Splurge or Save: Summer Essentials

After what felt like the longest winter ever, summer has finally decided to commit to us and I couldn’t be happier. From pool and beach time to longer days and warmer nights, summer is my absolute fave season. As with any seasonal change, you might be tempted to go out and shop til you drop to get your Summer Essentials but do you really need to spend a whole lot of coin? Well, I joined my friends at GMW for a summertime edition of ‘Splurge or Save‘ to help you decide what’s worth your coin and what’s not.

•  When it comes to Sunnies, you can definietly get the designer style for less. If you’re anything like me, you’re probably going to sit on them or lose them anyway and that’s a little easier to deal with when they only cost $5. I get my fix at SunglassSpot.

•  There’s no reason to pay more than $10 for this summer staple. You can almost always get flip flops on the cheap at Old Navy.

• Flip flops aren’t really made to be sturdy but when it comes to actual shoes, you get what you pay for. We spend more time walking around outside in the warmer months and you definitely don’t want to end up with broken straps or blistered heels from cheapie sandals.

• Save on the trendy, cutesy or character towels. Trends are fleeting and the kiddos will be into something new next year. Your wallet will thank you for being thrifty.

• Quality is the name of the game here. Spend a little more on swimwear that is well made and will fit properly. Better chance you can avoid an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction and maybe even wear it next season.

• A black and/or white tee is a wardrobe staple all year round (they’re great for layering in the colder months) but even more in the summer. Each of those colors show wear fairly quickly so you can splurge on some good quality tees (think Uniqlo) or get the 3/$20 tees at Target or Old Navy and replace them more often. I’d definitely suggest saving on seasonal colors/prints.

• Unless you live someplace where it’s always warm and sunny, spending a ton on summer dress is hard to justify. Check out the ones featured in the vid HERE.

• Of course you’ll need a way to carry all of your summer essentials around and everyone loves a cute bag. Your summer tote will probably take a beating going from beach to pool to BBQ so you’ll probably want to save your money on it.