This is a big milestone. It has been six months since I started my No Buy Year. I have lasted so far! I feel like this deserves a clap. Well done, self. I have not bought anything that contravenes my rules for my No Buy Year.
1. Getting to Know Me
One thing that I am grateful for about this experiment is having time to get to know myself. With the cessation of the influx of possessions, I have had time to pause and work out:
- What do I really love?
- What actually matters to me?
- What do I enjoy doing?
I am happier this year than in previous years. Yay! I will credit that to doing more of the ‘Things That I Love’ as a priority, rather than chasing after material possessions.
2. Getting to Know My Clothing Loves
Since we are now in winter, I am learning that I actually dislike most winter clothes. I don’t like feeling uncomfortable or frumpy or tacky. One of the reasons I like dresses so much is because I only need to pick one item out of my wardrobe. During winter, it’s more like three to four items to make up an outfit. That is a lot of decisions. I like clothes that match a number of different combinations, tops and bottoms. During this winter, I focused on working out what clothes I enjoy wearing, which wasn’t much.
What I enjoyed wearing: I have one pair of jeans that are super easy to wear and a beige cardigan that I feel elegant wearing, especially paired with a nice white top. This is my favourite winter outfit, which I have worn way too much this last month.
My future winter style will be classy, comfy, and classic (CCC):
- Beige
- Black
- White (limited)
- Blues
- Only plain, not patterns
3. Getting to Understand Slow Fashion and a Capsule Wardrobe
For years, I resisted getting a capsule wardrobe because I didn’t want all plain clothing; I thought I would find it boring and restrictive. However, I really do understand the benefits of a capsule wardrobe now. Considering I have worn the same outfit most of winter, I really should invest in more items of a similar style (CCC) so that I have a few fantastic ‘go-to’ outfits. It is so much easier to match clothes when the colours and styles all go together.
I like outfits that are versatile and can be worn to a number of activities during the week.
With slow fashion, I really love clothes that look great for a number of years and are timeless classics. I would much prefer to wear an outfit multiple times that I feel awesome in, rather than heaps of different outfits that I feel ‘meh’ in. It also ties in with my ‘dollar per use’ goal.
4. Getting to Enjoy the Savings Benefits
With the No Buy Year, you can assume correctly that I am saving money. Two things that I have enjoyed about the financial benefits of not spending money on possessions:
- A. Being able to spend a little bit more on the “Things That I Love”
- B. Being able to pay down debt.
Conclusion
I am looking forward to the next six months of the remainder of my No Buy Year. I really need to do more decluttering! I like to do decluttering at the end of a season. I suspect I am going to struggle the most with this No Buy Year in spring when I will want to buy up ALL THE DRESSES. I’ll be fine and keep my blinkers on (away from catalogues and shops).
Cheers to six months into my No Buy Year!
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