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For ease of comparison:
$100 = 83 euros = £55
$500 = 420 euros = £280
$1000 = 830 euros = £550
$2000 = 1660 euros = £1100

Now, Gothic & Lolita fashion has never been dirt cheap. In fact, the majority of outfits ooze a sense of extravagance. A full outift can set you back quite a bit, even if you've sewn it from scratch. Collecting brand name items... whoa, one can fritter away thousands in that way! xd

So having searched the forums a few pages back and not having found anything on this, I thought I would like to see people's spending habits here. biggrin

How much have you spent on Gothic/Lolita fashion?

We are all different, some of us are still in school and have to beg, plead or steal from parents xd Others are slightly older, and have the wondrous thing called... the credit card... heart Some of have to scrimp and save to get something, others can buy it without having to think.

So, share your cash confessions!

Do you regret spending so much money?
Or are your purchases a good investment?
Anything in particular you really regretted spending money on?
Got a special item which was really worth it?

Disclaimer: this is not about "OMG I AM RICHER THAN THOU" or starting "ZOMG you are so stupid for spending that much" wars xd This is supposed to be for fun, and to share decision-making tips, methods of raising the cash to get loli, or how to wean yourself away from spending too much. 3nodding

I shall start first! 4laugh EDIT: Argh, someone beat me to it!

I have spent... alot of money on Lolita clothing. Over the past 3 years... I think I have spent .... over £2,700. This is on clothing/shoes/accessories I have bought which are definitely Lolita, and includes shipping and customs fees. About 70% of my Lolita clothes are from Japanese brands, hence the expenditure!

I have maybe... £200 worth of loli-inspired/esque clothes (where if worn with the right skirt would still make a very good casual loli outfit).

And my handmade stuff - about £150 worth of materials and trimmings.

Woah, over £3000 in total. eek

(£3000 = 4500 euros = $5400)

Before you all start condemning me in flames and hatemail xd

I am 24. I work hard as an illustrator, 40-50 hrs a week. My husband is a computer programmer. I live in a 2 bedroom house, in a village, as that was what we could afford to get a mortgage on. We have a little car, it was bought second hand. I take the bus into town. I have a cat. I have well-off parents, but they have not supported me since I graduated from university 3 years ago. I buy the groceries, my husband takes care of other bills. He does not give me spending money. I earn my own money, and manage to save £3000 a year, so I have a nice little savings account.

So yeah - I am NOT rich, far from it! xd I wish I were! But, I make do.

Why have I spent so much on Lolita?
Because I buy a lot of brand clothing. Why do I buy brand clothing? Because:
1. the quality is above and beyond what I ever imagined. You do not know what heavenly delights can be created with cloth and lace until you see an Innocent World blouse in the flesh. The clothing is guaranteed to be top notch, whilst handmade items can be hit and miss. This means-
2. it keeps its value very well. You know that if you want to sell it, you can get back about 60-70% of its value, if it's in good condition.
3. I get a feeling of joy in my heart when I know I have a skirt with the BTSSB/IW/AP logo on it. xd I know that it is a brand print pattern, and that cannot be replicated anywhere.

How do I get the funds for my clothing habit?

1. First, I budget - I need about £500 to live per month, and to feed me, my hubby and the cat.
2. Then, I need to save at least £3000 a year. That is for my tax-free saving allocation, nyoho! Once that is out of the way....
3. Everything else, is mine, to spend how I want to. Be it on having a nice dinner out, going to the theatre, going on holiday.... or buying LOLITA CLOTHING!
4. I reduce costs by cooking at home almost all the time, working from home, and not buying anything I don't expressly need.
5. I max my income by taking on additional work (as I'm a freelancer, I manage my workload), and by selling anything in my wardrobe that I know I would not wear more than 3 times a year. I will also sell off my loli clothing if I know I won't wear it very often.

I made a conscious decision about 2 years ago, to sell off anything which could not be used for Gothic or Lolita outfits. The only other things that stayed were exceedingly comfortable to wear at home.

My wardrobe is now, almost exclusively, Gothic & Lolita. And I am so proud of it! heart Hard work, effort, sacrifice.... and it is so worth it!! 3nodding

I'm still a student. And my parents pay a ton on my ballet lessons, so I don't get much extra spending money. My parents will buy me clothes that I need, but if I want fancy things like lolita, I have to buy it myself.
I get a monthly allowance of $10. As you can see, dressing lolita is very hard for me.
I'll usually shop at thrift stores. Or sometimes I'll just buy cheep pre-made clothes and decorate them myself. I'm hoping to someday make my own lolita outfit from scratch.
Anyways I might have just gotten a regular baby-sitting job (I had no idea it pays so well: $20.00 for 2 and a half hours!) so I may be able to spend a little more on lolita now.

Seeing as how strict my parents are I'm only allowed to buy loli clothing once a year. And I spend close to $200 each time. Currently though I'm trying to find someone w/ a credit card so that I can give them cash and have them use their credit card. <3
Other than that, I rip apart the mall searching for loli-esque clothing to wear. You'd think that my parents would take me to thrift stores, but they don't.
I may be 16 (17 in two months), but I lack a liscense since I'm entirely scared to death of driving a vehicle D: . So don't tell me to go drive there myself. D<
I make about $250 every 2 weeks, and put about $100 in savings each time. I also get $60 a month allowance, which usually goes towards my cell phone bill. I have a rabbit that I have to pay vet bills for ($50), as well as buy food for (um...? $20 roughly).
So I could afford more if I were allowed to buy more. D: Or rather...if I had a credit card... >_>



I have this same problem and have actually had my "mom" tell me that she regrets adopting me since I'm such a freak (in which she was refering to my love of lolita and etc).

XD My last cell phone bill was $75 too. (But that was because I over-ran minutes since my "mom" was an idiot and didn't know that if someone called your phone and you spent 2 hours on the phone with them it used up minutes... >_> And so I didn't know she'd used up the last of our minutes a week ahead of the end date so. D: )
Oh yeah, it took me 8 months after turning 16 to find a job around here. I mean, people were hiring, but after I'd turn in my application they'd be all, "Oh, we wanted to hire you since you dress cute, but you're not 18 yet, sorry." And I'd be like... stare
But the zoo was hiring so I finally got a job there, only to find out after being hired that they actually need some one older... >_> The lady who hired me hadn't even really looked at my application! D:

*shrugs* I'm upset about what she said, but I've had so many problems with her since I was very young; I'm just happy that I'll be out of the house in a little over a year.

Keep trying to get your parents to loosen up. Maybe you can work out a deal with them like I did with mine: That'd I buy something online from overseas for only about $200 (including shipping and taxes and whatnot) once every year. My next time to get something is the beginning of next summer, but I plan on finding a friend w/ a credit card first. XD

I'd estimate 30-45 euros since I've bought alot of yarn for socks and lace, and one non-brand loli-ish T (for sale, had to get it. razz ).

Mom bought me most of my aristo clothes/fabric for clothes so far. I plan on making more out of old stuff, because I have combination of crafter's bride, student poverty and dislike for 100$ and up brand tags.

Haha! I totally know the feeling! xd When I was younger and my parents still had some say in buying me clothes, they were always like, "But why do you need more black clothes? Why not a different colour?"
And I would always reply, "Don't you realise that there are so many different shades of black?!"

Haha! I should use that one next time! <3

Yeah. My mom is trying to "de-goth" me. So I pay for all my own black clothes. -_-;