Create an upscale, smashing business warddrobe on a college grad's budget. Like most women, I like to shop. I also like to think I've gotten good at it. Women in business need to present a professional, conservative image. Big slits and low tops are not for work. So how do you put together a $10,000 warddrobe with only $1000? Here are a few of my tips!!

- Don't automatically gravitate to lower-end stores for business wear just because you don't think you can afford higher quality items. You want to portray a high- quality image to get promoted to the job you want, so dress the part.

- Be prepared to spend a little extra on the classics- a really good suit for interviews, some nice dress pants, and some high-quality dress shirts.

- SALES!! Always, Always, go to high end stores and look at their sale rack. You can get great deals for good quality items this way without spending your whole budget!

Current suggestions:

- One of my favorite dress-shirt makers of ALL tip, Charles Tyrwhitt, is having a big sale right now. Charles Tyrwhitt has a store in NY, but is based in England. Clearance racks you'll never find in-store, but right now online you'll find dress shirts originally $100-$150 on sale for $35-50. You can get a few a that price! The shirts are well-made of high-quality fabrics and fit fabulously. Link: http://www.ctshirts.co.uk/search.aspx?DepGrpCode=CLE&level1=Clearance
Dont' worry- even though it's from London, shipping costs are reasonable.

- Talbots has great, high-quality business casual wear. Find cardigans, suits, and dress shirts at 40-70% in their semi-annual sale, going on now. The best selection is online. Link: http://www1.talbots.com/talbotsonline/search/searchresults.aspx?q=Misses+Sale&BID=&h=M

- I've also gotten some great high-quality suits at United Colors of Benneton. I've gotten a lot of complements on a suit that only cost me about $150. The fabric is great and the cut is superb. According to a case study I did recently at Babson, the suits are made in Italy by independent contractors (little mom-and-pop sewers) so it's not a cheaply made mass-produced suit like you'd find at target or h & m.