Back to School Shopping for Under $300

It’s the first week of August and back to school shopping is starting. I’m not sure whether to rejoice for people who have kids and are ready for them to go back or say a silent prayer asking for summer to stay just a little longer. This past week, I made my decision and went shopping! I found out about a family in my church who needed help getting back to school clothes for their kids. My heart went out to them and I volunteered to get all 3 kids a new wardrobe- for under $300. Here’s how I did it!

Back to School for Less

I started by buzzing my way around all the local stores that were having back to school sales- and then making my way straight to the clearance racks. That’s right, I skipped the advertised “sale” racks. Rarely, in my opinion, are sales a good deal when you are really trying to save money. For example, I went to Kohl’s to get one of the kids some jeans. Sure, they had tons of jeans on sale (2 for $40) but typically I can find a better deal on the same jeans on clearance. I browsed the rack a bit and found two styles of jeans in the size I needed for $10 each! I tried the same method at American Eagle for the older kid and found a pair for $19.99.

My next stop was at TJ Maxx where I found another pair of American Eagle jeans for $14.99! For the oldest son, I spent more money in stores like Hollister to get the teenager favorites, but I still shopped the clearance rack for tees ($7.99 each). I spent a lot of time in places like Marshall’s to get t-shirts and hoodies for all of the kids though. It’s my best kept secret for finding steals!

For the youngest little girl, I went to Target and Old Navy and found jeans for $10 and tees (long and short sleeve) for under $4 each. Once again, I shopped the clearance rack. I splurged a little and got her a pink tutu dress for $8. The most expensive part of my shopping was the shoes but I still got great deals. I found Sperrys on clearance for $34 and DC high tops for $24. Kids have to go back to school looking good, right?

When I was a kid (that was like 5 years ago), I remember how important it was to have the “right” brands and the latest trends. As much as I don’t want kids to give into peer pressure, sometimes little things like wearing a certain clothing brands isn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of things. If you can find a good deal on it, then have at it!

To sum everything up, I bought 6 pairs of jeans, 1 pair of shorts, 2 pairs of shoes, 2 backpacks, 3 dress shirts, 1 dress, 1 pair of leggings, 15 t-shirts, and 2 hoodies all for under $300! That is why shopping the clearance rack is so smart. Happy shopping!

 

Ann Taylor Online Haul

A few days ago I got an email from Ann Taylor letting me know about their warehouse sale going on online. I checked it out and fell in love with quite a few pieces! However, I’m sad to report that I didn’t need anything and therefore will not be buying anything. I’m really trying hard to restrain myself from buying things I just do not have the need for. I spend way too much money on tops, dresses, whatever that I will wear maybe once a season. It’s ridiculous and I need to stop doing that and start saving money again. This time last year I was saving every penny I earned. What happened, Liz? I don’t know.

Anyway, back to Ann Taylor! Everything is between 60% and 75% off the sale price. I shopped in person when the sale was getting underway about 2 weeks ago and I found a fabulous blazer in a cream color with tweed material. I only paid $22 for it! Not only was I proud, but I had also saved a small fortune.

To give you an idea of what’s for sale, below you can find a few of my picks from the store online. Most of everything is summer or early fall appropriate but remember, in order to get good deals on clothes you can’t buy them when they’re in season because they’re in high demand and people will pay top dollar. You have to wait until retailers are desperate to get rid of their merchandise. For example, if you’re looking for rain boots in the beginning of spring, you’ll pay full price. However, if you wait until June when swimsuits are being pushed, then rain boots will be at least half price. Shopping Ann Taylor right now will give you great sale prices on things from late summer!