How I Curbed My Impulse Shopping Without Feeling Restricted
I have struggled on and off with impulse-buying and over consuming for a lot of my life; whether that be buying 6 items at a time when I went to a thrift store, a few target clothing purchases at a time, etc. Since switching to buying more slow fashion last year, I have slowed down quite a bit with my buying because of the higher prices but still struggled with not over-buying. Even though I wasn't putting myself into debt, I like to keep my closet small and the turnover low. I also want to prioritize saving more of my money rather than spending, so I have been trying to find ways to curb my shopping.
In the past, I have tried to do no-buys for a month or restricting the number of items I am allowed to buy. However, those never feel great to me; I think in part because I have struggled with Eating Disorder stuff that anytime I feel too restricted and assign numerical boundaries to anything, it just triggers me into some of the same feelings I overcame with my recovery.
So figuring out a balance of limiting my shopping while also still feeling good and like I have the freedom to shop is tricky. But I think I have figured out a mindset that works for me! It's actually quite simple and I was able to not buy anything from the end of November until mid-February.
Beaton Linen Moving Coat.
The method
So in the fall of 2020, I saw that Beaton Linen posted about an absolute dream quilted jacket that would be released in the near future. I knew I wanted to purchase it and they posted the price and approximate timeline ($350 and February 2021). Because I had been spending my max budget for clothing every month for the past few months (I try to budget around $200/month for clothes/beauty products), I didn't have a lot of wiggle room so I knew that I should limit what I bought until it was released. That gave me a few months to save money.
What I ended up noticing is that anytime I saw something online I wanted to buy during that time of waiting for the jacket to be released, I would ask myself "Do I want this more than the quilted jacket?". And every time my answer was the same "No!". While this seems really simple, I realized that I can actually save better if I have something I am looking forward to buying. In other words, I have not been successful when I just tell myself I can't buy anything this month. But rather, when I have something to compare my impulse buying to, in this case the quilted jacket, it was easy for me to choose between the two and prioritize something I really really wanted. If I have nothing to compare my impulse want to, then of course I will want to buy whatever is in front of me.
When the Feb release came around, I had successfully not purchased any clothing items for a few months, so I had more than enough for the jacket! (I needed to save $116/month for 3 months but ended up saving $200/month).
The nice thing about this method is that I can still decide to buy something I see immediately if I really think I will love it more than my current planned purchase. The idea is just that I want to be thoughtful and intentional with my buying.
How to apply this going forward
Throughout this process, I learned that I do a much better job of saving money and prioritizing my purchases when I have something to look forward to. This makes sense when I think about it, but it's not the way I have done my shopping. I have kept a wishlist before, but I honestly feel like this method works better if I focus on just the next item I want to buy so that it feels more attainable, rather than staring at my list of 15+ slow fashion purchases I would love to make (but probably won't).
I think this method can be applied to all kinds of shopping; not just slow fashion. For example, if I wanted to buy a pair of vintage trousers, I could compare other impulse items to the idea of vintage trousers, and once I saved up ~$50-75 (or however much I would want to spend) I would start looking on Depop, Ebay, Poshmark, etc. for the perfect pair. I think waiting to shop until you have the money saved is key for making intentional purchases.
Final thoughts
Impulse buying is so common and happens to the best of us, so no shame at all if you struggle with it. And I don't think this method will completely eliminate impulse buying because I still have the freedom to choose to buy something in the moment. Sometimes it happens and not all brands give a lot of notice before a drop happens. So in the case I want to buy something immediately, I would just need to decide if I am okay delaying my purchase of whatever it was that I was saving for next.
This method also highlights why I love when small businesses (like Beaton and Pyne & Smith) give a heads up about new products that are going to be released. I think this is helpful for people to be able to plan their purchases and to be able to save up because most of us don't always have ~$200+ laying around to buy clothing at a moments notice. I wish all slow fashion businesses did their releases this way and provided information about costs of items ahead of time.
Maybe this method will work for you and maybe it won't! Just wanted to share my perspective going into this year.
Beaton Linen Moving Coat.