Ciao, bellas! I'm going to be honest with you; I'm a bit of a shopaholic. Not the kind that's maxing out her credit card or burying herself in Prada shopping bags but the pathetic kind who knows every clothing item on every website and probably has at least five things in her shopping cart at every store. As a fashion blogger, it's partly my job to be up to date on all the trends and sales. However, I've noticed lately that I use blogging as an excuse to screenshot items (and sometimes buy them). Today I'm exposing myself to you as your everyday shopaholic who has a few words of wisdom on how to balance being stylish and financially stable.
Today's post is inspired by one of my idols, Becky Bloomwood, the ultimate shopaholic. I decided this topic would be fun since I am in the middle of both a spending freeze and the Confessions of a Shopaholic book series.
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Earlier this week, I was eyeing a pair of heels- the type with the big diamond bows on the fronts. They were only $42 and what I thought would be a great investment for prom and future college formals. At first, I had no intention of buying them and then somewhere along the way I convinced myself that I couldn't live without these shoes. I needed them.
Anyways, as I was checking these heels out, I stopped to check my email and saw that my most recent one read "Congratulations on your order!" What? I don't know how but some face ID or saved credit card tool must have bought the shoes without me realizing it. I don't exactly regret the purchase but it did bring to light a lot of my insecurities about overspending (especially when it's unnecessary).
Why We Can't Stop Shopping
The other day, I noticed something interesting about my spending patterns: over time, as I made more money, I spent more money. I started out buying $20 tops once every other month and ended up dropping $200 on weekly shopping sprees. Sure, making more money means you have the added luxury of spoiling yourself, but you shouldn't be spoiling yourself weekly or even daily. It doesn't matter if you're making more money than you used to if you're also spending more money than you're used to.
For most people, the amount of money you spend is positively correlated to the amount of time you spend "browsing online". Honestly, online shopping is a blessing and a curse. (I mean seriously, the fact that you can shop while using the bathroom is completely bizarre!) Now you can have anything you want with just the click of a button. Don't get me wrong, online shopping is one of my favorite hobbies; but when you can buy things anytime anyplace, it gets pretty dangerous. Maybe today you're treating yourself for that good test grade and tomorrow you're treating yourself for a long day at work. Even worse than frivolous spending habits is the addiction to materialism that online shopping brings you. There's always something new you want- something that's gonna change your wardrobe for real this time.
The other danger that draws us into the deadly disease known as shopaholism is social media. As a blogger, I am definitely not about to trash on social media but I am aware of the materialistic agenda it pushes. It makes you feel like you always need to buy the "latest trend" or the "cutest vacation outfit" to make everything seem more glamorous. And if you're a shopaholic like me, then you know the constant pressure you feel to buy everything new and shiny. But you need to resist it. Chances are, those boots will go out of style before next winter and that purse looks an awful lot like the one you already one.
Today's consumer culture has sucked us into thinking that we need to buy the next new thing in order to be happy. That's not always true. Sometimes it's much more rewarding to find value in the things you already have.
3 Rules for (and from) a Recovering Shopaholic
Quick disclosure! This blog post is not meant to discourage anyone from buying things or make people feel guilty for their recent purchases. By all means, there is NOTHING wrong with a healthy amount of shopping every once and a while. As a fashion blogger, I just feel like it's important to address to downsides of shopaholism and try to clarify that you don't need to buy everything I recommend or everything you like online. Be selective with your purchases and the ones you do make will mean more to you.
So to wrap this post up, here are three tips for a recovering shopaholic who wants to start making purchases that will be meaningful in the long run.
DON'T BUY EVERYTHING YOU LIKE: This rule is a technicality. If you see something and you like it, that doesn't mean you have to buy it. For example, if one of your favorite stores just dropped their spring collection, know that you don't need to feel obligated to buy all the pieces you like. Not everything you think is "pretty" will work in your wardrobe.
TAKE YOUR TIME: One of the benefits of online shopping is that you can take as much time as you like to decide whether or not to buy something (as long as it's not a high-demand item). If you see something you're interested in buying, take a screenshot (or add it to your cart) and see how you feel about it in a couple of days. One thing you can do is set a time limit for how long you have to wait before buying something. For example, if I don't think about an item a lot 5 days after I found it, then I probably don't want it that badly.
STOP SHOPPING: Yep. I said it. Sometimes the answer to cutting back on spending is to cut back on shopping in general. Unsubscribe to store emails and avoid going to the mall with friends. It may feel like the world is ending for a few days, but the longer you go without shopping, the freer you will feel from the constraints of consumerism.
I hope these tips help you! I, for one, am on a spending freeze until my next paycheck in two weeks. Let's do each other a favor by supporting other shopaholics on our "limited shopping phases" this next few weeks. Follow @ciaobella._ on Instagram for weekly updates. Ciao!
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