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How I shop with a fixed monthly budget & fave spring dresses 2020

May 15, 2020

 

Good morning everyone. Sometimes I do stay up late at night thinking about what I could share that might be of good interest to you. One thing I love are clothes.

Not just any clothes though.

I am kind of picky and minimalistic about what I buy. I search for days before I hit the purchase button, and often think about my purchase for the whole 30 days after I bought the item to make sure I loved it.

A few years back David and I decided that we would set aside a budget for my personal expenses. Haircuts, nails, clothes, an occasional trip to the spa. I just always felt guilty doing those things and I wanted to be able to keep track on a yearly basis of how much I was spending on beauty items, which is what I call this whole category. So we came up with a reasonable clothes budget and we have been now using this system for years.

This system gave me more peace of mind to purchase the things I wanted. It also allowed me to keep track of how much I would spend. If I spent all my budget on my hair and the spa one month, that meant there would be no extra budget for clothes. If I wanted to make a bigger purchase I would let the budget accumulate for a few months and then buy it. If I wasn’t willing to wait a few months, it meant I didn’t want that item so badly.

This winter I did SAVE a few months of my allowance and when spring came around I was glad because I knew I wanted to splurge on a few summer dresses this year. My hopes were to take those dresses with me to Italy. Not sure this will happen, but a girl can dream, and I still want to look good even if just for myself. Funny thing is, this morning Zara, my 2 year old, opened her closet and asked to wear a dress I had got for her for easter. I rarely have a dress that just hangs there unsed with tags, but with Covid-19 I guess we did never put that dress to good use for her. Sure enough we thought it would be a great idea for her to wear it. Oh! the joy in her eyes. She skipped everywhere giving everyone hugs right after.

Back to the dresses now, so I splurged on some dresses for myself. Yes, they were more expensive than usual. I usually don’t spend this much, but I had been saving my allowance now for a few months because I was planning on getting some spring flowy and long dresses.

I also purchased at first a dress from a company online I had my eyes out for a while and to be honest, I spent a lot and when I got the dress it was poorly sewed, very baggy, and the fabric was very cheap and thin. So I decided to pull out the big guns and go with bigger brands for this round that I already know and like.

I will place on a separate board first with the ones that I decided to go for. But my over board is for you, because I seriously combed through all of Nordstrom and Shopbop websites, and these are seriously my all time favorites.

The third board has items that were all under 150$.

Good quality dresses are harder to find so I did spend a bit more than usual this time.

If I could afford all the dresses I would have bought them all. I got a few for myself and linked the rest for you.

Many of these are on sale so that’s a plus!

You can find all the items directly linked at the bottom of each board.

The jumpsuit is from faithfull and on sale! If deciding on the size go smaller. The skirt is great for spring. I pair it with a pink t-shirt tucked in.

The bottom left dress does come lower on the back, so you will have to wear it with a Tee if you are trying to cover other layers.

It’s great for the beach or ideal for a young girl, too!

Next up are some more of my faves for the summer. Some of these are on sale. Number 11 and 12 are definitely at a higher price, but number 11 is on sale, and I wanted to add it because maybe you won’t mind the price and is just a gorgeous dress.

Also number 12 will probably go on sale at any time now. Tory is known for doing limited time 30% off. Shopbop will adjust prices accordingly right away.

Number 8 is almost 50% off and it’s from Ulla Johnson. I love her dresses and I got it for the summer, but I plan to wear it in the fall. I tagged it on both boards since I did get it.

I got it now because I would never spend full price for Ulla Johnson dresses. But I love their collection.

That way when fall comes around I can already have something in theme. I plan to wear it with brown boots in the FALL. Right now the pattern is still cheery enough that makes it perfect for the summer.

Last but not least, I’ll talk about number 2. I have seen a similar version of it on instagram and I couldn’t pass on the opportunity to reshare it. It has such a fun detail on the sleeves. Calls for an undershirt if you are trying to cover shoulders once again.

REMEMBER YOU CAN GET 10% off your first order when you sign up on shopbop.

And as promised, this last list has all dresses that are under 150$. Some may repeat, but I wanted to make it easy for you to spot them.

Many of these only have a few sizes left since they are discounted. Unless marked as final sale they can be ourchased with free shipping in the US and free returns so you can try as many as you like risk free.

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Serena Essuman

   

Serena Essuman

   
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