Yesterday was Ladies' Day at Royal Ascot. Looking forward to next year's event which will be at York, Women's Editor Christen Pears finds out whether you need to spend a fortune to look a million dollars.

WHEN my boss called me into his office and set me the challenge of finding two outfits for Ascot - one for £50 and one for £500 - I almost laughed out loud. A complete outfit for £50? I spent double that on a pair of shoes the other week.

But he was adamant. With Royal Ascot moving to York next year, he wanted to know exactly how much it's going to cost the women of the North to look good.

Ascot is the place to be seen during the summer season. Anyone who's anyone is there, parading up and down in finery, not to mention outrageous hats. Some of this year's more eye-catching designs included an upside down champagne glass and an enormous hollow globe made from pink piping.

It is interesting to note that the racecourse's obsession with style was started 200 years ago by a man - the renowned dandy, Beau Brummell. "Men of elegance should wear waisted black coats and white cravats with pantaloons," he said. What he would have thought of some of today's fashions is anybody's guess.

My mission was to find something in Darlington that wouldn't look out of place among the socialites, but tracking down the £50 outfit was tricky, particularly the all-essential hat. A quick scout around the town's charity shops revealed a couple of tired-looking straw numbers and some ludicrously large-brimmed ones that looked as if they'd been worn by Joan Collins in Dynasty circa 1982.

Neither would do, so it was off to Boyes where, according to an office rumour, there was a stylish selection of headgear at knock-down prices. I wasn't disappointed. For just £18.99, I picked up a black hat with a smart bow and a smattering of feathers. It wasn't Philip Treacy but it was classic.

With almost half my budget gone, I had to find a dress, pair of shoes and bag. There was only one place to go - New Look. With its catwalk-inspired trends and amazing prices, I was fairly confident of my chances.

The rails were full of the pretty pastels that have been so evident at Ascot this year: pink, yellow and green. I decided on green, and in just two minutes I'd found myself a strappy dress for a tenner and a pair of matching high heels. A cute black bag completed the outfit, although it did put me £2 over budget. I got my knuckles rapped by the boss for that, but a girl needs something to carry her lipstick in.

Feeling smug that I'd done so well, I headed off to Grange Road with my theoretical £500 burning a hole in my pocket. Buying an outfit for £500 would be a doddle - or so I thought.

My first stop was Kate Saint, which was full of the kind of clothes you see at Ascot: sexy little suits, floating frocks and dozens of hats. They looked fabulous but I soon realised that £500 wasn't going to get me very far - so I cheated a little.

I decided to hire rather than buy a hat and chose an enormous black and cream one that went perfectly with a Moschino linen dress I found in Elan. The shoes and bag, in classic black, both came from the newly-opened Buckles shoe shop, and the grand total was £490.98.

Then came the real test - could anyone tell the difference? The boss certainly couldn't. It was a triumph for thrifty shopping but perhaps one we should keep quiet about. We don't really want men knowing it's possible to look stylish on such a small budget.