Renewal

The performance clothes I used a couple of weeks ago are still not sold, unfortunately. Because I already had to break the rules in December my resolutions went down the drain. I thought: what the hell, it is still December! January will be the start of a new shopping free year. Now I can buy something I sort of need and like:-) My socks are becoming worn. So, I wanted to enjoy this month of sin and bought 3 pairs of beautiful socks on sale, passing the shop I used to buy all my socks at.

One of the few cardigans I wear started pilling so much that I expect it has become too laid-back to wear to work. Maybe I can sleep in it? I need something career-appropriate. After work, I went shopping in the city I work in. A couple of months ago I sneaked into an intriguing outlet, selling clothes from a Dutch brand targeting career women in their forties that went bankrupt a couple of years ago. I had seen a pretty dark blue cardigan over there and still remembered it. The sales assistant explained that a new collection had already been made when the new investors decided to cancel the restart of the bankrupt brand. Now this high-quality collection was sold at relatively low prices in this shop. First time I went, it was a late Tuesday afternoon and the shop was closed! Maybe it was not ment to be... However, I really wanted to try on the flowy dark blue cardigan, a perfect substitute for the dark blue one that started pilling.

A week later I walked through the whole city centre again, fortunately to find the shop open. I went in wearing a still great 10-year old cardigan from that very brand under my coat. Fortunately, there was a cardigan in my size in stock that fitted perfectly. I saw a light cobalt blue model near the counter that also fitted, so now I own 2 high-quality flowy cardigans for less than a hundred (the brand was a little chique, so that is extraordinary) and I am very happy about it! New year's resolution: stop this December spending spree per January 1st.

Unwanted purhcases

End of the year, not of the programme

I cannot believe it is 10 months since my last post! This year my closet got more space because I sold old clothes regularly or gave them to charity organisations. Selling and donating old clothes gives me such a boost!

Living light

The emptier my closets, the more tidy my mind feels. There is room to think and calmness in my head. It feels great to have an overview of what I can wear because the amount of clothes is not overwhelming. There is not much risk of forgetting what I own. Almost each type of clothing can be counted on 1 or 2 hands. For instance, the amount of Winter cardigans can be counted on one hand, trousers on two. Still, I have enough to wear, so I do not have to do the laundry every week. This feels good! Therefore I like to treasure the empty space in my closets. I do not want to buy anything at all, or so I thought.

Down the drain

In November it would be a year since my last purchase. Not even socks were bought after October 2014. However, my efforts went down the drain in October when I entered a pop-up outlet. With signs indicating prices starting from 5 euros and gigantic discounts, I went in. I was not tempted by the handbags, no, I went in wearing my 15-year old Autumn coat and got an idea. This coat has become so thin it is more like a Summer coat disguised as Winter gear. I saw its warmer successor in a colour that is great for me: a violet-like pink, for just 25 euros because the belt could not be found. I tried the coat on and saw it was a little bit large, but still magnificent. This temptation unfortunately could not be resisted.

I still have the old brown coat and wear it if the Autumn weather is good. Someday I will have to throw it away and start wearing the new one which I only wore once since I bought it. Typically me to first wear out very old clothes before using new ones that remain unused for years on end.

Future plans

Now that I did not buy clothes for 11 instead of 12 months, I will give hitting the 1-year mark a try again. My target is not to shop until November 2016. By that time it may be necessary to add things to my slimmed-down closet. However, I am not looking forward to doing something I am not experienced at anymore and do not find time for.

Party time

I also received 4 items in a creative way. In May I visited the first clothes swapping party. I was confronted with the fact that I mainly have old-fashioned 90s clothes that are quite colourful. Not of much interest to the twentysomethings... Everybody was so skinny, but still, I found 3 nice things in my size and made someone else happy with a skirt I never wear. A couple of months later it was the other way around. There was more interest for the 90s stuff that remained after the first swapping party. This time a few of my items were taken while I only found one shirt a couple of sizes too large. After a couple of months I started using it for sports. 

Foot business

This Summer I started to have ankle aches during a new type of training, so I went to a sports therapist. She declared my trainers too old and informed me that even unused, trainers are worn down after 3 years at the most. Oops, they are way over 3 years! The result was unwanted because I DO NOT WANT TO BUY ANYTHING. Therefore I stopped the practice that gave me ankle aches and did other things, using my only other trainers. This mostly solved the ankle trouble, but I kept having complaints now and then so I had to visit some sports shops to look for suitable trainers. I felt discouraged. All those trainers, it was overwhelming! Although breaking my not shopping promise may be necessary for my feet, I postpone the trainer purchase until Spring or even later, if the current trainers will still feel okay.

Because my ankles felt strained I was referred to a chiropodist. I visited her with a couple of my 15-year old Winter shoes, good on the outside but worn-down on the inside. She told me my feet were not too bad, but needed some correction. Also, most of my expensive but old shoes did not pass her ergonomic standards. I did not buy any new shoes, but had to pay a lot for inlay soles especially made for my feet. I could use them in some of my old shoes before buying more ergonomic ones. However, it was already difficult to find time in November to visit the shoe store the chiropodist recommended, so buying new shoes will be a long-term plan. 

Not shopping, but selling

Four months later and a new year is progressing. I still have 8 months to go and haven't bought any clothing since October. That's a small victory! Since November, I discovered a new hobby and that is...selling old clothes on the internet. I had to face the truth because I have a dozen of items from secondary school or the 0's that still look good because I barely wear them. Either they are not the most comfortable, or they simply do not suit me. Think of things that are too short to wear at the office or have a flashy colour.

When starting my sale, I discovered something peculiar. If I put nylons online, my customers appear to be men, travestites to be clear. After 4 months, I sold almost all the nylons I never used. So many large envelopes were sent through the country...and I met a travestite IRL. He looked like a normal man to me, but at home he wears...well, you understand. Most were still packaged after a small decade! Oftentimes I received the full discount price I paid for them long ago.

Besides nylons, I try to sell shirts, skirts, sweaters, red handbags (I have two, but the only red thing about me should be my hair). Unfortunately, even after reducing the price, I do not sell much. Still, people show interest in an item every week. Now that the panty supply has almost finished, I sold a red bag last week. If I will not sell my old clothes, I might give them to charity.

Not going strong

What went wrong?

Baggy looks

Cheating

Dear readers,

Winter is over and I have more than half a year to go. Buying nothing becomes more and more difficult after two and a half years of the same old stuff, although the prospect of going in and out of shops for fitting sessions and money spending do not appeal to me anymore.

Despite the challenge, I already spent over 20 euros on clothes this year. Yes, I am guilty… for passable reasons. First, I really needed new home slippers in January. Second, some of the cheap socks I bought half a year ago start to wear out already, so I purchased two new pairs in March. Third, I desperately needed new underwear last month. Buying that was quite a challenge. I am quite out of practice, as I have not done that for 3 years! The shop I used to buy underwear at makes hardly any items out of the fabric I like. Luckily, last month they had some, but, ehm, what was my size again? I gained a little weight this year, but bought a size that would be too small before the challenge. A refund was not possible. To my relief, miraculously my purchases fitted somehow when I tried them on at home.

Unfortunately, I also made a less necessary purchase. At a ladies’ fair I found a stand selling bracelets emulating one I love very much, but is from an expensive brand. I spent almost 50 euros on three imitation bracelets, but they are even more beautiful than the real thing!

Because I never throw a thing away, I wanted to register how old everything I wear  is. Everything is two-and-a-half-plus years old now. Two thirds of the garments I wear often are post-university, that is, purchased between 2008 and 2012. The rest is older, but mainly stems from the last couple of years before graduation. I have few frequently-worn clothes left from secondary school times.

There are more important and interesting things I can spend my money on, but next year, or maybe again this year the need to buy something new will rise to a critical level! Instead of buying clothes, I visited two stylists’ fashion events this year already. It feels less fun and more challenging to follow stylists’ advice and select this season’s fashion from my wardrobe than two years ago.

The last few months I had to break my rules because I was running out of socks. Moreover, both of my pairs of gloves were already torn when I started to wear them in Autumn! To minimize the damage, I visited a shop that handles a fixed price for three pairs of socks, a popular accessory shop for the gloves and was surprised by two other pairs of gloves as Christmas presents. Now I have enough socks for at least a year and gloves for several years to come!

Concerning further shopping, I am still not interested. Because of breaking the rules a few times this year, I am opting for another shopping free year. This is almost necessary. I probably will not be able to afford any shopping next year, especially if I want to keep saving a small percentage of my income every month while having more bills to pay.

Yesterday morning I woke up with a worried feeling. The last couple of years I prefer to wear what I wear since childhood: warm sweaters and nowadays also comfortable cardigans. As I only have a handful of them, I am a little tired of wearing them quite often during the last few winters. That is too bad, because it is a waste to get rid of intact sweaters and I still have more than a shopping free year to go. So, I will have to make do with them:-)

2 months later

Two months later, Autumn has started and I did not buy things...myself! For my birthday I got to select a new winter coat. No problems in that department for the next few years. Also, I received a new dress for work and a couple of knickers. Shopping was pretty nice, although more intensive because I paid attention to more things than I used to. The clothes had to be practical for my lifestyle (decent, wearable on the bike) and in a colour that truly suits me as a dark Summer type. I felt guilty, as I had planned not to solve to non-shopping period by gifts.