Savvy Outfit of the Day $62

Today's outfit is courtesy of Belk's, eBay and the thrift store. Miss Chievous red striped hoodie ($6 Belks), Route 66 long denim skirt ($4.29 thrift store), Nine West camel colored leather boots ($9.99 thrift store) and the piece de resistance my yummy, oh-so-soft Banana Republic leather purse ($41 eBay).

A word about this outfit. So, uh, yeah, Miss Chievous. I didn't even know the brand existed. I found it in what would probably be classified as the Junior/Young Miss section, but the zip-up form-fitting hoodie looked cute on the hanger and for $6 I was willing to give it a try. Low and behold, it turned out to be kind of cute!

Route 66 for those who might not know the brand name is found at Kmart, someplace I don't usually frequent for my clothes but paired with grown-up boots & a stylin' purse, the outfit is nice and kid-friendly - and I'd like to think, more expensive looking than just $62.

As a Mom I want to be practical. I don't want to throw money away on something that my kids (or my own clumsy self) could ruin in just one meal. But I want to look nice. I want to look like I'm "together" even when I don't feel it. I want to be comfortable. I want my husband to think I look cute!

Now take out whether or not you have kids or a husband and doesn't it sound like what every woman wants? Great style for less? The "luxury" of changing your style without throwing out all your clothes and charging up the credit card? Sounds like a dream, but it's not, Savvy Shopping is for every woman, not just a suburban Supermom.

Savvy shopping can apply to high schoolers, college students, single women, married women without children, workplace Supermoms, anyone who wants to look good but doesn't or can't spend a lot of money. It can apply to the Superwoman who likes the bohemian look or the one who needs to dress for the board room.

Both the skirt and boots came from the thriftstore. I chose to go with the denim long skirt and heeled camel boot look, but for the same price a high school girl might choose a short little A&F skirt and Emus (a brand comparable to Uggs that I did find for $10 at the thriftstore). The college student might get a Free People bohemian skirt and a pair of leather slouch boots. The workplace Supermom might choose the Ann Taylor skirt and a pair of Ferragamo pumps (and yes, I found those too at a thriftstore, brand-new too I might add for $4). I'm sure you'll see them in one of my Savvy Outfits of the Day.

That single fact changed the way I dressed. I could spend $4.29 on a pair of Ann Taylor pants OR $4.29 on a pair of sweats/yoga pants. I know which I would look better in, it's just that in the past I wouldn't spend the extra money because in the "real world" it would cost $40 for a casual pair of Ann Taylor pants and just $20 at Target for a pair of yoga pants. It's not that I didn't think I was worth the extra $20 I just couldn't justify it.

Nice clothes seemed like a luxury that I wasn't willing to pay for when the extra $20 could be another pair of yoga pants or maybe lunch out with the kids. I know that isn't the case for everyone, but it was for me. Savvy shopping is what I finally found that allowed me to reconcile my desire to look nice and to be wise with my money.

I think that's one of the main things a savvy shopper needs to keep in mind, is that it doesn't matter WHERE it comes from. If it looks good and fits well, no one needs to know that you spent next-to-nothing...or what the brand name is.