You don’t need big bucks to look amazing. There are plenty of ways to save money (and the planet) by buying smart. Carissa Casey offers her top tips on how to cut costs and still look stunning.

1 DO A WARDROBE INVENTORY REGULARLY

Boring but oh so true, especially after months of lockdown dressing. You’re going to find items you’d forgotten about, items you have multiple versions of and new ways of styling items you hadn’t thought about previously. On a recent deep dive, I discovered an embarrassing number of black trousers, two of which still had tags and lots of pretty tops from last summer I’d been ignoring in favour of anything newly purchased. Being familiar with what I have has made it a lot easier to put outfits together. What’s more, the whole exercise has helped curb my online shopping habit because I feel like I’ve plenty of outfits I want to wear with what I have already. And if I can cut down on online shopping...

2 KNOW WHAT YOU LIKE AND WHAT SUITS YOU

Most of us have splurged on something we realised only too late we didn’t like and/or didn’t like. It’s actually very understandable. The fashion industry spends billions to get us to buy into fantasy, whether it’s a bodycon dress that will look as good on us as a rake thin model, or that with just the right cosy sweater we too will be curled up at a roaring fire with a George Clooney lookalike. Think about your go-to items, the outfits that make you feel great, the items you wear again and again. Is it the shape, the colour, the texture? As Socrates (sporting a snazzy white robe) said: “Know thyself.”

3 Get The Basic Balance Right

I’m all about a statement piece, but the items we wear most often are the basics – the leggings, the jeans, the black trousers, the workday dresses, the comfy flats. I suspect that ‘nothing to wear’ feeling is caused most often by a lack of attention to the basics. On other hand, some of us tend to go overboard on our favourite basics (black trousers and jeans for me). Prioritise getting these right first – spend on quality rather than quantity and don’t buy more than three of any one item.

4 Buy Out Of Season

This is a tough one because it’s hard to get excited about faux fur in the middle of a heatwave, or light floaty dresses in the cold dark winter. But it you’re looking for a statement piece – a snazzy jacket, a rocking pair of boots – or want to stock up on basics, there’s bargains to be had in the out of season section. Keep an eye on the discounted sections of online shopping sites. I picked up a pretty amazing silvery faux fur jacket for a song a week or so ago that I’m planning to wear a lot this winter.

5 Buy Boy’s

It seems to be a given in this world that not only do women earn less but we pay more for a whole range of things from hairdressing to clothes. Depending on your size, check out the boy’s or men’s departments for t-shirts, hoodies, sweats, scarves, even casual jackets. Not only will no one know where you got it, but you’ll pay a lot less.

6 Know Your Brands

There are plenty of really good affordable skincare brands on the market now. The Inkey List, The Ordinary and, more recently, Skin Proud are all highly rated and don’t cost a fortune. Most are only available here online - if you haven’t tried shopping online ask someone to help.

7 Go Old-School

Vaseline or indeed any petroleum jelly is a godsend, particularly in winter and, as I discovered this past year, when we’re having to sanitise our hands regularly. The tiniest amount smoothed over dry hands beats far more expensive creams, hands down. Keep a pot by the door or in your handbag and whenever you go out this winter, smooth some on your lips and hands to protect against the cold. It works on feet too, but wear a pair of old socks afterwards to avoid slipping.

8 Go Home-Made

For shiny hair, add a few drops of rosemary oil to a jug of lukewarm water and use it for a final rinse after washing. Apple cider vinegar does much the same. Cinnamon oil is the active ingredient in a lot of lip plumpers and can be bought far cheaper in your local health food store. Make your own body scrub by mixing sugar (or sea salt) with honey or olive oil.

9 Discount Diving

Check out the beauty, hair and makeup section of discount outlets like TK Maxx. There are plenty of big brand bargains to be found, along with lesser known beauty brands. There’s nothing wrong with these products except that they’re the last items in a discontinued line or, in the case of makeup, from a previous year’s collection. Nobody should be so on trend that they can’t wear eye shadow from a previous season.

10 Slow Down

Fast fashion and even fast beauty is going out of fashion. Constant consuming is messing with the planet and messing with our heads. Yes, it’s lovely to treat ourselves now and again, but nothing is more ageing than the need to buy, buy, buy. Give yourself a cooling off period - few items are so in demand that they won’t be there a day or two later and, sometimes, they might not look as good.

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