Cheap Chic: Fashion Sense in Dollars and Cents

Some people manage to look like a million bucks every day. Whether or not they have money, they come across as polished, pulled-together and va-va-VOOM. They're the kind of people who don't follow trends. They set them, and as far as they're concerned, the rest of the world will just have to catch up.

Then there's the average Joan whose wardrobe is one of two extremes: either safe to the point of catatonia, or so edgy that it should come with a safety warning.

So what's the secret to finding that fabulous middle fashion ground? There are actually several fashion secrets. All of them are easy, and they're available to most (if not all) women in the US.

Model Behavior

Some twenty years ago, I worked for and with a cover girl. She gave me two pieces of fashion advice that I've embraced ever since.

Fashion Rule #1: wear the biggest, cheapest, gaudiest jewelry you can find.

Fashion Rule #2: never let them see you cry.

The second rule is paraphrased. It boils down to the fact that there is no substitute for acting like everything is perfect. That goes for fashion. It also goes for life in general

Fortunately for us fashion-challenged women of the world, there really are some simple, basic trips to help look great on a budget. The operative words are simple and basic. Building a good wardrobe is kind of like building a good home. It has to have a straightforward, solid foundation or the whole thing will come crashing down around your ears.

Flashy Fun

My model friend's fashion advice about jewelry - bigger and brighter and cheaper is better - still holds true today.

Thumb through style magazines. Find a woman who exudes confidence and/or fun and look at what kind of accessories she's wearing. Chances are it's big, clunky, bright pieces. The specifics may change from season to season, but the general idea is the same. Some seasons it's a whole armful of gold-hued bangles. The next year fashion may dictate a cuff of leopard-spotted lucite. This year maybe you'll find your perfect necklace in a profusion of big fat faux gemstones.

All of those pseudo-jewels share a common bond. While the exact pieces shown on the magazine page may cost a fortune, good knockoff s can be found on the shelves at a discount retailer like Kmart or Walmart, at drug stores or thrift stores.

Even better, when plastic breaks or goes out of style, there's no guilt.

On the other end of the spectrum, raid mom's or grandma's jewelry box. It will take about five minutes of perusal to discover the cyclical nature of fashion. Chances are some of those old pieces would work just as well today as they did thirty or forty years ago.

I also discovered an online spot for silver jewelry that's amazing. Every piece is offered free. You pay $5.99 shipping and handling, per piece, period. The site is at www.silverjewelryclub.com. I've bought several items in different styles and have never been disappointed. While most pieces are crafted of sterling silver, many with real gemstones, a few are stainless or other metals. All are clearly identified as to materials and sizes. It's a great fashion boon for someone who loves jewelry.

Something Old

Before you ever hit the department stores, stop, turn, and detour to thrift stores. Some of my favorite fashion finds have turned up at second hand and thrift outlets. I found a jacket blouse one day, in a deep sandy-beige. I loved the color and it was the right size, but it had been wadded up and pulled out of shape. It was 100 percent silk, a positive. It wasn't torn, and had all its buttons. There were no obvious stains: positive, positive. It had good lines: positive. It had to be dry cleaned before it would be wearable - all on the chance that cleaning it wouldn't resolve the wrinkles and shape issues. Big negative.

Thanks to the fact that I was at a thrift store, the price tag was $3.50. That low cost meant even with dry cleaning, it would cost only $10 to risk it.

A few days later it went to the dry cleaners. When I picked it up, the top looked brand new and could have come straight from a chi-chi boutique. For all I know, it did come from a chi-chi boutique originally. Nobody but me ever dreamed it was a thrift store find.

Something New

Every year stores display a wealth of new fabrics and designs. That holds true from the off-price outlets all the way to the upper-crust department stores. It's the nature of the clothing industry. After all, how can fashionistas make money if customers keep wearing exactly the same clothing, year after year after year?

For someone who absolutely has to follow the fashion trends from head to toe, arrive at Rodeo Drive with a wallet full of cash and plastic. You're going to need it.

Those SETTING trends know better. The trend-setters find something they absolutely adore among the latest styles and find it in a color that coordinates with existing wardrobe pieces.

My most successful new fashion purchases happen when I draw a picture in my brain (and/or on paper) before I ever go shopping, and look for the closest possible match to that picture. If it's hard to envision, sit down with a pen and paper and write a description. Write down color, fabric (i.e., polyester, rayon, linen, wool, cotton or silk.) Short or long sleeves? Knit or woven? Lined or unlined?

Sometimes it's all right to buy a whole new wardrobe. In the event of a major change in weight, it's absolutely necessary. Otherwise, it's smarter to buy some very basic solid colored items and build around those.

Everyone should have at least ONE of each of the following: black pants; black skirt; black dress; white or off-white shirt or sweater shell; blue jeans; and at least one item of clothing that's a solid, bright lipstick red. The second level of must-haves are similar. Add pants in shades of blues, reds/burgundies, greens,browns, etc. Add dressy and not-so-dressy solid color tees. With plenty of fashion forevers - solids in season-transcending hues - there's a base on which to work those trendy prints and new color shades that don't quite match anything else.

Something Traded

With the exception of movie stars and trophy wives, almost nobody can afford all the clothing they really want to wear. And even if they could, they couldn't afford a closet big enough to hold it.

The solution can be a community clothing exchange. The concept is simple enough. Find women in your area who wear the same size range and hold a clothing swap party. Clothing should be given to new owners, never loaned. Otherwise the first time a favorite sweater is stained, the whole process collapses.

Not everyone shares the same fashion tastes, of course. That's the key to the whole process. When it comes down to it, nobody gives away something they want. But a neighborhood (or work) clothing swap entails offering clothing items to people who see each other every day. Daily interaction reduces the likelihood of sharing the clothes purchased when drunk or in a moment of mental failure. Items for swap or giveaway should be in good condition: clean, no tears or missing buttons, and so on.

Maybe Aunt Agatha hates that 60's-print scarf, but her neighbor's great-grandniece knows it would go perfectly with gray flannel slacks and a turquoise sweater!

Something Free

There truly are some other free options out there. One that's growing is called Freecycle (www.freecycle.org.)

The program doesn't deal exclusively with clothing, and with Freecycle the recipient may not have a clue what she's getting until she picks it up. Sometimes the items given away should have really been burned rather than donated or freecycled. But every now and then someone parts with a gem. And since it's truly free, nothing's lost by trying.

Attitude is Everything

A fifty-thousand-dollar designer gown is wasted if the wearer is hiding behind the ficus tree. 2 percent of pulling off a great fashion is the conviction that it works for you. 98 percent of it is convincing other people that it works for you.

Lots of the fashions depicted in Vogue magazine are just plain ugly. That's my opinion. But they work and they're beautiful in part because they're draped over beautiful models, and partly because those models manage to convey that THEY know they look great. Too bad if you don't agree. It doesn't matter one iota whether or not these young ladies actually feel confident or not. It's all about how well they can fake it.

Got a pair of chandelier earrings that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy? Are they big? Are they ugly as sin? Put 'em on and pretend they're dripping with diamonds and sapphires. Coordinate colors and stand back and wait for the compliments to arrive. (They will.) Go for the Oscar in your performance. It's all about the attitude.

Fearless Fashion

With all that said, reserve the right to buy at least ONE head-to-toe trendy outfit per season.

But before spending a penny, take a weed-whacker approach to the closet. Pull out anything unworn for two years. If something is in season but hasn't been worn all season - dump it. For every new item bought, something old should go out, whether it's donated to charity or traded at a community swap.

Sort through the items that remain and arrange not by color, but by how often they're worn. For the items not worn often, inventory reasons. Does nothing match? Is it uncomfortable? Does it not fit right? Is it out of sync with lifestyle? Is it stained or damaged? If it doesn't fit in some way, out it goes. If it's a matter of nothing matching, consider it a fashion opportunity. Maybe that's the item in need of a trendy coordinate.

Sorting by favorites can also pinpoint fashion gaps. Maybe there's only one pair of black pants when three would be more realistic. Maybe there aren't enough of the right kind of skirts. Maybe there are too many sweaters and too few tee shirts.

Make a list of the holes and look for the trendy pieces to fill those holes.

Who knows? Today's trendy could be tomorrow's fashion favorite.