January 2014 Purchases.

On Saturday I reflected you on January 2014, my Favorite Posts, my Favorite Outfits, etc. I promised I would be back to let you know about my January Purchases. I had not posted my Purchases since May 2013. The reason why, is because it went downhill from there, meaning I spent a lot of money and purchased way too many things to blog about, especially once I went back to United States in July until early November. But, I had put aside money for my shopping in USA, and on top of that my relatives gave me some money to buy myself some things. So, I went on several shopping sprees at Gap, Old Navy, JC Penney, Kohl's & Forever 21 mostly. While I got a lot of fun things and things I didn't need, I also filled up some "holes" in my closet of items I wanted or had to buy. For example I finally purchased my Chambray Shirts: a Light-Colored one, a Dark-Colored one, a Popover, a Polka Dot one and an Anchor one. Other wants/needs I purchased were a B+W Striped Tee Dress, a Cobalt Pencil Skirt, Mint Colored Pants, a couple of Maxi Dresses, a Summery Floppy Hat, Bubble Necklace, Big Flower Necklace, Peplum Top, Gold Ballet Flats, Kelly Green Skinny Pants, Cobalt Skinny Pants, Leather/Ponte Skinny Pants/Leggings, Faux Leather Skater Skirt, Shorts, Denim Vest and a couple of Plaid Shirts. There are several more items I want to get in my closet this year. There are more holes I want to fill, but I don't have a Top 15 list yet for you. Hopefully by the end of this month, when I post about my February Budget/Purchases, I will have it figured out.

So, let's see what I got in January and how much I spent. In total I got 40 items (including 2 pairs of Tights, not pictured) and all 40 items costed a total of $390. I don't have each item broken down in individual prices for you, since I also have a lot of Jewelry in the mix and it would have been hard to gave you an itemized list, due to so many items, but that is the correct total. These Purchases actually start since around December 24th all the way through the end of January. Out of the $390 spent, $190 of it came from my own pocket, the other $200 were money gifted to me for the Holidays. That still doesn't justify the high sum of what I purchased this month, but I did want to make that clear. Did I need any more Dresses? No, probably not. With the exception of a White/Ivory Lace Dress which I have been wanting for 3 years now. I also added some Plaid to my wardrobe through a Dress and a Skirt, both from the same designer/store. I was also contacted by a couple of companies the last couple of months. I got a few things courtesy of, mostly from the Boutiques I do a lot of shopping at, here in Albania. It was my first time getting clothing/accessories for free so I definitely appreciate that. Those c/o items are included in this month's budget. And yes the Michael Kors Bag is also included in this month's prices.

This is my favorite category since I am a Dresses Girl. The Hunter Green Dress (worn here) was courtesy of. It's a Color I lack and cannot wait to wear it again.  The Ivory Lace Dress (worn here) is my favorite piece in such a Classic Style, with a great shape, material and color. I also wore it for the photo-shoot we did for Vivian's 1st Birthday. The Red Dress with the Black Lace Sleeves which you can now see in my new Banner and Profile Photo was worn during Vivian's 1st Birthday Dinner Party. I will blog about that soon and I plan on wearing this Dress again this month for a Valentine's Date. The Black+Red Plaid Peplum Dress is the only one I have yet to wear (it was only purchased last week), but I will indeed wear it this month. 

That Skirt has the Mirror effect, in a Faux Leather and Plaid Print - so many trends into one great Pencil Skirt and I got it on sale. The Blouses are all Chiffon and I plan to wear them all this month. The Cobalt one has Silver Studded Flowers splattered through. One can never have too much Cobalt. The Pink Blouse filled a void in my closet and the Black+White one is a Heart Print. I wanted something in a Heart Print. The B+W Top & the Pink Top will be great for Valentine's month.

By far these were my best purchase last month. I thrifted all of these Great, Colorful Puffer Vests for 10 bucks a piece. I went randomly into a Thrift Store (I never knew about before) while I was taking my morning walk with Vivian and I am glad I entered because these little gems were there. And since the 2 Puffer Vests I own are in my closet in US, these were indeed necessary to buy. The Green Vest (worn here) was brand-new with tags and the other 2 Vests are very gently used. I have also worn the other 2 though not on the blog. I know these are all Bright Colors, but I have so many styling ideas for them, especially for late Winter/Early Spring.

OK, these were probably all wants. How could I resist that Gorgeous Red Fair Isle Scarf with Pom Poms? It is pretty wide and warm like a little blanket - cannot wait to wear it. The Red Michael Kors Bag was a purchase on a whim at a Boutique that was closing down, for 60% off. The White Fur Snood was something I wanted to add to my closet. I am finding these Faux Fur Snoods so versatile and rich, a great cozy piece. The Black+White Beret Hat was definitely an impulse buy, but I have been wearing these kind of Hats a lot this year and have been wearing them for years actually. The colors of this will go with anything.

OK, now this was all a category I could have avoided altogether. I certainly didn't need more Jewelry. I think last year alone I purchased at least 25 Necklaces. But I didn't buy all of this. The Bow Necklace (worn here), the Silver+Turquoise Long Necklace (on the left), the Coral Statement Necklace (in the middle), the Bow Hair Clips & 2 of the Cocktail Rings were given to me courtesy of, from 2 different Boutiques. I must say each piece here was purchased for $6 or less. I haven't worn most of them but I will this month, this Spring and more.

After all of this, I have learned that I do not need nor should I add any more jewelry (unless it is a Fringe, Multi-Colored Necklace or a Big Silver Crystal, Statement Necklace) or any more Dresses or Skirts, since I have plenty. Coming off of a very expensive month since January was also Vivian's 1st Birthday and a big chunk of money was spent there - and it didn't help that I shopped a lot - I should be very frugal for the rest of the year. Instead of giving myself monthly budgets, I want to say that my budget for the rest of the year is $750. This budget can only change if I will start working again, or if I come to the States. Clearly, I prefer to shop in US more than in Europe. There are beautiful clothes here too but I find the sales in the States way better and I am used to their brands & stores more. I really do not want to shop at all in February but I don't want to jinx myself. If I keep it under $750 for the rest of the year, I will call it successful! What did you learn from all of your spendings from January? What did you purchase? What are you currently wanting to add to your closet? Of course I am linking with Fran + the other Budgeting Bloggers.

P.S. Also linking up with Claire, Nicole and Co., Niki, Melaina and Sharon.

Also, today is the last day of the link up, which is open until Midnight PST tonight. You are welcome to Link up here, if you'd like to. Thank you.