How to Look Expensive on a Budget

On a budget but still want to look expensive? Here are the tips, tricks, and hacks I use to look expensive on a budget.

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I love the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement. However, as a self-described girly girl, I also enjoy spending money on things that make me look expensive and feel great.

The fiercest budgeters may encourage people (men and women alike) to ditch all unnecessary spending regardless of how it makes them look or feel. I frankly think that’s bullsh*t because we cannot change the fact that the way we look affects how people perceive us.

As much as we like to think people don’t judge a book by its cover, they do!

First impressions count.

Additionally, I think what we look like affects us. I believe that how we look and how we feel have a circular relationship- they are constantly affecting each other.

If I don’t look good, I’m not as confident in myself, which makes me look even worse. It’s a vicious cycle.

But the other side is also true. If I’m looking great, I’m feeling good and confident, and it’s a happy upward cycle.

So how can we, as women on a budget, also find ways to look and feel good while sticking to our budget?

Here’s what I do:

How to Look Expensive

Here are some of my favorite hacks for looking expensive on a budget.

Hair Care on a Budget

I love my hairdresser because she is real frank! She knows that I’m frugal, so she’ll keep me in line when I want to do something drastic (and expensive) like go blond or dye my hair red. After many discussions with her, we’ve decided that a way for me to have expensive-looking hair without the upkeep and cost was to do balayage. What I love about this is that there isn’t a drastic change in my hair color as it starts to grow out. I generally get my hair balayaged once a year, and the rest of the time, it’s just hair cuts and root shadows.

I also push out my hair cuts to every 12 weeks instead of every eight to save some cash. I’ve found that using better hair products (like this shampoo, this conditioner, and this hairspray) keeps my hair healthier for longer, and I don’t have to go to the salon as often.

Tanning on a Budget

I used to get spray tans for special occasions and just buy a Groupon. However, I recently heard about the advances in at-home self-tanners.

I purchased an exfoliator glove and self-tanner mit (buy the ones I have on Amazon here) and the Loving Tan Deluxe Bronzer Mousse (buy it on Amazon here), and now I just self-tan at home. So far, I’ve been able to get 2 tans out of the bottle, and it’s more than half-full. The tans have lasted around 2 weeks each, which is way longer than a spray tan has ever lasted me. This stuff doesn’t smell as bad as the ones I’ve used in the past. The tan also fades gradually, so I don’t look all weird when it starts to fade.

Nails

I like to have nice-looking nails and toenails, but I do not like the cost or the time it takes to get them done regularly. My hack for saving money on nails is to do it at home most of the time. I’ve invested in a gel nail kit (buy it on Amazon here). This allows me to paint my nails once and have them last for a couple of weeks. I also bought a cuticle cutter and pusher to get a salon look at home. You can get the top and base coat and some basic colors like these. It’s a bit of an upfront cost, but I’ve been using the same polish for years and haven’t had to replace it yet.

Clothes

Here are some of my hacks for saving money on clothes.

Buying Off-Season

This one takes a bit of planning. Basically, rather than buying new clothes at the beginning of a certain season, I simply wait until the end of the season because that is when they will be on sale. For example, if I know I need a new bathing suit, I buy it at the end of summer rather than at the beginning of summer. If I need a new jacket, I buy it at the end of winter instead of the beginning.

This is really helpful with kids’ clothes as well. Since they grow fast you know, they’ll need new bigger clothes every season. You can just buy it in advance when it’s on clearance and save it for them until they fit into it. My best friend literally got a $2 snowsuit for her daughter from H&M in the middle of summer. It was originally over $60!

Buying Timeless Pieces

I love trendy items, but fads come and go quickly. To keep my wardrobe up to date, I buy trendy items at places like Forever 21 or Shein. I can then spend a little more money on quality timeless pieces.

Learn More: Dia & Co Review: Affordable Plus-Sized Fashion Retailer

Feeling Good on a Budget

Massages on a Budget

I get $25 foot massages at least once a quarter, if not once a month. Rather than go somewhere like Massage Envy, I opt for $25 Thai foot massages. If you’ve never heard of these glorious things, simply search for foot massage on Yelp and see what comes up near you.

I’m not going to lie, they usually don’t look as nice as places like Massage Envy do. Also, sometimes there’s a bit of a communication barrier, but these people know what they’re doing! Honestly, I prefer these massages to traditional Swedish massages. Also, they say foot massage, but it ends up being about 50% foot massage, and 50% full-body massage. Besides the fact that these massages are better and less expensive, they also don’t upsell you after you’re done.

If you compare the prices to Massage Envy, you can save 50% per massage without getting a membership!

Working Out on a Budget

Working out is one of the best things you can do to look and feel good about yourself. However, as a new mom, it’s hard to find that time to work out. Rather than going to a gym, I’ve found the best way for me to work out that saves me time and money is to do workout videos at home. I’m almost done working through P90 (buy it here on Amazon), and once I’m done with that, I’m going to move on to P90X (buy it here on Amazon).

Do you have tips and tricks for how to look expensive on a budget? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Learn More: 75 Money Hacks That Will Save You a Fortune