Friday 3 February 2012

one month shopping ban report



Hi guys!

After days of reading philosophy texts and writing essays for uni I'm back to my little ol' blog! Another semester has come to an end, oh how time flies...
Apropos time flies, I've been on a shopping ban for more than one month now, can you believe it? At first it was strange because I usually spend lots of time browsing Ebay or swapping websites for bargains, true to the motto "A girl can't own enough clothes!". BUT hey I'm also a philosophy student and think about things a lot, so when I noticed that I had so many unworn pieces in my closet, some even still with a price tag, I decided that it was enough. Clothes have been my favourite items to spend money on for such a long time, but actually there are so many other things that are worth saving for! In my case it's travelling, furniture, photo equipment etc. but in general I also couldn't help thinking about our throwaway society, mass consumption, ecology...
I do not consider myself as a do-gooder, but every little change counts, right?!



♥ cardi + shirt: h&m ♥ belt: primark ♥ jeans: esprit ♥ boots: ebay ♥ necklace: pimkie ♥



Let me explain my shopping ban rules to you: not spending money on clothing, accessories and cosmetics (apart from my daily make-up articles) has the highest priority! I can say without regrets that I have managed to stick to this rule since Decemer the 28th, I've fought back my desire to shop very well (with one exception that I will explain further below). However I allowed myself to swap - now some people may call me a cheater, but I really didn't spend a cent on anything when I swapped, so my rule is not broken. Plus swapping is ecologically correct and it even helps me to get rid of what I don't want/need anymore and to make room for new things. If you find the right swapping partner it's a win-win situation, so in my opinion there's nothing wrong with swapping while being on a shopping ban.
The striped shirt in the outfit is a swapped piece for example :)





To not come across like the ultimate moralizer, I have to admit that I have broken my shopping ban once! I went to a Veto concert last week and as their merchandise is hard to get, I took the chance to buy a tote bag for 5€. I had to! You never know when they will be on tour again.
Anyway, apart from that I haven't spend money on anything clothes- or accessory-wise.
I rather concentrated on my photography equipment, browsed the web for a camera bag, didn't find one, but purchased a lovely new cam strap for ridiculous 15€.





My plan is to stay on a shopping ban until the beginning of March, then in March I'll maybe allow myself one or two new pieces and then I'll probably go on a shopping ban again afterwards to save up for more expensive things like a tripod or so.
I'm starting to not miss shopping and I appreciate that I can spend my time on more important things like university, reading, curling up on the sofa with Patrick. And it's good for my creativity to remix outfits, I need this kind of challenge from time to time.

I think it's very important to consider our consumption habits nowadays (also concerning grocery shopping). Do you know these "I show you my ridiculously huge make-up collection" videos on Youtube? God, they make me sick...
What is your opinion about shopping? Are you a mass shopper, a shopping ascetic
or something in between? Do you think of changing your habits or go like "shop til you drop"?

It feels good to be back to blogging, I can't wait to read your comments and to browse your blogs guys! :)
Happy Thursday!







now playing: lcd soundsystem - daft punk is playing at my house
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15 comments:

  1. I am sooo impressed that you've stuck to this. I REALLY need to go on a ban, but it's so hard. I will be soon, I've definitely cut down though! Swapping isn't cheating at all!!
    I really love this striped top, it's so pretty belted like that. Cute casual look, and I love your necklace/ring. Gooorgeous!!
    xJennaD

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  2. I've decided to write down everything i buy. I don't shop much, but it's more than I think. I've bought 5 things already since the 1 jan!

    ach mann, jetzt habe ich das auch wieder auf englisch geschrieben!

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  3. Ah, ich liebe deine Outfits einfach und deinen Schmuck! *herzchen*

    Und du leidest ja mit mir :D
    Ich schaffe es bisher auch sehr gut :)
    Und bin sehr stolz auf mich, hihi (:

    Liebe Grüße

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  4. lieben dank! ohne baskenmütze hätte es auch an mir langweilig ausgesehen, haha.

    das outfit steht dir super! und der lippenstift ist toll :)

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  5. Honey, you're so cute in these shots!

    And thank you so much for your kind words regarding my recent loss, it meant a lot :)

    xx
    ioana

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  6. Bravo to you and sticking to this shopping ban! I don't think swapping counts as like you said you didn't spend a cent and yes it's definitely eco friendly too!

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  7. Wow I`m so proud of you sweetie!
    Could never stick to such a plan XD Tried and failed miserably after 2weeks ..well, more like a week and a half. xD Good for you! b^^d Love the top btw !! ^^d
    And please check out my latest post...I awarded you! ^^d
    http://gorgeouswithcurves.blogspot.com/2012/02/enchanted-blog-award.html

    MMxoxo

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  8. toller lippenstift-du siehst toll aus :)

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  9. Great outfit, I love your accesories!
    Thank you for your sweet comment!
    Following you! <3

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  10. Congrats on finishing the semester and on the shopping ban! :)

    I'm a very thrifty shopper by the way, mostly due to not having enough money - though I hope I would be the same conscious about not buying too much even if I had the financial background. :)

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  11. Für mich ist es nichts ungewöhnliches sich nur alle paar Wochen mal ein bisschen was zu kaufen. Daher finde ich es natürlich super was du da machst :) Ich hab heute erst seit langem mal wieder was bei Asos gekauft ^^

    Ach und tauschen ist natürlich kein shoppen! Völlig legitim.

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  12. schönes Outfit, den Ring habe ich auch ;)

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  13. I do really love this outfit! you look super cute, those boots are friggin adroable and your hair bows are so cute! :)

    xo
    A_riot

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  14. Mein Kaufverhalten hat sich im letzten Jahr extrem geändert. Und ich fühle mich richtig wohl mit einem übersichtlichen Schrankinhalt und meinen Lieblingsteilen, die ich auch wirklich allesamt trage.
    Ich kann dir das Buch "No Shopping" empfehlen. Da gehts zwar generell um Konsumverzicht, aber ich fand es trotzdem sehr inspirierend. ^^

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  15. das sind wirklich hübsche bilder - und dein outfit steht dir wirklich sehr gut! kompliment! :)

    mit einem lieben gruß,
    sarah

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Thank you so much for your comments, I really appreciate every single one! <3

 

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