Years ago had a young female employee that was always impeccably dressed. She didn’t make much money and I was curious how she could afford all the nice clothes. I never asked because it didn’t seem appropriate. After I moved on in life I ran into her at a restaurant and inquired how it was that she was always so well dressed. She laughed and said “Oh, I only shop second hand and consignment stores. I don’t keep more than a few outfits at a time and rotate them every few weeks.”
Brilliant.
I’ve found some of my favorite clothes at thrift shops. I still wear high quality items some I bought in the early ‘90s for $1-$5. My husband HATES that I use thrift shops; we can afford the best. Growing up in a parsonage, when people donated things for the “missionary barrel”, we were able to take what we could use before it was shipped off. I guess that’s where it started for me.
I do hang on to too many clothes, probably because when I was young we didn’t have nice things.
One year when going through expenses for taxes, my husband was irritated and asked, “Do you know how much money you spent on clothes last year?!” I thought, “Uh oh. I’m in trouble.” He said, “$47.00.”
My weakness is fabric for quilting and spend too much on that.
We almost never eat out as a couple, but save restaurants for socializing with others. We never buy coffee at Starbucks-type places and pretty much only order water to drink at restaurants. (The cost of restaurant drinks is insane!)
Yep. Women need to work especially hard to make it work, whereas we can look good every day with ten button down oxfords, a few blazers, slacks and a snakesnest of ties. Hats off to women!