I did it y’all! I did not buy any clothing items this 1st quarter of 2023 and honestly, the time flew by! I’m sharing more about what 3 months a no clothes shopping hiatus taught me and why I think it’s something that every shopper should attempt to do.
If you’re considering doing this hiatus/fast, then you probably already feel that you have enough clothes to wear. My reasoning for doing an extended hiatus versus just one month was two fold. The first reason being: I did A LOT of holiday spending (no regrets, ever) and I like to start the year off slow when it comes to shopping anyway. So no shopping in January was a given. The 2nd reason was for me to take full advantage of what I already owned in my closet. I usually do closet clean outs once a quarter and my last clean out gave me the ick. There were a bunch of things that I ended up donating or selling that I didn’t take full advantage of. But by the time the closet clean out came around, I didn’t care for them anymore. As a fashion blogger/influencer, it’s my job to essentially share these items, but I wanted to challenge myself to sharing these items consistently worn in different ways. Which brings me to point number 2.
I am a huge proponent of wearing different pieces of clothing in different ways. But one thing I don’t think I’ve done enough of is wearing the exact same outfit, for different occasions. You’d be surprised how just changing the accessories (bag, shoes, jewelry) can really make a previous look feel very different. This hiatus made me feel comfortable with wearing a look again, even if it’s already been seen. A perfect example is this pink suit that I wore to NYFW back in September. It’s been sitting in my closet and I knew I wanted/needed to find another way to wear it. So I went the more casual root with my denim Jordan’s, gold accessories, and the Aritzia babaton sculpt knit tank, et voila! A fresh take on a previously worn look.
Now I see why Santa does this. In my case, I’ve been writing out things I’ve seen that I want to purchase once the hiatus is up. I’ve been going back to the list to see if anything on there is something that I wanted in the moment and don’t really want anymore. So far, almost everything I’ve written down, I do still want (haha). Writing it out has also given me a sort of vision of what my future closet will look like, and so I can cross reference and start mentally creating looks based on those items. But also, I have a game plan set in place. I’m not against impulse shopping because I have done a good amount of that (enter in my Versace Medusa Platforms), but there is something to be said about waiting patiently to buy a piece that you’ve had your eye on for some time. So get to making a list, and checking back on it to see if you really want that thing, or just wanted it for the moment.
One day I was in my feelings about something and I went to the Zara site to browse, TEMPTED to shop my feelings away. I knew that buying something…anything, would make me feel just a little bit better. Then I thought, “am I really just going to give in to my emotions that easily??” One thing about me, I don’t like feeling like I can’t control how I respond to situations. It’s something I am continuously working on and this felt like a test. Instead of giving in to that desire, I took a drive to the beach and sat oceanside. This was fairly late at night, but it felt good to be near nature. By the time I came home, I forgot about what I wanted to buy and was proud of myself for self regulating. Shopping gives me a dopamine and adrenaline rush. Retail therapy is real and I’m not against it. But with everything in life, things should be done in moderation, no matter how available it may be to you.
And there you have it folks, what 3 months a clothes shopping hiatus taught me. Honestly, I feel great. This was good discipline and was a good reminder that you truly can do whatever you put your mind too. If you’re wanting to do the same for this next quarter, I would highly recommend! Until next time…
