http://frugalhacks.com/2009/02/16/cheerful-frugality-dresses-up/
Cheerful Frugality Dresses Up
Posted by: MerchantShips on Monday, February 16th, 2009
Sound the wedding bells! My brother is getting married, and my toddler will be toddling down the aisle.
I held my breath when the bride-to-be called about the flower girl dress. Since she is a practical person (and reads my blog!), she offered to let me find a dress within our price range.
Here’s my 6-step strategy for finding special occasion clothes without specialty prices:
1. Internet research: What style is appropriate? How much do those cost? Brand names?
2. Go through the bag of hand-me-down holiday dresses. In this case, nothing coordinated with the wedding colors.
3. Visit my local consignment and/or thrift stores, prepared to pounce on the right dress.
4. No luck? Check the sales at Dillards, Strasburg Children and local boutiques.
6. Purchase clothing on Ebay once I know the general style and size.
It doesn’t always take me 6 steps! Often, I find something perfect in the hand-me-down bag or with a quick visit to the consignment store.
Perhaps it will take one extra trip to Dillard’s, where I found a white smocked gown marked down to $16. If that didn’t work, I could order something from Ebay knowing that the Strasburg size 2 is a perfect fit.
I save about $50 each time I employ this strategy, making it worth an extra hour of time. And darned if she doesn’t look cute as a result!