the same amount on clothes. We all have very different lives, needs, families, incomes, budgets, ages, store and style preferences, etc etc etc -- what I might consider a fair price for shoes might be ridiculously expensive for someone else, or someone in the north/northwest part of the country might need 5 times as many boots (and pricier wool coats) than someone in Florida or Arizona.

I think everyone has to find their comfort level for how much they spend: does it *feel* like too much? Do you feel guilty about it? Can you afford it? I firmly believe as long as you are able to support yourself/your family, pay off your credit cards every month and are also socking away savings and retirement, then you can choose however you want to spend anything left over.

Crazyone, getting a separate card (with a good benefits program from a store you frequent, if you can) is a really easy way to keep tabs on what you are really spending. I've had mine for a year now, and it's helped me keep on budget nicely.

taylor

Veteran

Kristen, It cracks me up!! We have the same strategy...I have the AT Master Card, and I put all my clothes on that each ,month then just pay it off..We also have the same philosiphy regarding shopping and spending. I really never feel too guilty since I spend what I can afford.
Plus I love gettring the style rewards!!

agrace

Kristen - I agree with what you said, and it is also helpful to have a handle on what is normal, or even appropriate. I guess in the end it is an individual decision but I am always kind of curious in the way that for example, it is common knowledge that your housing costs should ideally not be more than 28-ish percent of your income. I think so much so that (correct me if I'm wrong somebody) they won't even approve a loan for your mortgage if the house will be much more than this.

So in the same vein, I wonder what is considered fairly 'appropriate' or 'normal' to spend on clothing.

I was talking to a customer service person at Nordies on the phone and she said she had a client spending $2000 a month consistently. To me that sounds unbelievable. But maybe that represents only a fraction of her income that she is free to use as she pleases.

It's always fun and helpful to read how others perceive this and handle it.

Isabel

Veteran

agrace - you are right about the housing percentage. Unfortunately, borrowers stopped following that route during the bubble and that is why so many people couldn't pay their mortgages !!!

Regarding the woman at Nordie's....who knows her situation. She may be rich, she may have a shopping addiction, or she could be like Teresa on the Housewives of NJ : she and her husband earned ( at the top of their game ) about $250K/yr and just declared bankruptcy because they owe $11 million.

We never know the other's situation ...........

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

agrace, I agree, it would be easier to figure out a percentage of your income to at least be able to gauge. But even then you have to consider that people who don't care about fashion will spend less, and those who do will spend more. So what percentage is the right level for you, you know?

When I first started getting interested in fashion I worried if I was spending too much, but I didn't really know anyone else in the same set of circumstances than me, and honestly, I realized I could afford it. I do get teased a lot for my shopping and my shoe collection from my friends, but they're not into it as much as I am, and the ones that are into it like me spend way more than i do. So I figure I'm in the happy medium range.

Taylor, those style rewards are the BEST! I once had a $60 one, LOL. They haven't been that high since, which I think is a good thing. Ha!

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

r.e. style rewards (at least from Nordies) I was feeling a little guilty about how much I was spending but today I realized I haven't even gotten a $20 one in the mail in a loooong time, so that made me feel a little better about recent splurge...I'll bet one will be rolling in soon, though...LOL...

Also, I have only a "Mod" card, which is like a Nordies debit card. No CC debt for me from my Nordstrom distractions, at least!

taylor

Veteran

They tried to talk me into a mod card, but I really love my AT style rewards:)

Kristen, I once got an 80.00 rewards...I have never seen the likes of that one again, and probably shouldn't!!

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