[Edited] There are easy ways for all of us to be a frugal shoppers. Here are five tips to consider:

1. Shop with a purpose so you don’t overspend or overbuy
If you want to be a frugal shopper, you’ve got to figure out ahead of time what you need an item for, how much use you will get out of it and why you think it’s worth it to spend money on it.

2. Try clothes on to avoid unnecessary returns
When my children were younger, needed naps and hated shopping, I would often shop for them knowing that I would be bringing clothing home for them to try on–and then returning them if something didn’t fit or didn’t feel right (they hate tags around the collars). I would keep the tags on the clothing and receipt at the ready–but not send the kids to school in those clothes–so that if something didn’t work, I could make a return without any trouble with getting my money back. I realize that driving back and forth to the store probably wasn’t the greenest thing to do, but it worked for my life back then. These days, though, I insist that they kids try everything on before they buy something. Now, that’s great in theory but even I slip up sometimes and buy something that I end up wanting to return. The dressing room really can be your budget’s best friend, though I think we’d all agree that those awful mirrors are for sure our worst enemy!

3. Frequent stores where you can find real bargains
If I am thinking about places to find bargains, my mind immediately goes to stores like Target and TJ Maxx. For my kids they get their best bargains at the teen-oriented consignment franchise Plato’s Closet.

4. Never pay full price
This notion of buying when things are on sale can apply to clothing purchases though we often think more about using this tip when buying groceries. Case in point: I’ll only buy cereal if it’s on sale and I have a coupon for money off. If I can get cereal down to about a buck a box, then I feel like I’ve accomplished something. With clothing I use this approach for stocking up on essentials, like socks and underwear. If I find them on an end cap in a store (where you can often find tons of great bargains on clearance, as this MommySavers.com website points out) marked at around $.99, I scoop them up. In fact, today I am wearing a pair of argyle socks that I purchased at the Gap, oh, 10 years ago for about $.99.

5. Don’t buy, swap
I know a ton of women who host clothing swaps in their home. This way they can spread the wealth around as far as clothing goes. Maybe they’ve lost weight (or gained weight) but don’t want to lose the investment they made in an outfit. So they invite their friends over and ask that they bring clothing they no longer want or no longer fit into, and then everyone tries stuff on. This would be the ultimate in frugal because you’re getting new (to you) clothing for free. Swaps also work great with children’s clothing. (Check out an earlier blog posting on getting something for almost nothing, which provides a guide to switching and swapping stuff online.)