budget

September Budget: Clothes Mentor Haul

- Sarah 10 Comments

When it came to update my fall wardrobe this year, I tried something different: shopping at Clothes Mentor. My closet has its fair share thrifted pieces, but I hadn’t found a thrift or consignment store in the Philly area that I truly liked shopping at. Before I get into why Clothes Mentor is awesome, let me breakdown what I picked up courtesy of Clothes Mentor Springfield:

Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah
Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah
Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah
Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah
Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah

Dana Buchman faux leather jacket, $16 (not pictured)
LOFT lace dress, $14
J. Crew pants, $20
Kohl’s chunky cardigan, $10
LOFT sleeveless tank, $8
Macy’s Style & Co. dress (with tags), $14
Black top, $14
Chico’s bolero (with tags), $18
Nine West heeled boots, $24
Delia’s ankle boots, $18

Not bad right? That’s 10 quality pieces for less than $160. My mom and I were honestly carried away — I used every penny of the gift card they generously provided (and more out of pocket!), and my mom picked up a bunch of stuff too. If you haven’t visited your local Clothes Mentor (there’s three in the Philly area!), here’s why it’s worth the trip:

♥ Quality pieces at discounted prices. I love bargain hunting, but sometimes you get what you pay for. At Clothes Mentor, it just happens that what I’m paying for is a new-with-tags Macy’s dress well over 50% off.

♥ Everything is vetted and on-trend. Clothes Mentor is a consignment store, not an average thrift store. Instead of being donations-based, the team at CM inspects items and only accepts clothing and accessories they know will sell. You can learn more about consignment stores here, but basically CM does the hard work for you. Speaking of consignment stores…

♥ You can make some shopping money. Cleaning out your closet? If you’re more the instant gratification type, you can try your hand at selling at CM. I haven’t tried this yet, but they do give you cash on the spot for what they’re happy to buy from you.

♥ It’s eco-friendly. Admittedly, I don’t have the most planet-friendly shopping habits but buying secondhand and saving gently-worn items from landfills is a good start.

Clothes Mentor Haul | Shades of Sarah
How cool is this bolero?? New with tags!

As for the Springfield, PA location in particular, I cannot say enough good things about the staff. They are so happy to assist you in any way, and they keep the store in tiptop shape. It’s bright, organized and they have something for everyone. The shop girls had no problem finding items in my sizes and to suit my tastes.

Need more convincing? Just wait until you see the outfits I’ve come up with.

~ Sarah

P.S. Thanks again to CM Springfield for the invite!

August Budget

- Sarah 4 Comments

August 2016 Budget
Chambray Shorts, $19.99 $9.99
Cuffed Shorts, $27.99 $13.98
Old Navy Swing Dress & Clogs, $67.88 $40.73

Total Spent: $64.70
Total Saved: $51.16 ($115.86 – $64.70)

Anyone else find shopping in August super tempting??! Stores start getting their fall inventory, which means discounts for all the summer stuff that’s still totally wearable (I see you, September heat wave.) I mean, I saved almost 50% off my purchases this month. I desperately needed denim shorts, and now I have a dressy and a casual option. My love for clogs is well-documented, and well these aren’t as great as my original brown pair (last seen here), I’m excited to add them to my rotation. Also, this dress is the comfiest thing, even though it gives me no shape (as swing dress are wont to do). Should be fun transitioning it to fall!

We’ll see how my birthday shopping goes. Any fun additions to your closets?

~ Sarah

July Budget

- Sarah 3 Comments

Image Map

Denim Vest, $16.99
Acure Organics Face Wash, $9.99
Physicians Formula Super BB Cream, $11.99
NYX Liquid Suede Lipstick in Sandstorm, $6.99

Total Spent: $45.96
Total Saved: $0

I totally expected to do worse in July, but that’s probably because I placed an Old Navy order at the end of the month that I’m still waiting to be delivered (one word: clogs). Anyway…

Let’s talk about frivolous and impulsive purchases. I definitely don’t need a denim vest, but it makes for a cool layering piece over sundresses for the summer. It’s a fun way to show off trendy pins. It’s the type of “completer piece” that can revive your existing wardrobe. I didn’t really consider purchasing one until I saw one at Target (the price was right), but I still thought it over. Then when I went back to store, I couldn’t find any in my size. (Yes, it’s a girls’ size denim vest. My frame is on the petite side, and since I’m buttoning it up, an XL is perfect.)

Whenever I stopped in Target (which is probably too often), I would browse but the vests were out of stock. Cue a few weeks later, and I find another denim vest, made out of even stretchier material, and it’s in my basket before I know what’s happening. The denim vest had lingered in my mind enough that while not something I needed, I wanted it enough that it was worth the twenty bucks. So frivolous? Yes. Impulsive? Not as much.

(What was impulsive was picking up Sandstone just because it was back in stock for once, after writing last month that I wouldn’t do that. Oops.)

Oh, and buying BB cream and repurchasing my favorite face wash are totally boring, but I feel like it’s only fair to include them.

We’ll see how I do in August. 🙈

~ Sarah

Linking up with Fran & the budgeting bloggers!