Community Chat

[cheriere]

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@pinkcrystal wrote:

Has anyone done a successful no buy year?  This year I'm not buying any new clothes, shoes or jewelry.  I retired last fall and I have more clothes than I could ever wear.  I've already given much away but I still don't think I need any of the above.

Has anyone done this?  What did you not buy?  

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Goodness no, but I sure need to.  I will say that I haven't bought nearly as much as I have every other year though.  Plus, I did make a list of clothing items that I only REALLY NEED.  So far, I've stuck to that.  I'm only going to be getting one more pair of jeans and two shorts because I need a different size.  Wish me luck!

[deepwaterdotter]

I haven't bought a piece of jewelry in the past 10 years.

[sktchy]

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@deepwaterdotter wrote:

I haven't bought a piece of jewelry in the past 10 years.

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Congratulatons ! That is amazing !  

[Still Raining]

Right after I had my first, we were transferred overseas to be housed in furnished housing for six months.  We were allowed 300 pounds.  

Well, over seven years later we came back to the States.  That really taught me how to live light.  A most excellent lesson.  Still think in terms suitcase capacity.  

[Effie54]

 No, I bought. We're retired but I like to dress up when I go out. Plus, I have a love affair with shoes, sneakers and boots.

[deepwaterdotter]

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@sktchy wrote:

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@deepwaterdotter wrote:

I haven't bought a piece of jewelry in the past 10 years.

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Congratulatons ! That is amazing !  

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Not really.  I mainly wear my wedding rings my husband bought, a cross necklace my grandmother bought when I turned 16, and diamond stud earrings my parents bought  when I graduated from college.  I also inherited my grandmother's pearl necklace and matching drop earrings.

I'm not much of an accessories collector.  

[AuntG]

Usually, I limit myself to one QVC purchase a month. Currently, I'm not overspending on anything. I might splurge on some flowers this spring, but even then, the Amish growers are reasonable and have beautiful plants.

[KathyM23]

Would not even attempt this and set myself up for failure.  I did decide that I was going to drastrically cut down my clothes purchasing this year tho.

I started out real well - only bought one item in January and was so proud of myself and thought I can do this.  However it is only February 14 and I have already bought 7 items this month.  I knew when spring clothes started coming out I would weaken.  Hope I don't see anymore for February and can decrease items purchased in March.

I am going month by month and am determined to end the year with a lot less purchases than in previous years.  That is the best I can do - can't go "cold turkey" but hope I can greatly reduce purchases. I surely don't need any more clothes - I have more than 4  people could wear in a year.

I have done very well the last couple years in not purchasing shoes.  I have only bought 2 pair last year.  What helped me there is I don't like the styles of shoes now - clunky thick soles on loafers, etc and I can't wear heels any more.  And I have only bought 5 pieces of jewelry in the last couple years.  Something else I have way too much of.

[Icegoddess]

Yes, I've done it.  After I was laid off from a job, I tried my hand at being my own boss.  While I was trying to get a business off the ground, I didn't buy any clothing, jewelry, shoes except what I needed for my job which was work-type clothing.  That was a little over a year. 

It really wasn't that hard.  I had a closet full of clothes from my previous life as an engineer that I could wear to church.  That's really the only dress-up events I went to except maybe a couple of holiday events.  To tell you the truth, I didn't think about fashion that much during that time.  I guess since my job was physically challenging, I may have been too tired to be too worried about what I might be missing out on anyways most of the time. I did continue to take care of myself though in the form of haircuts, color, basic skin care, etc.  

My advice would be stop watching the shopping channels and limit your TV watching.  I was only watching TV in the evenings.  You'll find you want a lot less if it's not staring you in the face all the time.  And don't watch any influencers on the net.  They're just there to separate you from your money. 

[Zwervend]

I could easily go a year without buying material things like clothing, shoes, jewelery, etc. I have plenty for this life and the next three. The only exception would likely be golf gloves and golf balls. I seem to go thru those quickly. 

Experiences though? That's a completely different story. I'll happily spend whatever I feel like on those, mostly travel related. Heck, I just picked up a cheap ticket to do a day run to ATL to check out the new AMEX Centurion lounge in concourse E that opens tomorrow!