I added something to my 2013 to-do list. (Also, hey, I've already crossed off a couple things! High-fives to me.) In 2012, I got a little out of control (mostly before vacations and big events) with online shopping. I needed a new pair of shoes to match a dress here and a new beach cover-up there and there are only so many times you can ignore the 40%-off sales at Lands End, am I right? The thing about online shopping is that everything looks good online. Okay, not everything. Not this:
It's amazing that there were actual human beings behind the decision to charge $278 for this thing.
Anyway, back to my point. You find something online and think it's just adorable on the 95-pound model and you order it and excitedly wait for it to arrive and then it does and then....huh? Well. That's interesting. It's less adorable and more "could be part of a Halloween costume." Ideally, for me, it would go right back to the store for a refund/exchange and it often would but not always. Sometimes the not-at-all-adorable thing would get tossed into my closet to re-sell or donate or hope that if I miraculously lost 45 pounds, it would somehow become adorable.
It's easy to mis-spend your money through online shopping is what I'm getting at. How did I come to this groundbreaking conclusion? Well, last night I saw a skirt online that I really loved and it was something like $60 and I found that to be a little too much. But then I thought, Well, if I loved it and wore it often and through many seasons, it could be worth the investment. Then I went on to think, The only way I'll really know if it's worth the cost is if I try it on first.
LIGHT BULBS! ALL THE LIGHT BULBS!
(You have begun to roll your eyes, haven't you? At 31, these light bulbs just went off for me. I know, I'm special.)
Yeah, so, to sum it up, I've decided no online (clothes) shopping in the year 2013. I'm making an exception if I find something in person, love it, and find it cheaper or in my preferred color/size online. That fine print just makes sense, don't you think? I mean, it'd be a stupid goal to say "ONLY SHOP IN STORES EVEN IF IT'S MORE EXPENSIVE AND NOT WHAT I WANT." Yeah, that's stupid.
So, no online shopping (for the most part) and I hope this means I'll be more thoughtful about what I'm looking for and less "oh THAT'S cute in a thumbnail image, gimme!"
Anyway, you may not care at all about this shopping declaration (I'm now thinking why on earth would you?), but I'm still really excited about it. I want to feel good about the clothes I wear (inspired by Elizabeth, of course) and that means making sure those clothes actually look good on me before spending my money on them. And since I'm not tossing free time around my life like confetti, if I'm going to take the time to seek out something at a nearby shop, it's got to be something I think will really bring value to my closet. (I just said "value to my closet" like some kind of ass. Sorry about that.) Basically, if I'm getting off the couch for it, I need to want it.
First up, I need a pair of jeans to see me through the spring. I don't have a pair that really fits right or flatteringly at my current weight. I don't want to drop hundreds on a seeing-me-to-a-hopefully-new-weight pair, but I don't want to get a crummy pair online at Old Navy, of course. So, I'm off to find a filler pair of jeans this weekend. Wish me luck!
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PS: Very randomly, and not at all on topic with this post, did you watch the Golden Globes? Then you'll want to read this hiliarious photo recap. Especially this part: "I'm sorry you can't appreciate joy, Tommy Lee Jones."