Cathy spent some of her money on a blazer, a pair of boots and some bracelets. She spent ¹₇ of her money and an additional $283 on a blazer. Next, she spent ⁴₇ of the remaining money and an additional $51 on a pair of boots. Finally, she spent ⁵₆ of what she had left on some bracelets and had $9 left. How much did Cathy have at first?
Fraction of the money that she had left
= 1 - ⁵₆ 
= ¹₆

¹₆ of the money she had left = 9
⁶₆ of the money she had left = 6 x 9 = 54

Fraction of the remaining money excluding the additional $51 spent on a pair of boots
= 1 - ⁴₇
= ³₇

³₇ of the remaining money = 54 + 51 = 105
¹₇ of the remaining money = 105 ÷ 3 = 35
⁷₇ of the remaining money = 7 x 35 = 245

Fraction of the total money excluding the additional $283 spent on the blazer
= 1 - ¹₇
= ⁶₇

⁶₇ of total money = 245 + 283 = 528
¹₇ of total money = 528 ÷ 6 = 88
⁷₇ of total money = 7 x 88 = 616

Amount that Cathy had at first = $616

Answer(s): $616