My Month of No Shopping
The month of March was a fantastic one in terms of productivity and flowing creative juices. It was also the first time I set out to achieve an intentional no-shopping month. And guess what? It was honestly pretty easy. So what was the motivation behind this? If we’re being real, it was mostly to give my bank account a much needed break. I also wanted to hit the reset button on the way I approached shopping. At the beginning of the year my shopping habit felt a bit like a train running off the tracks. A month-long shopping ban was a way to slow down long enough to asses my relationship with shopping. So today I’m breaking down the steps you can take if you feel like it’s time for a little shopping detox.
Find Your Motivation
Is it to put away an extra X amount of money? Is it to curb your serious addiction to the Asos ‘New In’ section? Maybe you’re just tired of looking at your ever-growing closet still thinking you have nothing to wear. Whatever your motivation is, it’s useful to write it down and keep it somewhere you can easily refer back to. Having a bigger picture in mind will really help on those days when you’re just tired and ready to treat yourself… yet again.
Trash the Temptation
There were some days when I went to check my email and ended up spending 30 minutes browsing the “this weekend only” sale section of my favorite store’s website. Let me tell you two truths: 1. “this weekend only” sales are more frequent than you’d think, and 2. your inbox is a major temptation that needs to be sorted immediately. If you subscribe to the email list of any online retailer, you have the added temptation to shop before you ever even think about visiting their website. Luckily, there is a super simple fix to this problem, and it gives you the added satisfaction of clearing out your inbox; unsubscribe, unsubscribe, unsubscribe!
Shirt: H&M (Similar) | Cardigan: Asos (Similar) | JEANS: ZARA | Shoes: 1 State (Similar) | Bag: JW Pei (SIMILAR)
Plan Seasonally
March was an ideal month to put a pause on spending because it was the last month of the Winter Season. Every time I thought about making an impulsive purchase, I put it into the context of my capsule wardrobe. Knowing that I would be making some purchases for my Spring wardrobe in April, made me weigh how much I would use that item in the next 3 months. This also helped me focus my energy on planning more for the next season, and thinking about each purchase for a while before deciding to purchase. If you’re ready for a no-shopping month, consider scheduling it for mid-season or end-of-season.
ReStyle What You Have
The best part of this whole experiment was that it challenged me to become more creative with styling what I already own. Even more so, it helped me fight the urge to add one new thing here or there to make my wardrobe exciting again. During this month, I spent a whole lot more time mining Instagram and Pinterest for inspiration and styling videos. Now the thought of wearing one piece in several ways is even more exciting than before, and feels like a fun challenge.
So those are my tips for those of you considering a no-shopping month. While I know it’s not all that long of a break, and there have been several things written on longer shopping bans, it is a good place to start if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed by your wardrobe. This is also a great strategy for anyone with a capsule wardrobe, as it makes you think longer and harder about each item you choose to purchase. As always, thanks so much for reading and let me know your thoughts in the comments! And yes, I realize it’s a huge contradiction to include a ‘Shop The Post’ section at the end, but for the sake of consistency, there it is.