Seasonal Budgeting: The 80/20 Rule, Part 2

Welcome to "Part 2" of Seasonal Budgeting: The 80/20 Rule. After 11 months in Fashion Rehab I have realized that quality over quantity is generally the way to go when it comes to shopping. On Monday I wrote "Part 1" which featured the trend pieces I would buy with $100 (20% of my $500 budget), and today I am featuring my top picks of classic pieces for $400 (80% of my budget). This is not to say that all classic items should be expensive, it just means that you should to put a little more effort into your choices if you want them to last longer.

What I would buy with $399 (not including the false eyelashes for $8)

A night out at Shop Social at the W Hotel this week inspired me to create my look through Polyvore. If you haven't been on their site yet you should check it out. It basically is like paper dolls without any dolls! So much fun. I actually did a "set" for a Piperlime contest awhile back, you can see it here.

So where do I begin? With a classic white blouse, of course. This one by Helmut Lang ($120) is amazing because you can belt it and wear it with leggings or tuck it in and wear it with your favorite pants. Endless possibilities and on sale! The chino shorts are courtesy of J. Crew, and for $50 you can't go wrong. Their pieces are timeless and usually quite well-made. The bangles are yellow gold (no tarnish here!) for $53 from Jules Smith. The LBD? It is BCBGeneration, $89, and very easy to dress up or down. This is where a trendy inexpensive bib necklace could come in handy. The shoes are Cocobelle from Bloomingdale's, are leather (which is my only caveat for buying shoes, imitation will not do) and are $88. Grand total of $399. I then realized that no collection would be complete without a set of false eyelashes. For an extra $8, these Sephora ones are all yours.

Love, A

P.S. Just click on the "set" above and it will take you to Polyvore which will have direct links to all of the goodies.

P.P.S. Most of these items are on sale and I will totally forgive you if you snatch them up before it is my time to shop!