Ask the Readers: How Much Do You Spend on Clothes?

Lately, my wife and I have spent nothing on clothes. We are in a transitional period because we purchased our own house. All of our time and efforts are going into fixing it up and making it liveable. In fact, most of our budget is going there too. In August alone, we spent almost $10,000 on repairs/sprucing up (refinishing floors, purchasing appliances, painting, tiling, etc).

Most months though, we give ourselves a budget of $100/mo. That includes both of us.

My wife and I set aside $30 per month in our clothing budget. I work at an office, and have to dress professionally. My wife works from home, so she spends all of her clothes money on casual clothes, and some nicer clothes.

We typically only buy clothes on deep discount on sale or at outlets. I have bought a few choice items on Ebay. I also enjoy outdoor/adventure clothing. it is expensive, but it is generally worth every penny because of the functionality and durability.

I think clothes are one of the trickiest things to budget for. Typically, I don’t spend any money on clothes 11 months out of the year. But if I get a new job, I typically buy a few new outfits at the outlet stores or thrift shop near our house. Most of the time I spend less than $200 a year plus a pair of shoes.

I realized that buying clothes is one of those items that I needed to track on an annual basis, and not a monthly basis. Until I upgraded to a smartphone this year, I was unable to see my Mint.com account while on the go. Now that I can see my budgets at a glance, this should make my clothes shopping a little bit easier to plan for.

I would bet that clothes and eating out are the two discretionary items that are most likely to break someone’s budget. I’m glad this article is encouraging some conversation around the subject. I look forward to hearing other great places to find cheap clothes!

~Nick, the Self-Taught Economist

For 18 years of my life in US I only bought clothes sparsely, only at Thrift stores, only used hang-me-downs, owned very few, donated once tired of them, and so on. This is the first year I had allowed myself to buy “real stuff”. I still use discount (thank God for partial sponsorship from Backcountry), but I have to say, a new pair of pants for $70 from Kuhl is worth every penny – and the good thing is I only need 1 pair:)

Fashion is a big thing with me and my family. I generally buy from thrift stores, consignment, etsy, and boutiques, since I’m into vintage clothing. I go out of my way to buy clothes from fair trade, local, or companies that have ethical practices, so I don’t buy from most department stores, and if I do, I buy very specific brands. My budget is $100; although, I rarely hit that mark, since I prefer thrift stores (they’re more fun). My toddler gets about half that budget. And my husband gets a quarterly budget of about $200. He could get the same budget as me since he likes fancy things as well, but he just doesn’t use it as often. He prefers to buy things all at once. Any little bits he picks up, he pays for out of his own pocket, but that’s rare.

We only “budget” about $400 a year for our family of three, including fast growing toddler. But extra wind falls often get put in the clothing savings account. Christmas and birthday money from parents and grandparents often goes toward needed items in our wardrobes (big ticket items like shoes and coats). My husband needs a professional wardrobe for work, but we mostly survive by replacing one or two items a year and endeavoring to take good care of the rest. But it is tight. I’m lucky enough to be able to outfit my daughter with the help of hand-me-downs from friends, consignment sales and generous grandparents. In the last few years I’ve had to add maternity clothes to my wardrobe, which adds an additional expense. Fortunately I’m hoping to reuse the clothes from my last pregnancy and avoid having to buy more. I usually shop in the petite section of Kohls or JCPenny (I’m only 5’2″). I can get good discounts there for clothes that fit me well. I’ve finally resigned myself to having fewer pieces of clothing that fit really well than a large wardrobe of items that aren’t quite right.

How much do you spend on clothes?

I spend about $50/month for my family, but I don’t track it as such. It comes out of the household monies. I buy all the clothes for our family, as my husband is severely color deficient (e.g., red/orange/green and some other hues.)

He works in a conservative office environment, and while not a suit every day, definitely a tie. I buy most of his clothes at J.C. Penney, online, on sale, with free shipping. 2 or 3 pairs of pants per year, 2 or 3 new dress shirts w/ties. The hems tend to wear on his pants, and of course there’s the occasional stain that I just can’t get out. I buy him a new pair of jeans every other year or so, and he’s got a lifetime supply of grubby t-shirts. He gets a new pair of cheap (less than $25) sneakers every year, uses the previous pair for grubbies. He’s got one polo shirt for informal occasions. 2 pairs of dress shoes & 2 belts — 1 brown, 1 black. Belt buckles make good holiday presents. He used to wear more sweaters (and looked good in them), but it’s too warm in his office for that. I bought him a long black wool dress coat last year for Christmas (JC Penney) and I knitted him a scarf. He has a black leather jacket (Sam’s Club) from a previous Christmas, and a cheap black raincoat (Sam’s Club). I buy socks, underwear, and undershirts for him in bulk, at Sam’s Club. My in-laws buy him pajamas for Christmas.

My daughter is 3, and kids require frequent infusions of new clothing. I’ve been lucky enough to score some good deals off Craigslist (55 pieces of fall 4Ts for $30, for example), and I have totes of hand-me-downs from my cousin. My mother buys her a nice swimsuit from Lands’ End whenever she outgrows the last one.

Shoes and outer wear are my most expensive pieces for her. I just bought her a new pair of winter boots for $28 on e-bay. She can’t wear cheap ones, because her foot is narrow and slides out of the boot, leading to tripping and falling. Last winter, we lost an $1800 front dental crown that way. I buy her a new winter jacket at Target, a 2-piece thing for $28, because I have trouble finding a nice used one. Last year I got a cheap snow-suit at Target, but this winter, I got a good deal on a used Columbia one-piece on e-bay ($~18). She’s outdoors a lot and plays in mud, so she needs more than one pair of shoes so that she always has a weather-appropriate pair clean. I tend to buy them new from Target, as I don’t believe in wearing used shoes (foot fungus is not your friend, say I as I’m finishing up a 6 month round of Rx for it). Right now, she has: hiking sandals ($12), sneakers ($12), flip-flops ($2), gym sneakers for school ($12), rain boots ($15), Mary Jane flats ($10). I buy them all at once, which kills my budget, but I buy them through the Target redcard program, which gives me 5% off, and gives 5% to her school, which is credited to an account for tuition & fees.

The other pieces that I splurge on for her are heavy fleece pants and jackets, because they stay warm when wet, and little kids are messy. Last year, I bought 4 pairs of pants for $7/ea, and 3 jackets for $8 at Target. I prefer the Children’s Place, but they’re expensive, and while their sales are excellent, I can rarely find what I need.

I have found that my rear expands with each passing year, so I must replenish my wardrobe from time to time. I had some beautiful shoes, but when I was pregnant, my feet grew a size, and never went back down. I used to buy a lot of my clothes at Gabriel Brother’s (a regional chain of closeout retail stores ), but they don’t stock much in plus sizes. I buy some t-shirts at Wal-Mart, but I buy most of my clothes online from OneStopPlus.com. I buy mostly super-cheap casual clothing, because most of the time, I’m cleaning house. For out of the house, I need something that is flattering and lets me get down on the floor with my daughter, which for me, is skorts in the summer and jeans in the winter. I wear t-shirts pretty much year round ($7-8 each) and have some lightweight cardigans and jackets to go with (no more than $25/ea). I own 1 pair of cheap sneakers, 3 pairs of $5 flats from Sam’s Club, 1 pair of $3 flipflops, 1 pair of ($30) penny loafers from JC Penney, 1 pair of knee-high black boots ($40), 1 pair of Croc’s that were a gift from my mother, and 1 pair of good Merrell boots that were a gift from my mother.

A couple of weeks ago, I made my annual pilgrimage to Catherine’s, and spent about $450 on dressy casual shirts and good underwear. When a bra costs $30, you want a good one. I needed something decent to drop my daughter off at school in, since parenting is a competitive sport here in Morgantown.

How do you shop for them? Do you buy used? Only shop at Nordstrom? Do you have certain brands you’re loyal to? How do you weigh cost versus quality? What tips can you offer for building a wardrobe on a budget? And what role does gender play in the cost of fashion? Last but not least: How much of what you wear is wool?

I budget about $100 per month to spend on “shopping” this includes all clothes, shoes, fashion jewelry, undergarments, workout attire, etc.
I work in a professional environment for a large professional services firm so image is important, especially in some client environments. I’m female, mid 20′s, and single. I’ve also worked hard and paid off my student loans and carry no debt.
I would love to be able to shop at thrift stores, but I lack the time/patience/know-how as I travel frequently for work. For me, I normally wait for the sales at stores like Ann Taylor Loft, Banana Republic, etc.

In terms of tips I think taking good care of your clothes is important. I air-dry almost everything (except for things like socks, underwear, tshirts)and then fluff briefly if needed. I’ve heard the dryer puts the most wear on your clothes. I also wash everything in gentle cycle and cold water.

That’s what works for me in this stage of my life. I look forward to hearing everyone else’s tips. If anyone lives in the Philadelphia area and knows of any good thrift stores (maybe on the Main Line?) I’d be interested in hearing about them!

As a young professional, building up a good wardrobe the last few years was expensive as I spent around $1500/year. Now I probably average closer to $500/year. My wife is not included in that those numbers. I work in a business casual environment. I have to look professional and kempt, and sometimes wear formal business attire. I will let the edges of my pants fray a little, but will not wear something with a hole or a noticeable stain. I live in a part of the country that experiences all four seasons. That in itself necessitates having to spend a little more. You wouldn’t want to wear corduroy pants in the middle of summer. I do try to stick to the basics, and very rarely grab anything trendy. I’ve tried shopping at Target, Kohl’s and even H&M with little luck. I can buy basic things at Kohl’s, such as belts, socks and undershirts. The average mens dress shirt in America is designed for the stereotypical middle-aged and overweight person. I have a slim build, and good quality fitted dress shirts are hard to find. The cut of the shirts and pants at Kohl’s, from my experience, is terrible.

For a long time I have shopped somewhat exclusively at J. Crew. The dress shirts and chinos fit perfectly every time. Knowing this saves me time and the hassle of having to try anything on. After reading all the above comments, I feel like an outlier saying this. Hear me out. J. Crew has excellent factory sales every weekend on their website. A $70 dress shirt (nice 80s two-ply cotton) can be had for $35, sometimes even $20. Lately I’ve been after nice wool dress pants. After much searching, Nordstrom has become my new favorite for dress pants. For $20 more than Kohl’s I can get 100% wool pants with free tailoring. I’ve tried other places, such as Kohl’s or Mens Wearhouse. To me, time and customer service are worth something. I have to spend way too much time trying on clothes at Kohl’s to find something that fits. Mens wearhouse is quicker, but the relentless and extremely pushy sales tactics are a huge turn off. Sure, I pay a little more, but I quickly walk away with pants that fit perfectly and will last a lot longer.

We have spent $3094 total over the past 12 mos. for the entire family. I don’t think that’s too high for a family of five with 2 teens and one pre-teen (all growing VERY quickly).

This includes all extras like shoes, snow boots, coats, and accessories like belts.

This year is different in that DH went from a uniform-wearing job (last 20 years) to a professional office job and needed to build a wardrobe.

In addition, I also took a professional office job (part-time) after being a SAHM for many, many years. I really needed to update.

Now I have started to lose the 15 pounds I had gained over the last 10 years, so it’s back to the store! And winter’s coming, so my husband is going to be needing some sport coats and wool pants!

My husband and I have budgeted 3% of our income for discretionary purchases. I spend most of mine on clothes/shoes. I work in an office, run for fitness, and live in the northeast where we experience 4 full seasons. I do love a good sale though. And I sell many of my old clothes on consignment or give them to charity.