How to (actually) stop wanting to always buy new stuff

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Let's talk about minimalist living, and why we might feel like we want to shop more during certain seasons of the year. Here are some tips for how to stop wanting to buy new things and be happy with what we already have!

Lots of love,
🌼 Vera

MENTIONED VIDEO LINK:

VIDEO CHAPTERS
Why we want to shop more now 0:00
Minimalism and mental peace 4:42
Postpone making purchasing decisions 9:23
When things look 'aspirational' 12:19
Level up without buying things 18:07
Limit & curate your exposure 20:07
Final thoughts & recommendations 22:55

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[marineb]

I have one more tip: when you feel like shopping, you can either go for a walk or clean your home. Cleaning your home makes you realize once again that you already have stuff and that you wouldn't know where to put new things, and going for a walk in nature tends to make me forget anything else and just appreciate what's around.

[polish_native]

The biggest tip about not buying things came from you, Vera in one of your earlier videos. The tip is: YOU CAN LIKE THINGS WITHOUT NECESSARILY OWNING THEM.

Now this was such a eye-opener, I cannot even tell you. Thank you so much for it, Vera! I heard it a couple of weeks ago and it has already saved me substantial money, I think. It is such a joy when I can walk in a shop, see some nice things and instead of feeling my thoughts racing in the directions of "Oh, I need it! Where do I put it? Can I afford it? Will I buy one or more? Maybe a set? Oh, I need it, I need it!!!", I can just appreciate the object, maybe touch it, hold it in my hand, think "this is a beautiful craft; this is a lovely peace of pottery, this is a lovely notebook, these earring would look great with my red dress" and then put the object back and walk away. No regrets, no afterthought, just this lovely feeling as if I have chatted to a nice, valuable object, but then I don't get extra clutter at home - especially the one that doesn't go well with one another!

And another tip I can share when it comes to kitchen supplies, like spices or tea, or tins and cans which I sometimes happen to have too much of: just make a commitment that every day I use one piece of it. So if I cook sth, I will necessarily use some of the spices that I want to finish. I will also drink at least a mug of the tea I want to see ended. And so on.

Minimalism is great! I am not saying it's the only right way in life, but I personally adore it and I am trying to master it as much as I can. Thank you Vera for inspiring us for it!

[karenroe]

My favourite tip - which I think is one of yours- is to treat shops as museums, you don’t need to own the objects to appreciate them. 😁

[itsjorgeroblox]

Your videos definitely helped me a lot during my minimalist no shopping journey. I am on day 50 now of no shopping after trying to quit for 16 years!!! That’s the longest I’ve gone with tour shopping. During the last prime days I browsed a lot, this past prime event this week? I didn’t browse at all!! I’m so proud of myself

[WaffleTraveller]

My tip would be, when you feel an urge to shop, distract yourself by focusing on something that makes you feel happy/fulfilled instead. (For me that's reading, going on a long walk or a day trip, doing something creative.) When you make time for things that nourish you, I find that the urge to shop often goes away by itself 🙂

[nathalieda]

The shirt and hair is perfect 👌 Don't overthink it😊

[lenam]

I have this feeling that "I need something new" in autumn too.
A really good way I found to deal with it is making something new from things I already have, like upcycling old clothes and such. Then I have something new without buying anything, revived the old thing AND done something creative.
It's a win-win-win for me 😀

[flowergirl]

This is so true. The cocooning instinct kicks in at this time and we want to feel cozy and have a cozy nest. Usually i need a few seasonal things but it gets less and less every year. This year i am repairing purses and boots and "making do." That has been my philosophy all year!

[antiquesrestoration]

The one-in/one-out rule has helped me greatly in order to keep a handle on how much "stuff" I have in my home. It also makes me consider what I'm willing to give up in order to bring the new item into my home and a lot of the time, the cost/benefit analysis I do in my head makes me realize I didn't want the new item enough to give up anything I already have which just makes me appreciate what I already have all the more and diminishes the want/need to shop just a little bit more each time.. You and your videos are so delightful and a breath of fresh air at the end of my week.

[lamureon]

I rediscovered the library recently! so amazing, shopping feeling without shopping

[linzfae]

I’ve been a minimalist for years but I noticed this past year I was buying way more stuff than usual. The regret is real so I’m on a no buy from September til the end of the year. I’ve tried to convince family I don’t need Christmas or birthday even. I’m trying to rehome the things I do need to part with and do not want more things. This time of year is hard to handle with all the ads and deals, etc. At least, for Christmas we’ve found this nice child free walk in the park light show that is usually the highlight of Christmas for me. (Before anyone “attacks” me, I like children but two nights out of month this event does child free and it’s honestly nice because it’s usually a quiet romantic walk for the adult folks)

[jennierollins]

I went to Hobby Lobby for a small item yesterday. They already have 50% of Christmas items. The store is just packed with beautiful things. I went in and looked at everything. It was fun and enjoyable. Then I purchased the item I went in for and left. I agree we do want to make our home more inviting for these months ahead. Mostly just because we feel trapped inside. Thank you Vera. Yes, I was one of those people who was addicted to DIY videos. I had to stop watching them. ☮️🌎🌲

[maaikecardinaels]

You’re so right about wanting to buy more this time of the year but thanks to your inspiring videos, I can easily get rid of this ‘want’ (especially when I see how my savings account is growing 😉). What I also love to do is go through my house, look at all my stuff and tell myself ‘how I love this house and the people & pets in it’; this makes me feel so grateful 💓

[lesleestolarski]

I also feel the itch to shop this time of year. I deal with it by coloring/ painting seasonal pictures. It’s a calm and quite thing to do and it helps me celebrate the season without shopping or eating.

[nataschavoll]

Hi there, my tip is to become aware of the feeling, snd my thoughts behind it. Then i ask myself what i actually want .... often, i get the urge to shop because im feeling not enough, or i feel that im ignoring my needs for rest, self care, or im lonely or bored. Once i know the underlying need, i find a way to satisfy that need. Like remind myself of all the ways i am enough, finding healthy ways to care for myself, etc.

[trisnaekowiyatnikawaii]

My urge to shop increases every time I have a hectic, busy day at work, more than usual. Most of the time it's interior decoration, as I see my home as a safe space to deal with my professional stress.
At this time of year, I've bought an analog radio and I've also bought quite a few books. Surprisingly, after 3 months of listening to classical music and reading for 30 minutes to 1 hour before going to bed, my stress levels have fallen slightly. And my urge to make impulse purchases has reduced considerably.

[feanorianmaglor]

A welcome vlog just now. Books (mostly fiction) are my weakness, and I love beautiful editions of classics. I've given myself a one-year moratorium just to catch up on all the ones already on my bookshelf which I haven't read yet. I probably have 3 or 4 years' worth of solid reading even if I buy nothing new! If I succeed, I will try to extend it for another year. I think it's a question of breaking bad habits, not easy to do.

[amyingram]

A couple weeks ago, I was so wanting to buy some new Halloween decorations now that I have my first house. I added a bunch of stuff to my cart online as I browsed the website, then I went to the cart and saw how much everything added up to and it was a lot. I then removed a few things, but I still didn't check out because a little voice in the back of my head was telling me that I didn't really need the items, I didn't really want to spend the money, and I didn't want to have to worry about where to store the items when Halloween is over. I also thought about what it would be like when the actual package would arrive and what a chore it would be to open the cardboard box, unpack everything, deal with all of the packaging material that I'd have to throw out, and breaking down the cardboard box to fit into my recycle bin. All of this ended up not making the purchase feel worthwhile, so I emptied the cart and closed the tab. It really does help to sit and think about a purchase before you actually make it, especially if it's an online purchase. Those can be so tempting, especially when there are offers for free shipping if you spend just a few more dollars or if they make it seem so easy to return something if you change your mind. It's shocking to learn about how often returns that are shipped back to retailers often just end up getting thrown away instead of restocked and sold to someone else.

[srkcjjb-pq]

Perfect timing! 12:30am and I've been obsessively "researching" adult loft beds and furniture to go with them.

[sarahleineweber]

This is my favorite type of video! Thank you so much for sharing! I’m always looking for new perspectives to help me not want more material things as much.