Clothing
To determine if an article of clothing is affordable, calculate what it cost you to wear it once. For example: a red party dress for $150 that is worn two times will cost you $75 per wear. A denim skirt for $45 that is worn 15 times per year for three years will cost you $1 per wear. Classic pieces get more wear then the latest fad items. Build your wardrobe around good-quality basics that will be in style for many years. Sometimes spending a little more for an item that will be in style and last for years actually saves you money in the long run.
Clothing stores are always running sales. Get familiar with the sale patterns of your favorite stores and shop when prices are the lowest. For example – JCPenney regularly has 30% discounts on its Worthington brand clothes; they occasionally offer 40% off, and a few times a year offer 50% off. 
Young children grow so fast that most of the clothes they are currently wearing will not fit a year from now. Shop the clearance sales at the end of each season and buy a size larger then the child currently wears. It is common to find toddler clothes for only one or two dollars per item.
Scour the re-sale shops in your area. Stores like Plato’s Closet have name brand clothes teens like that are gently worn and in style for a fraction of the new cost. When your children out grow their clothing sort through them and take the best stuff to a re-sale shop to sell. Whatever the resale shops don't want you can donate to charity. (Be sure to get a receipt so you can take a tax deduction.)
You will save time and money if the clothing you buy can be machine-washed. Be sure to read the cleaning instructions before you make a purchase.
Personal Care Items
Don’t buy your hair care products at the beauty salon or your make-up at the department stores - buy them at the discount stores. If you experiment you can find a product that works just as well at half the cost or less. Wal-greens frequently has buy-one get-one-free deals on make-up. Avon also has some great specials on make-up – www.avon.com. If there is a local Avon rep in your area, you can ask for samples so you can try out different items before you buy them.
If you stretch the time between haircuts another two weeks you can get by with fewer haircuts each year. Just get a cut and skip the blow dry and you will save a $5 or more. If you go to the salon to get your hair colored learn how to do this yourself, but use a good quality product for best results. Have a friend help you the first time or two. You can learn to do manicures and pedicures yourself by printing instructions off the internet and practicing.