GAADfly - One Month Check In

For those of you not interested in my endeavor to go a year without purchasing any new attire, I invite you to just look at a recent teaching outfit.  If you are interested, though, here are some of my thoughts after a month of not shopping for clothes....

(Shirt - Larry Levine (via Winners), Cardi - Anthro (remixed), Trousers - Sandro, Boots - Kenneth Cole Reaction (remixed), Necklace - Gift (remixed), Watch - New York & Co. (remixed))

In some ways this has been a lot easier than I anticipated.  I have a number of items in my closet that aren't exactly new but that I've never worn, such as this blouse, or only worn once or twice, such as these pants (they've been worn once before but not on the blog).  I'm only about half-way through that stockpile, so focusing on those items has helped.

I did have to face temptation in Boston at practically every turn because the AHA was in the Copley Place, and there were tons of shops.  Some of them even had window displays welcoming historians to buy their wares.  But I was only one week into GAAD in Boston, and my will-power was still at maximum levels.

For the rest of the month, as self-discipline began to creep to only above average levels, I've been too busy to even think about going shopping.  Without going into too much detail at this point, I'll just say that this has been the busiest month I've had in a long time.  Almost every waking minute has been filled with teaching my three classes and writing lectures for the two new ones, conference and travel to the conference, committee work and department meetings, and working on my research, including getting ready for two upcoming research presentations in the next few weeks.  Those few moments that haven't been filled with professorial things, I've spent running, cooking, cleaning up after a sick dog (who is now thankfully back to normal), enjoying my spouse's company, or blogging.

I've been so busy that I've only been to Target once this month - this past weekend in fact - to buy decongestant and eyeliner.  Out of habit, the moment I walked in I started walking toward the clothes.  When I realized that was what I was doing, I stopped and steered myself to the pharmacy.

With all the frenetic activity in Casa de Moda lately, it's no surprise that I've been stressed.  Historically, it's been stressful times like these that I've been most apt to spend a few minutes here and there shopping online.  In the past - even if I've been too busy to leave the house or my office - I've taken little breaks to browse websites, such as John Fluevog, Anthropologie, Shabby Apple, or Ebay.  And when I would browse I tended to put things in a shopping basket and sooner or later I would buy some of the things in it. Not so this month.  I have very strictly not allowed myself to visit these sites or to open any emails from LOFT, Anthro, Zappos, etc.  I'm trying to retrain myself to put my computer down when I'm feeling overwhelmed and do a few minutes of yoga or to close my laptop and read a book for half an hour when anxiety or the vague desire to shop strikes.

So one month down.  I have eleven to go.  Perhaps from the perspective of GAAD, it's a good thing that February promises to be even busier than January has been.

How do you approach not shopping?  For those of you doing this round of 30x30, what are your strategies for not buying new clothes?  For those of you who are doing GAAD, have you found that you get into the habit of not purchasing things within a few weeks?