What have I been up to?
You can probably catch me doing two things:
Scrolling through social media (probably Instagram) looking for the newest trends and sales.
Once I have discovered the newest trends to sales, immediately going to the website and shop. Shop. All. Day. Long.
As you can probably see, even though all these wonderful things have been discounted (sometimes even up to 50% !) it doesn’t mean they're cheap. And, well, that means it is bad for my wallet.
Due to COVID-19 the sales have been through the roof. So many businesses are in danger of going into bankruptcy they are discounting - big time! Companies like Kate Spade, Alice and Olivia, and Saks Off Fifth are having major sales like I've never seen before. I've been home from school for 4 months now, and I can tell you that I have spent at least $700 of my own money! I am an incoming junior in college and, let me tell you, I am in no position to be spending that kind of money. The problem is the constant nags, the pop-up ads, emails, and worst of all... Instagram ads. They show up with pictures and videos and all you have to do is slide up to check out the link; literally cannot be any easier. (Side note: it's a little creepy; they even know what is in my cart and are encouraging me to buy it. But, until now, I've had no complaints.)
Since the end of May I have made a vow to cut myself off. I'm not going to lie to you --- it has been difficult. I am not a saver when it comes to money. I am an impulse buyer. The other day I received a nudge in my email with the subject: "TODAY ONLY 40% OFF WITH FREE SHIPPING" on designer clothing from Nordstrom. Oh baby, was I in paradise?! Anything I remotely liked was in my cart just screaming, "Buy me! You know you need a new Burberry scarf even though it 85 degrees and sunny." It was hard to turn it down, my mind was doing it's own calculations trying to figure out if I spend $250 on this, I won't buy that and then I'll be done, done, for good (or at least just for the rest of the summer.) Just when I was about to type in my debit card number, once again for an impulse purchase, I stopped and thought I don't really need a third pair of white sneakers, even though they are just so gosh darn pretty. Quickly, without even giving myself a second chance to change my mind, I closed the page. Gone. For the first time, maybe ever, I was able to stop myself. I hate to admit it because it seems so minuscule compared to almost everything that is going on in the world, but I was proud, and I still am. I ran upstairs so fast to tell my mom my the exciting news that I was almost out of breath. Although her response was more of a casual "that's good, because you have no money to pay for anything else" I could tell deep deep down she was proud of me too!
XO,
Kelley