Elyse spent some of her money on a blouse, a pair of moccasins and some bracelets. She spent ¹₄ of her money and an additional $248 on a blouse. Next, she spent ³₅ of the remaining money and an additional $71 on a pair of moccasins. Finally, she spent ⁴₅ of what she had left on some bracelets and had $7 left. How much did Elyse have at first?
Fraction of the money that she had left
= 1 - ⁴₅ 
= ¹₅

¹₅ of the money she had left = 7
⁵₅ of the money she had left = 5 x 7 = 35

Fraction of the remaining money excluding the additional $71 spent on a pair of moccasins
= 1 - ³₅
= ²₅

²₅ of the remaining money = 35 + 71 = 106
¹₅ of the remaining money = 106 ÷ 2 = 53
⁵₅ of the remaining money = 5 x 53 = 265

Fraction of the total money excluding the additional $248 spent on the blouse
= 1 - ¹₄
= ³₄

³₄ of total money = 265 + 248 = 513
¹₄ of total money = 513 ÷ 3 = 171
⁴₄ of total money = 4 x 171 = 684

Amount that Elyse had at first = $684

Answer(s): $684