Save Those Pennies for the Baby!---Smart, Savvy Savings Tips for Your Maternity Clothes Shopping

    

     Congratulations!  You’ve just discovered that you are expecting, and the shopper in you can’t wait to hit the stores to look for all new clothes for your soon-to-be changing figure.  But, even the most enthusiastic shopper can fret at the thought of spending a fortune on clothes that are, let’s face it, worn only for a short amount of time.   Before you make your credit cards self-destruct on new maternity outfits, here are some simple tips that will help you to become a smart shopping momma-to-be!

Shop Smart in the Stores
      Nationwide retailers from Macy's to J.C. Penney regularly place merchandise into clearance in order to make room for new arrivals.  Trips to your clearance aisles are a wonderful way to start building up your maternity wardrobe.  Clothes and accessories in clearance are typically marked down anywhere from 20 to 85 percent off the regular price.  So, when you take your next trip to your local dress store, resist temptation and keep walking past the beautiful displays in the front of the store and head straight to the back where you will find the clearance section for the best sales.  Another good tip-- sign up for your favorite stores mailing or email list (or even become their fan on Facebook) to find out about weekly or monthly sales or to get coupons.

Consignment Shops

     Say you have an invitation to your cousin's wedding.  You're six month along, and although you know you will need to wear something special, you are hesitant about putting out so much money for a dress that you are only going to wear for a few hours.  Well-respected consignment shops may be a great place to find gently used maternity clothes at a fraction of the cost.  Consignment shopping provides you with several benefits, including:


●Shoppers find better prices than resale stores.

● The seller or consignor (you) typically gets a better price than if they sold their items to a resale shop.  For example, you might get 70% of your sales.

●The variety and quality of items can be a lot better than those purchased at a garage sale.

 

The World Wide Web of Bargains

     When I was pregnant with my first child, the very idea of waddling my way through crowds at my local mall was not my idea of a fun day out!  If fighting the crowds at the mall is not your thing either, you can comparison shop and find some fantastic savings online!  Carole Henderson, a mother of two from Long Island, New York, saved money by searching online for sales on maternity clothes.  "I would just wait until I would see that something that I wanted was on sale, and then I'd buy it online.  A lot of the websites that I shopped from home on often had free shopping or half off shipping specials, so that was a huge plus for my budget!"

     Have you had your eye on a pair of Lavish by Heidi Klum capri leggings, but you just can't bear to pay the full price?  Try eBay!  You can bid on new and used clothes and you may get lucky and find a great deal.  After your pregnancy, you could consider selling your gently used maternity clothes on the site to get a return investment!