You’ve heard it countless of times for the past year that I’m hesitant to even say it out right.  Here goes—recession, recession, recession!  We’re all quite forced to shop more smartly and be thriftier simply because of the recession—which is good, actually.  Even if that weren’t around, we should all be shopping smartly with our clothes (only now we have a more pushing reason to do so).  That’s why we have things we call investment pieces in our wardrobe—items that are classic, timeless and will last us a good decade or more with a little creativity and care.

So the next time you go and shop for new clothes, hold on to your purse strings.  Ask yourself these questions before you dole out the moolah:

Can I imagine myself using this for at least 3 different looks and occasions?

Simply put, is this piece of clothing or accessory versatile?  Are there existing pieces in your closet that you can already envision yourself matching it with?  Will you able to use it for day and dress it up in the evening?

There’s this cool concept of Cost Per Wear (CPW) going on last year that you can apply to your wardrobe shopping.  The more times you wear a particular item in your closet, the better returns on your initial purchase.  This means that if you bought something for $200 and you’ve used it at least 50 times since then, that’s $4 for every day that you did.  This is better than buying anything that’s cheap but not as beautiful nor high-quality that you hardly take it out of your closet for fear of looking exactly where you bought it—on a cheap sale bin.

On the other hand, if you bought a really expensive item and you rarely use it because it costed so much, then you’re not getting much out of it, either.

Will this outlast the season?

I’m not saying disregard trends altogether.  Any fashionista worth her salt has an eye on these things, whether they follow them or not.  But some trends are so unique and distinct that when they go out of style, it’s so abrupt!  Everyone, even non-fashionistas can tell that you’re wearing something that’s so five minutes ago.

If you do choose to follow a trend, however, keep in mind that they are cool only for a limited period.  This means two things for the trendy ones—you can either follow the trend in the least predictable way or trust in your styling skills to transform it to something else/make a new piece out of it when the trend dies.  Can you do that for your slashed leggings, bold-shouldered jackets and plaid/checked blouses?

Is there something else in my closet that looks like this?

If the answer is yes, then drop it.  Some women (and men, for that matter) are creatures of habit, and have trouble coming out of their comfort zones when it comes to their fashion.  You don’t need to buy heels or bags in every color!  And do you really need another white blouse when you’ve already got so many?  Do you get to use all your ten thousand bikinis at the beach, and for that matter, how often do you go out to swim anyway?  Jeans can last forever, yes, but that doesn’t mean you need more than five at a time, especially if you keep changing sizes.

Is this something that will improve my wardrobe?

This is a question that’s you should always ask yourself before buying anything, especially when it comes to accessories and shoes.  If you have to add something in your already full closet, make it something worthwhile.  It should be a break from monotony and it should always be flattering on you.  A statement necklace or sky-high heels in a fabulous bright color with an all-black ensemble can up your style points.

Will this survive the wash and wear?

We’re all about quality for investment pieces.  This is probably the reason why, even though I always like the look of Topshop clothes, I never go out the store with anything from it.  Most of the clothes that I really like from there won’t likely survive several rounds of washing, and it would probably cost me more if I have to get it specially cleaned all the time.