Retail therapy
I have a very strict shopping rule: Love it or leave it. This doesn't really apply to grocery shopping, but I think it should apply to just about everything else, particularly to clothes shopping. The reason I need this rule, besides the fact that I have limited funds, is that I rarely go shopping for one thing in particular. If I'm searching for a top to wear to work, it could be a sweater, a button-down shirt, a knit shirt ... it's not like shopping for wheat bread or orange juice ... there are so many different fabrics, colors, cuts, etc. to choose from.
I can only remember one time when I went to the store thinking: I need a white cardigan sweater. Most of the time, I go to the store only because I'm bored and curious to see what's new and what's on clearance. Today I went to the store because I realized that I don't have much variety when it comes to tops. Every time I choose a shirt or sweater to wear, I feel like I've worn it only a few days ago. I happen to have a lot of clothes, but many of them are no longer worth wearing. I almost wish I could institute a uniform for work, with multiples of my favorite items, and wear them over and over and over again. But I'm afraid that might seem weird ... kind of like when my sixth-grade teacher decided that since students had the privilege of wearing uniforms, she got to wear a uniform, too. (Her uniform just so happened to feature a single pair (I think) of forest green stirrup pants.)
Anyway, my love it or leave it rule means that if it costs a couple of dollars too much, if it's a nice style but the wrong color or fabric, if it's on clearance for $5 in a size close to my size but not quite my size, if I can't think of a single item I own that I could wear with it, or if it is beautiful except for some strange little embellishment, I can't buy it. It's actually kind of a fun little challenge.
Today I probably spent about an hour at Old Navy, and I only bought one thing. It was difficult not to buy four other things. The button-down I bought was not on clearance, and the other items of interest were, but I didn't really "love" them. And I am quite happy with my purchase.
I can only remember one time when I went to the store thinking: I need a white cardigan sweater. Most of the time, I go to the store only because I'm bored and curious to see what's new and what's on clearance. Today I went to the store because I realized that I don't have much variety when it comes to tops. Every time I choose a shirt or sweater to wear, I feel like I've worn it only a few days ago. I happen to have a lot of clothes, but many of them are no longer worth wearing. I almost wish I could institute a uniform for work, with multiples of my favorite items, and wear them over and over and over again. But I'm afraid that might seem weird ... kind of like when my sixth-grade teacher decided that since students had the privilege of wearing uniforms, she got to wear a uniform, too. (Her uniform just so happened to feature a single pair (I think) of forest green stirrup pants.)
Anyway, my love it or leave it rule means that if it costs a couple of dollars too much, if it's a nice style but the wrong color or fabric, if it's on clearance for $5 in a size close to my size but not quite my size, if I can't think of a single item I own that I could wear with it, or if it is beautiful except for some strange little embellishment, I can't buy it. It's actually kind of a fun little challenge.
Today I probably spent about an hour at Old Navy, and I only bought one thing. It was difficult not to buy four other things. The button-down I bought was not on clearance, and the other items of interest were, but I didn't really "love" them. And I am quite happy with my purchase.