It can be hard to afford clothing, especially when you’re on a tight budget. Although I don’t purchase many new clothes for myself, I still have to purchase clothes for my growing boys. These are just a few of the ways that I stretch our clothing budget.
thredUP – I love this site for myself and my boys. This is an online consignment site where you can send your gently used clothes in for credit to purchase new-to-you items. An added bonus to this site is that when you refer your friends, they get $20 off their first purchase and you get a $20 credit when they make their first purchase! This is one of the ways I afford my name-brand pieces of clothing. If you want $20 off your purchase, you can click here to use my referral link. 🙂
Zulily – This is another site that I just love. I purchased my trunk organizer for sorting and storing my kids items in my car from here for a great deal. Not to mention that recently, I cashed in some of my credit with Zulily to score some amazing discounts on The Honest Company’s products. How this site works is they hold events (typically lasting 2 or 3 days) where you can purchase items for steep discounts. This is another site where you can refer friends to receive credits to use towards your purchases. Click here to view the current events on Zulily.
Plato’s Closet – This store has been one of my long-time favorites for buying name-brand clothing for really cheap. One of my favorite dresses that I love to wear on Easter Sunday is an Ann Taylor dress originally $75 that I paid only $12 for. The dress was and still is in great condition. You can sell your gently used clothes to Plato’s Closet as well, but they typically only take name-brand items and the items must be in great condition with very little to no flaws. Click here to find a location near you or for more details on how it works.
Swagbucks – I know I mention Swagbucks a lot but I use them a lot to stretch our budget. I’m currently storing up my Swagbucks to go on a shopping spree for my hubs. His birthday is coming up and he desperately needs some new clothes! I redeem my Swagbucks for gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, Walmart and Paypal. My strategy is to have the items that I want to purchase already picked out before I cash out of Swagbucks. (**It’s important to note that it can take up to 10 business days to receive your gift cards. Just FYI.) Click to get started with Swagbucks.
eBay – Believe it or not, I’ve actually purchased new and used clothes from eBay. Any time I make a purchase from eBay, I always check the seller rating. I even read the reviews on the seller to make sure that the seller is legit and read any negative feedback. I also always check the return policy. Many eBay sellers will allow you to return your clothes within a specific time frame but some will not (typically, this is the case with used clothing).
Cents of Style – I love this online boutique! They have amazingly beautiful accessories and an awesome Friday deal promotion every Friday! Through their Fashion Friday Sale I’ve been able to score some amazing deals on scarves and other accessories for me and for gifts. You can visit Cents of Style here & be sure to watch for their Friday Deals!
Goodwill/Thrift Stores – And last but certainly not least, I stretch our clothing budget by shopping at Goodwill or thrift stores. Back when my hubs was working construction I would go and buy a ton of his work clothes there because they were just going to get ruined anyway. A vast majority of my children’s clothes come from here as well since they aren’t in them very long before they grow out of them. Just make sure to check for any stains, tears, or other issues with the clothing before purchasing. You typically can not return any items bought at these stores.
Other ways to earn extra money to apply to your clothing budget:
Fetch – I love this app! You just scan in your receipts and you earn points that you get to redeem for gift cards. You can even scan in your online purchases too! Head here and use my referral code M9WE7 to get 2,000 points (equals $2) added to your account when you scan your first receipt!
Rakuten – this is my favorite site for earning cashback on my online purchases. You can sign up here to start earning cash back.
What are some ways that you’ve been able to stretch your clothing budget?
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LOVE this! I’m going to share this on our facebook page. Always love learning new ways to save money. Thread up is new to me. I’ll check them out and use your referral link. Super cool! Toni @ debtfreedivas.org
Thank you so much! I love thredUP, I’ve used other online consignment shops before but I really like the quality of clothes that they have. I keep my clothes for years (I still wear clothes that I had in middle school!) so I need clothes that can handle a lot of washing and drying. And thank you so much for sharing! I’m your newest follower! 🙂
YAY! I love this! I have learned to stretch my wardrobe by wearing the “same black dress” for almost a year now…
http://tondradenise.blogspot.com/2013/09/i-got-new-black-dress-and-it-cost-2.html
Thank you Tondra! I’m a believer that a girl really only needs one great black dress that can be worn 5 different ways! 🙂 It’s amazing how we can make things last when we try. Kuddos to you! And I loved your post! Thank you so much for sharing it with me.
This is a great list! I would add hand-me-downs and yard sales as HUGE money-savers for kids’ clothes. I bought 2 shirts, a sweater, and 5 pairs of pants for my 3-year-old for only $4 on Saturday!
Can I ask you about your experience with the online consignment shops? I’ve been hesitant to try them for myself for fear that the clothes won’t fit. I don’t think I have a completely abnormal body type, but it seems that over half the clothes I try on in the store don’t fit in a flattering way. Have you had any issues with this? How difficult is it to make returns?
Thanks!
I L-O-V-E online consignment shops. I will shop at ones that have a return policy or at least an exchange policy in case something doesn’t fit. Personally, thredUP is my favorite shop as it is super easy to earn credit with them so you can shop for free. 🙂
Thanks for the input! How often have you had to return/exchange items?
I have only had to return once – the shape of the dress was odd and made me look like I was pregnant. It was a completely painless transaction! 🙂
Great list. I buy a great deal of my clothes at garage sales. The prices are cheap and you get name brand clothing. The only downfall may be you can not try them on but I use that as a bargaining tool.
Garage sales are a great way to stretch your clothing budget. The majority of my clothes growing up came from garage sales! 🙂
I am dropping in from the Frugal Friday Link Up. Seriously, Zuliy is my go to shop for clothes. They are affordable and have quality clothing.
Garage sales are one of the awesome to save and stretch budget! Cheers!