Three Clothing Shopping Tips to Enhance Your Experience – Plus, Bonus Tips to Save $$$

Some people love to shop for clothes. For others, it is not a favorite experience. Most shoppers agree that on the one hand, it’s fun to see new colors and styles on the market. Yet, on the other hand, shoppers may struggle to find the ideal clothes to fit their budgets and bodies. Having to try on a lot of items in a crowded dressing room can make shopping feel tedious and unpleasant. If you experience some shopping blues, there are a few tips and tricks to ease the ordeal.

1. Stick with the essentials – You don’t need a huge closet full of clothes to dress well. By choosing essential clothes, basic outfits, and wardrobe styles you wear interchangeably, you can cut out the fuss and pain of excessive shopping. The famed LBD (little black dress) is one example of a wardrobe staple. It is a basic clothing item that can be easily jazzed up and accessorized or downplayed as a neutral for simplicity. Plus, it can take you from daytime to nighttime, thus it  does double duty. Basic jeans and tees, black trousers, crisp white shirts, and neutral blazers are also considered wardrobe essentials. Sticking to the essentials helps to reduce waste in one’s wardrobe and can save you money over the long term. It also makes choosing what to wear a breeze.
2. Know your best colors – Before you go shopping, it’s important to know what colors you like most and feel most confident wearing. Many experts state that color is the number one thing when it comes to styling. They suggest paying attention to hair color, skin tones and undertones, and determining what colors you gravitate toward. Some stylists claim that people with cool undertones tend to lean toward silver and rose gold, whereas those with warmer tones prefer yellow gold. Whether those preferences are backed by science or are just mere coincidences have yet to be determined. However, most fashion experts agree that shoppers should go for colors that make them feel most happy and confident. Lucky for us, most stores often display like-colors close together so that shoppers can easily build wardrobes. If red is your favorite color to wear, stick to it. When you shop, zero in on the red fashion. This tactic can not only save you time shopping, but it can also prevent you from spending money on other colors that you don’t love or that don’t serve you as well.
3. Know your body type – High-rise, bell-bottom, slim-fit, low-rise, wide-leg, jeggings and more are examples of jean styles that are commonly sold. With so many styles out there, it’s no wonder why shoppers feel overwhelmed! Jeans are notoriously difficult for people to buy. Once in the dressing room, the jeans you’re trying on might be too loose or too tight in the waist, too loose or too tight in the hip or rear, too long or too short in length and so forth. Thus, choosing the style that works best for your body type is key to getting a proper fit. Fashion experts generally advise women with heavier hips and thighs to opt for high-rise jeans to punctuate their waistline, a mid-rise for heavy upper physiques, low to mid-rise for tall and skinny women, and ankle crops for petite women. Of course, that is just a basic guideline. The best advice is to try on jeans that are recommended for your frame and test that the fabric has adequate stretch and recovery. Once you’ve established your favorite fit, brand, and size of that brand, jean shopping becomes a whole lot easier, making future purchases online possible.

Clothes shopping can be a fun activity, but it can also be draining on the wallet and the psyche. To minimize time lost in the dressing room trying things on, reduce shopper’s fatigue, and to save money in the long run, don’t go overboard with new fad styles. Instead, stick with wardrobe essentials that will never go out of style. Additionally, by knowing your best color and body type, you can head right to the racks that feature what you love best. Shopping doesn’t have to be tedious; it can be fun and inspiring. Just remember to buy sensibly so that you end up with valuable pieces of clothing that will last a long time.

Bonus Tips to Save $$$:

• Get to know the employees of the store. If you shop at a favorite store on a regular basis, be friendly with the staff. They will likely give you heads up on the next best sale!
•  Join free clubs. Many stores offer the opportunity to accumulate points that translate into discounts on future purchases.
• Shop off-season. Go right to clearance sales racks where last season’s clothes are often half-price or less!
• Watch live videos. Some stores do live video demonstrations of new products and offer a “shop the look” link, many of which offer discounts for those products.
• Use promo codes, coupons, and loyalty points for online shopping whenever possible.
• Watch out for crazy shipping fees. Consider in-store pickup if that will save you significant money.
• Don’t buy anything that doesn’t fit you now, no matter how much you like it. This rarely motivates anyone to lose weight and only adds to shopping frustration.