Shopping Tips

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How a Shopping Hiatus Can Help

The following is a guest post from Jill Chivers.  Jill is a former shopaholic who completed a major challenge – a full year without clothes shopping!  She later went on to create the first online membership site for women who want to stop overshopping and learn to shop consciously.  Read on as Jill shares her wisdom on the value of taking a shopping hiatus.

Taking a break from shopping, whether it’s a week, a month or longer (anyone for a year without shopping? More on that soon) can be an extremely effective way of getting on top of a shopping problem that has spiralled out of control.

Woman with shopping bags and credit cards

Is your shopping out of control? Perhaps a hiatus can help…

I know first hand how effective a shopping hiatus can be, as my own path to healing from an unhealthy shopping habit started with an extreme personal challenge: a year without clothes shopping. Continue reading →

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A Simple Shopping Rule – Buy Once!

Last week’s post, “A New Twist on an Old Shopping Rule,” generated a lot of excellent feedback from readers.  Many agreed with the revised version of my sales shopping rule and shared their stories of how price has both positively and negatively impacted their buying success.  Some readers also shared additional suggestions related to sales shopping, including the use of the “power pause” when online shopping and utilizing sales watch sites to track when desired items are discounted.  I encourage you to check out the comments area of last week’s post if you’d like to learn more about such strategies.

While I loved all of the comments, two in particular stood out in my mind.  Both of those readers shared a variation on a theme so important that I decided to base today’s post on it.  Read on for the philosophy expressed by readers Mo and Carolyn, which Carolyn succinctly labeled as, “Buy once.”

Buy Once Shopping Rule

To shop smarter and increase purchase satisfaction, buy once!

Continue reading →

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A New Twist on an Old Shopping Rule

One shopping guideline I’ve often mentioned on this blog is, “Don’t buy something on sale that you wouldn’t buy at full price.”  While I frequently repeat this tried-and-true principle, it didn’t originate with me (although I don’t remember where I first read or heard it).  I firmly believe we shouldn’t buy things just because they are on sale or for the reason that we’re getting “a good deal.”  We’re far too likely to settle in terms of quality, fit, color, or silhouette when faced with a very low price.

Sale signs

Don’t “settle” when you buy things on sale!

Continue reading →

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May 2014 Accountability Update

Before I delve into the topic of this post, I want to extend a warm thank you to all of those who purchased my first e-book, “UnShopping: Recovery Solutions from an Ex-Shopaholic.”  Because of your support, my book reached #1 in the “Compulsive Behavior” category for Kindle books and stayed there for two days!  Of course, that’s exciting and all, but the most important thing is that those who read the book get lots of value and helpful tips from its contents.

If you’ve read the book and enjoyed it, please let me know, and if you have a moment, please post a short review on Amazon.  That will help to spread the word and lead others to read it.  If you haven’t read the book and would like to learn more about it, you can read my announcement from last week or review the book summary on Amazon.  You can also check out today’s post on “Untitled Minimalism” reviewing my book. Continue reading →

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My First Book, “UnShopping,” is Now Available on Amazon!

I am very excited to announce that my first e-book, “UnShopping:  Recovery Solutions from an Ex-Shopaholic,” is now available!  This book contains the best of my smart shopping solutions from “Recovering Shopaholic,” categorized into logical sections related to various shopping-related situations and challenges.   These solutions have all been revised and enhanced from the original versions that appeared on the blog.

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How the Book Came to Be

In January 2013, I created “Recovering Shopaholic” in an effort to heal myself from a decades-long compulsive shopping problem.  Although I had no idea how many people would read my words, I knew there were many others out there who struggled with shopping too often, buying too much, and trying to fill emotional voids with clothes, shoes, and accessories.   I hoped to keep myself accountable and potentially inspire and connect with those other shopaholics who wished to recover and trade their full closets for full lives. Continue reading →