No New Clothes for a Year?

I think I've mentioned this on my blog, but I have declared a moratorium on clothes shopping until my credit cards are paid off.

I haven't spent money on clothing, shoes, or jewelry since August. (I did get to shop after Christmas, since my grandma gave me a gift card to Marshall's for Christmas.)

Some days, it's difficult. Just yesterday I was wishing that I had a purple cardigan sweater. I would also love a new purse, since my was stolen in September. A few more pairs of work pants would be nice, as would a new pair of jeans. But the truth is, these are all wants. I want all of those things, but I don't need them.

Today I reorganized my closet and, like always, found stuff I don't wear that I got rid of. Mind you, I cleaned out my closet in August and got rid of stuff, but still found more items that I don't wear, even with no new clothes coming into my life.

Now, I couldn't do this no clothes spending thing if I didn't do so much excessive shopping in the past. I really do have a lot of clothing, and I have my less-frugal self to thank for it. But, I think I have decided to make my no new clothes rule last until August, so I can make it a full year project. I should definitely be out of credit card debt by then, but I think I am going to plan on making it a whole year without spending money on clothes. I've gone six months so far. The last six will definitely be a challenge, but I think I can do it.

And, this will give me some time to work on my post credit card debt budget without clothes shopping. This will give me a cushion, since I am planning on working some sort of shopping budget into the new plan, but am not totally sure what all of that will look like.