Fiscally conservative fashion

I enjoy a bargain, perhaps more so than most people I even know.  I am not only not willing to pay full price for things such as clothing or shoes, I downright refuse.  This usually means that I'm slightly behind when it comes to being "in style" but I'm ok with staying a season or two behind anyway, to make sure that a trend is here to stay for more than a few weeks.

One of my favorite ways to save money and yet constantly have an updated wardrobe is shopping the clearance racks.  Being a clearance shopper takes a ton of patience.  These racks are usually disorganized, disheveled, and things are often mislabeled.  You could spend over an hour sorting through a clearance rack, finding one measly item that makes the cut, only to realize that the there's a hole in the should, or the zipper is broken or something else equally frustrating.  But everyone once in awhile you luck out, and that little victory makes it all worth it.

The end of a season is my favorite time to shop for deals.  The end of summer means staples such as shorts, tank tops, and dresses are on super-sale, and at the end of winter I stock up on sweaters and pants for the next fall.

Last week, while browsing through the clearance rack at Target, I struck gold.  A dress style that I had been fawning over for months since I had first seen it in JCPenney - the black cotton button down dress with puff sleeves.

The dress I found wasn't quite the same as what I had originally looked at, but it was close enough. And the price?  $6.

Half an hour later I'm at Payless - my go-to source for cheap shoes that I don't feel about discarding at the end of the next season - and I found the perfect pair of black flats to go with this dress.  $8.

I added a black necklace that I already owned, and I had an awesome outfit that I could wear to work for only $14.

Cute, comfy and dirt cheap.  That's what I call fiscally conservative fashion at its best.

Now if I could only figure out how to pose for photos without looking silly.