Not buying it

So I successfully made it to the end of Lent without buying anything, and it's been interesting in several ways.

I haven't really missed buying stuff, which is good. Although there's a part of me which thinks why should you miss buying things over a period of six weeks? You have plenty of stuff anyway. This is absolutely correct, and makes me feel slightly pathetic.

I have still been going to the shops, because avoiding the shops altogether seems like cheating - making it too easy on myself - and because I like to see what's out there. As I wrote before, the biggest effect of not buying stuff is that I have noticed how quickly the 'must-have-it!' urge fades if I don't give in to it.

I have bought a lot of second hand stuff. I think one aspect of not buying new stuff is that instead of getting fixated on a particular item in a shop, I've been able to be a bit more imaginative about what I could do with second hand stuff. Photos of some of my new second hand things will follow.

I've also been obsessing, actually obsessing, about things I want to make. I now have a list as long as my arm of possible projects for the next year. We'll see how many I get done...

Oh, and I must say now: I did go to the shops last week. I bought two plain grey t-shirts: one with long sleeves, one with short sleeves. And a dress for a wedding that looked ok in the shop but so awful at home that I returned it (so that doesn't count).

Objects of desire - red shoes, no knickers

These lovely DM shoes. I think red shoes are the most fun and happy thing in the whole world.

It's so you

Just received this book as part of a parcel from Amazon - really looking forward to reading it. It got an interesting review at the f-word. Feminism and fashion, two of my favourite things...

Objects of desire

I'm so very much in love with these shoes. But shipping from the US is $30! - almost as much as the shoes themselves cost. But still, they're so pretty. I love that chunky heel, and the slightly narrow rounded toe.

On yer bike

I wore a pencil skirt and heels today, because I got the bus to work instead of cycling. So I was thinking how much cycling to work influences what I can wear in the morning. Without even considering all the ugly stuff I have to wear to be safe, warm and visible, I can't wear:

- high heels. I do occasionally, but it makes it harder to cycle

- straight skirts

- any skirts shorter than about three inches above the knee (they ruck up when cycling and passers-by can see my knickers)

- for similar reasons, wrap dresses

Also, wide-legged trousers have a tendency to catch on my bike chain (although skinny jeans and narrow straight-legged ones are excellent). Lacey tights sometimes catch on sharp bits of the bike and rip. I have to wear a hat, or my ears get cold, but the hat has to go underneath my bike helmet, so instead of a nice hat I wear a ridiculous knitted headband. Given that I don't always bear these requirements in mind when shopping, it's no wonder that I always wear the same stuff for work - a-line skirt, flat boots, thick tights - and why I can't find anything else to wear despite a cupboard bursting with clothes.

Paula Cocozza has a few suggestions in an old Guardian article. I like her idea of wearing full, fifties style skirts.

Objects of desire

- a dark denim seventies style maxi skirt. I have some vintage patterns that I can use to make this, so it might be one of my next projects.
- some flat black shoes with a dolly strap (a strap over the instep). It's so hard to find these! I want something between the very thin flat sole that so many flat shoes have at the moment (the ballet pump sole) and the chunky, Doc Martensy sole, but I can't find it anywhere. Also, just because I want flat dolly shoes does NOT mean I want them trimmed with embroidery/flowers/bows. Keep those for the actual seven-year-olds.
- a scanner. I want to scan some old photos and vintage patterns for this blog. My birthday is in two months, so, fingers crossed.
- a wrap-around, apron style pinafore dress. I now have the pattern, and I'm itching to get started on this. It's something I've been thinking of for years, so I'm very excited about making it.

Other bloggers

As I continue to read other people's style blogs, I really like this post from elegant musings about buying less and making, recycling and thrifting more. It really ties in with my current mood. And she has some lovely pictures on her blog!

Some stuff I liked from the A/W 08 shows

L to R - Michael Kors, Adam Lippes, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Adam Lippes

I'm obviously in a cool, contemplative place at the moment.

Self-denial

I don't believe in god. But this year I thought Lent would be a good opportunity to try out something I've been thinking of for a while, so I made a decision that during Lent (from the 5th February till the 23rd March) I was going to try not to buy any new clothes. I'm still allowed to buy fabric, and clothes from charity shops, but I wanted to see how I'd get along without my regular Primark fix.

I've been feeling recently that I just have too much stuff. I open my wardrobe and there are a million things hanging there, but I still can't find anything to wear. So far it's been four weeks without buying new clothes, and the first thing I've noticed if how much stuff I usually buy. I have five or six pairs of new tights in my drawer - unopened, in packets. There are half a dozen dresses in my wardrobe that I've never worn. Buying stuff has become something I do to cheer myself up - and it only really works if I happen to buy, usually by accident, something which genuinely looks nice and flattering, which becomes a useful part of my wardrobe. Too often I buy something, get it home, and decide it's not really as nice as I thought it was; usually after wearing it, of course, so that I can't even return it. That's pretty depressing.

The other thing that's happened is that I've identified a few things that I genuinely need for my wardrobe: if I've found myself thinking about a particular thing - a red cardigan, a black vest - I've tried to note it down, so that I can restrict my buying to things I really do need. I've been trying to still go to the shops occasionally and see what's out there, and I've noticed that I have a tendency to see something and then instantly obsess about it, deciding that this (whatever it is) is the one thing my wardrobe has been waiting for. Denying myself the instant gratification has meant that the obsession usually fades pretty quickly and I forget whatever it was that I thought I had to have.

If I make it to Easter without buying anything new, I'm going to get myself a couple of things that I really have identified as 'needs' (if anything can be said to be a need when you own as much clothing as I do...) and then try and make it another month to my birthday without buying anything new. I've been sewing like a demon - two dresses completed, one more waiting for a zip, and one cut out and ready to sew - but I also had my camera stolen so I haven't been able to post pictures of my completed projects. Hopefully pictures this week some time!