Back to Work

I left work at 2:30pm last Wednesday, and I haven't been back. Until this morning. Woo!

Where are my lottery winnings hiding, so I can do this whole vacation thing on a permanent basis?

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With November rolling to a close, now seems like a good time to update you on the self-imposed shopping ban I'm under right now. It's...well, it's kind of going.

I spent some money last weekend at the outlet mall, because I'd already told myself that I could, but even that didn't have the thrill for me that it normally does. Sure, I found some things that I wanted (I always find things that I want), and I picked those things up. But towards the end of my trip, I was tired of shopping.

WHO AM I, AND WHAT HAVE I DONE WITH MYSELF?!?!

Generally, I do not get tired of shopping. But all I could think, as I wandered the mall, was 'do I really need another sweater? another skirt? don't I already have EVERYTHING that this place is selling?'. And do you know what?

I kind of do.

So, December is almost upon us. And it's time for me to buckle down, and save some money. No shopping. No spending. No nothing.

Let's do this.

Worn to work last week (before the temperatures dropped again...)
Dress: Gap (outlet)

Belt: Target

Boots: DSW

Bracelets: Mango Tree

Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

Weekend Slip-up

So, this weekend was my first real weekend since I started my shopping detox, and while it wasn't a complete success, it was better than it could have been.

See, it was sale weekend at the outlet mall. And my sister-in-law asked me if I'd be interested in going up with her. And my mother-in-law wanted to go, too. And my father-in-law wanted to hang out with Brigid at the outlet mall playground.

It was a family event all around!

I went. And I shopped. But after hitting a couple of stores, I realized that I just wasn't in a shopping kind of mood. In fact, I was actually disappointed in myself for giving in so easily. So, I ended up getting out of there for about $40, and that included a couple of Christmas presents and a dress for my sister's wedding in March (because the wedding is on a beach, and I have a feeling that beach wedding dresses are going to be in short supply come March...).

I guess you could say I'm a work in progress, anyway...

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It's Inspiration Monday over at Two Birds, and today's inspiration is Kelly Ripa:

For the second week in a row, I loved the inspiration outfit so much, I pretty much copied it piece for piece. Except for the scarf, that is. The scarf just felt like too much,with the ruffles on the shirt, so I scrapped it in favor of a simple necklace. 

Not a bad look for a Monday...

Tank Top: Gap (outlet)

Blazer: The Limited

Jeans: Gap

Shoes: Steve Madden (from Macy's)

Scarf: Land's End


Don't forget, eShakti is offering $20 off of any order through the end of the year, when you use the promotional code NOTAHOBBY0811.

The discount code is not case sensitive. Only one gift certificate can be used per order. The code can be used any number of times until the validity period. This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category. This cannot be combined with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.


Also, you can find my post about the skirt the company sent me to review here.

Let's see what I can do...

Last week, a friend mentioned that her spending was getting out of control. And she wasn't just talking about shopping for clothes and accessories, but also make-up and nail polish and Starbucks and household things that she just didn't need. And to 'reset' her habits, she had decided to begin a year-long no-spend adventure, starting November 1st.

And, well, I was impressed by this. Inspired, even.

You see, I have a job that I like well enough. And working in this job leaves me with some disposable income that I like to spend on useless stuff. But, despite mostly enjoying what I do, I still have it in my head that at some point in the next couple of years, I would like to be a stay-at-home-mom. And to do that, I need to make sure we can make ends meet as a one income household, which we should be able to do, if I can manage to cut out the previously mentioned useless stuff.

So, I'm doing just that.

I'm too scared to commit to the full year that Christina is taking, but I'm going to use these last two months of this year, when my shopping is usually at its worst (I am a 'one for you, one for me' kind of Christmas shopper, sadly...) to see what I'm made of.* I need to see if I can rediscover the line between what I actually need and what I just really, really want, because I know it's there, but I've lost track of it. And then, just maybe, I can officially declare 2012 the year of no-spending.

Wish me luck!

*Also, it should be noted, I'm already failing in my attempts, because I'm making a pre-established exception for Black Friday. We're talking a midnight trip to the outlet mall, and I just don't want to miss it. But other than that? NOTHING!

 Dress: Loft

Cardigan: Banana Republic (outlet)

Boots: DSW

Bracelets: Mango

Earrings: Banana Republic (outlet)