I shop online mainly for my budget buys. Here's my short guide for shopping online with a budget.

1. Look for stores that give you a bang for your buck such as regular sales, shipping discounts, free samples, etc. Sephora.com is an excellent example. They have regular sales, offer free shipping, and include complimentary samples with every purchase.

2. Check online coupon code sites for discounts to use at your favorite store. RetailMeNot.com is one of the best places to find up-to-date codes to use on various online retailers.

3. Shop second-hand. Livejournal has a surprisingly large community of buyers and sellers. There people are always trying to sell used items they no longer need at reasonable prices. The downfall of this is that there will be some people out to scam you. I recommend paying via Paypal where you can put in a claim if you do not receive your purchase. So far I've had great experiences buying from people on LJ.

4. Try making your own items. You can find plenty of free patterns online which only require you to supply your own fabric and time. There are plenty of how-to and sewing communities that will help you with your projects.

5. Go custom-made. While custom made clothing sounds like it would be expensive, if you know the right place to look it can be fairly affordable. Try Etsy.com, it is an online marketplace for handmade, vintage, and supply items. A lot of the handmade artisans offer custom work at reasonable prices. Etsy has lots of reasonably priced items along side couture fashions. I buy almost everything from Etsy nowadays because there are so many unique, well-made, and delightful designers there.

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