my life, my joy, my dreams
My 11-month long shopping fast has finally come to an end. I am proud to announce that it was a success! I was able to resist shopping and I also learned a lot in the process.
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Allow me to share with you the realizations that dawned on me during the challenge:
Note: I started my self-imposed shopping ban on January 1, 2014. I made it official online through this post, and called it a “shopping fast.” I also shared there the reasons why I took the challenge and laid down some rules to guide me while on it.
Shopping Fast: January Report
Shopping Fast: February Report
Shopping Fast: March Report
Shopping Fast: April Report
Shopping Fast: May Report
Shopping Fast: June Report
Holy Moly, it’s August already! For my July report, all I can say is I’m still shopping-free. Wohooo!
Note: I started my self-imposed shopping ban on January 1, 2014. I made it official online through this post, and called it a “shopping fast.” I also shared there the reasons why I took the challenge and laid down some rules to guide me while on it.
Shopping Fast: January Report
Shopping Fast: February Report
March has arrived and left swiftly. I’m giddy to tell you that I succeeded in making the whole month shopping-free. I think I deserve a pat on the back. Haha.
But just like in February, I did receive some new stuff. Only two items, though. One is a clutch (given to me as pasalubong by my boss when she travelled to Hong Kong) and the other is a skirt (given to me by my very generous and thoughtful MIL).
I started 2014 without shopping and have continued doing so until now. Well, except for the Asahi convection oven that I bought last Saturday which was actually a product of a trade-in. (The money I used for it came from the sales of the portable sewing machine I had sold with the help of my superfriend Nice.) This only means I’m on a sort of shopping fast. You know, instead of skipping food, I’m skipping shopping.
Image Source: http://aboutstyle.bloggersdelight.dk
With the kind of discipline and motivation I have right now when it comes to this self-imposed shopping ban, I think I can make a shopping fast possible this year. (I thought if I wanna embrace minimalism someday, I better start one baby step at a time, one activity that promotes minimalism at a time.) So I decided to make it official today. I need to set some rules, though. And so far, here are what I’ve thought of:
Note: I started my self-imposed shopping ban on January 1, 2014. I made it official online through this post, and called it a “shopping fast.” I also shared there the reasons why I took the challenge and laid down some rules to guide me while on it. I decided to include this post in my documentation and labeled it as my January report…
If there’s one thing I’m really proud of last month, that would be the fact that I didn’t do any retail therapy. Of course, I did dine out with the hubby and shop for groceries but that was all. I was able to stop myself from indulging in the big 3’s of girl shopping: clothes, shoes, and accessories. It’s a feat on its own, I tell you.
I hope to continue this self-imposed shopping ban as long as I can. It will not only save me money, but it will also teach me to have more discipline and be more in control of my finances. I can imagine the next months will be harder because of the regular mall-wide sales and the various special occasions approaching (e.g. Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, etc.), but I will work on it.
With our 52-week money challenge still on, I can’t get myself to shop. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, like last Monday night when I accompanied my mom and my two sisters at SM Manila to buy some stuff, I always get reminded of the challenge and my urge to shop would suddenly stop. I think it’s a good thing because it means I’m focused and determined to finish the challenge.
I hope to continue this self-imposed shopping ban for as long as I can. It helps that I don’t obsess over some material thing at present. And that I still have several new clothes, two new pairs of shoes and some new accessories waiting to be used. I think it’s about time I wear them all and pretend I just shopped for them last night. Haha.