Yesterday we were in a brooding mood as we pondered the effect the economic downturn would have on our fashion choices. However, we've since turned our frowns upside down, as we realized that the fashion world doesn't have to become a virtual strip mall of homogeneous, low-quality goods. While we're still aware of its pitfalls and are sleeping with one eye open, we've found solutions for the fashion-craving girl or guy on a paltry budget. Our network partners show us the way.

We found inspiration in the form of a puffed shoulder, via Kingdom of Style's tale of victory on eBay, where she scored a unique bolero jacket that sent her over the moon with rapturous joy. Her jubilant photo spread with said jacket proved to us that you can still sate your high-fashion appetites. You just have to know where to look. Even if bidding wars aren't your thing, there are many virtual stores on eBay that don't require you to engage in high-speed clicking battles with an enemy mouse. For the uninitiated, these stores allow eBayers to buy and sell goods at fixed prices.

If it's indie accoutrements you crave, Etsy is pretty hard to beat. As a marketplace for independent designers to showcase their wares without the costs associated with a brick and mortar shop, it's a go-to if you're looking for unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that you won't see everywhere else. Plus, it feels good to support a fledgling designer and stick it to our mass-producing culture. Network partner Stereoette makes and sells her own jewelry at her Etsy online store. She also recommends Gavin & Lily, and Holly Stalder.

If it's vintage you seek, our network partners have you covered. Shrimpton Couture is a treasure trove of vintage finds and is currently offering 15% off of everything on the site until May 31. Debutante Clothing lets you know where to find the great vintage styles and tips you off to the best eBay and Etsy shops. Zuburbia always features an enviable vintage pick of the day and provides a well-edited list of links to vintage resources.

Perhaps our economic woes will force us to become better, more resourceful shoppers. There will always be a niche to serve those discerning consumers who won't be satisfied with what traditional retailers try to peddle, and as long as we continue to seek it, the market will respond accordingly.

The ominous news on the economy front has given us a bout of the blues. While the downturn won't exactly mean breadline poverty for us all, it'll most certainly affect the choices of all but the upper strata.

Where will the fashion-starved turn once our everyday indulgences become unattainable luxuries? Many a fashion lover who feeds her habit with reckless abandon has had to face this reality, whether it's brought to our attention at the gas station, grocery store, or stock market. Practical considerations will almost certainly prompt a reevaluation of spending habits, with less disposable income allocated for the guilty pleasures and non-essentials. Save for the occasional treat, we'll either be shopping less, or shopping lower. If our favorite designer clothing becomes out of reach, less options may mean more time spent trawling the wares at Forever 21. Will the already ubiquitous diffusion lines and mass market retail become our daily bread?

Before you shudder and picture a Manhattan bursting at the sidewalks with a hideous amalgam of khaki and day-glo teen clones, consider the possibility that such a change might be an impetus for designers to get innovative in order to produce reasonably priced, fashion-forward designs. One would hope, but perhaps the more real possibility is that cutting corners in order to cut costs, so that we may continue to consume at a pace that our economy is clearly telling us is unsustainable, will result in a decline in the overall quality of the goods we consume. While you may love the feel of premium cashmere grazing your skin, you might have to get used to a scratchy substitute. When we relax standards out of what seems like necessity or a lack of options, our acceptance indicates to manufacturers that we'll settle for substandard, inferior products. If this becomes a trend, it could yield a worrisome outcome in which the consumer is left little choice but to purchase whatever the market offers.

Such a shift in consumer spending habits may just prove to be a boon for vertically integrated companies like Zara, which has proven its ability to continuously provide a steady stream of new styles to a fashion-conscious but budget-minded populace. It'll be interesting to see how much they stand to gain or lose as pursestrings are tightened. Without further ado, here's what you might be wearing come Fall/Winter 2008, brought to you by Catwalk Queen, who got a sneak peek at H&M's press preview over in London and shows us some of the trends the mass merchant will be shilling. Love it or hate it, it might just be one of your only options.