Blue/Red & Be more selective

I guess I still haven't gotton over the red, white and blue colors from this last week. Red and blue combo are so colorful, bright, lively and fun. I think I have done pretty good as far as adding some colors in my wardrobe this year



As I organized my accessories few months ago, I came across several unworn pieces and thought why I even bought them to begin with. Does that sound familiar? Have you questioned yourself and wanted to slap your precious little face for buying things that you never use?

One of my goals this year is to think twice about every single purchase I am about to make and cut down on shopping. Our buying decisions are from several reasons (boredom, cheap, pretty, on sale, last piece available, influence from friends/ads or blogs) or no reason at all. It clearly is one thing that we, most ladies, struggle with. The result? We end up with junk piles and waste money. Those things may be cheap but they add up if we buy one here..one there over a course of the year.

I struggled to get rid of this "buying everything within my sight" habit in the past months and I am proud to report that I am doing better (really). If you are looking into finding ways to be more selective about your purchases and want to declutter your home, here are some tips that may help based on my personal tried and true, failure and success:

1) Make a "closet/vanity/jewelry storage units discovery day": you will be surprised to see how many unworn/unused items sitting lonely in a dark corner. Who have an effort to clean and organize every so often? Yet it is a very important step, we tend to buy..buy..buy abd sometimes don't even know what we bought in the past. We all have to face that ugly truth before moving on.

2) Make a mental list or write down of stuff you never use along with their prices (if the price tags are still there).

3) Sit down and go through that "never use" list twice. Be sure to remember "not" to buy them again unless you find more than "one" occasion to use them.

In my case, I love fashion accessories so I bought them all the time because they are so affordable. I regularly wear earring and necklace, but not a fashion ring nor bracelets. I looked at my jewelry box and was amazed because I have so many bracelets. Same with clothes, I have to be more careful with my obsession to ruffles because I find them to be difficult to pair with clothes. I am going to cut down on that and go with more basic pieces.

4) If you still have price tags, add them up and slap your face for buying and wasting money. Just kidding :D Do add them up though, you will be surprised how much money you have wasted.

5) Set your shopping limit and do the mathbe it per week or month.

It is very important to have this written down. Mental calculation won't be as effective. First you need to set how much you allow yourself to shop per month and write that down, for example $100 per month. It makes no sense at all to track your spending but do not set a limit. Then get a small note pad and track every single purchase or simply keep receipts. At the end of the day or week, enter them in an Excel spreadsheet, sum them up and monitor regularly. Make sure you do not spend more than what you initially set. You may overspend in the first few attempts but don't give up. You will be better, more disciplined and have more self-control as you go.

6) Find ways to use or sell unused items: you already spent your hard earned money on them, no sense to store them in the dark unless they are real gold or something that gains value over time.

7) Keep in mind that when you cut down or talk yourself out of "never use" purchases, you will have extra money to put in a piggy bank or buy more items that you will "actually" use.

8) Once you know your weak spot. Try to avoid all temptations/triggers. Worst to worst, you are already in a store and have an "item" in your hands, before walking to a cashier...ask yourself "can I see myselfself using it more than once?". Be honest. If yes, go for it. If no, put it back despite how cheap it is. You don't want another piece of junk.

What did you buy but never use, ladies? Any tips on how to avoid "the thrills of buying/shopping" which results in unnecessary purchases?