Budgeting Diaries: March & April Recap + Styling My New Buys
March & April in numbers, receipts, and outfits. Let’s break it down.
Welcome back to Budgeting Diaries—my monthly series where I track exactly how much I spend on fashion, what I buy, and how I style it. The goal? To stay within a €3000 yearly budget.
Curious about why I’m doing this and how the whole thing works? You can start with my first post here:
As I move further into this budgeting experiment, I’m starting to have some second thoughts about the concept of a spending budget versus setting a limit on the number of items I allow myself to buy. If I were limiting the quantity, I think I’d naturally gravitate toward higher-quality pieces to make each one count. Now, I catch myself picking cheaper pieces just to stay under budget—which isn’t ideal. So note to self! Of course, it all comes down to your goals. Are you budgeting to save money? Or to build a more intentional wardrobe? For me, it’s probably a bit of both—but with a stronger focus on the latter.
That said, I do love sticking to a challenge—I find myself coming up with new ways of wearing old pieces, which is really what personal style is all about.
I didn’t do a March post—turns out I was on a bit of a fashion fast. April, though? A different story.
April spend
Massimo Dutti brown jeans €69,95
Massimo Dutti linen polo €79,95
Lemaire Filt net shopping bag medium €140,00
I have sold a few things on Vinted, for a total of €102,00, which leaves my budget at €2.432,25 (equals €304,03 for the remaining 8 months of the year).
Styling
I’ve been obsessed with my Lemaire shopping bag and my Massimo Dutti brown jeans, so they’ve been on heavy rotation lately. Here are a few ways I’ve been styling them:
LOOK 1
Very old red COS coat. I barely wear this so might sell! Similar but better here.
LOOK 2
Vintage Versace blazer
Father-in-law’s blue shrunken polo (brand unknown)
LOOK 3
Old Sonia Rykiel tomato cardigan
Massimo Dutti brown jeans (I’ve been wearing my loafers a lot lately, but honestly, these jeans go with just about any shoe!)
LOOK 4
Self-made leather bag
LOOK 5
Self-made leather bag
LOOK 6
Old Zara top
Self-made leather bag
Bidules sunglasses
LOOK 7
LOOK 8
Newest bag I made
And that’s it for this week. Thank you for making it this far and talk soon!
Some house-keeping: You may have noticed I’m no longer landing in your inbox every Thursday. With summer approaching and work picking up, I’m giving myself a little more breathing room—and a bit more sunshine. For the coming months, Bare & Butter will be landing in your inbox every two weeks instead of weekly.