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No Gifted Items For The Duchess: How Much Do You Spend On Fashion?

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Today, The Cut asked, “Who Really Pays for Kate Middleton's Clothes?” The duchess, unlike many celebrities, doesn't accept free stuff. So all those designer dresses you spot her in? Somebody's got to foot the bill.

According to Limelight, the royal spokesperson added that Middleton “has a policy not to accept any free offers of clothing. We would never discuss the prices paid for individual items – these will remain private between the Duchess and the designers. She will not receive any special clothing budget for the Canada and California tour.” Basically, she has “private agreements” with designers,but she doesn't get any freebies.

In the next few days, Prince Charles will be releasing his financial statements to the public (a mandatory event in England), and apparently the bill for Kate Middleton's outfits (may have cost over $54,000 since the royal wedding), reportedly have come out of the family's “Household” budget, funded by his Duchy of Cornwall estate. With a wardrobe full of designers like Alexander McQueen, Jenny Packham, Roland Mouret, and Matthew Williamson, you can imagine the price tags add up, but when you take a look at Anna Wintour's spending (Condé Nast apparently foots the bill for her makeup and hair on a daily basis, and she's rumored to have a $200,000 yearly clothing budget as was reported on “60 Minutes” in 2009), it's small potatoes.

We speculate that she probably gets discounts (I mean, isn't everyone dying for her to wear their clothes?) and that she has other sources of income supplementing the costs besides the Prince's budget (William? Her parents?).

We've brought up what to do with unwanted gifted items, but keep in mind, if you have no contractual obligation, you are not required to post, tweet, etc. about any product.

For those of us that aren't as lucky to get frequent gifted items, what percentage of your budget goes to the “fashion” part of your fashion blogging?

12 Responses

Laura Lily June 26, 2012

Way more than it should. I spend about $200-$300 on clothes, shoes, accessories, make-up, etc. per month. But keep in mind, I always buy on sale, use a coupon, and bring my lunch to work everyday to supplement the money I spend on my wardrobe. I rarely buy coffee because that money adds up quickly! I would rather save that money and buy shoes.

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Jenny June 26, 2012

Good for her, although I’m sure she gets a huge discount! I spend way too much money on clothes each month. I’m sort of scared to add it up. Although, most of the items I buy are from discount retailers or on sale. I must admit that I don’t save very much money. And, since I started my blog two months ago, I’ve been doing even more shopping, which I didn’t think was even possible! 🙂

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- Jenny June 26, 2012
  
  I’d like to add that I save up for several months to even almost a year before I buy my big ticket items such as designer purses and shoes.
  
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  - Sheri June 27, 2012
    
    I totally feel the same way. Since I started blogging in April, I have been binge shopping, which will have to stop this month.
Abigail June 26, 2012

I doubt that the duchess has to mind how much she spends on clothing. I, on the other hand, do 🙁 I spend a surprisingly low amount of money on clothes because I spend most of my shopping one in thrift stores!

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Kashara June 27, 2012

I would say about $50 or so a month. I tend to shop at consignment shops and thrift stores for name brand items so I’m fortunate enough to not have to save up much for those items. I do admit that I sometimes wish I had more money to buy on clothes, but then when I take a good look in my closet I realize that I’ve actually got way too much stuff already! haha!

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Bige June 27, 2012

I wrote an article about intelligent consumption which should be a perfect answer for this. I always support re-use of clothes in very different manners…

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- Bige June 27, 2012
  
  this is my post: http://caramelisee.blogspot.com/2012/06/ive-something-to-tell-u.html
  
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Ais June 27, 2012

I have the “beauty and the budget” blog on my blogroll for a reason, same boat. I do not spend extra on clothes specifically to blog about, mostly I shop my own closet. If I do buy something new it’s something I would have bought regardless of whether or not I was blogging. The neat thing about having a limited budget and needing to shop your closet is rediscovering things you already had, that you simply hadn’t used in a long time 🙂

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Caity @ Moi Contre La Vie June 27, 2012

I think it’s fabulous that someone who has the money is spending it (and stimulating the economy) rather than accepting gifts. It can be frustrating to see people who make millions a year not paying for things that they can actually afford while us “normal folk” have to pay for everything ourselves… Not bitter at all. 🙂

Like the ladies above I definitely keep an eye on sales – Bloomingdale’s has great random sales throughout the month, as do BCBG/BCBGeneration, and I love online retailers like The Outnet & The Real Real where you can get great designer gear @ HUGE discounts or even vintage/consignment pieces in fabulous shape.

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Kathleen Lisson June 27, 2012

I do invest in my wardrobe. I buy my hats from mass market retailers like J. Crew and Banana Republic as well as direct from high-end milliners. I wear a hat every day and have never bought a hat just to feature it on the blog. Luckily, hats aren’t “trendy” so I will get plenty of use out of my hats and fascinators for years to come.

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Stephanie July 1, 2012

I invest in my wardrobe but I do not buy often. Maybe once every few months or so. I also only pay with cash and ever since I started purchasing only with cash I have saved so much money!

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