Most of us have quite a few pieces of clothing in our closets that we don’t like – or don’t want to wear.  Or, if you do wear them, you don’t feel that you look good in them. Who put those in your closet?!  Whoops, probably you did!  This happens easily for a variety of reasons, mostly not your fault. And ultimately, you can learn to avoid this in the future.

So, before we get into how to shop, let’s consider how not to shop.  (The focus here is about shopping in stores, we’ll go over shopping online another time.) It’s useful to look at the things we have been doing that have not worked well for us. It’s quite easy to make mistakes if you aren’t paying attention and have never been trained.

Here are some of the ways women unintentionally sabotage themselves when shopping. If you find some “pitfalls” that you have been falling into, don’t worry about it. Instead, by beginning to notice these traps, you can avoid making these costly shopping mistakes that you may regret for some time.  

Have you ever…

Here’s a quick assessment. Answer these questions to find out if you ever fallen into these traps. If so, the point is not to feel bad, but read on and find out what can be done to prevent it in the future.

  1. Shopped without a plan or clear idea of what you need or want?
  2. Gone shopping looking sloppy without fixing your hair and makeup?
  3. Tried to shop with feelings of pressure, stress or hopelessness?
  4. Shopped in a big rush or with a tight time deadline?
  5. Waited until the last minute – then felt that you had to compromise?
  6. Allowed friends or family talk you into the wrong purchases?
  7. Bought something that wasn’t great because it was a “good price?”
  8. Gone with someone who is very critical of how you should dress?

Consider these tactics instead:

  1. Plan your wardrobe. Plan what you want, plan the time to look, and allow yourself options to shop another time.
  2. Avoid shopping with people who have different opinions of your look. The clearer you are about your desired look, the easier it is.
  3. Don’t let sales people (or friends) talk you into purchases. If you have doubts, the solution here is to learn precisely what looks best on you. (You can know your ideal lines, shapes, scale, textures, and colors!)
  4. Dress well. Don’t go shopping looking sloppy — you won’t like anything you try on!  Instead, make sure that your hair, makeup, and outfit are good enough that you can smile at yourself in the mirror.
  5. Plan have the right bra, shoes, so that you can tell how it will really look if you buy it.
  6. Be skeptical of sales. Saving money on sales is great, but don’t be overly influenced by a discount. Ask yourself, “Would I still want this if it was full price?”
  7. Are you overly influenced by the designer’s name? It is just a name. Never be enticed by label or designer name if it doesn’t look truly great on you.
  8. Trust yourself first. Don’t be convinced by anyone or anything against your intuition or better ideas. Everyone has an opinion.
  9. Every shopping trip can be a learning experience. Don’t feel as though you “failed” if you don’t find anything.
  10. Learn what truly looks best on you in terms of lines, designs, shapes, textures, colors, and styles.  Once you know what is most harmonious, you’ll know for life.