Considering a year of no new clothes for 2016

[GoneAndDone]

Anyone else done it or considering it?

I buy a lot of clothes so it would be a huge challenge. But I own so many that I'm quite ashamed of it... Could easily not buy any for a year and still have something for every occasion.

can't remember when I last bought something apart from one t-shirt - but I have plenty and hate shopping so it's not hard.

make a rule that you buy no new adult clothes unless you have run out of the item (eg. knickers) or don't have anything suitable for an occasion. That doesn't mean 'something you haven't worn before' BTW!

Lucky you goneanddone. I am a pretty average height size 10, but can never seem to buy dresses! I end up giving them to charity after 2 wears...

I saw a scarf I rather fancied today on one of the Christmas threads - thought about it for a minute or two and then stopped myself.

Normally I would have thought ' it's only a few pounds and may be useful ' !

I really like the idea of doing this for a whole year but I would also like to lose quite a lot of weight - potentially up to 2 sizes' worth. What would others do in this circumstances? Make it a rule that you could have certain absolute basics if you changed sizes - say jeans, work trousers and a black skirt? Or that anything new had to come from a charity shop? I've got tops and dresses that would still work if I lost weight, it's just bottom halves really.

EmmaWoodlouse this is a perfect example of not having too many rules which set you up to fail. There's no point being miserable wearing shapeless too-big clothes if you CAN afford to replace them. Just make sure you replace on one out-one in basis, and only for items which are too big as and when you really can't cope anymore.

I have to say though I've dropped a stone and a dress size recently and so far haven't bought anything in a size down. My skinny jeans just aren't so skinny anymore, and most tops still look fine if a little baggier. I think you'd have to drop quite a few stone to really have clothes falling off you to the point they need replacing.

loulou

I absolutely love what you posted about only wearing 1 item at a time, only 7 days in a week, only wearable for a few months. I'm not a vast shopper anyway but that's such a clever way of looking at it. Thank you

maybemyrtle thanks! If only I could have put it in a really catchy eloquent way but at least you got the idea!

I'd love to join you. Love to. I have a borderline shopping addiction - buy a couple of new dresses and a pair of shoes most months, and spend far too much on clothes.

But the thought panics me. Deeply. I'd have to stop coming to this forum, for starters ....youre all enablers!

I desperately need to do this, even if just for a couple of months.

I've had a really difficult year with ill health leading to big weight loss and a major operation and to cope I have shopped and shopped. I did have to buy clothes cos I dropped 3 dress sizes but I now have so much stuff and no money. And I forget what I have got and buy more of the same. At my bigger size, I couldn't just pick things up easily on the high street so I've got very over excited by that too! I've got a funeral to go to next week and I started looking at new shoes then realised I could think of 5 pairs of shoes at home that I could wear .

The only wearing 1 of each thing at a time is so true.

I've over shopped in the past. I seem to use it as a coping strategy and a pick me up when I'm feeling low.
I'm also tempted by things I see on instagram, fashion blogs, discount codes and believing I need certain items to complete my wardrobe.
Around 18 months ago I decided to do something about it. I had a huge clear out of my spring/summer things and did a lot of ebaying. I used the money to buy just a few quality items. I've just done the same with my autumn/winter things. I have about 40 items in my current wardrobe not including shoes and accessories and underwear and sportswear.
I'm focusing on enjoying what I have in my wardrobe and planning outfits from these clothes rather than buying something new every week.
I feel better about myself. I used to feel ashamed by my shopping. My relationship with my husband is improved. He used to comment on the number of parcels that would arrive for me. And I have more money in my savings account!

I did it in 2014. I managed 10 months until I got a new job in the October. I cancelled all catalogues and email subscriptions.

My rules were underwear was allowed, one pair of shoes for winter and summer sandals and if I saw something really nice in a charity shop.

It totally changed the way I think about clothes i don't buy lots of new stuff just a few things each season. I now have one lovely party dress I wear to every event and I never buy anything when I see it, I think about it and go back if I still want it.

I really enjoyed my nearly a year.

I think my shopping decisions are usually based on a fantasy that A.) this is better than anything else I already own and B.) I will never find anything as good as this again so I need to buy it now.

Of course it doesn't add up.

A month ago, I was sitting next to a marketing exceutive who said -- people buy things because they think it will make them a better version of themselves.

I thought -- what tosh.

But it has slowed my spending dramatically. I now think -- am I buying that item of clothing because I think it will make me look better? feel better?

And my desire for the item drains away.

When I was doing something like this I used a 'no card purchases' rule, meaning if I bought something it had to be paid for from my walking around money that was also used for the odd cup of tea or scone while I was out, or lip balm, or pack of tissues, etc. I was strict about my cash and didn't just go and get more. I had a weekly limit. I still bought stuff, but then had to live with the decision until the following Monday morning.

I also stopped looking at magazines and stopped buying them outright, so I wouldn't feel I was missing something or untrendy.

When I was losing weight I bought clothes in second hand shops and that is now where I do most of my shopping. I recycle items I haven't worn for a while, those that didn't work out/were too fussy for laundry purposes, and those that get too baggy, etc. It's a bit like a clothing lending library for me.

I also went through a period when I had no money to spare for anything, and missed my old habit of browsing and occasionally buying something. So I would go for a walk or listen to some of my favourite music. I took up embroidery again -- it cost very little to start and I could work on something whenever I felt like it. It made me realise shopping was just a habit that I could change.

DD1 has a photo on her phone of every single article of clothing she owns, and if she is tempted by something when she's out she whips out her phone to see if she already has a similar item, which she normally does. It also shows her how many clothes she really has. DD2 keeps a photo of her bedroom closet on her phone, with the door open and the closet in all its bulging overflowyness telling her 'just say noooooo'.

I love this thread! I'm in a new climate, so I can't do an all-year ban but I really like the idea. Limiting social media and avoiding sales definitely helps.

I'm a longtime overshopper. I can limit it by avoiding temptations, but I can do a lot of damage in an hour or two. I've blocked my access to online shops and that helps a lot. But there is a new challenge: I live very centrally, close to really good department stores and boutiques. A well-intentioned trip to buy birthday chocolates can turn into an overshopping nightmare. My wardrobes are full and I do not need anything, but somehow picking up a new item to wear feels so good, particularly on cold, dark and wet days

Anyway, happy to follow. My goal is to limit exposure as much as I can.

Mathanxiety I love your embroidery tip. I've taken up knitting, it helps. Choosing yarns I can enjoy colours and textures, and a skein of wool costs much less than most clothes and takes up far less space. I mostly make socks, they are something I wear every day, and I can also give them as gifts. I also made a soft white snood from a mix of merino and alpaca and am making a detachable gray polo neck to convert some of my old gray knits to this season's trends.

BlueEyed your progress sounds wonderful!

Mir that's exactly why I buy things... I frame it as self-improvement somehow and that way it's really difficult to walk away from a tempting item.

I think stopping card purchases is a fantastic idea - I'm going to nick that one!

I knit and I've pretty much stopped buying knitwear anyway as I now have several really lovely (if I say it myself) jumpers that I have knitted. I've also taken up dressmaking again after a long time. I'm hoping that making things carefully with lovely fabrics will take me away from the lure of shopping.

I'm also looking at things I have and getting them altered (for tailored things) or altering them myself so that they feel new. There are quite a lot of things in my wardrobe that aren't being worn because the sleeves are too long, or they're the wrong colour (I love mr dylon!). I feel that if an alteration goes wrong I haven't really lost anything because I wasn't wearing it anyway, and if I get the piece of clothing back then that's a bonus.

I buy far too many clothes and that's an interesting point about how many it is actually physically possible to wear. The irony of it is that my lifestyle is so at odds with my clothes shopping. I work from home and basically spend most of my week in the house wearing nice but comfy clothes - the same few things over and over again with no big wardrobe decisions involved (boyfriend jeans, harems, sweatshirts, nice jumpers etc). I rarely leave the house more than once a week, unless it's to make a quick midweek trip to the supermarket or meet a friend for coffee. So basically it's only at the weekend that I have the opportunity to wear the absolute mountain of clothes I own.

And yet I have just counted and I have 35 scarves, 17 pairs of skinny jeans, 14 dresses, a whole wardrobe full of coats and jackets and a footwear collection you wouldn't believe. And I am so guilty of that "If I just buy this my wardrobe will be complete ..." thinking.

Aaargh. Food for thought.

How are you all getting on?

I'm finding it surprisingly relaxing not having to constantly check eBay or plan what to order next from my favourite shops! Although I did see a cardigan I would love but I definitely don't need it.

Have bought some new lipstick and perfume but on the whole saved money already not buying clothes.

I bought a gray wool winter coat that I needed but nothing else. Tryng to buy as little as possible as my wardrobes are full and I have just updated my winter footwear and knitwear earlier this autumn. For me, shopping is all about impulses and quick urges. If I make myself wait, most of the urges go away. But it is complicated sometimes...

I have to confess to spending £5 at M & S Outlet, for that I got three pairs of socks and a pack of five briefs. I looked at jumpers, blouses etc etc and decided not to buy but could not resist the socks and undies.

Nothing purchased.

Have not visited shops; stopped some marketing emails.

Good luck everyone, it's a really fab idea. I've been doing this gradually for a couple of years. I don't own a huge amount of clothes and now just buy something to replace an item which has worn out (and that's usually after several mends). I don't tend to own more than one "big" thing, i.e. one warm winter coat, one waterproof, one pair of long boots, one pair of ankle boots etc. I do wear stuff until it's pretty much falling apart. When it's no longer suitable for work or play it gets recycled. There are charities who sell on no-longer-serviceable shoes which get shredded and turned into hardcore for road building etc (not into landfill) and even unwearable clothes are sold off for scraps by charity shops (they get turned into things like rag rugs). It's tempting when I see something lovely in a different colour, i.e. brown ankle boots to add to my black ones, but I have learnt how to resist. When you look into the reasons for global warming, the excess of consumption and wastage (e.g. companies shredding their unsold clothes) it really does make you stop and think. I made the decision not to buy cheap, fast fashion from the cheapie shops but instead invest in better quality pieces that last a long time. I am no spring chicken so it's not a hardship for me to abstain from fast fashion anyway!

I'll try to avoid new clothing purchases until the end of 2015. I have far more outfits than I'll ever be able to wear but I'm always tempted by new things. At the moment, two pairs of jeans, a few sweaters and cardigans, a handful of vests and tees, three coats and a few pairs of boots is what I wear 90% of the time