THIS YEAR
As we were in complete lockdown in April I'd assumed that I wouldn't buy any clothes, but I did.
During a bout of insomnia I was tempted by an email from New Look offering 25% off dresses. I placed an order, only remembering that I'd done so when I read the order confirmation email the next morning.
It's a midi dress (£19.49), very pretty, easy to wear, and good for slightly cooler summer days - you know the ones where it's not quite warm enough for short sleeves or hemlines, but you feel the need for something a bit summery? Well, this is perfect for such days.
In May I ordered a strappy black midi sundress (£26.00 not pictured), and a khaki print swimsuit (£25.99) from ASOS. Then I purchased a pre-loved dress (£9) from eBay despite having no idea when I'll wear it! It was the fact it has a full skirt and pockets that prompted me to place a bid, but it might find itself back on eBay if I don't wear it soon...
And this is when I decided that I wouldn't make another purchase for three months, partly to put a stop to my spending on clothes, new or otherwise, and partly so I can focus on another Wearing It All challenge, which I'll be starting tomorrow.
LAST YEAR
In April last year I purchased 18 items! 12 of which remain in my wardrobe.
These are the things that remain. Above: black pattern tunic dress, navy jumper, red floral top, black and tan shorts, white t-shirt, and grey jacket (which is over 30 Wears).
Below: cream jumper, PJ bottoms, stripe scarf, pink jumper, navy jumpsuit, black v neck t-shirt.
The six items I no longer have were all sold on ebay in the summer, mostly because they didn't fit well. Overall I made a small profit. One day I'll learn to try things on in charity shops before I buy them.
In May I purchased a pair of sandals in the La Redoute sale (£28.00), and a pair of almost new Next jeans for £5.00 from a charity shop. The sandals are lovely and very comfy, and the jeans have been worn well over 30 times already too.
In June I purchased two new items, a red tropical print Warehouse swimsuit in the sale, £28.50 (from £36.00), a pair of Havaianas flip flops, £24.00. The swimsuit has only been worn a handful of times, but the flip flops, as you can imagine, were in almost constant use last summer, and have been worn a lot already this year too. My first secondhand purchase of the month was a cornflower blue Escales Paris clutch bag for £6.50. I Googled the brand and discovered that these retail for over £200! It doesn't hold much so I'm tempted to sell it on ebay when the lockdown is over.
My second pre-loved purchase was a blue ASOS embroidered dress (£5.00). It's only been worn once but you can expect to see it again soon!
Total so far for 2020: £163.47
Total at this time last year: £219.25
Left of £200.00 budget: £36.53
Not much left in the budget! I'm going to go ahead and blame lockdown for my spending, if the charity shops had been open I'm sure I'd have spent less... maybe.
Anyway, not buying any clothes for the next few months will help to keep the total down, and who knows maybe £36.53 will buy me a few nice pre-loved bits at the end of the year and keep me within budget? I should feel more comfortable about venturing out and into the charity shops by the start of October.
Items purchased: 9 (pre-loved: 5) (new: 4)
My one purchase a month rule has been broken a few times but maybe a total of 12 items for the year still achievable? We'll see.
For the fifth year running I'm keeping track of my spending on clothes, shoes, and accessories with A Buyer's Archive.
