Dressing Up - On a Budget

We're going to a wedding today. I love weddings! They always make me cry, I love getting dressed up and enjoying a rare night out with my hub. But now that we have a little one, going out gets EXPENSIVE.

Normally when we get ready for a special event, I would go get my nails done ($50 with tip), buy a new dress ($100) and give a really nice gift ($150 or more). Now that we have to add in the cost of a sitter ($10 an hour or more plus tip), attending a wedding could cost us close to $300! That's INSANE!

To help cut costs, I had to identify my non negotiables. Giving a good gift is OBVIOUSLY the biggest non negotiable to me. I can be frugal but I refuse to be cheap. Being thoughtful and giving appropriate gifts is really important to me and the difference between being a cheapskate and being frugal is saving in ways that are undetectable to outsiders.

So how do we cut costs? I did my own nails. I know, not fun. And honestly, I'm awful at it. But give me a glass (or bottle) of wine and a bottle of nail polish and I'll make it work. I'm not the bride so no one is going to be photographing my hands or feet, so why do they have to be perfectly painted. Right now they're good enough to pass as done, enough to make me look polished, but not professionally done.

Next comes the dress. I haven't really had to dress up since having my son about a year ago. I know. But we live in Vermont and events are typically very jeans and blouses 'round these parts.

So I trekked over to my sister's house where I store all of my dresses. Yup, none of them fit. Not one dress fit. Dear lord help me. So I was convinced I was going to have to buy some cheap ass dress that would just end up being a waste of money because I wouldn't want to hold onto it or wear it more than once.
Editors note: I realized that most of those dresses were from 2007-2009 so I feel a lot less bad about myself now.

Then my sister comes over with a dress she had gotten on sale from Athleta to wear to a different wedding. It fits, it's black, a clean canvas to snazz up with some of my existing jewelry from my more spendy days and I borrowed a pair of wedges from a friend to help complete the look. While it's not a new outfit or utilizing something I had, it's a unique outfit I've never worn or been photographed in (because lets be honest, its all about the pictures these days) that didn't cost me a dime. Sometimes all it takes is asking for a little help to stretch and save those dolleros.