As summer sales have begun to wind down, and anticipated fall collections will soon be revealed, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by what to add to your closet. Finding fashionable, affordable, quality clothing can feel like a never ending feat, in an era of constantly changing fast fashion. It can feel like the only way to keep up with trends is to drain your bank account by buying new clothes and shoes all the time. Use these seven tips and tricks to break bad online shopping habits, and to learn to shop responsibly!
Use Pinterest to Organize Shopping Lists
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It’s one of the most easy and aesthetically pleasing ways to organize what you want to purchase. If you have Google Chrome, you should definitely consider adding in Pinterest’s Save Button extension to make pinning anything on the web even easier! Keeping all of your wish lists in one convenient location can give you the opportunity to get a rough estimate of what you’re thinking of spending, and how you could assemble different outfits. You can organize your boards as much as you like, categorizing by makeup, shoes, dresses, and more, or keep it simple with one wish list.
Get Honey for Quick Discounts
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Honey is an easy-to-use Google Chrome extension that does all the hard work for you. Do all of your shopping normally, and then go to your shopping bag. While you’re checking out, Honey will pop up, and ask if you want to try codes. Click on that button, and the extension will go through all of the discount codes it found online and apply the best one. While it doesn’t work every time, it’s a really quick way to get discounts you might not have known about.
Subscribe to Your Favorite Brands
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http://blog.marketvolt.com/2014/12/great-signup-form/
Email subscriptions can be hard to balance. It can be very tempting to subscribe to every store that you’ve every shopped at or opt not to subscribe to any of them. If you check your email often, you should consider subscribing to some stores (mainly your favorite brands and shops) to get special discount codes that might not be on a retailer’s website. But if you’ve found yourself subscribed to stores that you don’t shop at anymore, opt to unsubscribe so that you don’t end up ignoring discounts and sales from your preferred stores.
Try Using Apps
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http://poqcommerce.com/app-commerce/2013/01/the-app-store-fashion-edit-our-verdict/
If the last time you checked your email was over a month ago, you might want to consider opting for apps instead. Just like email subscriptions, some retailer’s apps can send you notifications for exclusive sales and discounts. It can also be easier to shop on the go, while waiting in line for coffee or on your commute, if you download the apps to your favorite stores. Some apps even offer you to use Apple Pay when making purchases.
Wait for Holiday Discounts and Sales
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If you know that a national holiday is just around the corner, such as Memorial Day or Halloween, you might want to consider waiting until then to purchase any new items. Many stores have seasonal and holiday oriented offers that can save you a lot of money before your favorite items end up in the sale section. But remember to be mindful of how long you’re willing to wait – if there’s a trendy new top or pair of shoes you’d like to buy, and aren’t sure if you’ll still like it next year, it might make sense to invest in that item when it’s at full price.
Take the Time to Return Unwanted Items
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Sometimes you’ll order something and it doesn’t look like it did online, doesn’t fit quite right, or you just don’t like it any more. If you don’t completely love something when you first buy it, you probably won’t like it a couple months from now when it isn’t so shiny and new. When possible, return items that you don’t want anymore so that you don’t waste money on something you’re not going to wear. If the item you purchased was final sale or bought too long ago, consider selling it online or donating it.
Resist the Familiar
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It’s incredibly easy to be attracted to fashion items that are very similar to something you already own. In fact, part of the appeal of a particular pair of shoes or belt might be that it feels familiar, and thus, would be a great piece to add to your clothing collection. But even if you aren’t on a tight budget, you shouldn’t be wasting your money on something that you already have. Instead, try to find a something that your wardrobe is lacking, so that you only invest in items that would add something different to your collection.
