summer 2018 clothing budget

Happy Labor Day!

With summer on it's way out, I thought it would be a good time to share my summer clothing budget---all the clothing purchases I've made these past few months. 

spring 2018 clothing budget

I've been stocking up my closet lately with lots of great pieces for Spring and Summer. Not too many though because I'm still living the #scrublife 5 days a week. But here's what I've added to my closet since I shared by winter budget. 

winter 2018 clothing budget

This may be my winter budget, but this winter has been a fairly warm in the South. I've barely had the opportunity to wear the cold weather gear I already have. So I picked up just a few staples and items that will carry over into spring.

year-end clothing budget review

With 2017 having come and gone, it's time to see where I ended up with my annual clothing budget. I did things a little differently in 2017 by starting out the year with 3 months without buying clothes. When I did end my spending freeze, I shared my budget seasonally for Spring, Summer, and Autumn. 

This was a rare year because I would absolutely re-purchase every single item I bought.

Autumn Clothing Budget

Time for another clothing budget update since my last one was back in August...summer clothing budget. I've definitely picked up quite a few staples over the past few months. Also added a few more pieces of outdoor gear to my wardrobe with purchases for recent trips to Alaska and Iceland.

summer clothing budget

I'm not even sure that budgeting bloggers is a thing anymore as it seems our hostess has abandoned us mid-year. Regardless, I still want to keep sharing my budget purchases here because it's a good form of accountability. 

And I was pleasantly surprised to see that I only made a few strategic purchases this summer that carried me through. Add in the fact that I have a few birthday gift cards and found some amazing sales and I didn't do too badly. All my purchases from July & August are below. 

spring clothing budget

It's been a couple of months since my last clothing budget update. I became so accustomed to not buying clothes during my spending freeze that it changed my perception of when and why I am buying. But when the warmer weather came, I had to stock my closet. So here's a combination of all of my spring purchases from May and June. 

end of spending freeze

After having not bought any clothes for 3 months, I finally broke my spending freeze in a really big way. In March, all the winter gear was on sale so I took advantage of that to stock my closet with this very pricey item on discount of course. Also, picked up a few fun things that will work for the Spring weather. 

Full Length Coat Original $289 + 40% off + $17 in rewards = $156
Seeing as I spend half my year in Boston, I've been wanting a full length coat for a while now, but didn't want to spend a ton. I finally found just what I was looking for and at the right price too. Coats like this stick around for years and was definitely worth investing in. 

3 months without buying clothes

I've seen others do this...3 months, 6 months, even a year (a little excessive I think) without buying clothes. I have to be honest and admit that I didn't necessarily set out to do this, but once a month or so had gone by, I found myself asking is it worth breaking my no-spend streak for this {insert ridiculous over-the-top girly ruffled glittery skirt that I don't need}? And while this whole process didn't exactly start out intentionally, I wanted to jot down a few life lessons I learned. 

buying all the sweaters: november budget

Sharing this clothing budget a little late thanks to being in Mexico over Thanksgiving. Also, thanks to putting in 60 hour weeks with grad school. Thankfully, things are winding down and back to a somewhat normal schedule now, which gives me a little more free time to share about important things, like clothes. With the cooler weather surfacing, I realized that I had a huge gap in my closet...sweaters. Aside from a few obnoxious holidays ones, I had almost none. So November was a month of buying all the sweaters.

october clothing budget

Last month was a very purposeful no-buy month for me because I knew my spending would be high this month. And it was. I went on an anniversary trip through the Pacific Northwest, so before our trip I bought all the cute Fall things to wear.

feeling tempted: september clothing budget

Summer Clothing Budget

I skipped out on sharing last months budget, since I had picked up so few pieces. But this month's haul was a lot bigger, so now it's time to share what I picked up July/August. Since losing 12 pounds this summer, my clothes are fitting completely differently and I really needed new summer pieces. Thankfully, I found some great sales and snagged things up on a deal. Plus, I finally spent some of the gift cards/credits that I've been hoarding since my birthday. 

Why Busting my Budget is a Good Thing

Hello Again. Sorry I've been MIA this past week. I had a minor surgery and recovery left no time for blogging. But all is well now and I'm back, so let's get down to the nitty gritty, which is to say that I've pretty much busted my clothing budget. But trust me, this is a good thing.

april clothing budget

This was a very good shopping month for me OR a bad one, depending on how you want to look at it. I spent quite a bit, but also found so many great things I wanted needed for this warmer weather. Most notably, the swimsuit search is over. I think my pick is a pretty sexy swimsuit for a one-piece and is more revealing than what I normally go for, but I figured why not. Plus, I picked up a second ultra conservative suit to help balance things out. Oh, and I may have grabbed my third embroidered front tee from J Crew, but they are just too perfect and I can't seem to resist them.

 My favorite purchase this month is definitely the Madewell Zip Transport Tote. I was looking for a carry-all bag for our summer travels and this fits the bill. And this version is much better than the original. After stalking this bag for months, I finally scooped it up during a major sale. See my full review here. 

Zip Transport Tote: original $188 + 25% + $25 credit = $116

Lattice SwimSuit: original $78 on sale for $57 + $10 promo = $47

Paisley SwimSuit: original $40 on sale $32

Embroidered Front Tee: original $60 on sale for $17

Tortoise Sunnies: original $30 on sale for $11

Linen Shift Dress: original $35 on sale for $25

Total: $248

April was quite an expensive month for me since I didn't buy this much during January, February, and March combined. Something about the warmer weather makes me willing to spend more. And while I didn't buy any adventure gear this month, we have a ton of hiking and camping trips coming up. Pretty sure, I will be investing in a pair of hiking boots next month, so May is going to be a high spend month too. This is always the point in the year where I start to question if I'm going to be able to stay within my yearly budget parameters. Guess we will see. 

Budget for the Year: $1750 

January/February Spending:$139

March Spending: $64

April Spending:$248

remaining for the year: $1299

And just to end things on a happy note, here are some favorite outfits featuring this month's buys. And yes there was snow and blooming flowers all in one month. That's just your typical New England Spring. 

                   {one}                                 {two}                            {three}

Be sure to check out all the other budgeting bloggers

march clothing budget

I only picked up two new pieces this month, but they were exactly what I was looking for. I wanted a few neutral blouses that would be perfect for spring and summer. While the two tops I grabbed are seemingly different, I'm noticing a trend in fit. I've been leaning towards longer sleeves and flouncy tops. Basically, I've come to the realization of how flattering this cut can be for my body type. 

Lace Blouse = original $138 on sale for $39 {worn here}

Scallop Tee = original $25 {styled here}

March Total: $64

Budget for the Year $1750 

January/February Spending: $139 

March Spending: $64

remaining for the year $1547

This turned out to be a pretty light month, which is good because I'm anticipating next month to be spendy. I'm on the hunt for a new swimming suit, which is going to cost me. Why is swimsuit shopping so difficult? My biggest problem has been finding something that's supportive and conservative for my chest size. So the hunt continues. Wish me luck. 

Linking up with budgeting bloggers

HodgePodge Clothing Budget

Normally there's a trend to my clothing budgets, but this is a bit of a mashup. Partly because I'm including a few items that I normally wouldn't. In the past, I've always kept two separate budgets. One for regular clothes that I keep strict track of here. The other budget included what I endearingly refer to as adventure gear (for hiking, camping, workouts, etc.), that I sort of tracked, but not really. As I've become more active, I have been spending more in that category and I need to reign it in so I'm combining my two budgets. This simplifies things. I missed sharing my January clothing budget (oops!) so below are my purchases from both January and February 2016. 

Anthropologie Seenebec Dress  - original $138, on sale for $24
I'm certainly not a tall thin Scandinavian girl like the model above, but this dress is so flattering to my figure. I fell in love when I tried it on last summer (anthro dresses just work for me), but I wasn't prepared to spend +$100 on it. When I randomly found this on the sale rack, grabbing it was a no brainer. 

Anthropologie PostCard Tee - original $58, on sale for $18
Sorry this one isn't in the collage, finding high quality images to use can be a struggle. 

J Crew Pom Beanie - original $60, currently only $30, purchased with gift card  

Anthropologie Mittens - original $30, on sale for $6 X 2 pairs = $12

I love these mittens so much I bought two pairs! Aside from being cute, they are lined with fleece (super warm), making them the perfect winter accessory.  

The North Face Ski Gloves - original $55, on sale for $27

Brixton Fedora - original $58, currently on sale in this cute color 

January/February Total: $139

Last year, I was $300 under my yearly budget. But this year, I'm actually increasing my budget to accommodate for adventure gear. That being said, I'm setting this years budget at $1750, which is just shy of $150 a month. I spent less than that during January and February combined, so it seems that my 2016 budget is off to a great start.  

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Linking up with budgetingbloggers//finalfinancefriday

November Spending

Nothing, but shock and amazement right now about the fact that I didn't go crazy buying all the things during Black Friday Sales, especially since I had the wiggle room. But the whole point of having a yearly budget was to force myself to make thoughtful purchases and I really didn't have anything that I needed. Nor did I want to buy things for the sake of buying them just because they were on sale. Don't worry, Black Friday was not wasted upon me, I picked up plenty of gifts for others. In the meantime, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I may actually end this year under budget! 

Boatneck Sweater// Original $78 on Sale for $25

Holiday Sweater// Original $36 on Sale for $13

While some of the holiday sweaters out there are kind of ridiculous, I still really wanted one…like really really really wanted one. But how could I justify buying a sweater that I could only wear in December? Then I stumbled upon this one, which I actually think is cute! Plus, I could totally get away with wearing it Fall through Winter since it's not covered in Christmas trees or holiday sayings. Best part, it was so inexpensive, but it's surprisingly warm too! I adore this sweater and I received so many compliments when I wore it here. 

Plaid Button Down// Original $78 on Sale for $55

Finally found a plaid button down that actually fits me and is gorgeous too! You can read all about the tumultuous struggle in the fitting room here. Warning: it wasn't pretty. 

December Total: $93

Yearly Total $1500- $50[January]- $160[February]- $75[March]- $317[April]- $0[May]- $30[June]- $110[July]- $170[August/September]- $198[October]- $93[November] = $287 remaining for the year

Noticing that everything I picked up this month was on the festive side, which is just fine with me. Did anyone else pick up any holiday styles?  

Linking up with Budgeting Bloggers

Budgeted!

There's been a whole lot of money talk on this little blog lately. Yesterday I shared our travel budget for what we spent in California (or rather how much we saved). And today I'm linking up with budgeting bloggers to share my October clothing purchases. 

Bean Boots// Original $98

Bow Tee// Original $40 on Sale for $20 + Gift Card $0

Ankle Pants// Original $90 on Sale for $30

Leather Booties// Original $140 on Sale for $70

one//two

October Total: $198

Considering that I bought two pairs of leather boots this month, I think that I did well with my October spending. Plus, I've been really enjoying incorporating all of these new pieces into my wardrobe. 

three//four

 Yearly Total $1500-$50[January]-$160[February]- $75[March]- $317[April]-$0[May]-$30[June]-$110[July]-$170[August/September]-$198[October]=$380 remaining for the year

Based on my yearly clothing budget, I'm sitting pretty to stay on target for the year. As long as I don't make any big purchases in the next couple of months, I will stay within my budget. Let's see how it goes.   

Clothing Budget Update

I'm a little late to the party, but I'm linking up with Budgeting Bloggers again this month to share my clothing purchases. And because I was really sick last month, I actually missed out on the August link-up so today I'm showing off my purchases from both August and September.