How do you stop yourself wanting all the things?

[Gettingabitnippynow]

I’m not a materialist person at all, but have just been to pick up a few Christmas bits for Dd and I just want all the things. They’re not particularly expensive, but would be to buy them all. Christmas candles, Christmas mugs, pjs, teddies, wooly hats, jumpers etc etc. Do you all buy all these things or just ignore? I realise it’s a bit silly to buy new every year and a waste when I have last years xmas mugs and pjs.
Just wish I was wealthy sometimes!

I used to love buying new things, not always expensive but things I liked, including Christmas things. I just loved the joy of something new.

Then I had to clear my DM's house after she died, and it was verging on a hoarder's house. Not what you typically think of (old milk bottles, newspapers, broken things, etc) but all lovely stuff that was just... there. Some of it I'd never seen before! The amount of Christmas stuff she had was unbelievable - half the loft was basically decorations. A lot of it was unopened, unused, and it made me feel so sad. Since then I've really cut down on what I buy in general.

We're in the process of decluttering for Christmas, so that I won't feel so guilty about buying the DC new things, and won't get quite as overwhelmed trying to find places for everything!

(And I do buy them a pair of new cozy PJs for Christmas Eve, but they just get added to their wardrobes and they'll wear them until it's too hot. If they still fit by the time it's cold again, out they come!)

I ignore all the stuff the shops are stacked with. It's just pointless tat.

I have hats and scarfs, I don't need more. I have a cupboard full of mugs including a Xmas mug. I'm an adult, why would I need a Teddy?

I do need a new sweater and I've researched them online and have chosen the right one, which I will order for myself for Christmas.

I buy things we actually need and go for good quality that will last. This xmas ds needs a few practical things and I will get him an experience as well.

I prefer to pay my essential bills and save for ds' university needs next year.

Decluttering puts you off buying all the stuff. I am peak stuff - I don’t need any more and I wish people would stop buying me stuff - I have asked them but they don’t believe me and then they say they like buying stuff and getting stuff - so there we are…the stuff lovers win!

This. I always look forward to getting the much loved old things out again.

I absolutely HATE commercialism, and especially society's drive to make us want utter shit. I can't stand being told I need to buy this sweater, or that coffee, or decorate my house like this... Experiences win over 'stuff' every day of the week. Buying stuff gives you a small dopamine hit but it's never enough. Experiences give you memories that last a lifetime. Ignore all the pushers, don't give in to their demands, and spend your money wisely instead x

It’s a bit like the people who buy new Christmas baubles and decorations every year and bin their old ones. Part of the fun of getting out the Christmas decorations is seeing “old friends” that you have forgotten about, or that were handmade by your kids or given to you by someone special.

I also don’t do Christmas jumpers ( though I do have a Christmas necklace) or pjs or mugs, there is enough expense and wastage and land fill tat about at this time of the year without adding to it.

Good to remember that most of the stuff we don’t need and advertising works

Never really felt the urge to have the latest new thing. I enjoy getting out and reusing the familiar older things.

But you should spend your money on what brings you joy. If that's landfill go ahead. If it will make your child happy go ahead - just be aware that too much can make them a spoilt brat.

Yep this!! When I was broke I wanted everything, now I have a lot more money…I have no interest and all I want to do is save. Funny that…

I’ve collected some of the things each year and then they come out every year and now I don’t feel that I need to buy new things unless they’re extra naice/sparkly/give me joy! Yes, that was me buying both Christmas rats from the middle aisle in Aldi and they are residing on my dashboard!

The shops and websites and advertising are all designed to make you want the things so don't let yourself feel bad about wanting stuff.

I try to avoid going to shops and websites just to mooch around as it keeps temptation away, when buying something. I will often have a cooling off period and wait a couple of days before buying something - even for low price items - this helps me to stop spending all my money on tat and then having nothing left for something actually nice, and a question to ask myself is how much pleasure will I really get out of this - so I have I zero regrets about my tinsel flamingo - it makes me smile

I'm totally materialistic. I want all the things, too. OP (as long as the things are lovely). DD and I have a running 'thing' that when I win the Euromillions I will sit about all day in head to toe cashmere, simply covered in diamonds, just buying cushions on-line from the Cotswold Company and sniffing posh candles. I get paid on Friday and currently have £9.50 to my name. No cashmere and diamonds for me.

I'm with you, OP. It can be hard. Not so much Christmas for me, but clothes and household things. If they came out with the same stuff each year it would be easier, but when a jumper in the material you love comes out in a new colour, it can be hard to resist. Or the throw that has a new design you love.

My only answer is to just sell on the old stuff if you can to make room for the new things you genuinely love.

Money. I need to buy food so not wasting it on anything else

I think about STORAGE.

Sure, I like stuff, but my house already has loads of stuff. So the main blocker for new things is where I'm going to put it (esp for seasonal items that need to be stored 10 months a year).

My living room is autumn/pumpkin/Halloween themed, so I use the autumnal stuff I own (cushions, blankets and ornaments) all year round.

Meanwhile I've been using a gingerbread man mug since I got it last Christmas because I like the shape (I've got a few different mugs of that shape and size from Tesco.)

I have managed to not buy loads of Halloween stuff this year, although I bought some hair accessories and a dress. (I'm a Goth so this stuff gets used year round.) I love Halloween. 😁 Same with autumnal stuff, I've avoided buying it.

I do want things. I have a list of nail polishes I want, but I can't afford to buy all of them!

It's a bit like going to the supermarket, or Ikea. You always come out with more than you went for.
So I only shop online for Christmas. Much easier to resist temptation though I'll be honest, Christmas mugs are not something I'd ever lust after.
I do love looking at pictures of tables laid for Christmas with beautiful candles and decor but then I wonder where the food actually goes and decide it's more hassle than I can deal with.

With Seasonal stuff I think it’s best to avoid all that tat. It’s the decorations you bring out every single year that create memories for you and your family, not the £2 tacky christmas mug you drink from once and chuck into storage. You can like and admire something without needing to actually own it. Save the money you would have spent and put it towards something nice for you like a massage or something.

I try desperately to ignore - and remind myself we have clothes, a house and food, and what more could we need?

Oh, I felt like this when I saw the Marks Christmas range of decor and pjs etc. I find the way to resist temptation is simply to not go to the shops!

You must be young and lovely. I used to be like that, wanting to buy everything in every shop. And I did, being a postgrad student. It took me 12 years to repay just my Halls (I am eternally grateful we came to an arrangement and they did not hurry me). Now I look at things and I see 'crap' written all over them, the quality is awful, unless you go to really expensive shops, which are out of my price reach. So I don't go to those shops.

Top tip - sell things on eBay, then use the money from that to buy new things! That gives you double the dopamine (both selling AND buying) but doesn't waste money or clutter your house up with crap.

It's all a load of tat. Why on earth does anyone need Christmas pyjamas etc? It's like those ridiculous Christmas Eve boxes that all kids now expect. My DD's in-laws are the worst in buying cheap shit, mostly plastic - always quantity over quality.
All you're doing is creating a world of landfill for your kids and their kids.

Work out your hourly rate at work (after tax), and whenever you want to buy something, ask yourself if you'd be willing to work an hour (or whatever) in return for that candle or mug etc.

That's what I do when I know I'm being a bit 'I want, I want' (as my mother used to call it), and it usually reins me in.

But I asked myself last year if I was willing to work an 8 hour day and get a particular advent calendar in return, and the answer was yes, so I bought it. No regrets, and am buying it this year too.

Having cleared out the family home and then my father's flat I've become quite hard nosed about stuff.
I don't have a big house. I do like the buzz of getting something new. For Xmas it's the advent calendars, a single new tree ornament and then consumables - mince pies, tree shaped Crumpets, mulled wine pouches.