So far this year I haven't made a single non-essential purchase - yes I know we're only 25 days into the year so I'm not claiming that this is a huge achievement, I'm simply saying 'so far, so good'. I've used the time to ponder what will constitute essential spending for my Year of Less.

I wrote about my desire to buy less, to be a more mindful consumer, in my resolutions post, but I hadn't got it all figured out. Essentials are obviously food, toiletries, and gifts for others. I also decided that I could buy clothes but only if I needed them, and the item being replaced leaves my possession.

Books are to be borrowed from the library when it reopens. That's if I need to - I currently have over 50 books on my shelves waiting to be read.

I'm adding seeds, and plants and anything garden related to the list of essentials. My garden and greenhouse have always been something I enjoy but they were an absolute godsend last year during lockdown. I'm not about to deny myself the pleasure of garden pottering.

Other items that I buy are usually house related. In 2020 I purchased photo frames, supplies for DIY jobs, two towel rails, a mirror for the lounge, and I feel that these are all justified purchases as they improve and enrich our surroundings. The thing to do here is be certain that I'm not acting on a whim.

Which brings me neatly to the subject of impulse purchases. I rarely give much consideration to whether or not I should buy something, so this year I've decided to write down all the things I consider buying and wait before making a purchase. I have six things on that list already, two of which I'll probably buy.

As you can tell it's not a total spending ban, they never work for me. The point is to limit what I add to my home. I'm definitely guilty of buying stuff in charity shops because 'it's nice and only a few quid', only to return home and never look at it again. Or to buy something I think I need on a whim only to discover I didn't really need it in the first place.

Which brings me to clutter. I'm not striving for minimalism but, despite decluttering many times over the years, I still own a lot of pointless stuff that just needs to go. 

I always feel better when it's tidy, the surfaces are uncluttered and everything has a home, it feels like I have more space to breath. It's time to be ruthless...

What would be on your essential shopping list?

xx

So, putting myself on a total spending ban doesn't work.

I try, I fail, I try again. Again I fail. The story never changes.

However I have found something that does work for me.

At the end of 2014 I promised myself that I wouldn't buy any scarves or PJs for a whole year. I had more than enough already and even though I threw away some PJs that had seen better days, and donated several of my scarves, I still ended 2015 with ample amounts of both.

I did buy myself a pair of Christmas PJs at the very end of 2015, but this was to keep up my tradition of wearing new PJs on Christmas Eve. And they were glorious! I think they're my favourite PJs ever.

That aside, I decided to continue this for 2016, possibly even forgoing Christmas PJs this year too.

In doing this I came to realise that I simply didn't look at either item online or in shops, it's like they no longer showed up on my radar which I found very interesting.

Now all I have to do is identify the other things I think I have plenty of and strike them from my shopping list.

Blusher is certainly one of them. Lipsticks too. As for clothing items, I think I've got knitwear covered, and summer trousers. Although I think these last two will be more difficult than scarves and PJs, but it's worth a try.

This didn't stop me spending last year but, who knows, maybe this along with my capsule wardrobe - more on that in another post - will make me think twice about what I have (and need) before making a purchase?

Do you find it easy to control your spending? And if you do, how?!

I issued a spending ban. But I caved. I doubt anyone will be surprised. I wasn't.


I was in a charity shop, back in November (in my defense I was making a donation), when I tripped and fell into the changing room with some knitwear.


And then I was pondering what to wear over the festive period. You might recall a red dress I picked up at a clothes swap? I wanted to wear it but I needed a shrug or cardigan of some description to wear with it, so this teeny tiny eBay purchase occurred.


And whilst that was going on, this dress happened (Monsoon, £8.50, excellent condition - how could I not?).


And this jacket.


But that's it I promise.

Except for some long sleeve t-shirts to wear under jumpers, but only after I discovered three of mine had holes in them. But that really is it.

Apart from a Next jumper that I bought in lieu of a novelty Christmas jumper. It's super, super soft, and has really long sleeves. It's so cosy and I was starting to feel poorly and, heck, I just wanted it! What's more because I bought it instead of a Christmas Jumper, I can wear it all year round and I've worn it a lot already. So, it's totally justified, right?

Do spending bans ever work?

I kept a record, month by month, of my clothing and accessory purchases for 2012 (you can see all items here). Taking part in Frugal February made me wonder how much I spent and I was interested to see what I buy and what I wear and use. I'd say it was a typical year of spending although taking part in Frugal February and Only Once August stopped my spending temporarily.

M spending was as follows - Jan £181, Feb was frugal, March £272, April £50, May £86, June £180, July £293, August was Only Once, Sept £309, October £178, November £128, December £74.

Which is a total of ...



Wowzer! I purchased a total of 138 items of which 42% are pre loved, 9.4% no longer belong to me (mostly donated to charity) and 33.3% have been worn / used once or not at all (yet) but this does include a lot of recent purchases, and, just so you know, I'm not counting my ritual of 'wear around the house immediately after purchase' as 'being worn'.
Percentages courtesy of this neat little website, maths is not a strong point for me.

The most expensive one
Kurt Geiger shoes, half price at £105.00. Sadly these are in the 33.3% of 'unworns' but I will remedy this and be back to share the photos.



The most worn one
Simple above the knuckle ring from The Bohemian Collection (previously known as Wired Jewellery). This rarely leaves my finger, silly, simple little thing.



The one I wish I hadn't bought
Stupid, dumb, silly hat. It looks huge on my head, I'm never going to wear it!



The best of the pre loved
It's hard to pick just one item, but at the moment this bag is getting a lot of love. It's Monsoon but I won it in an eBay auction in September for £13.93



The one I was most surprised by
When the peplum trend first emerged it made me shudder. I couldn't think of anything worse than something that flared out over the hips. But I tried it and liked it, once again reminding myself to never say never.



The one I wish I still had
This H&M cardigan just seemed to work with everything. Why don't I have it anymore? It got kittened, thanks to Tinker and her penchant for digging in her tiny, pin sharp claws, I ended up with a big hole on the right shoulder. Shame.



Have you ever kept a tally of your purchases? I've really enjoyed keeping a record and looking back over what I have, what I love and what I no longer own.

What would you do with £1,700 if you couldn't buy clothes?

Love

I have been really crap at keeping up to date with these posts! This time around (which is actually a few weeks ago now...) I used some long forgotten items.

Revlon Powder Blush in Berry Rich. I chose this because it was a muted soft pink with only a teeny tiny bit of shimmer. I really like it but it doesn't last all day, some reapplication would be necessary, but I don't carry cosmetics around with me for touch ups. I used to but found that I didn't use it much so I made my bag a little lighter and left the lot at home. This isn't to say that, since then, there haven't been occasions when I was in dire need of some cosmetic help and cursed my decision to leave my make up bag at home!

L'Oreal Trio Eyeshadow for blue eyes. Lovely colours and good staying power (especially when using Elfs eyelid primer). This is great for both a natural sweep of colour or for creating a daytime smokey eye.

Dior Diorshow New Look Mascara. I.love.this. It has a tiny brush but has the power to transform my pathetic lashes. Seriously, go get yourself a tube.

Inka eyeliner in graphite. I got this is a Glossybox, it's organic but a little to shimmery and pale for my liking. It's grey with a hint of silver, which is pretty but I prefer something darker.

Elf eyelid primer in Champagne. This is my second favourite elf eyelid primer after the sheer one. I wear this alone for a shimmery look. It's subtle enough for the daytime and stays put. Can't fault it.

What make up products do you love?

Love

My August challenge has made me think about not just the clothes I have languishing in the back of my wardrobe but all the things I have that I rarely use. Take my make up drawer for example - it's full of stuff and yet I use the same items day in, day out.

So, taking a leaf out of Lauren's book I decided to do a weekly make up, shake up to mix things up a bit. Although so far I haven't been organised enough to post weeky. Oops.


Firstly, I have to say that there are some items that I just could not do without - eyelash curlers, obviously. Elf Eyelid Primer (introduced to me by Lauren), Avon Supermagnify mascara, the only thing that works on my lower lashes. Benefit Erase Paste, a recent find but one I instantly fell in love with! And Body Shop Brow and Liner Kit, I searched high and low for a decent eyebrow kit and this is by far the best and the only one that doesn't leave me with orange brows. These will remain in my make up bag no. matter. what.


Week One
Elf Brightening Eye Colour in Brownstone, great colours, my favourite being the maroon colour which I used as an eyeliner quite a lot. I hate the eyeshadow applicators that come with it. They're hard and scratchy. Yuck.

Boots No7 Lash Adapt mascara, I'm on my second tube of this. It's fab, I was absolutely certain that I'd reviewed this, I haven't but I meant to! I have fine, stubborn lashes but this stuff works a treat and the claim that you can apply several coats to build up fullness and length is true, although seven layers (so they say) is pushing it for me.

Eyeko Skinny eyeliner in black, I received this in a Glossybox some time ago. I really like the formula and it stays put but it didn't fit in my make up bag (it was too long) so it got thrown in the drawer. However, my larger make up bag and I are now loving it.

Becca Beach Tint for cheeks and lips in watermelon, another Glossybox item. It smells divine. I only use it on my cheeks for a pinch of colour, it tastes a little odd and doesn't really last as a lip colour. I don't normally bother with blush but this is really nice.

Soap and Glory Sexy Mother Pucker XL Extreme Plump XL Lip Plumping Gloss I've had this for ages, it's nearing the end. It's great stuff, lasts for ages, gives a fuller lip (don't expect miracles though it's plumping not totally transformative), it leaves lips soft and tastes yummy. I'd happily purchase this again, as soon as I've used up all the other lip glosses in my possession, which could take a while. I don't use lip gloss on a daily basis so I don't know why I have so many.

Love

I do not own any orange shorts and I definitely do not own any orange leather shorts. I had thought that any pair of shorts would have to do, I thought about wearing these, worn for an Inspiration Monday last summer, but whilst in town on Saturday I saw this cute skirt and decided that this would be better. It's not orange but it's close enough. This will be my last purchase until September as I'm on a spending ban for the duration of August and have set myself a little challenge to keep me occupied.

I actually wore this on Sunday as I have a 'no thigh' rule for work, but I can be forgiven for that, right?

I mentioned last week that I'd organised a Clothes Swap, I just thought I'd let you know that it went well. We raised just shy of £170 for the charity and a number of people have asked if there will be another one and, you know what, I think there will be.

Thanks to Two Birds for another great inspiration, see the others here, and as I type I'm wondering if Baby Bird was welcomed into the world this weekend?

Hope you all have a fabulous week.
Love