No Hiding Allowed – To Shop or Not to Shop?

The above myth was once not a myth. There was a time when a woman needed a new outfit for any event because “everyone’s seen me in that.” And while societal norms still call for “new,” it doesn’t have to come from a store or cost money.

Should you buy a new outfit from a store for an event? The answer is not firmly yes or no. 

If your budget is tight and there really isn’t money for a new outfit, you don’t have to despair. There are ways of creating a new outfit from what you already have in your closet without having to spend a lot of money – or any at all.

If you haven’t shopped your wardrobe and weeded things out within the past six months, this is where you need to begin. Before shopping at any stores, you need to know exactly what you have and where everything is. It’s also important to get rid of everything that doesn’t work well for you- a cluttered wardrobe only makes things more difficult. Go through everything and try each item. If the item fits you and flatters you, put it back. If the item doesn’t fit you properly but can fit with a small tweak or two, put it aside for the tailor/seamstress. If the item needs cleaning, either put it into your laundry hamper or put it aside for the dry cleaner. If the item is the wrong color or style for you but is clean and intact, put it aside for donating or selling. If the

item is in poor shape, either put it into the garbage, the rag bag, or cloth recycling (if your area has that).  

Once you know what you have and that it all works well for you, you need to shop your wardrobe. Try different tops with different bottoms and different accessories. Try color combinations that you didn’t try before. Maybe you always wore your black jacket with its matching black skirt but now you see that you can wear it with any color skirt. Or try wearing it with a dress. Trying wearing that black skirt with different jackets or with cardigans or button-downs. Maybe you always wore your blue necklace with your navy top and navy skirt but now you see how great it looks with a pair of green earrings. 

Keep in mind that what’s appropriate for Shabbat, Yom Tov, and special events has evolved and opened up. It used to be that women wore a jacket and skirt for shul and a dress for special events but nowadays even that basic formula isn’t strictly necessary (although you shouldn’t rule it out if it works for you). Separates in refined fabrics are perfectly appropriate even at black-tie affairs. And those separates don’t have to be jacket-and-skirt combos. I often wear a skirt, shell, and cardigan or wrap top to special events and I get nothing but compliments. But if you prefer those basic formulas, you can still play around with them