I am a Magpie. I love sparkles, sequins, anything pretty and unique…I like to “guild the lily” as my mum would say.  Obviously, I am not the only girl with these fascinations but this is a fairly recent phase in my life. Growing up with three brothers, I thought of myself as tomboy-ish and I cringed at being called a “girly-girl”.  My childhood was filled with ballet classes, sports, Disney and Nerf guns…at the end of the day I would say it was well balanced.  And then suddenly when I was 17 (around the age I first had a job with real money and started going to school downtown) I became a bit of a shopaholic.  I looooved high heels (I still do. And I think it’s totally fine to wear them even if you’re tall.).  I fell hard for OPI nail polish.  I went from owning three dresses to more than my closet could handle.

Last summer I was travelling with my family in Europe and after dropping a fair amount of money in London, my Dad remarked that my spending was getting a little out of control.  He also pointed out that I could probably outfit a small country with all my clothes.  He was right (about the over-spending. I’m pretty sure I don’t have THAT many clothes.).  So then and there, outside of Top Shop in Oxford Circus, I proclaimed that I would not shop for one year. (I kept the purchases from that day though…) That was on Thursday July 21^st.  It has since been 26 weeks. I’m half way there!

To clarify, “not shopping” for me has just meant no objects (clothes, accessories, makeup, books, etc). I have however been purchasing toiletries (sorry, I like to stay clean!), I still bought gifts for others, and I’ve definitely spent money going out and about.  In the grand scheme of things, I realize this isn’t a huge deal, and I’m certainly not claiming to be making any kind of difference to society.  It has been a lot easier than I thought! My wallet is definitely healthier than it used to be, and I like to think that I’m becoming a smarter consumer. Being a student in environmental sciences, it is also hard NOT to think about the environmental implications of what you’re doing (i.e. what you’re buying) fairly often, so that’s another source of motivation for me — a teeny tiny way to help our planet.
So to mark six months of self-restraint I figured I should celebrate…by not shopping for another six! Happy Thursday!