It's been about 6 months - it will be
at the end of this month - since I started being conscientious of my
purchases to quit buying useless things and to save money.
The initial idea last July was "let's see if we can save
1000$ each to buy a drone" but in the end, a drone wasn't worth 1000$ to
me, but it was still useful for me to see if truly I could minimize my
spending.
So, after about 6 months, here are the
observations I’ve made:
The positives
1. More conscious of my tendencies and shopping
habits
I do have a tendency to shop every 2-3 months and buy for a few
hundred dollars. For example, when I come across cool and fashionable
tendencies, it makes me want some of my own (PINEAPPLES!!).
When there is a change in seasons, like the fall collection is out in a store I
like, I have a tendency to want a new wardrobe, or spend a few hundred dollars
on some new items. Christmas also meant I wanted to have a bunch of extra
seasonal items, like Christmas decorations for the tree (even though we already
had a bunch), nice table decor for having people over (even though I hadn't had
plans to host anyone), nice house decorations (but not enough space for new
stuff!!) and of course gifts! I have a tendency to buy in excess, sometimes
buying gifts even when I don't have a person in mind! (Are
you an over-buyer or under-buyer?)
2. I did become a
mindful spender
With every purchase I questioned
myself on the usefulness of what I wanted to buy and if I really had a use in
mind, one that would last beyond one season.
Although on this project I don’t
concentrate on saving money on groceries and going to the restaurant (dates or
social activities), I’ve become a bit more conscious and smart about spending,
for example “I spent a lot on fancy ingredients last month, I should focus on
using them up or using my frozen items this month”.
I don’t actually have a numerical
budget, as getting into the metrics would be a whole other project that I’m not
willing to get into now (which I can do because I am not in debt, thankfully).
3. I did buy less
of certain items
I saved some money by not spending on delicious
tea from my favorite tea store DavidsTea,
books (since I already have a bunch
I didn’t read), seasonal items (except
some hand soaps………), home decorations
(except a few that provided happy memories and those that my mister wanted to
incorporate into our home – I didn’t want him to be negatively affected by my budgeting
exercise)…
4. More enjoyment
from the things I do own
Not buying the new teas at DavidsTea
was difficult, but I also was able to enjoy all the teas I do have, and benefit
from the enjoyment of finishing a pack of tea that I’ve had for a while!
Not buying new books, I was able to
pick up a book I already had and still hadn’t read!
5. I became more
generous
Since I didn’t want to spend money to
fill up my home with useless stuff, I couldn’t buy myself the awesome cute
amazing thing I found at that store I love, but someone else could benefit! I
allowed myself to be a bit more generous with gifts. A little gift for a friend
who was celebrating a birthday, a care package for a sick family member, an
extra generous gift this year for Christmas.
The negatives
1. I'm a little
masochistic
Although I've decided not to buy things that are "fun"
and "cool" but useless, or just temporary useful, I'm still
subscribed to newsletters of my favorite stores, some that are stocked with
temporary useful objects (Like Indigo Bookstore!). And not just that, I peruse
the sales for "essential" items that are also awesome. The inner
dialogue that it causes is less than pleasant as I go from "yes I want it
so bad!" to "no, i don't need it" back and forth for several minutes,
and sometimes several times in a day or week. When seasonal items, which I've
sworn off, go on sale, it's torture and a half . I know I'd feel temporary
pleasure, but I'd also use said items during a specific season. A great example
of this was the pumpkin tureen in a previous
blog post of my biggest teases!
2. I still spent money
I bought a few cake pedestals for
taking better pictures of my Gateaux
Dulce cakes, some clothing when I ruined a couple items in the wash, some gorgeous
frames to finally display some beautiful pictures from our Italy vacation, some
hand soaps with holiday scents (hey, they’re consumable!), etc. As mentioned in
the positives, I also was more generous in gifts! So, in terms of saving dollars,
I’m not sure I succeeded much in that department.
In the end, there are more positives than negatives so the overall
conclusion is it’s a good thing which I will be continuing for the next few
months and hopefully beyond, setting good habits for the future!
*
Any ideas for saving money? What are some
of your pros and cons of mindful spending?
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