Although I am not a huge fan of shopping, through the years, I have come up with some tips that I use whenever I need to shop. Most of these tips are specifically for clothes because I shop for clothes more than anything else; however, there are some that you can use regardless of what you are shopping for.
For clothes, my biggest tip is to buy more expensive, higher-quality jeans with cheaper, lower-quality everyday tops. Jeans can be difficult to find, and I like wearing the same jeans for a long time. Although they are a more expensive purchase now, if you purchase high-quality jeans, they can last longer and save you more money in the long run. For fancier tops that you would wear going out, I also prefer to get higher-quality items. However, for the basic shirts I wear every day to school, I prefer to find cheaper options. This way, I can buy more shirts and have enough to alternate them every day without seeming like I am wearing the same shirt too often.
My favorite places to find good-quality, affordable clothes are Marshalls and Target. With Marshalls specifically, you can find different clothes every day. I try to go to Marshalls about once a month, and in many cases, I find cute clothes that would be priced much higher at other stores. As for Target, many people choose not to shop for clothes there because they believe that Target wouldn’t have many nice clothes for their prices. However, this is not the case. Almost half of my closet is from Target. I also prefer shopping at Target because it is convenient to order clothes online and return them at the store if they don’t fit without paying for shipping.
Regardless of what you are buying, the biggest piece of advice I have is to always search for coupons. I have never been into couponing, but before I checkout at any store, I do a quick Google search to see if I can find any available coupon codes. This only takes 5 minutes of your time and can save you a lot of money in the long run.