topshop – Whitneybearr

Ballin’ on a Budget: Affordable Summer Shopping

Setting a budget?! I never thought I would be a budget person let alone be able to stick to one! But, as I’m growing up, I’m learning how important budgeting actually is. Getting the most out of your budget is crucial!

I decided to hit the mall and see what I could find. I gave myself a $200 budget at each store, in hopes that I wouldn’t have to hit the top of the budget and still be able to get all the things I would want. I was looking for trendy summer outfits, one day outfit and one night outfit, that I could enjoy just as much as my pieces I’m used to buying. I’m on a budget now, you see?

So, in my mind, I pictured this beautiful shopping day, maybe 2 hours tops, getting whatever I wanted, so fun right?! Well, when you’re trying to stick to a budget, your shopping trip can turn into a 6 hour process. I brought Oliver with me for support and he was in charge of the calculator, he also was the hammer that came down on me when I had 9 dresses in my hand. Hello! Over budget! It turned out to be fun in the end, but making sure you have great pieces but not spending too much can be tough.

Check out my haul and try it for yourself!

Target

Now, Target was actually the easiest place to shop. I found so many cute and wearable pieces that I’ll actually keep in my closet and everything was so reasonably priced! I have been browsing the clothing section at Target for years now but with a budget and mission in mind, I was very impressed and I’ll keep coming back to check out the new arrivals.

Total spent at Target: $129.96

Shop the Target Looks

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Forever 21

When I walked into Forever 21, I got the overwhelming feeling that gave me flashbacks to when I was 16 at the mall with my friends. I did a one over and didn’t see much as there was so much to look at, but once I went around one more time, I found a section that I thought I would like. I started to grab dress after dress into a pile. After I had a large pile, I went through and picked my favorites. I thought, would I wear this again? Is this good quality? Wear can I wear this? And I came out with my 2 winners.

I then grabbed shoes and accessories after. I will say, their shoe section is full of casual shoes I would wear day to day in decent quality! The shoes I chose will be perfect for summer and I’m pretty proud. I would suggest browsing online if you get easily overwhelmed by their store as I do find jackpots online mostly.

Total spent at Forever 21: $117.40

Shop the Forever 21 Looks

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Nordstrom

Walking into Nordstrom, I didn’t have any expectations as the pieces I get at Nordstrom usually cost me a pretty penny. Walking through the store, I saw this amazing leopard jumpsuit by Topshop that was $80. I thought, this would be a great nighttime outfit, but it would definitely pinch my other outfit and my accessory options. I started to go around the store and try to create my other looks. I finally found this super cute tie dress, perfect for hot summer days! I made my way to accessories and found an amazing pair of sunnies, the BP section definitely has some great sunglasses! I wanted 3 different pairs but was able to narrow it down to these mod frames. When I got down to shoes, I was a little defeated seeing the normal designer shoes up front, but if you search, Nordstrom usually has a section of hanging shoes and sandals that are usually under $40. In the past, I’ve found a great pair of Topshop sneakers so I had hope to find something to fit my outfits. Oliver was in love with these black feather sandals and thought they were so cute! I saw his point of view and I was sold.

Total spent at Nordstrom: $169.00

Shop the Nordstrom Looks

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Zara

Okay, so Zara was THE hardest to shop! I fell in love with so many pieces that had a $70 price tag. I think I went into the dressing room 3 times and ran around the store like a crazy person for over an hour. At one point I was telling Oliver “I want to take these home and try them on” which he thankfully figured I would want to keep them and never return them and therefore would go over budget. He wasn’t buying it. Sometimes I’m thankful for his stickler persona when it comes to shopping. I think we’d be in trouble.

Anyways, I had to add up my total so many times before I even started to look for shoes, because wow, their shoes are pretty expensive. But mind you, the quality is pretty good and I did find the most pieces I wanted. I finally found a great pair of shoes and ditched the pieces I didn’t need that would bring my total up. Overall, I was super stoked on these looks.