Shopaholic's Guide to Not Breaking the Bank on Your Sprees ...

By Bria

Shopaholic's Guide to Not Breaking the Bank on Your Sprees ...

We all love top shop, but hitting the mall all the time can really take a toll on your bank account, especially if you have a small budget and you're buying more than you can afford. You can still enjoy shopping, but you must do so in a money savvy way. So, here's how to be a shopaholic without breaking the bank.

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1

Set Yourself a Budget

It’s really easy to go to the mall or do your daily dose of online shopping and just spend, spend, spend money. One of the easiest ways to avoid overspending is simply setting a budget for yourself! If you only have $150 to spend on your shopping spree, spend only that and not a cent more. This includes tax, shipping fees, insurance or any other extra fees your purchase may include. Now, this does take having some self-control, but when executed it can help you save a lot of money in the long run!

2

Get Exactly What You Need

Everyone has those shopping trips where they buy things they actually NEED; like new underclothes, maybe some new business clothes for work…but every shopaholic knows how easy it is to go in looking for something and come out with everything but what you needed. A great way to avoid this is to make a list of exactly what you need to buy and only purchase that! When you go in and buy just what you need, you heavily reduce the chances of buying things just because you see it. This greatly reduces the chances of you impulse-buying!

3

Get Store Gift Cards

Sometimes, self-control is easier said than done…especially when it comes to retail! A great way to make sure you don’t overspend is to get store gift cards. If you love buying things from H&M, Forever 21, Victoria’s Secret or any other stores like that, purchase a gift card with the exact amount you want to spend, and only use your gift card to buy. This helps to put a cap on your spending and forces you to exercise that self-control!

4

Hit That Sales Rack

There is no shame whatsoever in making a beeline to the back of the store and finding some great steals off the sales rack. A lot of times we get blinded by the flashy pieces in the window on the mannequins and laid out all pretty on the big tables at the front of the store. It does take a little bit more time and patience, but you can guarantee that you’ll find a nice little treasure or two somewhere on the sales rack! And if you’re shopping online, there’s almost always going to be a clearance page, so be sure to click on that page before you proceed to the checkout!

5

Buy Minimalist Pieces

Now, this tip is contingent upon you as an individual and what your style is, but buying minimalist pieces like solid colored pieces, and just pieces that can be mixed and matched is a great way to save! As unorthodox of a strategy as this is, just hear me out! It’s harder to find pieces that will match your flashier pieces, which then makes you have to go out and buy more things to accent that piece perfectly, and then this becomes a cycle of you having to buy more pieces to compliment other pieces in your closet. Buying pieces that you can mix and match is a great way to avoid having to constantly go shopping for more and more additions to your closet!

Famous Quotes

Men in general judge more from appearances than from reality. All men have eyes, but few have the gift of penetration.

Niccolò Machiavelli
6

Bring Someone You Trust with You

Sometimes that little voice in your head won’t tell you that you don’t need yet another pair of thigh high boots, or Michael Kors handbag…it will tell you that you need it. Bringing a trusted friend or family member is a great way to get a second opinion and help you not overspend! Someone from the outside looking in can give you a really sound opinion on whether or not that purchase is something you actually need! But be sure not to bring another shopaholic with you, because then that could be all bad!

7

Thrift Shop

Thrift shopping has become a very popular trend over the past six or seven years! This can be a great way to not only save money but also find very retro and classic pieces you can’t find in stores anymore! Thrifting is something of an art that takes patience and requires a bit of an eye for fashion but it ultimately just takes practice! You might not find anything on your first try but as you keep looking you’re guaranteed to find something eventually! Using websites like Pinterest and YouTube can help you figure out how to efficiently thrift and help you decide what aesthetic you’re going for!

8

Set a Time Limit for Yourself

Nothing good can possibly come from hours and hours of shopping. Whether it be online or in-store, the longer you are in a shopping mindset, the more inclined you are to spend. Set an exact amount of time for yourself to shop, and then once that time is up, stop immediately!

9

Calculate as You Spend

It’s really easy to mindlessly swipe your debit card and not see how much you’ve actually spent. Prices and taxes eventually get muddied in your head, and when you reach a certain point you honestly have no idea how much you have spent. A great way to avoid this is after each purchase you make, calculate exactly how much you’ve spent and add it to your grand total! Instead of being in the mindset that you spent $10 at one store, $35 at another, $42 at another…calculating that all together to realize you have already spent almost $100 helps you to recognize that big number as opposed to a bunch of small numbers that seem insignificant when not totaled together.

10

Save Your Receipts

As a shopaholic, you are more than likely going to relapse and make a mistake, and that’s okay! We all do; just make sure you keep your receipts! If you go to Victoria’s Secret and decide that you actually didn’t need those five pairs of pushup bras, make sure you have that receipt to take them back! Don’t just ball up your receipts at the bottom of your bag when leaving the store, put them in your purse and your wallet to be able to get to it if you need to!

Feedback Junction

Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

I only a lot buy during sales. Out of sale season shopping is very occasional, only when I see something really good.

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