Fashion Friday: 2013 Shopping Plan

A lot of the blogs I follow are shopping / fashion related, so there have been tons of posts popping up in my Google Reader with posts about budgeting and shopping plans for the new year.  I've already posted about how I'm not really a resolution person, but I prefer to set goals and look at it as what I want to achieve and not what I don't want to do.

Anyway, I've been linking up with Franziska over at Frannish for a few months now for her Budgeting Bloggers feature and that's been a fun way to not only share my purchases for the month, but also have a little accountability for my spending.  

I enjoy shopping a lot, but have really tried to change some of my habits over the last couple years.  I've actually done a better job in this area and have already been working on a few of these things.

Here are a few goals I want to focus on for the new year.

• Do my research.  I've really enjoyed doing this as Pinterest and reading blogs have become one of my hobbies.  When I find an item I like and that I would possibly like to purchase I turn to these sites for outfit ideas and reviews.  Seeing things styled on real people helps me better decide if it's worth it for me.  A lot of times I'll just do a simple Google image search and find things that way.  I particularly like doing this with items I can't see in store first (like J.Crew or Loft since we don't have those here) or makeup items to see how people like them.  I few times I've changed my mind about a purchase because of poor reviews or just deciding that it's not for me.  It definitely helps me better decide what I really want and what I can probably live without.
• Focus on what I already have.  This kind of goes along with doing my research.  I sometimes forget what I already have in my closet and end up with very similar items.  I also need to consider what I already have that will go with new items I want to add to my closet.  If I have to buy a head-to-toe outfit to match something, it may not necessarily be worth it.
• Buy shoes.  I don't get excited about buying shoes like a lot of girls do.  I have a lot, but in all honesty I've probably purchased only 2, maybe 3 pairs of shoes in the past year.  A lot of my shoes are older, but still in good condition.  The only problem is that they're not all that practical for my everyday life and I need to focus on getting shoes that are!
• Come up with a more firm budget.  I really haven't set a specific budget for clothing and non-essential makeup.  It's kind of fallen into my "fun money" category, so some months when I have extra cash that's what it ends up going to.  In the next few months I want to set a more firm budget in this area.  I'm not saying I'll deprive myself of spending money when I go on vacation or whatever, but I feel like I've given myself a little too much flexibility with clothing and makeup and some of that fun money could go to other things (or into savings).

Next Friday I'll be sharing my winter-to-spring wish list and a few of the items I'll be looking to purchase in the next few months.  It's actually not a very long wish list, but a few items I've been wanting / needing for a while.

So, do you have a shopping plan for this year?  If so, I'd love to hear what your plan is!