If you have been following me on Instagram for a while (@thegoodcarmablog) you know that I have been into leading a semi-minimalist, more sustainable life. Last Fall I did my first ever capsule wardrobe in an attempt to not purchase any new clothing during the months of October and November. This was mildly successful but I still bought way too many new dresses because I knew I was going to get proposed to and wanted to “be prepared for the big moment”. Spoiler alert, I was not prepared.
My goal has always been to lead a life with intention. Intention about how I treat myself and others, thinking intentional thoughts, purchasing with intention…you get the idea. This is where the no buy month challenge comes into play. I want to stop the cycle of impulse buying and buying things I have no need for and that are just wants. I recently realized that I have a ridiculous amount of things and also shop as a way to relieve stress. This is not easy to admit but I am doing so in hopes to be better! I am a neat freak and was struggling to keep my home environment organized and while packing to move I realized I had way too much for one person. I also have started doing more research into sustainable living and learned that the fashion industry is the world’s second largest polluter right after oil. I wanted to do my part to not contribute to the unnecessary pollution of our planet. Okay, before you think I’ve gone entirely crunchy on you let me finish explaining what I’ll be doing for the month of May.
What is the No Buy Month Challenge?
For an entire month I am challenging myself to not buy any personal items for myself. These items include clothes, accessories, jewelry, makeup and so on. This does not include food (obvi), medicine, toiletries, or things I have completely run out of around the house like cleaning supplies.
How are you going to keep yourself accountable?
I’m telling everyone in my life about it. I will soon be living with my fiancé so he’ll be know if I have something delivered to the house or return with shopping bags.
Did you do a big splurge before starting this months challenge?
No, I think that would defeat the purpose. But I’m not going to lie I thought about it.
Why are you doing this?
I explained more about my why above but if you have any more questions just comment below.
Will you post your results?
Yes, I definitely will. I also would really appreciate y’alls help and any encouragement you have. I know this is not even close to the hardest thing anyone has done but it is something this recovering shop-a-holic may have a hard time with. I will be talking more about this on instagram stories and will save it to my highlight as well. You can stay more up to date over on IG.
Will you do this for other months throughout the year?
Yes, I am hoping to continue doing this for every other month for the rest of 2020. Once I get a handle on the no buy month for personal items I am going to try and set more boundaries and limit ALL of my purchases. So maybe 5 purchases a month in total that would include personal, date nights, birthday gifts, things for my home etc.
I am excited about this! Let me know what y’all think and if you have done anything like this before. Can’t wait to give you an update!
xo,
Carmen