A budget friendly wardrobe is relative to the person who’s inquiring. So apply what’s about to be said in consideration of what’s in your wallet and how close you are to the rent being due.
With that said, you do NOT have to break the bank to get fly. Speaking personally for the majority of my life I’ve had a desire to be fashionable coupled with jobs that couldn’t completely compensate all my designer purchases. Truthfully, I’m grateful for these limitations. You’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn how “creative” you become when resources are scarce.
Over the years I’ve been able to curate decent inventories of clothes without going broke to do so. The solution isn’t glamorous, it requires patience, an open mind, a good eye and true love for the game.
“I love the game... I love the hustle”
You can be flyer than the average person (if you care about that sort of thing) and spend way less than you might expect by learning the timeless art of… thrift shopping. Before I continue, let me qualify the previous statement. I’m not advocating for an entire wardrobe of thrifted clothes or a closet devoid of deadstock purchases but rather a combination of the two. There are going to be instances where you feel like you have to have a
certain brand’s newest offerings and in these instances, ball out. You work hard (ideally), so treat yourself. However, too many of these instances will lead to depleted pockets.
You don’t want to go broke trying to look rich. I actually just discovered a proverb last week that affirms this very idea. Apparently people have been flogging since the days of Solomon.
Proverb 13:17
There is one who pretends to be rich, but has nothing; another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth.
It doesn’t take all that. Every one of my friends and associates that I deem fashionable have thrifted pieces in their closets. I’ll take it a step further, the flyest people I know are individuals who know how/where to thrift.
In my experience the hypebeasts among us are far from the best dressed. Don’t misconstrue my sentiments; I love a hype piece when it hits and I don’t mind getting swept up in the fanfare of a new collab if it’s deserving of that kind of attention. But from what I’ve witnessed, on average the best dressed people are the ones who mix the new, sought after piece with something crazy they copped from the thrift.
You don’t have to take my word for it, go to YouTube and search ‘What People Are Wearing in New York’. There’s a bunch of channels that document this particular topic but my wife and I are partial to the Starlinc series. Any lover of fashion can appreciate these videos and when he
asks people where they got their pieces, about 60% (and I’m being modest) mention that one or more of their garment/accessories is thrifted.
Okay, I think I’ve convinced you now. My CMO says I have to have this done today and I feel myself getting long-winded but now I’m invested in the conversation. Following up with a part two.