We made it one month without buying something new. Mostly.
These were my cheats:
2 dog dishes from Dollar General for Samson's food and water.
A chew toy for Samson from Dollar General
A dog collar and a flea collar from Dollar General (These were for Jason. ha! Just kidding.)
This is what I bought new that was under "forgivable" categories:
Pencil Sharpener
Stapler
These are the items I had an impulse to buy but then remembered not to:
Too many to remember
Seriously y'all, I had no idea how easily I bought things, unnecessary thing, without even giving it a second thought; baskets, house shoes, clothes, decorative items, cooking utensils, more, more, more.
This month has been very eye-opening for me. But what it hasn't been, is hard. I am grateful that the impulse to buy has been easy to stifle. I even went through Target and TJMaxx without getting one thing that wasn't on my list. I actually went into TJMaxx and came out with nothing! Today has been the first day that I actually feel an urge to shop. Instead, I'm going to waste a little time on Pinterest looking at some ideas for my future house, and then get busy cleaning my current house.
What I've already taken away from this experience:
Think before you buy
Sale racks are deceiving
That last one may sound odd but it really isn't. Several people assumed that my resolution only applied to full-price items but no, it applies to all new items, on sale or not. Before, I would have browsed the sale aisles, congratulating myself on saving money as I tossed things in my cart. Now I avoid the sale aisles, congratulating myself on actually saving money and also shaking my head at how easily I was tricking myself beforehand. Now, if I do for real need something, I'm going to check the sale aisle first, but other than that, I'll pass.
Have any of you had any denying-the-impulse success stories?
These were my cheats:
2 dog dishes from Dollar General for Samson's food and water.
A chew toy for Samson from Dollar General
A dog collar and a flea collar from Dollar General (These were for Jason. ha! Just kidding.)
This is what I bought new that was under "forgivable" categories:
Pencil Sharpener
Stapler
These are the items I had an impulse to buy but then remembered not to:
Too many to remember
Seriously y'all, I had no idea how easily I bought things, unnecessary thing, without even giving it a second thought; baskets, house shoes, clothes, decorative items, cooking utensils, more, more, more.
This month has been very eye-opening for me. But what it hasn't been, is hard. I am grateful that the impulse to buy has been easy to stifle. I even went through Target and TJMaxx without getting one thing that wasn't on my list. I actually went into TJMaxx and came out with nothing! Today has been the first day that I actually feel an urge to shop. Instead, I'm going to waste a little time on Pinterest looking at some ideas for my future house, and then get busy cleaning my current house.
What I've already taken away from this experience:
Think before you buy
Sale racks are deceiving
That last one may sound odd but it really isn't. Several people assumed that my resolution only applied to full-price items but no, it applies to all new items, on sale or not. Before, I would have browsed the sale aisles, congratulating myself on saving money as I tossed things in my cart. Now I avoid the sale aisles, congratulating myself on actually saving money and also shaking my head at how easily I was tricking myself beforehand. Now, if I do for real need something, I'm going to check the sale aisle first, but other than that, I'll pass.
Have any of you had any denying-the-impulse success stories?
