Happy New Year! I am finally beginning to feel human once again after suffering from the never ending cold from hell.
I am the shopaholic who is going to attempt to give up shopping or perhaps to be more specific “pleasure shopping” for 365 days. So, let’s define what “pleasure shopping” is; it is anything which falls outside the realm of need. Yes, it is easy enough to say “I need those boots or I am going to die if I don’t buy that Louis Vuitton bag, I need that purse!!!” – obviously these are not real “needs”. I am not going to make this easy for myself. I am giving up all clothing shopping, accessory shopping, thrift shopping, and gadget shopping. You may think the challenge is unreasonable, but trust me; I don’t need anything as of present. I probably own over 100 pairs of panties, and I own over 30 bras, and I own over 50 pairs of socks – possibly more. I have a variety of fashionable and functional boots, and shoes up the wazoo, yet I probably only wear two to three pairs regularly. The only clothing items I will preclude from the “no shop list” are sneakers for health reasons in addition to having extraordinarily ugly feet with a plethora of orthopaedic issues. As an individual who frequents the gym, and runs, I do need to change my sneakers often.
Okay, so what shopping is allowed? Grocery shopping and replenishing toiletries such as shampoo, make-up, body wash, and items such as this, but I have to be honest, I have to have exhausted my shampoo before I can purchase new shampoo, same with soap, facial creams, mascara and et cetera. I can buy gifts for others and I am allowed to accept gifts from others! Clothing swaps will be allowed, but as previously mentioned – no second hand store shopping.
Why have I chosen giving up shopping to be my main new year’s resolution? Well, there are a few reasons:
- To pay down debt from being a “travel-holic”
- To appreciate what I already have
- To see if I can follow through on a difficult commitment (hard for me, let me tell you!)
- To have more money to share with others who are less fortunate
- To stop being a product of “consumerism/materialism” (buying way beyond my basic needs) with the belief that purchasing something will add to my life or status in society, and how buying certain products will somehow make me happier.
Recently, I have been experiencing what they call in marketing “dissonance” which is the regret of spending money on something, aka “Buyer’s Remorse”. The main reason for my guilty conscience with shopping is because I don’t need anything new; I have a bookshelf full of books some bought, many gifts which I have yet to read and drawers full of beauty products still in packaging. I have been good to give away stuff that I don’t like and will never use, but I have a lot of items which are collecting dust which I fully intend to use, but then I see some new eye cream with the promise to erase ten years instantly and suddenly the other $50 jar of eye promises is put away in the medicine cabinet. What a waste of money! It has to stop, I need to use what I have. Every time I empty a bottle of body wash it feels like an epic accomplishment, with a sigh of relief that money was not wasted this time.
Now as for fashion, I do sport a couple of trends, but for the most part I consider my style to be classic, so I am not too concerned that my wardrobe is going to turn into some passé haute gauche catastrophe. My staples will never go out of style, as a self confessed shopaholic, I do have a closet full of goods which require repairs, whether it be hemming, sewing a button back on, or fixing some hardware on a purse. I will be allowed to invest money in fixing items, but as I am trying to save, I will be hemming my own pants (tall girl and just a case of the hem falling out) and sewing my own buttons on.
One more additional attribute to giving up shopping is weight loss! I have no choice but to lose weight so that the clothing I already currently own fit me, and it kills me to say this, but I have a couple of designer jeans which bring out the muffin top. Time to drop some poundage so I can squeeze myself comfortably back into my denims.
Should be an interesting 2015 and I hope to be able to purchase a shiny new car at the end of it – smiley winky face.
Peace – RLCJ x
You Know Jacques! 