Create a Professional Outfit on the Cheap

Even when you're concentrating on office clothes, you should pick up items that you find on sale for the current season. I always swing by the summer straw bags for the beach on my way to the dressing room.

• Try It On: Head to the dressing room and work out combinations that may work for the office. Try skirts and blouses, skirts and jackets, trousers and jackets, and don't forget to try the shoes.
  
  
• Keep Your favorites in Mind: Consider what you have at home. It can help if you take photos of your favorite pieces on a digital camera or camera phone to refresh your memory and make the most of your shopping.

• Head to your local thrift store.
• Browse by color to cut down on time.
• Swing by the blazer section.
• Stop by the skirts to find the right office separate.
• Check out the trousers to further your options.
• Hunt for professional pumps and heels.
• Pick up the extras and then try everything you've found.
• Take your pieces home and launder them well.