As someone who’s never celebrated Thanksgiving, I’ve grown to see it as a wonderful period of eating, sleeping and nonstop shopping for two days. As much as I love it, I’m aware of how easy it is to spend way too much money, especially during the holidays.
We’ve all been there: you’re scrolling through TikTok and see a girl claim she found the Skims dupe, the absolute best facial cleanser that cleared her acne and the Diptyque candle you need if you want to be “that” girl. You’re already stressed about midterms, the dining hall was out of sweet potato fries and your roommate is pissing you off. You decide that you simply can’t give a shit today and immediately order the overpriced candle in hopes it fixes your life.
From what you just read, you’re probably under the assumption that I’m a maximalist, with Amazon boxes and packages strewn across my dorm floor. But despite how much I consider shopping to be a part of my daily routine, I own very few items. As my roommate notes, I always seem to have packages coming in but at the end of the year, I can still easily fit all my personal belongings into one moving cart. To be completely honest, this isn’t because I’m deeply passionate about the environment; obviously I care about my carbon footprint, but it eventually comes down to how much I have in my bank account. The good news about being a broke college student is that you can use it as an opportunity to be a mindful consumer, which is exactly what I’m encouraging you to do this holiday season.
I use three simple methods to stay more mindful of my online shopping. The fastest way I can dull my consumerist urge is the sacrifice method: I ask myself whether I’m willing to throw away a similar product I already own. For example, I love dark denim. If I’m on Abercrombie’s website, I’ll look and reconsider whether I’m willing to toss out one of my jeans to make room for the new ones. This method has single-handedly saved me from buying another pair of jeans in the same exact wash multiple times.
Another method I frequently use before purchasing anything is considering the concept of price per wear/use. I’m partially against the “capsule wardrobe” idea because it seems influencers only push people to purchase neutrals and trench coats, but I fully support the idea of spending more if you know you’ll wear the clothing for years. I use this method especially during the colder seasons with expensive clothing pieces like sweaters, jackets and scarves. I wear jeans and perfume every day so I feel no guilt in splurging on either item. A $300 perfume may seem outrageous, but realistically, I know I’ll use it every day for over a year, making the price less than $0.80 per day. In comparison, I’ve worn a scarf maybe twice in my life so despite how badly I want an Acne Studios scarf, I’ll leave it in the shopping cart.
The last but definitely crucial method is to take time to research products and evaluate yourself. The new Glossier Swiss Miss lip balm is raved about, but I know nothing will ever replace my beloved Aquaphor (Vaseline could never). Jeffrey Campbell loafers make me want to go into credit card debt, but I also know I play it safe when it comes to shoes. As users of social media, we know that nothing moves faster than the trendiest products. There is and will always be the newest foundation or Mirror Palais dress that you’ll be intrigued by, especially when there’s a persuasive sale going on at the same time and your For You Page is filled with gift hauls. But unless you actually take the time to know what you like on your body, what pieces you’ll wear for years and possible alternatives, I guarantee that you’ll be faced with a light bank account and an overfilled closet.
As a fellow fashion and beauty lover, to say the holidays are the most exciting time of the year would be a huge understatement. But while we’re all filling our shopping carts, excited at the thought of receiving a mountain of packages the following week, let’s also take the time to consider what we truly want, why we want it and if we’re doing our best to be mindful consumers.