My Monthly Purchases: June 2015

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. I used to have a monthly budget, but partway through 2014, I switched to a quarterly budget of $500. This can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget.

Necklace/Bracelet: Beck & Boosh via Pseudio
Reg $22 on sale for $6.50
Multifunctional pieces are so great. I love how this can be styled as a wrap bracelet or necklace. This is the third piece I own from Beck & Boosh (a company local to my hometown) and all of my baubles get regular wear.

Dress: Wilfred Free at Aritzia
Reg $110 on sale for $88 after price adjustment
At the opening event for Aritzia at Halifax Shopping Centre, I came home with this dress. I love how it can be styled as a shirt dress or left open as an overpiece. I could have came home with tons of items - but made myself stick with one! I took advantage of a price adjustment when the item went on sale.

Shirt: Banana Republic
Reg $85 on sale for $22
A simple (but far from boring) white shirt is a summertime essential. It literally goes with almost anything you own. This one has a fun zip detail at the back.

Top: Banana Republic
Reg $68 on sale for $15
Another interesting basic that goes with everything. It looks really cute tucked into a high waisted skirt!

Total value of items: $285
Price I paid: $131.50
I saved 54%

It's the end of a quarter! For these three months I spent a total of $510, which is normally $10 over budget. However, counting leftover birthday funds, I will still be rolling forward an extra $120 into next quarter.

I also ended up buying (with a gift card) a cute one-piece swimsuit and a sleep shirt form Victoria's Secret. I bought them at the start of the clearance sale, and then price adjusted two weeks later and saved myself $45!

On my radar will be a gold watch (still hunting), black heels, athletic sneakers (won't be included in budget) and black skinny jeans.

I'm linked with Franish for her budget post, if you'd like to see what some of the other bloggers bought in June.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: April 2015

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. I used to have a monthly budget, but partway through 2014, I switched to a quarterly budget of $500. This can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget.

This was the first month of a new quarter, and I have some extra money to roll forward from birthday gifts. I also have a $50 Joe Fresh GC from my birthday that I haven't spent yet. I spent slightly more than I expected to this month, but I just HAD to have the sandals... scroll down to see.

Sweater: Banana Republic
Reg $110 - on sale for $10
Like I would ever leave a $10 Banana Republic sweater at the store. This is slightly big on me, but looks great for a cozy casual look. It's in the laundry now, so no photo. Color is cream.

Scarf: H&M
Reg $7 - I paid $2 after using my Conscious coupon
I didn't own a lightweight animal print scarf and now I do. I've worn it a few times already, including with the above sweater.

Pants: H&M
Reg $18
These are seriously the funnest pants I've bought in a long time, and I'll be showing you them in a blog post later this week. They are really comfortable and hit the ankle at the perfect place to show off your shoes. Next time I'm in H&M, I'll probably buy another pair in a different color.

Shorts: H&M
Reg $10
These were an iffy purchase as they kinda look like jammies.... which was my Plan B for them if I got them home and couldn't style them. They look really cute paired with a white top and heels.

Hat: Forever 21
Reg: $23
I wear my big black hat a lot, so I felt a big olive hat would get some mileage in my wardrobe as well. I can't find it on-line but it was a new item in-store when I bought it.

Shorts Club Monaco
Reg $129 - on sale for $35 (even more on sale now!)
These are high waisted faux leather and would look good with bare legs or with tights in the winter.
35 was 129

Tights: Club Monaco
Reg $30 - on sale for $6
For $6 these Marsala tights will get some use. They might even go with the above shorts in the winter.

Boots: Stuart Weitzman via Crimson Clover
Reg (who knows how much, likely $500-ish), priced at $150 consignment - on sale for $5.
FIVE DOLLARS. They are in almost perfect condition. Makes me almost excited for the fall (just kidding).

Tee: Hollister
Reg $23 - on sale for $11
I need to stop collecting pineapple shirts.

Tee: Gap
Reg $20 - on sale for $3.50. 
A basic grey long-sleeved tee. I have the same one in navy and white stripes and black.

Cords: Gap
Reg $70 - on sale for $8.50
I haven't been a huge fan of cords lately, but I love these! I think it's because they have a worn in and casual look.

Sandals: Aldo
Reg $90 - I had a $25 off coupon, so got them for $65
Remember last month when I  said I wanted to buy something with fringe? These shoes are like a party on my feet. The heel height is great too! Can't wait to wear these!

Original value of items: $680
Price I paid: $196
I saved 71%

I also bought new pants from the Banana Republic Factory outlet with a gift receipt from a birthday shirt I had to return due to gaping buttons - which is often a problem for me. I've already worn them in this post.

That leaves me $304 to spend for the next two months. If I want to add my leftover birthday money, it's $434, but I'm going to try to save some for New Hampshire this summer.

Did you catch any great deals in April? I'm linked with Franish if you'd like to see how some of the other bloggers did with their April shopping.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: February 2015

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. I used to have a strict (sort of...) monthly budget, but partway through 2014, I switched to a quarterly budget of $500. This can be rolled into the next quarter if not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2000 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget.

Jacket: Gap
Discounted from $99 to $64
I've been looking for a great utility jacket for a few seasons now. This one is fitted but not tight, with a tuck-away hood. It should be great for layering sweaters underneath when it warms up a teensy bit.

Tee: Forever 21
Reg. price $19
I needed something spring-like but wearable now. This can be layered under a cardi or blazer until it's warm enough for bare arms!

Tee: Forever 21
Reg price $16
Too cute!

Tank dress: Forever 21
Reg Price $7
Being very long-waisted means tops are often too short for me. I'm always looking for longer tanks and tees to layer underneath. This is actually a dress but I bought it to be a first layer piece. The picture is not the color I bought - mine is olive green.

Dress: Joe Fresh
Reg Price: $29 (bought on tax-free day)
I fell in love with this dress earlier this month. It's still a bit big as I find Joe Fresh XS-XL sizing really off. I'll wear it now with tights and a card and later with bare legs.

Coat: Joe Fresh (not available on-line)
Discounted from $99 to $20
My H&M peacoat is a few seasons old now and for the price, I'd have been silly not to buy this as a replacement. It's a very basic black wool peacoat with plaid lining. An extremely warm coat! I've already worn it several times. It does attract lint like crazy though!

Sweater: Joe Fresh (not available on-lne)
Discounted from $30 to $15
This is so cozy and I love grey.

Earrings: Claire's (not available on-line)
Discounted from $8.50 to $5
I wanted a low-priced version of this trend to start with. Turns out, I quite like the look of an ear jacket!

Belt/Necklace: H&M (not available on-line)
Discounted from $20 to $5
When I got this "necklace" home, I was wondering why it was sized XS ... then I realized it's a belt. Gotta love a piece that can work double!

The following two items were purchased with a Halifax Shopping Centre gift card that was in my swag bag from their sneak-peek evening for their renovations. They officially announced the opening of Aritzia on the bottom level (beside Dynamite) for this summer! If you missed my post on the renos, you can read about them here. 

Flats: American Eagle Outfitters
Discounted from $30 to $8
It's about time I had a pair of leopard print shoes. I tend to lean towards snakeskin prints, and I'm sure I'll get some wear out of them when I can go sockless. For now, they will be my "around the house shoes" along with my Tory Burch flats that still haven't seen the light of day. They had a little thread at the heel that was digging in, so I covered it with a Band-aid blister bandage. You can stick them directly on a sore spot on a shoe and they keep you comfy. Meant for skin, but it works!

Leggings: Banana Republic
Discounted from $134 to $14
These are the softest things ever and look so luxurious. I bought them in-store when they had an extra 40% off sale items.

Original value of items (the ones I bought with my own money): $327.50
Price I paid: $180
I saved 45%.

That leaves me with $170 left to spend in March to end the first quarter of 2015. If you'd like to see what I bought in January, here's the link.

I'm sharing my budget on Franish again today. I love looking at what the other girls spent every month!


XOXO
Glitterary Girl

My Monthly Purchases: August 2014

August is notorious for being one of my higher spending months. I blame it on the enormous September magazine issues - not even that I necessarily buy "fall" clothing, but the media focus on fashion in general makes me crave new things.

Instead of a monthly budget, I do a seasonal budget, which is $500 per quarter. Money I don't spend in one season, I roll forward to the next. I try as much as possible to wait for things to go on sale, as my closet really has no "holes" and my buys are almost always wants versus needs.

My first two purchases were entirely due to waking up one morning and being worried that I didn't have enough dresses I wanted to wear to get me through the wedding months (bridal showers, girls days/nights out, Vegas nights, and of course the Britney concert). Gotta love Forever 21 for fixing my panic and only spending $38! Pictures to be revealed as blog posts at a later date!

Dress: Forever 21
Regular price: 16.80
Dress Forever 21
Regular price: 21.80

Kimono: H&M (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $30 to 10.50
Python print is my fave! Couldn't put this back on the rack for $10. This will be featured later this week in a blog post.

Necklace: H&M (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $12.95 to $3.50
A pretty gold chain with gold "pipes" hanging from it. I kind of forgot I bought this until I prepared this post. Mind you, most of my jewellery is living in a travel case right now while we are between houses. I'll wear it soon and post a pic.

Tees: Gap
Discounted from $34 for both to $16 for both
I hate it when white tees start looking dingy. At $8 each I bought one in v-neck and one in scoop.

Crossbody bag/clutch: Danier (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $99 to $19
When I got the email alert for this flash sale, I stopped at Danier on the way home from work. What a super-cute bag for a steal. There isn't much room in it for anything beyond the basics, but that's okay. For a night out, less is more. I chose this colour as I already have this size in white, purple, and black. I'll feature it this week in a blog post.

Tee: Short Presents
Regular price: $20
My friend Kayla (fellow blogger at Short Presents) has been selling these sweet tees for a few months now. I can't get enough of black and white and I can't wait to style this with either of my black and white printed skirts. Thanks, love. xo

Tee: Old Navy (kids section) (no longer available on-line)
Discounted from $17 to $5
Gold foiled palm trees? Yes please.

Shirt: Old Navy
Discounted from $23 to $11
More black and white. Someone stop me...

Shorts: Banana Republic
Discounted from $50 to $11
These were an extra 40% off the sale price and then I got an extra 20% because one of the two fasteners is missing (cannot even tell). I ruined my other white shorts with sunless tanner (boo) so these can replace them. I love anything safari...

Skirt: Banana Republic
Discounted from $70 to $15
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. I love this colour. I will wear this a lot. So glad I went to the Factory Store for the 40% off sale. The regular store has stunning stuff for this season as well. Marissa Webb is the new creative director, and she really killed it with the fall line. I want everything!

Skirt: Smart Set
Discounted from $39.00 to $12
So cute. Pleats and polka dots. Twelve bucks. Good length for work.

Pants: Joe Fresh
Regular price $34 (used a $10 GC so I paid $24 with no tax added)
I can't decide yet if I will keep these or not. I do love them (army green again...), but they are very close to the faux-leather pants I got at H&M last year. They are crazy-comfy though and flattering enough that I can wear them with a shorter shirt (the H&M ones... not so much... saggy bum). I love the black piping too! Did I just type myself into keeping them?

Value of items: $468
Price I paid: $186 
I saved 60%

This leaves me with $241 left to spend this quarter, which ends Sept 30.

I'm going to try hard to spend as little as possible in September. My Vegas shopping list has very few items on it, but they may be pricey. I plan on looking for a new black handbag, a gold watch, and black closed-toe heels. If I find heels here, I may buy them. I know I have a lot more choice in Vegas, but my feet are so narrow and hard to fit that I like the option of returning the shoes if I wear them around the house and they end up not working for me.

I'm linked with Franish today - check out how the other bloggers did with their August budgets!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl