August 27, 2015 by Debbie Roes

August 2015 “Grab Bag” of Useful Links

Before I dive into the topic of today’s post, I want to thank regular reader Margaret for her excellent post on how to successfully shop for clothes on eBay. Usually when people write guest posts, they do so at least partially to drive traffic to their own blogs, but a few readers of “Recovering Shopaholic” have written articles solely out of a desire to share their knowledge with others. Margaret is one of these people and her post was very informative and comprehensive! To see all of the previous guest posts on the blog, click here. If you have a topic you’d like to share with this community, please contact me to tell me about it and find out if it would be a good fit for a future post.

A hazy August day overlooking Torrey Pines Beach in La Jolla, California.

With all that said, let’s move on to today’s post. It’s coming up on the end of August, so it’s time for me to share my latest “grab bag” of useful links (see previous editions here). Included below are links to articles I think you’ll enjoy on the subjects of shopping and shopping psychology, wardrobe management, style, and personal development. I usually also share a few previous “Recovering Shopaholic” posts that you may have missed the first time around, but since I just opened the archives last week on the topic of compulsive shopping, I’m skipping that section this month and including some extra articles in the other categories instead.

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August 25, 2015 by Debbie Roes

How to Successfully Shop for Clothes on eBay

The following is a guest post from Margaret, who is one of the readers of this blog. Margaret lives in New York City and is a lover of style, fashion and interior design. She describes her personal style as an eclectic mix of menswear classic, vintage feminine, and quirky relaxed creative. When not studying for school, she enjoys lifting heavy things, watching interesting TV shows, anime, ballroom dance shows, and reading.

Having grown up during the period of the internet, I have always been quite comfortable with shopping for items online. One of my very first eBay purchases was actually an antique early 1900s French-made chinoiserie wardrobe that cost me less than the price of an IKEA Pax system and is an item that I greatly treasure today for its function, craftsmanship, and beauty.

I want to begin exploring this topic by first providing some examples of advantages to shopping on eBay and shopping online in general versus shopping in brick and mortar shops. I will also provide a list of disadvantages to shopping on eBay and the ways in which I minimize those disadvantages.

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August 21, 2015 by Debbie Roes

“Flashback Friday” on Compulsive Shopping

My last post, “Recovery is Not a Linear Process,” generated a lot of comments and emails, as I thought it might. Clearly, readers have many thoughts on the topic of recovery and the ways in which it might progress and unfold. That post was sparked by what I viewed as a harsh comment on my July accountability update, but I didn’t expect the follow-on entry to become as contentious as it did. I am all for spirited discussion, but it went beyond that and that isn’t what I want for my blog. I really want readers to feel that my comments section is a safe place for them to open up and receive support.

I have very rarely had to moderate comments on this blog and I’m extremely grateful for that. I can probably count on my hands the number of comments I’ve had to delete, which is pretty good for a blog that’s been going for almost three years with many thousands of comments. I’m not adverse to people questioning and challenging me and each other, but it’s important to me that it be done in a kind and respectful manner. Fortunately, that is almost always the case, which is a testament to the quality of people this blog attracts.

Compulsive shopping resources

Because the subject of recovery has generated so much discussion, I wanted to dedicate today’s post to offering some additional resources for those who are interested. Below I open the archives and share some of my best posts related to compulsive shopping, as well as a selection of external links for you to explore.

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July 29, 2015 by Debbie Roes

July 2015 “Grab Bag” of Useful Links

I love all of the wonderful comments I received on my last two posts about closet downsizing and wardrobe minimalism (here and here). Clearly, many of you have thoughts on these topics and I’m glad you decided to share your words of wisdom. Since the post consolidating readers’ comments seemed to be popular, I will feature comment round-ups again in the future when it seems appropriate to do so. As one reader mentioned, even though she regularly reads comments, she often doesn’t remember which post a comment was on, so she appreciated having many of the best ones aggregated in a follow-on post. I’m glad I thought to do that…

It’s coming up on the end of July, so it’s time for me to share my latest “grab bag” of useful links (see previous editions here). Included below are links to articles I think you’ll enjoy on the subjects of shopping and shopping psychology, wardrobe management, style, and personal development. I’m also sharing a few previous “Recovering Shopaholic” posts that you may have missed the first time around (or may choose to revisit now).

A warm summer’s evening near the famous Ocean Beach Pier.

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July 2, 2015 by Debbie Roes

Creative Solutions for Making Closets More Efficient

The following is a guest post from Dane O’Leary of Modernize.com. Dane is a full-time freelance writer and design blogger. He has degrees in psychology and anthropology with additional study in journalism, graphic design, and public relations. Dane is currently working on his debut novel.

While many of us are looking to shop less and downsize our wardrobes, we still need to consider how to best use the closet space in our homes. The ideas in this post can work for both homeowners and renters alike. I hope you’ll find some inspiration here that you can to make your closets work better for you.

When shopping for a new home or even a new rental, most people have a list of criteria that must be met. The new abode must have a certain number of bedrooms and bathrooms, the preferred type of kitchen, some prefer a separate dining space or to have a formal entryway, and the list goes on. While the details may vary from person to person, there’s one thing that’s usually on everybody’s lists: closet space.