How to Shop Clearance Without Losing Your Will to Live
Posted by Jen Anderson on
Whenever I come across the words, "Clearance Sale" I get flashbacks to searching through overstuffed department store clothing racks, desperate to find something in my size. I used to get so focused on finding a bargain that I'd be tempted to buy things in colors that look awful on me, or something completely not my style.
But I'm all about making the most of your clothing budget, so let's talk about how to make sales work for you.
Why You Should Shop Clearance Sales
It may not seem worth the effort. Why buy clothes that you can only wear for a couple of weeks? Because you can pack them away and wear them next year. How amazing would it be to unpack your Fall wardrobe next year and find a bunch of new-ish clothes?
Most clothes can be worn for multiple seasons, so you can get a lot more wear out of something you bought on sale than you might think. You can buy short sleeve tops on sale in the dark days of Winter, wear them right away under jackets and cardigans, then wear them by themselves when it gets warm enough.
Get Used to Planning Ahead
Think about the events you have coming up in the next year. WIll you have a beach wedding to attend? More holiday parties than you can count? A big, important work trip? Now keep those events in mind as you browse sale items. If you can find outfits that will work for these events on sale now, you'll be able to look forward to them instead of stressing about what you're going to wear.
It's so frustrating to find a top you like only to discover it's sold out in your size. When you shop online, you can filter products by size. There are usually some check boxes on the left side of the page, which is where we keep them. With just a few clicks, you're able to look at only the clothes that will actually fit you.
Don't like separates? Prefer pants? Just like you can filter sale items by size, you can filter them by category.
Don't Let Your Standards Slip
Something that you're never going to wear isn't worth the price even at 90% off. Don't get caught up in discount fever and start buying things that are the wrong silhouettes or the wrong color.
If something takes your breath away, or makes you think, "ooh, I'd look good in that," then put it in your shopping cart. If it makes you say, "meh" then you're only considering it because you want to justify the time you just spent shopping. Just leave it there for someone who will give it the love it deserves.