New year, new shopping (habits). Hopefully.
I – as most others this time of year – have been reflecting on my current habits and wanted to become a bit more aware of how I shop in the future. So, I wanted to share some of the things I will leave in 2021 and what I will do instead.
Buying something even though it’s not the right size
Ooooh am I guilty of this. Especially as shopping has moved even more online during lockdown, I find it a bit of a hassle to return things and reorder the right size. If I find I piece I really love, I just want to rip the tag off and wear it straight away. Another instance is when I manage to snag the last piece and all the other sizes are sold out, so I think it fits well enough. Usually this is when a piece is too large, because I tend to think that I can always take it in a bit. But buying a shirt that is too large in not just the chest and waist, but also is too long and shoulders are too large? I need to face reality. Getting the right size makes me love the piece more, so I just need to be a little bit less compromising.
Buying something that doesn’t fit quite right
Okay, hear me out, it’s different than the above. Sometimes it is the right size, but it might not really fit my shape or height anyways. And instead of clinging on to the piece because I love it, willfully overlooking a baggy crotch area or a buckling back zipper of a dress made for someone a foot taller, I will try to let it go and focus on finding a piece that I love even more. I’m hoping that approach will work, let me know if you have other suggestions.
Perusing the sales just because
This has to stop. Shopping is not a cure for boredom. I absolutely love coming across a fabulous and unexpected find when I’m out shopping and I have found several of my wardrobe favorites that way. However, going shopping without an aim often ends up with a few expensive mistakes, and sometimes it’s easy for me to delude myself into thinking that because it’s on sale, it won’t be expensive, even if it turns out to be a mistake. Of course, this is not true. A mistake will still take up space in my wardrobe, it still has an environmental impact and it does still cost money. Instead of three sales mistakes, I could just buy that knit sweater I have been eyeing and really wanting. I will allow sales shopping, but only with a list of things I actually have wanted before, not just upon seeing that it’s 30% off..
Focus less on trends (and more on forever pieces)
This is pretty self-explanatory. I don’t tend to buy into a lot of trends and my style has always veered more towards classic and trendless anyways. But I have noticed the last couple of years that the way I view clothing has been a little bit more along the lines of “I want to wear this right now” and not considering whether I will want to wear it 5-10 years from now, or even a year from now. Not every single item has to be something you can pass down, naturally, but it’s a mind shift I want to make this year.
Buying low quality clothing
This is difficult, for almost everyone I would imagine. It’s hard to know whether a piece will last as long as you want it to or not, but while I have mostly been aware that I want more classic cuts and colors on my clothing, I have had several pieces be very disappointing this year. A lot of fabric pilling or even just disintegrating, pieces losing their shape and just in general looking terrible rather quickly. I have always found it much more difficult spending a lot of money on clothing (as opposed to handbags and accessories and to some extent, shoes), because I have this idea that I will ruin it very quickly no matter what. I imagine tearing an expensive cardigan on something because I am clumsy. Or ripping a pair of trousers. But I want to make an effort to buy fewer items and put that same amount of money into trying new and slightly more high end clothing. I have told myself that if I hate it, I’ll go back, so I don’t feel so panicky about it. Over all, this is part of me wanting to become more educated on fabrics, blends, seams and making clothing in general. I will keep you posted, I am very excited about this journey!
What shopping habits are you going to change in 2022?
