How to Update Your Wardrobe on a Budget

September has always been the time to update your wardrobe, whether it's for back-to-school shopping or because the thickest fashion magazine issues of the year have just shown up in your mailbox. This can be a challenge during an economy that's so bad that some people are struggling to purchase food, never mind fashion, but it's a difficulty that can be surmounted with some creativity. Following are some tips on how to update your wardrobe on a budget.

The first step if you want to update your wardrobe on a budget is to make a list of which pieces you already have. The essential women's wardrobe should have at least one of each of the following items: a little black dress, a white blouse, a neutral cardigan, a knee-length skirt, black dress pants, a pair of jeans, a solid color tee shirt, a solid color turtleneck, a jacket, a pair of heels, a pair of boots, a pair of dress flats, a pair of casual flats, and a good handbag. Most of us will have collected more than this in our shopping travels during better times, but if you're missing any of these pieces, buying a high quality and timely version will go far towards updating your wardrobe on a budget.

If you've already got each of these, invest the bulk of your money in a second version that's significantly different from the first. For example, if your one good handbag is black and suitable for fall and winter, buy a second one in a lighter color for summer and spring. That's another important tip for updating your wardrobe on a budget: buying items from a department store at the end of the season is the best way to get high quality items at the lowest price.

Stick to color families when you're shopping to make sure that all of these items go together and make your wardrobe more versatile. It's best to start with black as the building block neutral (when you're buying your second version of each item choose another neutral, like brown, grey, taupe or navy) and pick a couple of colors that go with it. Randomly buying pieces that appeal to you and then taking them home and finding out they go with only one other piece is an expensive and inefficient way to update your wardrobe.

These are the most sensible ways to update your wardrobe, but you still want to have some fun with it. For this reason, you should put aside about 20% of your fashion budget to spend on accessories and trends. Accessories are the easiest way to update your wardrobe. If you're wearing simple clothing like a turtleneck with black dress pants, add a trendy accessory and your outfit will immediately look updated. The trendiest accessories right now for updating your wardrobe on a budget are big, statement piece necklaces.

The rest of that discretionary money can be spent on cheap versions of trendy clothing items that probably won't stand the test of time but will make you happy right now. A current example is frilly Edwardian-style blouses. You can buy an expensive version if you have money to burn, or you can spend under fifty dollars for a version from a chain store that will give you the same thrill and not hurt as much when it goes out of style. Updating your wardrobe on a budget is really a matter of strategic shopping more than anything.