Frugal fashion: Styling on a budget

Have you ever scrolled through Pinterest outfit inspirations or seen notable streetwear fashion and wondered if you could ever look as classy? Students and others attempting to pay their own bills, I've got your back. Here's how to look stylish with affordable regular wear.

Affordable T-shirts purchased from Facebook pages sometimes cost approximately BDT 250-400. The best time to purchase these are during clearance sales. Best be lightning fast at booking these products because clearance products are usually in limited quantities, which is why sale timings may be posted beforehand. It's a sign – get all duties done and over with because these purchases could involve the survival of the fittest.

Physical stores (which are better options in terms of price) such as the famous location opposite Dhaka College may present T-shirts at prices as low as BDT 150 each. T-shirts may be more affordable options than fatuas, hence the focus on them. There are great options in Uttara too such as Nigar Plaza, near Rajlaxmi Complex and vendors in Sector 7 Rabindra Sarani. An open market on vans in front of Rajlaxmi is another great find particularly on Wednesdays when all else is closed in Uttara. Pair your look with a decent pair of pants within approximately BDT 500-700 from one of the aforementioned locations for T-shirts, shoes within approximately BDT 1000 from Elephant Road or New Market, and boom, you have a basic outfit.

But what exactly should you be looking for? Rather than opting for tasteful and trendy pieces, look for classic items that never go out of style and are of colours that can be reused with multiple other pieces of clothing in your wardrobe, like black formal pants, flannel shirts, solid-coloured T-shirts or ones with a small logo in the corner. Details such as collars and a border around the sleeves or neckline may easily make you look well put together.

As for which shades of a particular colour to choose, pick ones that you are comfortable in and that highlight a particular feature of yours to make you look even better, for example, one that enhances your hair colour, eye colour, or skin tone. When purchasing shoes, wear the outfit you have in mind and try the shoes on with them to see how it all looks together. Never opt for pieces that make you uncomfortable since it brings down a key feature that can help you look good: self-confidence.

If you have some extra cash, invest in accessories. I personally like affordable unisex small beaded accessories, but small jewellery pieces may be found online at prices approximately less than BDT 400. A tip to make metallic jewellery be more colour-fast is to coat them with clear nail polish from time to time. It is also important to be well-groomed. Proper nail maintenance, regular haircuts and shaves can absolutely be DIY-ed at home with practice. Altogether, you'd spend roughly under BDT 2000 depending on bargaining skills and the number of items. Happy shopping!    

Bushra Zaman likes books, art, and only being contacted by email. Find her at bushrazaman31@yahoo.com