Peeking in the Clothing Box
I've been to at least six different places (from Goodwill to Payless to Dexter) looking for summer sandals. Because my tailbone injury won't tolerate some styles and my feet are shoebox width, I was hoping that shopping early would get me something wearable. Silly me. At present, I'm 0-7 with no sandals on the horizon. (I'm hesitant to buy shoes online because my feet are so hard to fit.)
During my errand run early this morning, I decided to stop at Sears Essentials. Although I came up with zero for sandals, their winter clearance sale was an incredible find! Most of their remaining winter clothing is 75% off the already discounted price of 60% off. That's my kind of sale: picking up good quality new pieces for about 10-12% of the original price.
Until the cashier noted that the winter coat I nabbed for my daughter at $8.50 was normally "rather expensive," I didn't think anything of the original prices. I had been doing the math with the pink sticker price. The original price for the coat? $70. Do people really pay that much for little girl's winter coats? I thought I was being extravagant when I spent $22 at Target to buy her a coat that she's worn for 3 winters.
Like everything else, you need to know your prices and understand quality. Sometimes buying new is cheaper for numerous reasons. The new shirts and sweaters I picked up for myself this morning were each less than the local Goodwill price for used. Because they came from Sears, they are on the side of better quality and will likely last longer.
Learning to get the best deals on clothing is a balance between good gossip, experience and drawing lines. A girlfriend swears that L.L. Bean jeans for little boys at $20 a pair are nearly indestructible and worth every penny. She doesn't have to deal with holey knees like I do. A decent pair of everyday shoes that I might pay $40 for, will determine if I'm still moving without pain at 7pm. On the other hand, I generally only buy dress shoes from the thrift store for $2 or $3 a pair. No matter the savings, I won't buy thrift store underwear...
So where have you consistently found the best deals? What do you think is worth spending extra on and what's worth grabbing where ever? Any frugal tips specifically for kids or adult clothing?
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16 Responses to “Peeking in the Clothing Box”
April 30th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
For many years I have considered ‘cost per wear’ when buying clothes. Items worn frequently would warrant a higher price/quality as they would last longer. For me, an evening gown that I would only wear once a year buy at Goodwill/thrift store, wear it once, resell at consignment or donate.
April 30th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
Good brands can make a huge difference when it comes to how well kids clothes last. I buy my kids’ clothes from annual consignment sales, and snag Gap, LL Bean and other good labels for a $1-$4 a piece. Needless to say, I’m saving tons off the store prices. My son wore his Osh Kosh denim shorts (new at consignment for $3) all summer and they are still in good shape for passing down to his little brother.
April 30th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
If you’re looking for comfortable shoes for wide feet and don’t mind paying $30, my wholehearted recommendation is Crocs. I hate to pay this much for shoes, but, like you, I have extreme pain issues. After I bought my first pair of Crocs, I have never looked back. I have 3 different colors of the clog style and one pair of the flip-flop style. Talk about hard to spend the $$$. $30 for flip-flops just seems very wrong, but it was actually very smart. I love these shoes and they return the favor. I never wear other shoes anymore.
April 30th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
On the shoe front I love my ugly Birkenstocks for comfort in the summer.
If you are interested in buying shoes online, I’ve heard that Zappos.com has free shipping and free returns for 365 days. I haven’t tried them, but if you were interested in trying more expensive shoes (and I always think that a person’s feet and comfort are one of those areas it is good to spend on) then you would have the reassurance that you could always send them back.
April 30th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
I totally agree with Maria’s comment above. I rarely buy new clothes for my kids except if they are on deep discount. I do buy new clothes from Target, especially if they are on clearance! But…my used brand name clothes out last the Target ones every time. I lvoe Garage Sales and we have a few consignment shops and sales that I frequent as well.
April 30th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
I highly highly highly recommend http://www.zappos.com They have frees hipping both ways and they have TRIPLE “E” width, I know, I’ve gotten some!!!
They are awesome!!!! I do believe this is the only thing I spend XTRA money on…you can’t beat shoes that fit.
May 1st, 2008 at 5:27 am
One thing I’ve noticed…a couple of times recently I’ve bought new things (boy’s jacket and purse for moi) at Walmart and within a very short time things have broken on them. The jacket was a 2 or 3-in-1 variety – so it could be worn for winter and spring/fall…so what happens – the zipper breaks and the piece goes missing after maybe one or two washings. My purse – keychain breaks, zipper breaks all in a very short time.
At the time the jacket seemed a good deal b/c it was on sale – but by the time I used it (next season) I no longer could return it due to the obvious defects.
I find that thrift store clothing/purses/shoes hold up better. Often they are of a better quality to begin with and if they’ve held up long enough to be donated – they’ll probably hold up longer for me.
May 1st, 2008 at 5:43 am
I think it’s not just about getting a great price. How long could you go without buying something new? Besides food, I mean, ha ha.
I found this quote at Bankrate. I wrote a whole piece about it- just click on the link if you are interested. Sorry about the plug- I just feel passionately about this!
Anyway, here’s the quote from Bankrate.
Once an item is no longer new, there are several ways to make money or save money
Reuse it- for its original purpose or a new purpose.
Give it away- to someone who can use it.
Sell it- recoup original cost while reusing.
Buy it used- reuse it and save money.
Best,
Lisa
May 1st, 2008 at 8:43 am
The other great thing about your Sears’ purchases, is that they have an outstanding exchange policy for kids clothes that wear out before your child grows out of them. I just posted more about it at http://www.mommysecrets.com. Congrats on your great finds!
May 1st, 2008 at 1:36 pm
I found some good sandals at Walmart last week. They are by Dr.Scholl’s and called “Reanna”.
They are black, cost $19, and have velcro straps on the ankle and over the top of the foot. What makes them so comfortable is they have a shock absorbing sole. I think they come in wide widths. The other Dr. Scholl’s shoes I have are very durable and comfortable so the sandles should last awhile. I just wish they made them more stylish.
May 1st, 2008 at 4:08 pm
I buy most dress or work clothes off of Ebay these days since you can get the high quality brands at a fraction of the cost and they have usually only been worn a couple times.
May 1st, 2008 at 6:02 pm
I buy my boy’s pants at Sears, because they have Kidvantage. If they bust a hole in them, I can get a replacement pair (must be same size). But I have three boys all in a row! It has saved me lots of money.
Kohl’s has amazing clearance sales as well. I got a jacket for a funeral for $5.10 – originally, $60! (For a black cotton jacket? Are you kidding?)
May 1st, 2008 at 9:52 pm
My mom uses Joe’s New Balance Outlet http://www.joesnewbalanceoutlet.com/
for hard-to-fit, high quality women’s shoes. She says they have a very generous return policy if they don’t fit. (You can find sandals by choosing “Shoes” under “Women” in the left sidebar; you’ll then go to a page where you can select the style of shoe you’re looking for in the sidebar.)
May 2nd, 2008 at 4:34 pm
We have a huge kids consignment sale here every Spring and Fall with 100+ consignors. I not only get a lot of clothes for my children, but I sell clothes and get 75% of the profit, minus the $10 consignor fee.
For myself, I have to say that L.L. Bean does have good quality clothes that last forever. Sometimes I can get to their outlet store when we go on vacation and get really great deals. I also have their credit card so I get free shipping and for every so many dollars I spend, I get $10 gift cards. I get about $60 a year. They also have a great return and replacement policy.
I agree with the above poster that consignment stores are a great place to get a special occasion dress.
May 4th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Have to share with you about my “wedding” outfit. My brother just got married and his bride is crazy about purple, and everyone wanted to please her by appearing in her favorite color. Of course, there was plenty of lavender out there for Easter, but not much PURPLE purple, and certainly not in my price range. I was getting desperate enough to pay almost anything when I stopped by Ross’ and found a plum jacket marked 99c. I went to the clerk and said, “This is a joke, right?” He said, “Uh, I see, it’s missing the belt, I can give you a discount.” Ten percent off for the missing belt got me my jacket for 89c plus tax, and I paired it with an old skirt that had been given to me long ago (but being polyester, still looked new) and proudly went to the wedding, and kept my secret as people complimented me on my nice “suit.” While that kind of thing works for me, my growing child has required several expensive purchases of clothing and shoes which turn out to be one-wear wonders, recycled to the little cousins. As mentioned elsewhere, you scrimp in one area in order to splurge elsewhere, and sometimes you get lucky!
May 6th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
I’m so with you on Sears sales. My mom recently retired from there, but still gets the discount. We buy the baby’s clothes a season in advance, solely from the clearance racks. We get things so cheap that going to the thrift store seems expensive.
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