(photo by me)

Well, the month of March didn’t work out so well for my budget.  I went over again, just like in January.  And now I’m looking at how much of my loan I have left to get me through til the next one near the end of May, and folks, things are going to be tight.  Even though I really don’t want to create more restrictions for myself, I think that I’m going to need them if I don’t want to end up living paycheck to paycheck like I did in December when I used up my loan too quickly.  I’m just setting guidelines, not rules, because I think I do best with a bit of flexibility.  Usually if I try to set strict rules, I end up breaking them and then rebelling and ignoring them.

So here’s some new guidelines for my shopping and spending these next two months:

• Don’t buy anything that is black, brown or navy:  I have way to many dark colors in my wardrobe, so I need to brighten things up.
• Only buy Spring/Summer items.  By the time fall and winter get here, I will hopefully have a full-time job, so I can buy that stuff then.
• Work on filling the gaps in my wardrobe:  I’m writing up a list of items that my wardrobe is currently lacking, and working on filling up those holes first.
• Only shop at consignment, thrift, outlet stores, or online:  This is definitely only a temporary guideline, and is flexible.  A large part of my over-spending in the previous months has come from going to the mall and using coupons or going to sales (Express, Ann Taylor Loft, etc).  While I have been getting good deals, I usually end up spending more than I should, and sometimes I end up buying stuff I don’t really love just to use a coupon.  I still love these stores, but I think I need to take a break from them for a few months.  Rediscovering how to thrift could be very beneficial for me, and I really need to take more advantage of the great thrift and vintage shops in my area.
• For now, quantity over quality:  Yes, I am a quality girl.  But right now, the way my wardrobe is, I really just need to get more items in general.  But I still won’t buy polyester.

These are just guidelines, not strict rules, so if I veer once or twice that’s okay.  And one rule I have that trumps all:  if I absolutely fall in love with something the second I try it on, I will buy it.  There’s only so many items out there that are absolutely perfect, and you should always snatch them up whenever that occurs.