Minimalist Haul & Shopping Intentionally

Within the No Waste movement there is an important lesson on shopping intentionally that I think is important to discuss. After depositing my paycheck and making a credit card payment at the bank, I decided to finally go buy jeans. My jeans tend to wear down on the inner thighs since I do lots of walking. My first thoughts we to go to Academy or Old Navy, but then I remembered that I could probably find decent jeans for a heck of a lot cheaper at a thrift store.

Rule #1 : Buy secondhand whenever possible.

According to Google Maps I was 1 mile away from the nearest thrift store called Savers, which looks a lot like Goodwill. On the inside, the housewares and such are to the left and the clothing to the right. I wandered through the aisles and came across a shovel (which is on our To-Buy List for scooping dog poop) and a wok (which would solve the problem of not having a large enough pot to use when cooking on the stove). They were $3 and $6 respectively. Obviously, the shovel is a bit broken, but my husband said he would never need it to actually dig any holes so it's perfect.

As a bit of a packrat, it can be difficult not to just buy something purely because I like it. That's why you should know what you need before you ever go to a store. My memory is not the greatest, so I use shopping lists religiously.

Rule #2 : Know what you need.

The hard part is when you start walking around is see things you hadn't thought about or don't need. If you can stick to your guns and not buy impulsively, then go you. For example, I entered Savers with the intention of buying jeans and still ended up spending almost $30. Had I purchased "wants" as well as "needs" then it could have been worse.

Rule #3 : Take a picture of the "wants."

The 2 main items that I found that I would have loved to purchase (but don't need) included a classy set of dishes and a chips and dip serving dish. This sort of pattern on the dishes is one of my favorites and it even matches the shower curtain from the tiny house I lived in when I was in college. On the other end of the spectrum style-wise, there was an adorable chips and dip serving dish that was shaped like a swimming pool with a diving board and hot tub.

Maybe it's because I'm a millennial, but I love taking photos of everything. It was not until I tried sticking to a shopping list in an effort to save money that I realized photos could serve another purpose. By taking photos of the things I wanted and didn't need, I could live vicariously through the next person who would own it. This method also works if you go out to eat and your food or drink looks cute, fancy, or interesting.

Rule #4 : Give yourself time. 

If you leave the store that day and spend the next couple days or weeks regretting not purchasing the item, then that's when I believe it is worth considering going back to buy it. Keep in mind that these are "wants" not "needs."

The last of my five rules is only in regards to clothing and comes from going through and downsizing my wardrobe many times. In my opinion, the only clothing that you should keep are only those that fit well, fit comfortably, are within your personal sense of style, and are items you will wear more than once. If you have to make alterations or keep fidgeting with it, then you probably won't wear it much.

Rule #5 : Only buy clothes that you love.

I'm so glad that I was able to find a pair of black jeans, a structured black skirt, a shovel, and a wok today. Even though I only went in looking for jeans that I can wear casually and can wear to work, I have also been wanting a black skirt and needed a couple other items that I had not expected to find at Savers today. I'm also pretty happy that as an added bonus there are built-in shorts under the skirt (AKA skort?). Gotta enjoy the little things.

If you are looking for ways to try and save money, I hope my trial and error methods can help you when you next try and resist the temptations of straying from your shopping list.