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7 Money Skills Anyone Can Master Money places a central part in our day-to-day lives, yet the majority of us have yet to master the money basics. There are so many skills you can learn to improve your financial well-being—no matter what state your finances are in! Money can be intimidating, especially when you find yourself spending more than you save. Check out the 7 money skills City Girl Savings knows anyone can master. #1 Budgeting Often, when people think of budgeting, their mind immediately goes to spreadsheets and difficult calculations, which feels stressful! Spreadsheets and calculations can absolutely come in handy, but they are not what makes up budgeting. The main money skill to master when it comes to budgeting is knowing how much money you have coming in and what you are spending it on. That’s really it! Keep in mind what is coming in and what items you need to purchase during the month, like groceries, kids’ clothes, and so on. Mastering your budget means you’ll avoid having your finances slip through the cracks, and you can keep yourself from sliding into debt. #2 Building Credit Credit simply means one party—often a credit card company or bank—offers money or resources to a person, who promises to repay the first party in full at a later date. Mastering credit is a major part of your financial power. Credit can help you get the things you need now, like a loan for a car, based on your promise to pay for it over time. Improving your credit means you’ll qualify for those loans when you really need them. Proving that you can pay what you owe each month is a great way to start building your credit. An easy way to do this is to open a credit card and make small purchases on it, which you pay off in full every month. This will help you avoid accumulating interest and improve your credit score. #3 Investing Investing your hard-earned money can be a scary idea. No one wants to invest and see their money disappear! For beginners, try investing in a high-yield savings account, which will allow you to invest as much or as little as you want. However, you’ll only gain a fraction of your savings back in interest. Be sure to do your homework and invest your funds wisely, not based on what seems “hot” at any given moment. Mastering investment means mastering a bit of knowledge about your investment options. The bigger the risk, the more you stand to gain—or lose. But just because you are not familiar with investing doesn’t mean you can’t get started. #4 Managing DebtThe word “debt” can make us nauseated all on its own, but in life, we have to take the bad with the good. When dealing with your debt, there are two main aspects you need to master. The first is principal, and the second is interest. The principal is the amount you owe, and interest is a percentage of that total that the lender charges you monthly for borrowing from them. It is important to keep in mind what these terms mean and how they will affect you when handling your finances. Interest is the lender’s way of making money from their loan. In order to get your debt down to zero, you’ll need to start by chipping away at the principal loan value while accounting for interest. This is why it’s so important to use low-interest credit cards or loans, and to be mindful of how much you will actually owe on anything you borrow. #5 Balancing Your Accounts Budgeting is about allocating funds towards certain accounts, items, or bills. Balancing your accounts means making sure your accounts stay in the positive at the end of each month. Now, this may sound intimidating but trust us, it’s one of the easier financial skills to master. Both balancing and budgeting start with knowing what money is coming and what is going out. If you are blindly spending money and not tracking your funds, we urge you to stop that habit immediately! The best way to deal with your finances may be to combine the balance and budget aspects together to create a ‘balanced budget.’ A balanced budget means you distribute your income and expenses to create a zero or positive balance each month. Ideally your goal is to either have more money in your account at the end of the month, or to break even. If you end the month in the positive, you can invest the leftover money, distribute it into your next budget plan, or use it for extra debt payments. There is a difference between balancing and budgeting your funds, and they both need to work together to help you avoid debt and keep your finances in check. #6 Making More Money Making more money may feel impossible with the current state of the world. However, trust us when we say that there is always money out there to make! The most important thing about your financial health is growing your monthly earnings, which you can accomplish by cutting spending and by increasing your earnings. Making more money will enable you to pay off debt faster and start building wealth. It is always a great plan to have some savings and to think ahead in case of an emergency. Increasing your earnings will make that possible. #7 Using Credit People are not born with money skills; they are learned over time. Building credit and using credit wisely are different! Once you understand how credit works, you can start using credit to achieve your financial goals. The key thing to remember is that you need to pay off your credit cards in full every month. Choose a credit card that offers rewards that matter to you, like points toward travel or cash back. Mastering credit can actually move you closer to your other financial goals! Once you have a handle on what is in your budget, we assure you, all will be good in the neighborhood. Related: 5 Easy Ideas to Help You Master Your Budget Are you skilled at mastering money? What tips have you found along the way that have been beneficial? We love hearing from members of the community, so drop a line and say hi! Check us out via our Instagram, YouTube and Twitter accounts @citygirlsavings. Also, chime in via our City Girl Savings Facebook page. -TaelorThe CG … 7 Money Skills Anyone Can MasterRead More »

6 Need-to-Know Principles of Personal Finance Personal finance—you can’t live without it! Literally! Money runs our lives. I don’t mean that in a bad way, but in a matter-of-fact way. We need money to survive. We need money to enjoy our lives. Everything has a cost. It is what it is! Since we can’t escape capitalist society, it’s important to put ourselves in a position to master our money. This starts with a few key principles of personal finance that everyone should be following. If you haven’t read The Richest Man in Babylon yet, I would highly recommend it. It was one of the books that changed the game for me financially. It also breaks down need-to-know financial principles in the form of stories. Today, I’m sharing 6 key financial principles of personal finance that you’ll want to know. Check out that book for even more! 6 Need-to-Know Principles of Personal Finance #1 Always save a portion of what you earn Have you heard of the saying “pay yourself first”? The principle requires you to put a certain percentage or amount of money into savings as soon as you get it. The typical rule is 10%, but that’s not always possible. Find a number that’s safe for you to put away every time you get paid. Eventually you’ll want to work up to the 10% number, but if you have debt or a tight budget, anything counts. The goal is not to touch those savings unless there’s an emergency. You always want to give yourself some funds to fall back on. #2 Never borrow more than you can pay back Having credit available is so dangerous. It gives people a false sense of financial security. Unfortunately, that “security” comes at a high cost—in the form of interest. Borrowing money isn’t always a bad thing, but you’ll want to make sure you never borrow more than you can pay back. For example, say you want to fix your AC unit and you learn it’ll cost you $2000. You have the money in savings, but there’s an option to finance at 0% for 6 months. You can take the option to finance because you know you can pay the debt off in 6 months (thanks to your savings). You can also keep your cash flow and not have to worry about paying interest. #3 Insurance is your form of managing risk Sometimes I hear people complain about having to pay for insurance. I think it’s because they don’t understand what it really is. Insurance is a form of managing risk. This means that if you were in a car accident, your car insurance would cover the cost of damages or a new car. Having car insurance mitigates your financial risk in the case of an accident. People don’t like to pay for insurance because no one expects an accident to happen. That’s foolish. Now, I’m not saying to constantly be worried or negative that bad things will happen, but things out of our control are inevitable. Knowing that you have insurance to help you through unexpected events can help you avoid being worried about the financial burden. #4 Good things come to those who work Nothing worth having comes easy. If you want a life of financial freedom, you have to work for it. That’s not a bad thing! I know we live in an instant gratification society, but there’s value in the grind, and in working for something that means so much to you. I always tell my clients that they’re putting themselves in a position to succeed by working with a coach. Not only will they learn and do things that will help them get ahead, but they’re instantly creating more opportunities for success just by being in the headspace of working with a coach! Don’t be afraid to work, and don’t expect things to always come easily. Good things come to those who work for them. #5 Financial success never happens overnight This principle of personal finance piggybacks off of the last one. Because good things come to those who work, it means that time and sweat equity are key for financial success. That means it won’t be an overnight process. Again, that’s okay. There’s beauty in the journey. There’s beauty in the growth that comes with working towards something like financial success. You learn so much about yourself and the process along the way. Be okay with the length of time it will take and embrace the steps along the way. #6 Money is always available For those of you with a scarcity mindset, this may be a hard principle to grasp. Definitely read Understanding Money Scarcity and How it Impacts You for more. The principle that money is always available means that you can always get out there and make more money. There is not a limited supply of money—there’s an endless supply. Sure, it’s not going to just fall in your lap, but you’re capable of getting out there and making more money available to you. When you start to live by this, you’ll find more and more money makes its way to you. Related: 9 Ways to Manifest More Money Into Your Life Follow the principles above and you’ll never feel like financial success is unattainable! Not all of these principles will happen quickly, or it may take you time to work towards them…and that’s okay! Make it a point to always function under the knowledge of these principles and you will thrive! Do you follow money rules or principles? Share them with the community in the comments … 6 Need-to-Know Principles of Personal FinanceRead More »

5 Ideas to Glow Up Your Career Some might like to call it your career trajectory, or leveling up—we like to use the term career glow up! It’s time to get on the express lane to your dream career. Stop doubting and start deciding. Success doesn’t come when you put off your goals and just daydream about the moment they’ll all come true. You have to stop dreaming and start doing. Think of your core competencies the same way you do barriers: they’re the above and beyond you’re willing to surpass that others aren’t. Always look for ways to invest in them and elevate yourself. Don’t waste time comparing when you could be creating your dream career! Check out these 5 ideas to help you glow up your career! #1 Attend in-person or virtual networking events  Meeting new people can be challenging, but even introverts need connections to help grow their business. Make a point of attending networking events and developing professional connections with at least a few people! Understand that everyone attends networking events to further their own careers. Networking becomes even more valuable when you also keep in mind how you can help the people around you, and not just how they can help you. In the age of COVID-19, of course, attending in-person networking events can pose a significant health risk. Even with safety protocols in place, traveling to and from events can lead to unnecessary exposure. Thankfully, as more and more people get vaccinated, in-person networking will be viable again soon! Virtual networking events are also an option, and they’re almost always cheaper to attend than in-person events. #2 Read Reading is an incredible gift, and too few people take the time to appreciate how reading can help you glow up your career. If you want to know more about a position that interests you, you can learn a lot by picking up a book about the history of the role, the industry, or a role model who also had that job. Reading will give you intel on how to set yourself up for success. Carving out even 30 minutes or an hour a day to read about a career goal or business strategy will support you on the way to your career glow up. There are books that can help you level up in your industry, manage your finances, start a business, and more. Reading keeps your mind sharp and helps you learn new things that will help you improve as you move toward the next stage of your career.  #3 Evaluate your social media habits We all know we spend too much time lurking on Instagram and Twitter—but how much time are you devoting to your LinkedIn profile? When was the last time you took inventory of your personal brand? When you want to get that career glow up, a well-designed LinkedIn profile is much more beneficial than anything you’ll put on the ‘gram. Here are a few questions you should occasionally ask yourself: What does your overall social media presence look like? Have you posted any of your recent work accomplishments on LinkedIn? Are your profile pictures up to date? It’s important to check in with yourself and all your social platforms to ensure you’re presenting yourself in a way that supports your career goals. Focus on building your personal brand and don’t be afraid to put yourself out there! #4 Exercise You might be wondering what on earth exercise has to do with a career glow up, but hear us out! Exercise improves mental health—it reduces anxiety and depression, and improves self-esteem and cognitive functions. These are all great benefits for supporting you at work! Exercise has also been found to alleviate issues like low self esteem and social withdrawal, which makes activities like networking and self-promotion way easier. We get it: working out is probably the last thing you think you should focus on when trying to get that career glow up. But improving your mental and physical health creates a clear path for better decision-making and greater success across all areas of your life. #5 Shift your mindset Shifting your mindset will further your career glow up like nothing else. It’s essential to cultivate a healthy mindset about your situation. Now is the perfect time to create a vision board for the next season of your life, and focus on how you would like things to go. Your mind is a powerful place, so it’s important to be mindful of your ways of thinking. Shifting your mindset to embrace new perspectives will help you become a more accepting person; focusing on gratitude will help you find valuable lessons even when you face setbacks. The mind houses our emotions, judgments, worries, and secrets, and many of us don’t even realize how our own thoughts might be holding us back! Develop a mindset of curiosity, commitment, persistence, and creativity, and imagine how that will make you more valuable to your organization or in your dream job. No matter what happens in your career or life, with the right mindset you’ll always be able to keep moving forward and know that the glow up is just around the corner! The passion and drive you need to achieve your career glow up are already in you. Don’t settle for anything less than what you deserve! It might not be a walk in the park, but we promise that the end results will be so worth it. Have you ever experienced a glow up in your career? What tips do you have? Sharing your unique perspectives, experiences, and knowledge might unlock the next step for you and for someone else! Don’t be a stranger—join the conversations on our City Girl Savings Facebook page! We love hearing from you and the community. If you haven’t already, like and follow our posts on Twitter and IG @citygirlsavings! -TaelorThe CGS T … 5 Ideas to Glow Up Your CareerRead More »

How'd She Do It? Jessica Alba Jessica Alba is a household name for a reason—she never fails to deliver the best of the best, whether she’s gracing living room screens in popular sitcoms or starring in theatrical films.Alba is best-known for her roles as a hip-hop choreographer with a heart of gold in 2003’s Honey the Eye, as Susan Storm in Fantastic Four (2005), and for many, many more.Acting EarlyAlba began making TV and movie appearances at just 13 years old, in Camp Nowhere and The Secret World of Alex Mack, but rose to prominence at 19 when she was the lead actress of the television series Dark Angel, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination. For Alba, acting opened up a new world of creative people and a community where she belonged.Although her acting career wasn’t always full of glitter and gold, Alba worked hard to get her name in lights and arrive where she is today. When Alba turned 11, she attended an open casting call at the Beverly Hills Studio. Thousands applied, but it was Jessica who won, receiving a year’s worth of acting classes, which she condensed into a summer so she wouldn’t have to miss school.By the age of 18, she had landed her breakout role, being cast as Max Guevara in Dark Angel. In Sin City (2005), she played a stripper with book smarts, and brought a comic book heroine to life in Fantastic Four. Alba played Sue Storm, one of four astronauts who gain unusual powers after being exposed to cosmic rays. Reprising her role, she also starred in the 2007 sequel, 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer.Jessica Alba has always treated her Hollywood career as a business. She made a rule with her publicist that for every placement she got in a men’s magazine, she wanted coverage in three women’s magazines. Alba didn’t let fame distract her from the things that matter most to her—and truth be told, Hollywood wouldn’t be the only industry that underestimated her.Shifting FocusWhen Alba and her husband Cash Warren, a Yale graduate, producer, and tech investor, were expecting their first child, they found a lack of safe and effective consumer products in stores. Alba noticed that her baby was breaking out in hives after her onesies had been washed in detergent. She partnered with author Christopher Gavigan (himself husband of actress Jessica Capshaw), whose book Healthy Child Healthy World addresses the numerous toxins children are exposed to in typical household products.In 2011, Alba co-founded The Honest Company, a consumer goods company that sells baby, personal, and household products, and focuses on ethical consumerism. Prior to the company’s success, however, Alba endured frequent rejection as investor deals fell through. However, Alba’s passion and purpose collided and resulted in $10 million in sales for The Honest company in 2012, its first full year in business. The Honest Company only provided 17 products at the beginning, including items in the diapers and wipes category, which were delivered to subscribers’ homes on a monthly or à la carte basis. When Jessica couldn’t find one brand she trusted for all her everyday needs, she set out to create it—and she knew others would be looking for it too. The success of the business showed just how many other people were looking for safe products, simple solutions, and clear information about their choices.Following the early success of her company, Alba released her book The Honest Life in 2013, sharing her experiences of creating a natural, non-toxic life for her family. As a new mom, Alba had wanted to create a safe, healthy environment for her baby, but was frustrated by the lack of trustworthy information available for moms. Since day one, The Honest Company’s social initiatives and community partnerships have ensured that more people have access to safe, effective options, when they need them the most.The Honest Life became a New York Times Bestseller, and in 2015, Alba went on to expand her franchise, launching a collection of skincare and beauty products called Honest Beauty. Honest Beauty now creates natural makeup made from safe formulas and naturally derived ingredients. The makeup line includes eye, lip, and face products, including fan favorites like a moisturizing lip gloss and a juicy tinted lip balm.How did Jessica Alba do it? She didn’t take no for an answer, and stuck to her instincts about what was right. In 2016, Honest was valued at $1.7 billion, according to PitchBook data. It’s important to stay true to yourself and your values! It worked for Alba—so who’s to say it won’t work for you? Check us out on Facebook at the City Girl Savings page and jump into the conversation. We love hearing from members of our community! Be sure to check out our other social media profiles on Twitter and IG @citygirlsavings as well.-TaelorThe CGS … How’d She Do It? Jessica AlbaRead More »

5 Ways to Manage Money Like a Pro News flash: You don’t have to make a lot of money to be good at managing it! In fact, if you can master managing money with less income, you can make some amazing progress when more income eventually comes your way. Hopefully you’re thinking “Challenge accepted!” Regardless of how much money you make, I want you to know that you can become great at managing it. Keep reading for 5 ways to manage money like a pro and feel in control of your finances! 5 Ways to Manage Money Like a Pro #1 Savings transfers are set up on auto-pilot One of the best personal finance rules to follow is “set it and forget it.” This is especially useful when it comes to savings transfers. When you’ve created your budget and know how much you can afford to save, you can set up automatic transfers from your checking to your savings. Having automatic savings transfers set up helps take the pressure off of you to remember to save on a regular basis. It’s a one-time setup and then BOOM!—you’re golden. You’ll want to make sure you go the extra step of understanding how much you can afford to have saved automatically. This will make sure you’re not constantly tapping into the money you save. The goal is to keep it there until you need it or reach a specific goal. #2 Off the top of your head, you know what your monthly profit should be When I have my financial focus calls with potential clients, one of the most important questions I ask is “What should your monthly profit be?” Meaning, after all of your bills and spending, how much should you have left over? It’s not a matter of how much you actually have left over (that’s a different conversation) but a matter of how much you should have left over. When you know that you should have a profit, and you’re not seeing it, the issue is with your budget and spending. When you know better, you can do better. You can determine what your monthly profit should be by reviewing (or creating) your budget. After all of your bills and spending, and based on your income, how much money should you have left over? Always know that number! #3 You’re taking advantage of tax-benefit options (HSA, 401(k), 529, etc.) Smart money managers are always thinking of ways to save their money. A great form of savings, and a great way to manage money like a pro, is by taking advantage of tax-benefit options available to you. Most employers offer some sort of health savings account. This could be as an HSA, which means you have that savings for life, or an FSA, which means the funds need to be used by a certain time. Check out Health Benefits Basics to learn more. Other tax-benefit options include contributing to a 401(k) plan, commuter benefits, and more. Make sure you know the benefits, tax-savings or not, available to you as an employee of your company. #4 You always have a game plan for extra income One of the best ways to get ahead in your finances is to always have a game plan for extra income, even before you know it’s coming! When you already have a plan for extra money, you’re decreasing your likelihood of spending it on something you don’t need. You know that everything is covered by your budget, so anything extra can help you reach your goals faster or pay for an unexpected expense. The point is to think through extra money before it comes, that way you’re always a step ahead of yourself—especially if you tend to be an over-spender! #5 Late payments are a foreign concept If you want to manage money like a pro, you need to always pay your bills on time. Not only does this help you save money (geez, late fees are pricey), but it also helps your credit score. Payment history is the biggest factor in your score, so late payments have a huge impact. The best way to always pay on time is to have a system for your money, whether it’s bills on autopay (remember “set it and forget it”?) or calendar reminders and notifications. It doesn’t matter what method you use to pay your bills on time, you just need to make sure you do. Related: 7 Money Management Rules that Changed the Game for Me   If you can get a good flow going with the 5 tips above, you’ll be managing money like a pro in no time! Most of us were never taught how to manage our money, so be graceful with yourself. We’re essentially undoing years of conditioning! It will take time to get to a place where you fully feel in control, but I promise you will get there!   What ways do you feel like you manage your money well? Are you good-to-go with the items above? Drop a comment below to share with the community! -RayaThe … 5 Ways to Manage Money Like a ProRead More »

July 2021 Money Pulse Check When … July 2021 Money Pulse CheckRead More »

8 Productivity Tips to Feel More Accomplished Every single person on earth has the same 24 hours in a day. But no matter what’s on your list of things to do for the day, week, or months ahead, it’s still easy to feel overwhelmed! When it’s time to buckle down and get serious about accomplishing a task or project, it’s best to have a plan in place. Find a comfy spot to work, take a seat, and ask yourself what’s most important, what will take you the longest to complete, and how much time you should allocate to each task. Check out these 8 additional productivity tips to feel more accomplished! #1 Prep the Night Before Regardless of what’s going on, you have to sleep to be ready for your day. Jumpstart your productivity for each day by answering these questions the night before. First, what will you work on first thing tomorrow? Second, what do you hope to accomplish during the day? And third, what must get completed tomorrow, in order of importance? The answers to these questions can then shape your to-do list, and will save you time in the morning. This will also keep you from tossing and turning in bed thinking about everything you need to accomplish, because you’ll already have a roadmap! #2 Tackle One Task at a Time  Slow and steady wins the race, so stop trying to multitask! When you learn to take control of your time on a daily basis, you’ll improve your ability to get things done, make better decisions, and, most importantly, gain control of your key priorities. When you’re multitasking, it might feel like you’re getting more done, but you are most often slowing your performance down. When you multitask, you wind up making errors and having to do twice the work. Tackling one task a time means you’ll only have to do each thing once to do it well! #3 Get Away to Recharge People are stressed, they’re tired, and they’re worried about the state of the world. If you ask us, a break is a necessity! A break to recharge always helps. Whether you prefer the beach, the mountains, the desert, or the city, there’s something out there for everyone. Sometimes all you need to get yourself back on track is a few days away from your normal routine. Take the time to rest and recharge, and you’ll be amazed at how productive you are! #4 Say No Every time you say “no” to something, you’re also saying “yes” to yourself! It’s important to say no in a way that makes you feel empowered while still maintaining your relationships with others. You might be eager to help people out with their requests, but sometimes you have to decline to get your own work done in a timely manner or maintain your well-being. Saying no helps you establish healthy boundaries and gives others clarity about what they can expect from you. You’ll gain conference when you stand firm and honor your boundaries—and people will respect you for it! #5 Make Meetings CountYour time should be respected, just as you should respect other people’s time. Every meeting must include an agenda with clear objectives. It can also help to schedule less important meetings in the second half of the day so you have more time in the morning to complete key tasks. Whether a meeting is virtual, in person, or over the phone, do your part to be sure they’re efficient. If you realize a meeting is no longer needed, let your colleagues and counterparts know. Give them and yourself that time back! When scheduling a meeting, give participants ample notice, and make sure they have all the information they need to participate. #6 Always Be Goal-Oriented When you have a specific goal in mind, you’ll be more drive to accomplish it. Being goal-oriented is a valuable personal quality that can produce huge results in your career! No matter your title, position, or industry, having goals matters. Keeping your goals at the forefront of your mind will increase your drive to reach them. It’s helpful to learn how to navigate goal-setting, reviewing your progress, and revising your strategy. As an alternative, you can integrate your yearly objectives into all your meetings and activities. This will prepare you to cut unnecessary activities and keep your teams (and yourself) focused. #7 Organize Your Workspace An orderly workspace can help you fine-tune your processes and accomplish your daily goals, moving you closer to your long-term professional goals. Nothing is more aggravating than constantly having to search for office supplies, working files, or your phone when you’re in a hurry. Constantly working around clutter can seriously impede your productivity. Organize your workspace and watch your thinking get more organized too! Great time managers set up and organize their workspaces to cut down on the amount of time each task takes. The phrase “out of sight, out of mind” is a helpful guideline, since visual cues can help you remember and prioritize important tasks. A clean and orderly desk can help you deal with one task at a time. #8 Avoid Distractions Experts have studied how distractions affect people, and they’ve found that when you’re constantly interrupted, your attention span suffers and the time you need to carry out tasks increases. If you can avoid distractions, you are more likely to feel accomplished at the end of the day. At the very least, minimize distractions from your computer screen so you won’t get the urge to click elsewhere. Distractions can come in the form of emails, texts, social media alerts, phone calls, a work colleague or student popping by for a chat, or a quick look online to check the news website you’ve been following. Set aside specific times for these activities rather than allowing them to disrupt your productive work! We all know Beyoncé is the queen of productivity—and if she can do it, we can at least try! How do you handle productivity? If you haven’t already, like and follow City Girl Savings on IG and Twitter, and join the conversation on our Facebook page! We love hearing from you and members o … 8 Productivity Tips to Feel More AccomplishedRead More »

6 Fashion Staples Every Woman Should Have on Hand Every woman needs some fashion staples in her wardrobe. Although we don’t always think about it, fashion has been an intricate part of world history, and we can continue those traditions through what we wear now.Women’s fashion staples have been recycled time and time again. As we refocus our wardrobes to meet the current trends, we somehow find ourselves embracing items our mothers and grandmothers once adored!The classic pieces of clothing are timeless, creating looks you’ll love no matter what the occasion is. Check out these 6 fashion staples every woman should have on hand!#1 Pencil Skirt Buy pencil skirts in solid colors, textures, and prints. You can easily pair a pencil skirt with a tank top or blouse depending on the occasion. Pencil skirts are staples for the simple fact that you can wear them to the office or to your bestie’s birthday dinner.When wearing a detailed pencil skirt, pair it with a simple top like a sleeveless button-down in a bright color that complements the skirt. Alternately, pair a pencil skirt with a long-sleeved silk blouse, or offset the skirt’s femininity with a cotton button-down.#2 Little Black DressEvery woman should find a little black dress they just can’t live without. Your LBD is always a good fit, because it’s easy to pair things with.Not to worry if you haven’t found your LBD yet—you will soon, and when you find the one that fits like a glove, you’ll never want to be parted from it.The little black dress is a must-have staple in your closet, especially for those nights when you don’t want to spend a lot of time planning an outfit. There are many styles for the LBD and no one rule book to owning the perfect black dress; find what works for you!#3 Denim Jacket There was a time when denim was in season year-round. Whether you like to pair denim on denim or toss a denim jacket over your favorite leggings, there are endless options for making a denim jacket work.Denim jackets come in various sizes and colors. Start by buying a structured version at first, and then branch out into the oversized jackets that are on-trend right now. Style your jacket with a summer dress or basic tee for that perfect outfit upgrade.#4 Light CardiganA light cardigan is one of the most underrated fashion staples women have. Your favorite light cardigan will help you out at the movies or on a windy night, and it also makes your outfits way cuter.Pick from different lengths, styles, colors, and textures. This is one purchase where you’ll never have to feel buyer’s remorse! There’s no essential cardigan style, except that you should own at least a few.#5 EarringsIt’s rare to come across a woman who doesn’t have her ears pierced or doesn’t like wearing earrings. Earrings are a staple because they highlight your features and enhance your beauty.The best earrings for sensitive ears are generally made with gold, platinum, or silver. Make sure you buy earrings that are 14k gold or above, or sterling silver 925, to avoid the possibility of nickel being mixed in, which is what many people’s skin reacts to.Stud earrings are a common, simple type with many different styles and sizes. A stud is often a stone or ball that sights tight on the ear with the bar and back hidden, giving it the appearance of “floating” on the earlobe.Earrings are an essential wardrobe staple, regardless of style—they’ll complete your outfit and ensure you look remarkable.#6 Black BlazerWhatever you pair it with, a black blazer is great for any occasion. A nice, structured blazer works like a charm. There are so many styles of blazers these days that the options seem limitless.A good guideline to keep in mind is that you need enough room above your shoulders and under your arms to be able to layer your clothes! You might want to wear some additional items under your blazer on those cooler weather days.When choosing a blazer, make sure the sleeves are no longer than your wrists. This will keep you looking sharp and ensure you can roll the sleeves up to your elbows for a more dressed-down look.Fashion will always be a microcosm of culture—economically, politically, and otherwise. However you look at it, though, there will always be certain staple pieces that never go away. What are some of your staple wardrobe items?Check us out on Twitter and IG @citygirlsavings, and join in the conversations via our City Girl Savings Facebook page. We always look forward to hearing from you and other memb … 6 Fashion Staples Every Woman Should Have on HandRead More »