How much do you spend on clothes each month?

[IceLace100]

Just that really. How much do you spend each month or year on clothes relative to your salary?

Just spent £100 and was feeling guilty but then relative to my salary, maybe this is just "normal"?

After saving for a deposit for years and buying everything in charity shops / going without / borrowing from friends, I am unsure what is a sensible amount to spend.

Maybe I'm just trying to justify my purchases! 🤣😂🤣

I buy as I need, and if its something expensive like a coat or shoes, I'll put some money aside. But then we don't have alot of disposable income and what we do have goes on our rapidly growing daughter!

I also find it's better to look out for quality fabrics and cuts rather than specific, so-called 'quality brands'. I tend to only buy linen, wool, silk and thick cotton, and because I get them second-hand, they're still very affordable.

Thank you for this thread, it’s made me feel a lot better, as I seem to have been compulsively buying in the sales recently. The damage is nowhere near as bad as I thought! Around £40 per month. I’ve been trying to buy classic items that I love and need and am aiming for 30 wears. I’ve also been selling on EBay, though it’s become very slow. Must try Vinted.

1.8%

Mine really varies. I might not buy much for a few months but then spend a fair bit on a higher price item or two - often at the start of a season. Over the last few years I’ve been gradually buying better quality - replacing cheaper items when they wear out with much better quality ones - and now pretty much have everything I need so I think my spending going forward will be low. But while I was doing that I was spending quite a lot - eg a coat I got last year was about £600 but will last forever and I’ve bought jeans, jumpers and shoes/boots for around £200 an item or so. So some months might be £0 and some closer to £1000. Hopefully going forward though it’ll just be replacing things and the odd thing to add to my wardrobe to keep looking up to date. I do have a good amount of disposable income so can afford to buy more expensive pieces and think it’ll be a better economy in the long run - was getting fed up of boots that would just last one winter and clothes that would look scruffy after a few wears.

Agree re higher quality items. The H&M t shirts I bought earlier this year are virtually unwearable as they've shrunk so much and are practically crop tops now! I try and get what I can second hand on eBay or sales but I've noticed prices overall creeping up quite considerably. I go round the charity shops and find some bargains but those too seem to have got more expensive. Covid and Brexit effects I suppose.

@Positivelyrandom 30 wears doesn't sound a lot!

I love fashion and beauty, so I probably spend way too much of clothes monthly. I'd say I spend about £500-800. I usually spend more during the summer and less during the winter.

@IceLace100

Is everything is £5 a rip off due to number of times you wear?

Not for me. I wear anything I buy loads. The trick is to know what you like and think about it for a few hours at least. The nicest stuff often sells out in under a day, so if you really want something you need to be quick. But be too impulsive and that's when it becomes a mistake.

Unless I've made a mistake with the sizing (sometimes it's small medium or large) and it really doesn't fit. That's rare though. Especially as I don't mind oversized clothes. I pay attention to the dress size of the model and what size she's wearing, plus how it looks fit-wise on her and choose my size based on that. Occasionally something of poor quality doesn't last longer than one season before falling apart, but I don't mind for the price. I'll usually have had the 30 wears out of it.

Pay attention to the fabric too, to make sure you're happy with it and look for signs that it's sheer and needs something underneath.

I've had some fabulous bargains from there. Most recently picked up two jumpsuits by Free People, the labels says $108.00. Although you obviously don't know what you're getting until it arrives and it could just as easily be Primark.

I buy from other (more expensive) places too. Probably average around £400 a month at the moment. I needed a wardrobe overhaul. I have most of what I want now though so will go to only buying replacements for things that have worn out.

[quote FreekStar2]@Positivelyrandom 30 wears doesn't sound a lot![/quote]
It probably isn’t enough, but that’s my minimum aim. I’m steering clear of buying anything for a night out that won’t get much use. Trying to be more creative with what I have.

I think the biggest waste is clothes for special occasions- I have quite a lot of dresses I've only worn once, and also a few still with tags on that I bought because I thought they were nice but never found an occasion to wear them. I'm also guilty of buying for my idealistic life where I go out for cocktails, and dinner dates and lunches and theatre trips, instead of the one I actually live where I go to work, take dd to sports training, go to the old local pub and spend my spare time gardening and cooking.

I don't buy clothes every month. I've spent about £600 this month because I am starting a new job, and I need a new winter coat so I'll be buying that probably next month, but that is very unusual. It would usually take me a couple of years to spend that much.

@FreekStar2, “ I'm also guilty of buying for my idealistic life where I go out for cocktails, and dinner dates and lunches and theatre trips, instead of the one I actually live where I go to work, take dd to sports training, go to the old local pub and spend my spare time gardening and cooking.”
Absolutely! I’ve so been guilty of this. Trying hard to only buy for real life now, or better still, use up what I have.

@Positivelyrandom I'm doing the opposite- trying to change my life to suit my wardrobe, although lockdown has been a bit of a hindrance to this. I've started wearing my 'best' clothes for work more- so instead of buying cheaper things for work (which I wear every day) and saving more expensive things for the weekends, I'm trying not to have a separate work wardrobe and pigeon-holing my clothes into work/weekend wear, but wearing things in different ways so they can be worn for both.

Does anyone else feel that other people feel threatened if you look smart? There seems to be a weird culture at the moment that you must dress down for everything. I went to stay with a friend last week and arrived in jeans with a blouse and a linen blazer. She suggested we walked her dog before dinner. (around their very well to do country village along a nice footpath) so I changed my sandals for trainers and was ready to go. She looked at me as if I was mad and said "I think you're too smart, I'll get you a hoodie, or people will stare at you!" ? What's that about? How does a hoody affect walking the dog? The blazer was much more comfy and breathable for the weather that day.

I don't spend anything for months. Then buy a few bits, but hardly anything. £200 per year?

@FreekStar2 Yes, to people staring if you look smart. If the weather’s nice, I might wear a skirt or dress and trainers to go for a walk - nothing too fancy, but everyone else seems to be wearing gym leggings and hoodies. I don’t care much though, I’d prefer to wear what suits me and what makes me feel good. Yes to wearing best clothes to work and making things adapt to different occasions.

Bloody hell! I spend about £100-200 a year!

[quote FreekStar2]@Positivelyrandom I'm doing the opposite- trying to change my life to suit my wardrobe, although lockdown has been a bit of a hindrance to this. I've started wearing my 'best' clothes for work more- so instead of buying cheaper things for work (which I wear every day) and saving more expensive things for the weekends, I'm trying not to have a separate work wardrobe and pigeon-holing my clothes into work/weekend wear, but wearing things in different ways so they can be worn for both.

Does anyone else feel that other people feel threatened if you look smart? There seems to be a weird culture at the moment that you must dress down for everything. I went to stay with a friend last week and arrived in jeans with a blouse and a linen blazer. She suggested we walked her dog before dinner. (around their very well to do country village along a nice footpath) so I changed my sandals for trainers and was ready to go. She looked at me as if I was mad and said "I think you're too smart, I'll get you a hoodie, or people will stare at you!" ? What's that about? How does a hoody affect walking the dog? The blazer was much more comfy and breathable for the weather that day.[/quote]
I think you're friend was right. What if you'd bumped into another dog that jumped all over you and your lovely blazer with muddy paw prints (as some dogs do unfortunately)? I love dressing in nice clothes, especially dresses, blouses and nice jackets, and have a wardrobe full of them, but I would look out of place in them most of time.

Since 2019 I've spent £60 on one pair of work shoes. #Excluded

It's not a regular thing for me but i think I've got it down to a system now where I can stay within my budget:

I now only shop in one high end and two cheap high street shops - often the latter will have great copies of the former.

I only buy if I definitely don't have anything similar and it will look great with at least three other things.

I try everything on first.

I put 5% of my pay into a savings account and that covers clothes, shoes, hair etc. Some months don't buy anything but build up for something more expensive.

The brands I've found that wash well and last have been Seasalt, White Stuff and Kettlewell. The Kettlewell basics are pricey (normally buy in the sale) but they keep their shape and colour so are worth the investment.

@ichundich Hmm, not sure the concern was about blazer getting damaged, but more about whether I fitted in with her idea of dog walking gear- I was wearing jeans and trainers and the blazer was a casual style one- not a dressy one or anything, the sort you would wear with jeans. I would expect to be able to go for a walk without random dogs jumping all over me!

Does anyone else feel that other people feel threatened if you look smart?

Totally. Round here everyone wears drab clothes for everything. Jeans or leggings or joggers. Black, grey, navy, beige, dark green. There's the occasional sunshine yellow or fuchsia pink raincoat, but that's about it. Women in town on Friday or Saturday nights maybe in something sparkly or a minidress. It's like a dress code of depression everywhere I look and nothing else is allowed. If I wear eg an ordinary floral sundress I'll be asked by friends where I'm going or where I've been. As if it's compulsory to wear scruffy clothes if all you're doing is staying home or running errands. I was quite shocked about what happened in lockdown with so many people having the approach that if nobody except family will see them it's ok to dress in any old thing and relax on personal hygiene/presentation. I thought most people dressed for themselves and not for others, but I was wrong. As for your friends comments about people staring at you if you went for a walk in a blazer, that's so bizarre and says a lot more about her than you, she was obviously uncomfortable about that prospect. The poster who said "what if dogs jumped up at you?" is showing their true colours too. It's totally unacceptable for anyone to let their dog jump on someone else ever, unless it's your close friends and you know for certain they don't mind. It's damn rude to expect anyone to put up with it. Owners should train their dogs or keep them leashed and hold the collar when passing others.

I've usually spent about £200-300 at this time of year on coats , bags and work clothes for the coming season. Am spending less on work clothes due to remote working now and finding more in charity shops. Bit of a splurge today - about £18 on a very smart black mac, smart top, wool cardigan, and rust coloured cotton skirt. All very nice and nearly new. Think I will stick to second hand from now on...

I don't have a set budget. I have just bought some new underwear £140 and a gorgeous shirt dress £45, a dark grey wool jumper £60 and a dress for a wedding £28 in the sale. That's pretty much it for this month. Other months can be more or less. I do spend a lot on jewellery but only buy a couple of items a year.