- First of all, know your own figure and your own style. Do not follow trends that do not suit you. Most clothes look great on models like Kate Moss and Claudia Schiffer but do not look as good on us normal women! Remember how many items you bought on impulse last season? And you did not even wear them! Are they the wrong sizes? Wrong style or something you did not need at all?



- Look at your closet and make a list of things you already have and you really want to keep. Then make a list of the things that you really want and do you have. We girls like buying designer items to feel good, but that habit really hurts our wallets. Particularly when you go out shopping with a friend, you feel that you need to buy something to keep your head up. Buying from a list will keep you focused and minimise costly impulse buying.

- Buy the best quality of clothes and accessories that you can afford. This does not sound like a saving tip, but believe me, high quality clothes will simply look better, last longer, wear less, wash better and as a result, you will save more money than buying lots of inferior-quality pieces that will only last a few wears.

- For big items like suits, dresses, coats: buy classic styles. These will stand the test of time and not date as much as clothes bought from the latest trends. Whereas for small items like bags and accessories, buy the most trendy, fashionable ones so you look up to date and go for the brightest colours (they will not make you look fat!).

- Buy on sale whenever possible. You can grab the same piece for half or even less money just a few months after the celebrities. Nobody will tell you that it is out of fashion, just for a few months. You can grab yourself some really good bargains on the last few days? of the sales in famous shops like Harrods and Harvey Nichols. And buy online, on Ebay if you are an Internet Savvy ? Make sure that you do read the seller's review and contact the seller before the sale to ensure the authenticity of goods.

- Swap small items like hats and bags with your best friends (of course, those with good taste only). There is no point in spending a lot of money on something you are only going to use once (Well, it will be embarrassing if you wear the same clothes to your important parties). So share them with your friends.

Ladies, dressing well does not have to cost a fortune. If you take a little time and a bit of thought to plan for your need, and treat buying your clothes like an investment.