Clothes shopping in the new 21st century economy: chic but

Clothes shopping in the new 21st century economy: chic but inexpensive! Yes!

For most women, clothes shopping is a hobby. We love browsing catalogs of clothes, reading women's fashion magazines and fashion blogs, always on the lookout for a new item for our wardrobe. However, I suspect there's a lot more 'window shopping' happening today than actual purchasing. Our clothes shopping budgets have dwindled lately, cut down by a stagnant economy, giving way to more pressing expenses. Well, here's some good news. With a smart strategy, shopping for clothing can still be a fun indulgence, while staying in line with your budget. Let's take a look at several strategies you can employ to have your cake and eat it too!

Gone are the days when you could browse a clothing rack and snap up a dress without thinking twice. It's cute!, followed by a trip to the register with a credit card in hand, is no longer the norm. You now immediately peruse the price tag and see if the price lives up to the cuteness. You give some thought to how versatile this garment is how many times do you think you'll actually wear it?

Ladies, the new clothes shopping trip strategy borrows a page from the 30s and 40s fashionistas. The world was then fresh out of the Great Depression and the ladies of those days wanted to look well dressed, but on a conservative budget. As a result, designers came out with women's clothes which, while chic, were also classic. Neutral colors, navy, black, brown and beige formed the backbone of the typical woman's wardrobe. Plainly cut, but elegant designs were all the rage. Perhaps this period was the beginning of the now well-known 'mix and match' strategy many of us use today. Using neutral colors as the staple items in the closet allowed women to brighten up the landscape with inexpensive cotton shirts in colors ranging from pastels to a fire-engine red. The same clothes shopping strategy applied to sweaters. These classic costumes could be dressed up or down, by mixing and matching.

Clothing accessories, such as shoes, hats, handbags, scarves and belts were of major importance in making the most of her clothes shopping dollars. Costume jewelry, of the type we now see as retro items, provided another way to create several costumes from one basic suit or dress.

Let's see what could be done with a single short-sleeved navy dress. With a pair of beige shoes and matching handbag, worn with a wide-brimmed straw summer hat and a multi-colored scarf at the neck, the chic lady of the 30s, 40s and 50s had a nice summer costume. A red cardigan sweater, embellished with a jewel-tone pin, red shoes and handbag made yet another. Team the very same dress with a navy hat and shoes, accessorized by a string of pearls, and Voila! Our fashionable lady was well attired for an afternoon at the symphony. It's easy to see how this mix and match strategy, dressing up or down, made it easy to have a wardrobe that appeared to be far larger than the casual onlooker might suppose.

This timeless clothes shopping strategy still works. Today's easy care fabrics, along with factory outlet stores and online finds in accessories can buy you a very nice wardrobe indeed, inexpensive, but tres chic!

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