How to Purchase Winter Clothing On a Budget

Winter clothing can be expensive. Because of this, it's important to know how to purchase winter clothing on a budget. With the right skills and timing, winter clothing shopping does not have to be too costly. With a bit of time and luck, you'll easily find great winter clothing which can be purchased with a limited budget.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Before you begin shopping for new winter clothes, shop in your own closet. Take note of all of the winter clothing that you already have. Keep what you like, and put the other old winter clothing aside. Then, either sell, consign or trade your old clothes.
   
   If you sell your clothing, take the money that you make from selling them and put that money towards your new winter wardrobe.
   If you consign your clothes, see if you can make a trade. Trade your old winter clothing for other clothes at the consignment store. Or, if you're simply trading for money once the clothes sell, you can put that money towards your next big shopping spree.
   If you want to trade your old clothes, get some friends together for a clothing party. Have everyone bring pieces from their old winter wardrobes and trade for items that they love.

2. Make use of your summer and spring clothes as part of your winter wardrobe. A summer tank top goes great under a winter sweater. A long sleeve shirt can go under a fall cardigan for protection from the cold winter weather. A pair of spring leggings are great to keep your legs warm under a pair of work pants.

3. Ask for hand-me-downs. Talk to friends and family and ask if they'd be willing to part with any old winter clothing items. You can make it into a silly joke, if you'd like. Say, "Hey, I'm so over shopping this year. Any chance you've got any old sweaters you can part with? I'll cook you dinner in exchange." Doing something like this makes the clothes a trade, not a giveaway, and helps to preserve your pride if you feel badly about asking for winter clothing hand-me-downs.

4. Visit your local thrift store or Salvation Army store. You would not believe some of the great things that people sell inexpensively or donate. Look through the racks of winter coats, sweaters and boots, and you might find a hidden treasure.
   
   A great thrift store find is a winter coat. Winter jackets can be so expensive when purchased new, but can be completely affordable when purchased secondhand. As long as the coat is in good shape, no one will even know that it's been worn before.

5. Go to a local, inexpensive store and buy basic winter clothing items. It may be tempting to purchase trendy items, but if you want to keep winters affordable as time goes on, you'll need to buy basics. Save the trendy items for spring and summer, when items are less expensive because they contain less fabric.
   
   So, go to a local Target, Walmart or other local store and buy your basics. Go for basic shoes, basic sweaters, basic long sleeve tops and basic pants. You can always accessorize plain clothes with different jewelry or accessories, which you can invest in because you can wear them year round. Plus, the more basic your clothes are, the more you can mix, match and rewear them.

6. Buy a pair of basic winter shoes or boots. If you buy shoes in a basic color, you can wear them with everything. Brown or black shoes are great for this. You don't want to buy a pair of pink shoes, only to realize that they will not match with half of your outfits.

7. Get creative. Sick of a boring sweater? Put a pretty flower pin on it to give it flair. Instead of a belt, tie a ribbon through your belt holes. A black top with black jeans will look amazing with a colorful ribbon as an accessory. Essentially, let the accessories do the talking. A ribbon is a lot more affordable than expensive jeans.

8. Shop in the clearance section at local stores, especially as soon as a season ends. For example, you can probably get sweaters and winter boots at a fraction of the cost if you shop at the end of a season and save the items for the coming year.

9. Only buy items that you like. Of course, you may be able to get less desirable winter pieces for a low price, but if you don't like a clothing item, you won't wear it, and you'll end up buying, and paying for, twice as many pieces of clothing.

10. Allow yourself to buy one really great clothing item. This kind of goes against the concept of buying everything as inexpensively as possible, but it's worth it. Why? Because this is an item that you'll love to wear. Even if you feel bland in some of your other winter clothes, you'll be able to take pride in this one particular item. Plus, having this great piece will allow you to compromise on others. Let's say you have this great winter sweater. You can pair it with plain pants or jeans, and those won't even matter, because everyone will notice your great top.

[charlotteanne]

on 11/2/2009 This is great advice! Thanks! 5*

[mymonkeygreen]

on 10/2/2009 " If you want to trade your old clothes, get some friends together for a clothing party." - This is a great idea! Sounds like it could be a lot of fun.

[godfather25]

on 9/27/2009 Good tips on purchasing winter clothing on a budget.

[femwriter]

on 9/26/2009 This is a valuable information on how to purchase good winter clothing and save your money at the same time. Thanks for writing this article. 5* plus recommendation!