It’s officially March, which means my month-long, self-imposed spending freeze has now lifted. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, catch up in this post.) So, how did the ban go?
Did I break ban?
The only time I broke ban was because we had family visiting. It was one of our guest’s birthdays, so I went and bought fresh flowers (and made cupcakes!). I don’t really consider this breaking ban, because to me it was more important to make a guest feel welcome than to be a stick in the mud over a ban. I knew they were coming weeks in advance, so I knew this little breach was going to happen. I also got to use the flowers as props for some fun photos (and the one above!), so I definitely got my money’s worth.
I also had some one-off blog-related expenses this month. I had decided at the beginning of the month that blog expenses wouldn’t be included in the ban. The purpose of the ban was to slow down on extra spending, not to interfere with my growth and goals for the blog. Since all of the expenses were planned (I had funds set aside) and directly contribute to my blog’s progress, I didn’t consider this a breach of ban either.
On the positive side, a handful of my listings also sold this month. Those were the opposite of breaking ban, since they put even more cash back in my pocket.
What I didn’t buy
Of course, there were still quite a few things I wanted to buy but would definitely be against the rules. Here’s a few of the things that tempted me this month:
Unicorn light up slippers. Seriously. Are they not amazing?!?! I don’t have any slippers, and my feet are always in need of extra warmth in the house. I’d still consider buying them, but they’re one size, so I’m skeptical they’d fit very well on my feet.
Dragon lamp. Ok, this site with the slippers was a bit of a black hole of ridiculousness for me. Their cute little dragon mini-lamp is just so good. They also have an adorable unicorn and narwhal lamp. I die.
Werkshop on eBay. They’ve since sold, but there was a pair of Werkshop’s special edition pink crops in my size on eBay for only $40. I love Werkshop and these were a great price! Still, I reminded myself they weren’t on my “must have” list, so it’s not always a good thing to buy something just because the price is good.
Alala sale. Naturally, Alala’s end of season sale on their fall stuff started just a few days after my ban went into effect. On top of that, they upped the ante with a limited time additional 20%, which I missed. D’oh.
Sweaty Betty sale. I mentioned the other day that Sweaty Betty’s mid-season sale had started, and I had my eye on a few things that were marked down for great prices. Unfortunately, all the things I wanted sold out within the first day!
Lululemon wee stripe race your pace 1/2 zip–twice!! There was not one, but *two* race your pace 1/2 zips on Poshmark in my size in the same week, and they were only $50. The race your pace fits me well, and the black wee stripe is beautiful in person. I’d been watching out for one to show up in my size, along with heathered black grape. Both of these listings happened right at the end of the month, so I was extra tempted to just say “ah well, close enough!” I didn’t, though! Both listings are now sold, but who knows, maybe I’ll find one even cheaper over the warmer months.
The bottom line
All told, my freeze left me with over $600 extra in my budget at the end of the month, on top of what I normally take out of my budget for savings. I also got my tax refund this month, so overall this month brought a very noticeable and satisfying swing to my bank account. I’m feeling great about it and energized to keep the momentum going.
So how did this benefit me? One of the reasons I chose this month for a ban is that I was really close to being able to pay off my student loans, but I wanted one more push to really get me there. I made the final payment just a couple of weeks ago. Totally worth it!
Summarizing thoughts
One of the great things about my spending ban is that it really helped me realize what purchases are *really* highest priority for me. It reminds me to be more mindful and intentional with how I choose to spend.
The biggest things that rose to the top this month: I really want to redirect more of my shopping money to my house. I have almost zero decorations, and most of my furniture is not my style or even missing altogether. It’s a constant source of frustration for me, so it’s high time I make more of an effort to amend that situation in the coming months. Basically, the marginal value I would get from spending my money on making my house beautiful is probably better than buying 6 more pairs of workout crops.
In the past few months, I’ve gotten a lot more lax in terms of both the volume of things I order as well as the volume of things I choose to keep. I definitely need to tighten up on that! After having to be extremely frugal for a long time, I think I just needed to get some of that pent-up shopping out of my system. But now I think it’s time to rein it back in. Just because I have the extra money to spend doesn’t mean I should spend it, nor does it mean it’s ok for me not to be picky about what I buy.
Another unexpected side effect: I’m accidentally growing my hair out! I was due for a haircut in February, but I stuck to my rule that I would wait on anything I could. So, my hair is getting way longer than the usual, but I decided to roll with it for now. I’ve had short hair for something like 7 years, so I don’t even know what I’d look like with slightly longer hair anymore. Now that I’ve (FINALLY) found a hair stylist I like, I think I’m going to experiment with something a little different and see how I like it.
I know a lot of you were on the ban train for February, too. I’d love to hear your reports!
I also stuck with my spending freeze! I’m now 2 months down and 4 more to go :) Great job with yours!
4 months?! You have the discipline of a Buddhist monk!
You are a rockstar, Gretchen! :)
congrats, AA!
i stuck with mine with two (sort of) exceptions… since the Align pants came out months ago I have dreamed of a navy pair (and didn’t know if they would ever exist), so before the ban I told my sister (R&D and in a state with no sales tax!) to just buy them for me if they came out (but not tell me!)… well, of course they came out like the first week of the ban so she, being the dear sister that she is, tracked them down and got them. in addition, workout undies were on my “need” list and i knew i was going to buy them asap in march at full price. so when zobha had 30% off, i bought some (but i didn’t throw any additional items in my cart!)
I’m happy with my efforts… i wanted lots of things and didn’t get them and saved a ton of money. i have to say though, my mouth dropped open when i went to buy alala’s new perforated blocked crops yesterday and they were already sold out!! LUCKILY bandier still had them in my size and i sleuthed up a 10% off code, which was close enough to AA15 :)
overall though – i agree, i had a whole list of stuff that i wanted and I’m not going to end up buying 90% of it (those dang perforated block crops were at the TOP of the list!) it’s awesome to “let things go” that you think you NEED. like all the things i was interested in at sweaty betty sold out, and i was like… “meh” (quite a contrast to the alala panic!)
oh and i CUT MY OWN HAIR… layers and all… about a week ago. i have to say, it aint half bad. totally not going to pay $80 for a haircut again anytime soon! plus the wine at my house is WAY better than the boxed stuff at the aveda salon… just sayin…
p.s. those unicorn slippers are ridiculous. i think you might have loved those precisely because you couldn’t have them :-P
Nonsense!! The slippers are totally ridiculous BUT that’s why they’re awesome. ;)
I noticed the newly dropped electric stone swell crop is already gone in my size on Alala’s site, too. I kind of wonder if they just never got those in stock and sent that size to their retailers instead or something. So I may also have to order the swell crop from Bandier because I really dig it. Speaking of which, a little bird told me that if you sign up for kgbody.com’s email list, you might get a little Bandier bonus, winky winky.
Anyway, back to the point: nicely done with your ban!! :) I think it’s reasonable to have a (short!) list of pre-determined exceptions to the ban, kinda like my floral indulgence. Everybody seemed to want those inkwell aligns, so that was probably a smart move. I kinda wish I had taken advantage of the Zobha deal too! Ah well, something else will come up eventually.
i just bought that alala swell crop. i like their new print a lot.
thanks for the bandier tip!!
winky winky back at ya.
Wasn’t technically on a spending freeze last month, but I did have a proud moment – I, too, was seriously tempted by the Alala sale. Those chill tights I’d ordered in the wrong size months ago was almost 1/2 off with the 20% code! I was actually in the process of checking out when I asked myself, “are you buying this because you want it, or because the price is so low you feel you should?” I had to admit I was only really buying it for the low price, since I haven’t even thought of those tights since you reviewed them. So I closed out of my browser and didn’t buy them – and I honestly don’t regret doing that. I think reading up on your spending freeze process helped me come to that decision!
It was a lightbulb moment for me, which I hope to repeat in the future. I’m definitely not a spendthrift but I am bad about random impulse buys. I can’t count how many dresses I own that I’ve only worn once (or not at all!). Shoes, too.
Yesss that’s awesome! I, too, have fallen into the “it’s cheap so I should buy it” trap way, way too many times. As you pointed out, I think in the long run it usually ends up costing you more, ironically enough.
I did one in January. I sold a bunch of old Lulu and I really felt like I have become much more mindful. So I am continuing to practice mindfulness in my spending! But after that Black Friday – Christmas binge I learned rhe hard way!
Nice work. :) I’m glad it’s had some lasting effects for you! I bought a lot of stuff over the holiday sales, too, so it was nice to reset right after those indiscretions. :)
Good job AA! I did great with mine except that I got a pair of Align pants in inkwell (love!) before they sold out.
ha!
im glad im not the only one who made that exception :)
Heh, everybody seemed to want those aligns!! Glad you managed to be successful otherwise. :)
I will have to do a re-do on another month. Lol! I ended up realizing that I needed to size up in a couple of my basics (with about 10-20 pcs of each of item in tops and a couple items in bottoms) and since I run long distance I needed to be able to wear the stuff but couldn’t. I needed the items and was extremely limited when trying to dress for working out (I don’t own a ton of Lulu so I really was in a spot) So, as I bought my size up (after looking for a trade first), I’d list and sell the too small item. I’m almost done switching out the items I need to size up and then i’ll try a spending ban again on another month.
Yeah, I think that’s a very good reason to reschedule!! Being uncomfortable while working out is definitely not the goal. Impressive that you’ve managed to switch everything out so quickly!
Haven’t done everything and some things I switched out not like for like (found a Currant CRB to replace Love Red, Heathered Pigment instead of Cornflower) and the weather warmed up so now i’m running in shorts more so replacing the rest of mis-sized items (LS Swiftlies/tights) isn’t as much on a time crunch so I can wait and do it as I see the stuff :) But now i’m much more comfortable in my tops and the Visa balance is still at $0.
I actually really wanted the Inkwell Align pants as well, and didn’t buy them so they sold out in days in my size. Maybe I’ll find them at the store one of these days! Other than that, I did well this month. I sold a lot of things on eBay which makes me really happy. And today is March 2nd and I still haven’t made any purchases yet! I’ve grown used to not shopping and now I’m too lazy to dig out my credit card from my wallet. HA!
Nice job, Leslie!! :) Hopefully they’ll re-release those aligns. It’s such a staple color, I feel like they’re missing out if they don’t! I actually didn’t make my first post-ban purchase last night, and it wasn’t even workout clothes, heh. :)
Congrats on paying off your student loan! I’ve saved so much money by letting my hair grow & coloring it at home. Since Nov. 2014 I’ve had my hair cut only twice and used to get it cut every 4-6 weeks when it was short. Hair salon costs really add up!
jenn, do you color your hair all over or do highlights yourself? which color brands do you like?
All over color. I use Madison Reed, which has no ammonia & good ingredients. It’s more expensive than drugstore kits, but you get a nice little kit each month, and I love the color. It leaves my hair so silky & glossy–I like it more than the color I got in the salon! If you want to try it & can’t find a coupon code, email me. I’m sure I have a friend discount somewhere.
thanks so much! i would love to try it and i would love a friend coupon code. i tried emailing you from your blog page, but it gave me a warning page about phishing and would never let me get to the actual email. can you let me know your email?? thanks again!
Oh no! Thanks for letting me know about the email glitch! It’s jenniferkentpgh at gmail. I checked and the one I have is $15 off for a friend. You may be able to combine that with free ship or whatever other promo for your first purchase.
Fortunately I haven’t felt the need to color my hair (yet), so that *definitely* saves a ton of money. Expensive and frequent cuts are pretty much my only salon indulgence, lol.
great job on your freeze! i personally didn’t commit to doing a freeze this month. i just didn’t feel the need and well, it was my b-day month lol. however, i just looked over my spreadsheet and i only bought one athletic wear item: a lulu Light as Air Thong on MD for 9$ with a GC! AND turns out i ended up selling it because i didn’t need 2 in the same colour. plus i sold another lulu item. so really, i did pretty well for my non-freeze commitment; i actually made money ;)
also, your post made me realize i should spend more of my money towards decorating my house. and also add more to my savings. thanks for the reminder!
That’s awesome! :) I love it when those accidental spending freezes happen, heh.