Confession: I’m really struggling with the don’t-buy-clothes rule. I didn’t realize I’m so interested in clothing, but Decatur has the cutest boutiques. I walk past them every day and read about them, too. They’re hard to resist.

But I am resisting.

One thing that’s pulling me through is a Scoutmob coupon for one of my favorite local stores, Squash Blossom. That means any time between now and September 14, I can get 50% off. I’m saving this for when I collapse and decide to spend on something cute for Rio.

I’ll clearly need baggy beach pants:

Classy mismatched prints:

And insect jewelry:

But I digress. This post is actually about saving money on clothing, rather than spending it.

For the first time ever, I made cut-off jeans. Yes, first time.

I thought it would be difficult. It scared me to cut into solid fabric that I was so used to seeing. Questions raced through my mind: What if I need these jeans, these particular jeans? (Ya know, because I don’t have enough pants already.) What if I get cold? What if a snowstorm blows through my house and these are the only pants left that I can wear? Weren’t these jeans made into pants for a reason?

But I did it:

I love the result:

In fact, I love them so much I wear them every weekend. Yeah, that’s saving.

Total Savings (average amount I’d pay for shorts): $30