The Resolutions – Part Two

image via the very cool photographic dictionary via Rachel

*Warning, this is a long one!

I wanted to comment a bit on my resolution to not make any new purchases for three months, as I think it might be freaking people out just a smidge... My ultimate motivation for this seemingly crazy undertaking is two-fold.

First, I see it as sort of a “money cleanse.” Most Americans go to the gym religiously in January to make up for all sorts of gastronomical sins, and while I certainly eat a lot over the holidays, I seem to have a bigger issue with spending -- that extra bottle of wine at the grocery store, one more gift for the girls, a few more ornaments for the tree... No matter how diligent I’ve been prior, I somehow lose all focus and get caught up in the abundance of December. Come January, I end up feeling totally bogged down in stuff. So this is partially a sort of purchasing “crash diet.”

My other motivation is environmental. I didn’t put lots of specific “green” resolutions on my list this year, but I’m committed to several things that directly relate to my goal to “minimize.” I’ve totally eschewed ziplock bags (I found a little trio of storage containers that’s perfect for packing the girls' lunches waste free.) I’m also striving to never accept a plastic or paper bag when I’m shopping, which is much harder than I thought, as while I’ve amassed a nice collection of reusable shoppers, I still haven’t mastered remembering to actually take them with me every time I leave the house. But after reading this article in the Washington Post a few months ago, I realized my thinking was a bit skewed… Purchasing something I don’t truly need makes a much bigger environmental impact than taking home yet another mindless purchase in a environmentally correct canvas bag. These two lines from the article run through my head on a pretty regular basis:

"They could still, in this recession-wary economy, where everyone tries to cut back, subscribe to the crazy notion that conservation was about . . . conserving. Says Garrett, "The greenest products are the ones you don't buy."

"Really going green, Hawken says, means having less. It does mean less. Everyone is saying, 'You don't have to change your lifestyle.' Well, yes, actually, you do."

Honestly I’m not really scared of this undertaking, as it’s not my first time. I actually did a three month spending hiatus at the start of 2008, and it was extremely rewarding and successful. But then the hiatus ended and (despite my efforts to create a seemingly fool-proof plan for mindful purchasing moving forward), I kind of lost my focus… So in addition to my “holiday cleansing” and environmental motivations, this is sort of a do-over from last year.

You also might notice that I'm planning to officially start the spending hiatus on January 10th to account for the fact that I did take advantage of the amazing, amazing sales happening right now (really, in all of my years as a *very* good consumer, I have never seen discounts like these.)

In full disclosure, here’s a list of everything I’ve purchased since Christmas:

• A couple of pretty house plants, including a miniature Meyer lemon tree (I always crave some new greenery in January to fill the void left by the absent Christmas tree)
• A pair of killer brown suede tall boots to tuck my jeans into (I’ll share a picture later, as they are truly stunning)
• 3 new “dress over jeans” tops from Calypso and Barneys respectively that were so deeply discounted that they were cheaper than your average top from the Gap.

As of this Saturday I. go. cold. turkey. Anyone care to join me? We could start a support group!