Cheap Fasion, Small Budget

[jumpman69]

Well, clothes aren't my number one priority because many things are more important than them(food and bills), so I don't spend too much money on clothes. You never know when something is going to happen to you, so you always have to have money saved up for medical reasons. The costs just start adding up. It's just not practical for me to spend over $100 on jeans. What are some practical clothes(tee's and denim, I'm looking for) to buy that are relatively inexpensive?

I'm not into tight jeans. I'm very skinny, and I'm trying to gain 20 pounds over the course of the year. Although, I like my clothes fitted. I hate baggy/tight clothes. Maybe I should stick to Gap jeans because it seems like the majority of people like tight jeans on this board, and the relaxed ones are just too expensive.

I don't like anything too extravagant, just a tee and some jeans, no blazers or any of that crap.

Right now, I just wear a medium of some underground shirts(Crooks and Castles, Freshjive, which is actually working out pretty well for me)

 

[VMan]

H&M will work on a budget. Their denim is okay - I believe they have a pair or two of raw selvage denim.

Also last time I was there, they had some real nice tees, polos, long sleeve shirts, and sweaters that were quite similar to highly-regarded streetwear brands that you'd pay 5-10x more for.

 

[skalogre]

PDCs can be had for around 60 from Off Fifth. I got another pair of my favourite discontinued cut just recently for around 50 (including tax) - this includes the older ones that are purportedly better made. You can also look out for the older Gap 1969 line (especially the ones marked "made in Italy"). I have seen those on ebay for pittance

There are other here more experienmce that I am sure will chime in. For t-shirts, Alternative Apparel/American Apparel. Someone on the forum afaik can get those at pretty much near-wholesale prices - there is a thread on that somewhere.

 

[someoneNew]

If you have a Nordstrom Rack near you, you can find great deals on denim.
Target actually carries decent priced vintage tees.

 

[Edward Appleby]

H&M + thrift/vintage stores = win.

 

[Saucemaster]

Originally Posted by Edward Appleby

H&M + thrift/vintage stores = win.

QF(MF)T.

And always remember, sales are your friend. I've snagged things in late spring before that were marked down literally 85/90% because they were fall items that managed to make it all the way to spring on the clearance rack. Who buys a peacoat in late May? I do, and the four or five month wait will just make it that much more enjoyable when I *do* get to wear it....

 

[Lysol]

in addition to the h&m + thrift store mathmatics, throw eBay into the mix. research the item, research the seller, know your proper measurments and what garment measurements will translate to and you'll find some amazing deals on eBay. stores such as off 5th, nordstrom rack, loehman's etc. can yeild some good scores so i've heard but aside from a cool ben sherman button up i haven't had any luck. most of the stuff those places sell in their retail stores is flavor-of-the-minute wear anyway.

i don't think most people on here spend as much money on clothing as it would seem...or at least i would hope not. the majority of people who just throw money at their wardrobe and will be the first to tell you what brand they're wearing, usually look just as thrown together and sloppy as the majority of the populous.

 

[Goblin]

I think I only have one even-remotely-expensive item of clothing, my Nudies. Everything else is second-hand (thrift and eBay shirts, eBay business clothing) or naturally cheap (Carhartt jacket, Chuck Taylors, Dickies belt, American Apparel or Threadless shirts, clearance-rack track jackets, Lands' End business clothing).

A small wardrobe of versatile, classic items is, to me, far superior to a large wardrobe of heavily-branded hypebeast items. You just don't really "need" that many clothes. I know I have more than I really need, and I'll be purging the closet ruthlessly as soon as I can be arsed. Although I do really want those RMC "bondage" jeans.

If you're in decent shape and wear clothing that fits and was not obviously designed for marsupials, you're already waaaay ahead of the curve. It does not cost much to dress well.

 

[chicbicyclist]

I say buy ONE good raw denim. It is worth it. You will have to wear it everyday and and you HAVE to wear it to break it in and achieve the fading anyway.

For the other stuff, eBay/thriftstores are really good. H&M's pressence in the west coast is sparse so I got no experience with them. But we do have Buffalo exchange here in the west coast. I figured most big cities have these kinds of second hand/buy-sell-trade kinda stores. I get most of my shirts from them.

 

[cultpop 0217]

Originally Posted by Edward Appleby

H&M + thrift/vintage stores = win.


this is a winning combo. i would say drop some money on one good pair of jeans that you can wear with everything, like apc.

 

[ts4them]

Originally Posted by cultpop 0217

this is a winning combo. i would say drop some money on one good pair of jeans that you can wear with everything, like apc.
I checked out their website and saw that their jeans are "neither low nor high rise". I need a fairly low rise, one that's not 'noticeably' low (I am somewhat short waisted). Any ideas of another brand, or will this rise work for me?

 

[Metal Circus]

Since you're in NYC, no reason not to just try them on.

 

[jumpman69]

I'm from the suburbs, and there are no H&M's around for another state. I might check out the thrift store for jeans. Is there anything I should look for? How should I determine the quality(selvedge, etc) if it is not a brand I recognize but could potentially be good?

 

[apocalypse later]

Just wanted to resurrect this topic.

It seems to me that one can create an awesome wardrobe with just H&M+sale shopping+thrift stores+good raw denim.

I've got two parts of this equation down. But I can't seem to figure out thrift shopping or sale shopping. With thrift stores, all I find are poor fitting Arrow and Van Huesen shirts with the occasional stained Abercrombie shirt. Any advice on thrift shopping? Maybe I just live in too small of a town (20,000 people) that don't care about clothing.

Also, I've gone to a bunch of nice stores and checked the sale racks. The best I've found is a nice Diesel button-down for half off and an H&M M65 for like 40% off. Am I just shopping at the wrong time, are there clearances later in the season?

 

[robbie]

You can never go wrong with STF 501's. You could easily get 2 pairs for less than 100$. When it comes to basics, wal-mart, target, aa, are all your friend. Also like was previously mentioned buying things as far out of season as possible can also limit the ammount you have to spend.

Thrift Stores and consignment shops are good, but i would suggest sticking with thrift stores over consignment shops. Most times its easier to get a deal at a thrift store, such as 5 items for 10$, or all t-shirts 1$ or something. Consignment stores are typically more interested in turning a profit than thrift stores.

I don't hear them get mentioned much around here, but flea markets can also be really helpful for jeans and outerwear. I suppose it all depends on the flea market and the area, but i've ran across really cool deadstock items at flea markets in the past.

Also, if you are able to put money back for medical expenses you seem like someone able to save. Why not set money aside and wait until you know things are going to be on sale?

robbie