The Ta-Ta Towel

Image from www.theberry.com

Every busty girl knows the humidititties that comes with getting ready to go out on a hot day. Check out this post from TheBerry that introduces the Ta-Ta Towel.

It's safe to say we want one.

How to Shop on a Budget

Whether you are out for retail therapy, a day with the girls, or just in need of a particular item, it’s easy to overspend when you go shopping.

Pretty much everybody is on a budget. Fortunately, this doesn’t mean you can still go shopping – you just need to keep a tight grip on your wallet. This is easier said than done. Amazing sales, a shopping high, and too many lattes make it inevitable that you will spend more than you intend to.

Here are our top 5 tips to prevent overspending the next time you go shopping.

Bring cash.

Before you head to the stores, take out the amount you set yourself in cash. Leave your credit cards at home so you won’t be tempted to use them. My husband’s grandmother used to put her credit cards in a jar full of water, then hide it the back of the freezer. By the time she got it defrosted, her urge to use the card had passed.

This may be a little extreme for a day of shopping, but the theory is still applicable. If you have to go all the way home for your card and back out just to buy something, you probably won’t want it by the time you return to the store.

Set a realistic budget.

Budgeting is one of those things we know we should do, but just don’t want to. It’s not particularly interesting, and it makes us feel broke.

When it comes to shopping, your budget needs to be realistic. This means not too much, but also not too little. Of course you don’t want to spend your rent money on shoes, but if you set yourself a limit of $20 for the day you won’t enjoy going out.

If you’re going for the day, include things like coffee, lunch/dinner, or snacks in your budget. Sadly, that extra shot of espresso and jumbo cookie aren’t free. You don’t want to get to dinner and find you have no money left.

To keep your food and drink money separate from your shopping money, put it in a different part of your wallet or purse. This way you have to consciously dip into the cash to spend it on something other than what you intended.

Pro tip: Put your dinner money in a separate wallet. Physically keeping it separate makes it less tempting to spend it. 

Don’t get sucked in by sales.

Sales are great. Finding the things we want at a cheaper price is always a plus. When stores have too much merchandise left from the previous season, they anticipate receiving a large amount of new inventory, there is a new promo coming up, or sales are slow, they put things on clearance.

However, the fact that something is on sale shouldn’t be reason enough to purchase it. There are a few things you need to ask yourself before buying anything marked as clearance:

Would I like this if it was regular price?
Do I have anything that goes with it?
Would I actually wear this?
Can I afford the sale price?

If you answered yes to the questions above, go take advantage of the great price! If not, it’s probably a waste of your money.

Remember that if the price has been reduced because it is damaged, it isn’t worth buying. Damages are a last-ditch effort for stores to reclaim some of their expense. Anything damaged that can’t be sold gets written off, whereas if you purchase a damaged item you get home with something you have to fix to be able to wear.

Also, if something is out of your price range, it doesn't matter how big a sale it is. 

Prioritize what you want to buy.

In a perfect world, we could go out and buy one (or two) of everything. For those of us who live in the real world, we have to decide what to purchase and what to stare at through the window.  

Before you go, decide which items are at the top of your priority list. Do you need shorts for the weekend, or a dress for a special event? Deciding which items are the most important will help you spend your money rather than throw it away.

Prioritizing your shopping goals also means you’ll feel more accomplished when you get home. Because you’ll have everything you intended to buy, instead of a pile of stuff you hadn’t even thought to want, you can feel good about how you spent your hard-earned money.

Leave behind anything you aren’t sure about.

Not everything you find on a shopping trip is a winner. When you find an item you love, grab it. Anything you absolutely love that fits right and is a good price is worth the money.

Then there are the items that you're on the fence about. After more than ten years in retail management, I can assure you that the vast majority of the time people put items on hold, they don't come back for them. Putting the item on hold gives you time to think about the purchase without the risk that someone else will buy it. Most stores will only hold the item until the close of the day anyway, so there is a limited amount of time for you think about it.

If you don't want to buy the item, leave it behind. Placing items on hold is waste of time. If you like an item enough to buy it, then do so. 

Odd vs. Even Sizes

We’ve all been there – you go into one store, and the sizes are even numbers. Then you go to the next store, and the sizes are odd. And then you get to dresses, and the sizes are way off from what you’re used to.

We set out to answer the question once and for all, so you never have to be confused again. So here is the comprehensive answer to the question, what gives with odd and even numbered sizes?

The Scoop

We know that not all sizes are created equal. Something that is labelled a 14 in one store may be a completely different fit from a 14 in another store. The phrase “runs true to size” no longer means anything, because each brand makes their items fit the way they want.

The same is true of odd and even numbered sizes. There are some general rules that apply to understanding odd and even numbered sizes, but there are exceptions.

Odd Numbers

Most frequently, odd numbers refer to junior sizes. Sizes like 00 are even, but are usually sold in stores that are aimed at older teenagers (anybody else remember Stitches and Urban Planet?). Although the store’s branding is aimed at older teenagers, the sizes fit juniors.

This is the same principle that is used in marketing toys. Toy companies show a toy that is meant for an eight-year-old being played with by someone who is twelve. At that age, people want what the older kids have. This idea is applied to clothing by showing someone who is seventeen or eighteen wearing something that is intended for consumers who are fourteen or fifteen.

Often the sizes go from 00 to 15 or 17. For an adult who is usually a 14 or 16, this seems like good news. Remember that these sizes are not designed for adults, so you will have to put some effort in to make them fit.

Junior sizes can be adapted to adult sizes. Simply round up to the next size. For example, a size 15 will round up to a size 16. Theoretically, someone who is a size 16 could wear a 15. However, the fit will be hit and miss.

Keep in mind that you should try these items on before you buy them. Adapting a size designed for a tween to fit an adult isn’t an exact science – rather, it involves a fair bit of guesswork. You may usually be a size 16, but you may end up with 17 or 19.

Junior sizes also don’t allow for curves. Most women under the age of 15 don’t have the same curves as someone who is in her twenties. When it comes to making larger sizes for juniors, manufacturers simply add more fabric. The entire item is proportionally larger that its smaller counterpart.

This doesn’t always work for adult women who fit the larger sizes. Shirts may not be long enough, or wide enough around the bust, and junior jeans are not intended to accommodate curvy hips or thighs. Pants also probably won’t be long enough.

Even Numbers 

Even numbers are designed for adults. These are the sizes that we see in stores that are aimed for people who are over eighteen. You can tell which ones these are because they carry things that are appropriate to wear in an office, like blazers, blouses, and dress pants.

Like junior sizes, adult sizes span the range from 0 onward. In most stores, the sizes stop at 10 or 12. Fortunately, more brands are recognizing that not all women fit into this bracket. Many stores that previously capped off at size 12 are now carrying size 18 or 20.

Unlike junior sizes, even sizes are designed for adults. This means they will have a far better fit than any item adapted from a junior size. Even-numbered sizes are designed with a fully developed body in mind, meaning there is room for curves.

Even sizes are a conversion from the number of inches around a given area - e.g. your hips - to a numerical value. For example, a 32 inch waistband on jeans is usually a size 10. Remember that each store makes each item fit the way they want, so a 10 in one store might fit perfectly but a 10 in another store could be way off. 

Dresses

Sizing for dresses is different than sizing for individual items. For example, you might be a size 12 on top but a 16 on the bottom. When it comes to dresses, the size refers to your overall fit.

In many cases, tailoring is the only option to make dresses fit properly. Try on each dress before you buy it, and make sure it fits the largest part of you, whether this is your shoulders, bust, or hips.  

A lot of the time you can estimate your dress size by looking at your sizes for tops and bottoms. If you are a 12 on top and a 16 on the bottom, try a size 14 dress.