If you love fashion but have a conservative clothing budget, do you feel as if you must forgo new styles and accessories? Does it take a lot of money to look terrific or can you be frugal and still have fun?

Margaret speaks with Josephine Lawlan, fashion consultant and longtime fashion expert, as well as the owner of chicatanyage.com, a fashion website for older women, about how we can best take advantage of items we already have to create beautiful fashion statements.

Shopping Your Wardrobe

“This really is a passion of mine,” Josephine says, “I don’t think we need to be buying new things all the time!” Josephine means what she says; she has done a series regarding this subject on her blog and it is one of her most popular subjects.

Josephine suggests that wardrobe items that are worth spending money on for good quality are the basics, coats, jackets, shoes, and pants or skirts (whichever you usually wear more of).

Pick a neutral color or two for your wardrobe basics, such as tan and grey or navy and black, then you can have fun with inexpensive, colorful accent pieces.

After the Basics

Bold necklaces, large earrings, and brightly colored scarves are all accessories that bring attention up to the face. These don’t have to be diamond studded or expensive gold items to be beautiful, either. You can find very inexpensive items that bring fun and excitement to your outfit for just a few dollars!

Hats are another item that can really pull an outfit together and make a statement but don’t cost a great deal of money. Some women don’t like hats and that’s fine, but if you do, you can find inexpensive hats, especially seasonal hats, at the end of every season. Buy a few and save them for the following year if you must!

Hats serve a double function, offering sun protection for your face, scalp, and hair, as well as making a terrific statement about you. Don’t be afraid to experiment and try a new hat, necklace, or earring style!

Everything Is Related

One lovely idea that Margaret and Josephine talk about is how you should love every single thing in your wardrobe. “If you bought it and you brought it into your home because you loved it, then it shares something in common with everything else in your home” Josephine remarked.

Don’t think about what someone else might think about what you are choosing to wear. If you love it, who cares what they think?! This is one of the true pleasures of growing older. We have more freedom to please ourselves and not worry about what others might be thinking or if we are upsetting the corporate world.

When You Don’t Want to Spend More Money

When you just don’t have the money or you don’t want to spend more money on clothing or accessories, turn to items you already have and use them in new ways.

Sometimes referred to as upcycling, finding new uses for old items is the hot new trend. Adding a bit of embroidery to the bottom of a pair of jeans, using a decorative hair tie intended for a ponytail as a bracelet, or allowing the lace from a camisole to peek out from under a blouse or t-shirt, are all terrific ways you can upcycle your wardrobe items.

What You Wear Tells Everyone About You

One of the terrific things about clothing and accessory choices is that you have the opportunity to tell people so much about you, even if they have never met you, from one look at what you are wearing.

Wear clothing and accessories that tell the world what you would like them to know about you! Love what you wear and find items that make you feel good when you wear them. There is no need to purchase things you already own; you just need to find new ways to use them!

Josephine and Margaret are such a dynamic pair of women, we hope you watch the entire video so you can catch their vitality and excitement!

What are your favorite ways to upcycle clothing items? Do you have other inexpensive ideas for dressing up your wardrobe? What does your current wardrobe say about you? Let’s talk about having fun with fashion for less! Join in the conversation!