2.01.2012

clothing fast


(What I wish my closet looked like via)

One of my goals for the New Year, was to not buy clothes at all for four months. That includes jewelry, shoes and accessories. Crazy?

My friend Sheryl told me that she did not buy new clothes for a full year last year. Nothing! I was amazed by that and inspired, but decided a whole year was a little too long for me, and tried to make my goal more attainable. 

The thing is - my clothes will not all fit in my closet. Embarrassing, since it is a pretty big - but not walk-in closet. I donated everything I no longer wear, but even still - the clothes are so jammed on their hangers that they are difficult to pull out, and get lost, even though I color-code everything. To keep myself motivated to not add more to my overflowing closet, every month I am putting $100 that I would have spent on clothes into a separate fund for a trip, or a larger furniture purchase.

To be honest, it hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be. It has forced me to be creative with the clothes I already have, and even though it has only been a month I feel such a sense of accomplishment. As an avid shopaholic, it feels good to scale back and focus on what I already have, which is still much more than I need.

That being said, here are the items I am hoping to purchase when May gets here. Maybe they will be on sale by then!

This dress
These pants
This shirt
This necklace
These earrings
This swimming suit 
This trench
This sweater

(p.s. Have any of you done a clothing fast, or spending fast in general? It has been such a good experience so far.)

15 comments:

Kelsie said...

Totally on a clothing fast as we speak. I vowed I wouldn't spend a dime on me during the month of December (and I didn't) and then I promised I wouldn't go shopping until Valentines day... so it ended up being a two month fast, but going this long without it, and seeing my bank account grow ... I actually might extend it until March. Maybe. Good for you for doing this! You're helping me want to continue it even more!

And PS. Yes. When will we plan something? Does a certain weekend work for you guys? Would you want to come over to dinner at some point at my place? Let's please do it soon!

Danielle said...

My sister and I did a clothing fast of sorts last year, but ours only lasted a month. We decided that we are DEFINITELY emotional shoppers! It was rough but so necessary. I need to get rid of stuff but have the hardest time getting over myself and just DOING it! You're inspiring haha. Love love love your blog. New reader! And um, drooling over that closet.

Unknown said...

i love getting rid of old clothes!! it makes me wear the clothes i love so much more, and they don't get lost in a bunch of stuff i don't use.

Brittany said...

Seriously, good for you. I don't think I could last more than a couple of weeks! For some reason, shopping has become my consistent guilty pleasure for the past five years. I am a real believer in retail therapy.

ulrich said...

ok this is the best idea ever. i am a shopaholic and can't resist a good deal...like ever! cleaning out my closet this weekend and starting my fast asap.

Christine Chioma said...

um hello mandy next time you get rid of clothes... give them to me!

i do clothing fasts out of necessity and lack of funds. haha or i'll say i'll only buy clothes if they're on sale or secondhand

Griffin and Gretchen said...

You go girl. I don't know if I could do it. I think I'll just buy all those things for you.

Andrea said...

Nice work. One of my goals this year is to not buy clothes for 4 months also! good job. I should probably start right now since I'm going on vacation in July & definitely want to have some new duds for then. I like the idea of setting aside that money for something else too.

Lacey said...

Couldn't agree with you more! my closet is starting to overflow and is in desperate need of my cleaning and I have to stop adding,

Lacey xoxo

Whitney Kaye said...

Way to go! A fast had crossed my mind, but I just took my first trip to Marshalls and found 2 amazing Michael Kors bags (my biggest wish) which made me cave and that put a stop to the fasting idea.I've kind of forced a fast on myself after those two purchases I guess :)

whitneykayestyles.blogspot.com

his little lady said...

that closet is absolutely fabulous! definitely hoping someday i'll have something like that!
oh, and i just adore all of your clothing wish lists :)
xo TJ

karly from [kar[+]wade] said...

That stinkin' swimsuit from anthro is so cute!!! 158.00? hot dang. maybe another year. hahah.

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