Recovery : A Former Shopaholics Thread

[fashionista-ta]

i always budget for entertainment, including restaurants. it's an important part of life, and i personally food, there's no way shopping or fashion is coming between me & eating when i get paid--actually, a couple days before i get paid--i pay bills online & write out my budget. there are standard items, including groceries, but entertainment is variable depending on what i have planned. then i know how much 'fun money' i have left to play with. and sometimes i need to adjust my plans so i have more ... maybe an extravagant restaurant isn't in the cards based on what else i want to do.

 

[Betinapple]

i always budget for entertainment, including restaurants. it's an important part of life, and i personally food, there's no way shopping or fashion is coming between me & eating when i get paid--actually, a couple days before i get paid--i pay bills online & write out my budget. there are standard items, including groceries, but entertainment is variable depending on what i have planned. then i know how much 'fun money' i have left to play with. and sometimes i need to adjust my plans so i have more ... maybe an extravagant restaurant isn't in the cards based on what else i want to do.

Sounds very similar to what I do. On payday I pay bills, withdraw household funds and then see what is left. What's left of my education support will pay for entertainment (dining out, going to the movies). My salery will go to my savings and if I want clothes or other stuff I will take the money from there.

 

[Alma Kemp]

i once was quite shopaholic like 5 years ago.
but then i moved on my own and had bills and rent and not such a great earnings so i had to put things in order.
i did sell like 90% from my wardrobe and kept only what i use.
that also helped me, now i only buy what i really need.
also i have don´t like online shopping so that helps too.
i don´t even feel the need to buy anything when it comes to clothes, i wear what i have and take good care of my clothes.
of course sometimes i buy shirt or something but i rather spend the money on going to movies or something like that.
life is so much easier now that i don´t feel the need to buy buy and buy.
i think i was quite shopaholic because i did not feel good inside my head...

 

[softgrey]

i had about 8 items altered---finally!
feels like having new clothes...
yay!

also- been exchanging/trading clothes with friends...
things that we don't wear or have never worn that would look good on each other...
more new stuff...
no $$ spent...
...

still a shopaholic though...
i am always looking about...
...

 

[softgrey]

ugh---
been on a binge...
which is fine---i like everything i got and it's all good...

the problem is stopping...
no sooner do i get one or two great things than i spot something else that i've been looking for...

i guess part of the issue, for me anyway, is availabilty...
because there are times when i hate everything i see...
and there are times when everything is awesome...

so i feel like i have to grab the stuff when i see it because it's usually something i have had on my mind for awhile but have just been unable to find...

ie:
-need to replace my handkerchief cotton black pirate/poet shirt which is fading from many years of wearing and hand washing...

-need to replace my linen vanessa bruno cropped pirate pants which are literally falling apart at the seams after many years of loving use and multiple repairs...

-need to replace my adidas white MEI sneakers which are actually peeling and cracking from so much wear...

-need to replace my CDG motorcycle boots which are also peeling and cracking and no longer weatherproof...

-i wear my YY cutaway blazer so so often that it makes sense for me to have something else that is similar to alternate with it, in order to prolong the life of my beloved YY blzr and also just to have more similar options...

-always looking for the perfect red dress...

stuff like that...
so when i spot one of these things...
it's almost impossible for me to resist really...

so- i think that i found something to replace the adidas MEIs...
and i got that great comme comme blzer at the archive sale...
and i got a pretty great pirate-y shirt from pas des calais...

great!
and now i may have spotted some pants!...
*when is it going to stop, i wonder?!?

 

[softgrey]

i've got a problem...
...

i got another pair of shoes......

they are wedge sandals- not so high and more substantial than anything i have without being clunky...
a cross between casual and dressy...
basically- they're cool...
and my first purchase from Rachel Comey...

I had decided to give up looking for wedges because i didn't like anything i saw...
and then i came across these and i just caved...
too good to pass up...

*sigh*...

must. stop. now.


totokaelo.com

 

[softgrey]

i might as well confess to this also---
got these- but they were practically free...
and, come on...
how often does one see chambray baby striped culottes?!?...
i ask you???

i HAD to get them...right?!?



(i do not plan on wearing them with polka dot shoes and they are much wider in real life--they are pinned back in the photo. they are also longer on me...lol...)
i showed the rear photo because culottes rarely look good from the back, but these really and truly do---
another reason i had to get them~!

anthropologie.com

 

[cestmagique]

This thread defeats its purpose, it's more like the 'What Did You Buy Today?' than a discussion of overspending... good luck to any real shopaholics who come to this thread hoping to be inspired to shop less...

 

[softgrey]

This thread defeats its purpose, it's more like the 'What Did You Buy Today?' than a discussion of overspending... good luck to any real shopaholics who come to this thread hoping to be inspired to shop less...

I don't know about anyone else...
but I am definitely shopping less...


just because I still shop, doesn't mean I'm not shopping less...
and i am much more thoughtful and less impulsive...

plus-
it has encouraged me to wear what i already have more and buy less...

so---
it's working for me...

if you think this is what a shopaholic looks like, i could introduce you to some people who would really scare you!
......

 

[Juliette]

Actually, this thread and the encouraging words from other members really helped me a lot. softgrey Looks like you made some great purchases, don't worry - I know that my main problem was buying stuff I didn't end up wearing, so if you're wearing yours, it's not bad at all. Plus, it's hard to resist pretty things during the sales. I'm looking for the perfect red dress too, by the way!

 

[softgrey]

yeah- you said it!
resisting the sales is definitely difficult...

i find that pinning stuff can satisfy a craving though...
just like when i use something for a photo shoot, then i no longer feel the need to own it...
pinning stuff to my boards makes me feel like they are in my closet, in some way...
and, usually, i do have something very similar in my closet anyway, so it' all good!


i have found that pinning has also helped me really define different areas of my style...
and the more defined my style is, the easier it is to resist buying things that are adorable but just aren't 'me'

ie- went into a shop and tried on a pair of navy blue cotton shorts with white flamingos all over them...it was just the print of the fabric...
and it was a really dark french blue and the cotton was really light and almost sheer...
really cute- with cuffs and a fabric tie belt...
plus they fit great and were not too short, not too long...

BUT---i am not a flamingo shorts kind of girl...you know?!
...
i'm a yohji, black, kind of 'batwoman', kind of girl...
maybe if there were bats printed all over the shorts...???
who knows?!
...

but- OH!...they are SOOOO cute!!!...*for someone else!~
...

so i was able to resist...
...


**I'm glad it's helped you too Juliette!...hope you find your red dress...

 

[ChrissyM]

i had a bit of a shopping binge last weekend...
but to be honest, it felt like something i really needed.

I had quit my job last year and was job-searching at this time last year, so it had been awhile since i allowed myself to buy anything fresh and new to incorporate into my spring/summer wardrobe.
so, i bought a bunch of great summer dresses that i can wear to work and on weekends
I've already started wearing them and have received compliments galore from friends, family, and strangers alike.

well worth it

Having trouble finding pics online to share though! I managed to contain my spending to TJ Maxx so I got a lot for my money.
3 color-drenched Cynthia Rowley numbers (for only $25-$30 each, a really awesome deal imo)
lots more...

I feel like my Shopaholicism (or whatever we want to call it) has definitely improved. It's much easier for me to resist things when I know I don't need them or if I realize the styling will be difficult or not "me"

I think softgrey's point about pinning is really valid too...
especially for the things that are firmly out of my price range

 

[lucy92]

i stopped buying sleeveless or short sleeve dresses for the most part.

i hate freezing in air conditioned places...and then having to wear cardigans over them...or freezing in winter wearing them.

i think that's a good idea about pinning items...you can give yourself a reminder of an item and maybe catch it on the resale or secondary market. and it can give you a little time to think.

there is precious little that doesnt come up IMO, unless its a really old vintage item...

the only thing i am really kicking myself for not picking up the last 6 months or so is a lanvin postcard print dress from the 70's...i was a goddamn fool for not getting that one.

 

[softgrey]

chrissy- i know what you mean about the compliments...

randomly-
the cutest asian girl walked right up to me on the street the first time i wore my new wedges and complimented me...
*it's always nice to get compliments, but even nicer when it's someone whose style you also like...imo...
in that moment i felt like my waiting and waiting to find the right thing has definitely paid off and that it was, indeed, a good purchase...
any remaining doubts went out the window at that moment...
rah!


i'm back on the wagon now, as i am planning a trip and need to save for that...
plus- shopping is not appealing in sweltering heat...
at least, not to me...

 

[softgrey]

i went through every designer floor at Barney's and did not even find one thing that i just had to have...

even at the comme store there wasn't much that made my heart skip a beat this season...too many peter pan collars...
there is a pair of high pointy toed wedges from junya that seem good, but i don't feel compelled to grab them...
i wanted something like that years ago, but i feel that the urge has somewhat subsided by now...

i've just made some very sensible purchases for fall and i think i will continue to do the alterations and adjustments on what i already have purchased and just wear those...

i thought i might get into trouble with the isabel marant x H&M collab, but it looks bloody awful, imho, so that's good...
...

i also gifted a see by chloe dress and an isabel marant blouse to friend, which always feels nice...they will be better on her because she is taller and can carry the volume better...
pay it forward! --- as they say...

 

[softgrey]

it's so weird...

i have moments when i am like-
i have everything i want ---oh yay...

then i am like-
i have too much stuff---i can't even remember everything...

then i'm like-
oooh!...look at all the cute stuff!- i want that...and that...and that......

schizo!

 

[glamrockgal]

I really want to be on a no buy until sales start but its like impossible.I need to be a recovering shopoholic too.any suggestions? I could resist to 30% off isabel marant jeans.then maybe there's still hope for me.

 

[PinkPrincess113]

it's so weird...

i have moments when i am like-
i have everything i want ---oh yay...

then i am like-
i have too much stuff---i can't even remember everything...

then i'm like-
oooh!...look at all the cute stuff!- i want that...and that...and that......

schizo!

THIS....this is so me. I go through phases. I've been in the third phase for awhile now. I can't resist. I love fall and winter style so much, I don't usually enjoy shopping in summer and spring as much. My addiction comes down to shoes and cozy sweaters. I can't resist buying boots in every type and color..wedges, flat, heeled, black, brown, cut-out, buckled, etc. I need to stop!

 

[lucy92]

the problem with me is that i purchase a glut of one genre of clothing at the expense of another.

i have a ton of bags, accessories & party dresses and workwear and dresses that can also double as workwear. i have a ton of leather jackets and outerwear.

however what i need are jeans (i wear the same 5 jeans all the time and they are showing wear the knees are getting all baggy and wornout) but i cant be motivated to get rid of them because good fitting jeans are hard to find and the ones i like are usually $150 each.

i also need sweaters. living in new england i have to wear sweaters at home daily (the thermostat is stuck at 61) begining to get sick of the sweaters i do own.

i also think i need more sleepwear and lingerie.

 

[strawberries]

I am exactly the same. I have a ton of skirts, but no tops to wear with them

My husband keeps telling me I am always buying slight variations on the same clothes too….