reality check!
i was sick yesterday and didn't have much to do so i decided to organize all my paperwork. i got out my old casio calculator and added up all the clothing receipts i've been keeping. it turns out that in the past 3 to 4 months, i've spent $1,400 on clothes and shoes. and that's not including stuff that i lost the receipts to, stuff bought online, or things i got from the thrift store. so, building those in, i probably spent about $1,700 since september.
$1,700!!!
that might not much to some, but for me, it's pretty insane. worst case scenario--if i spend that much four times a year, i'm looking at a total of over $6,000 a year on material things. ok, i'm bad at math, obviously. that's probably how i got into this whole dilemma in the first place. what makes it even worse, is that there are probably two or three things that i bought that i really love , and combined their total is a mere $550. as for the rest of the money spent, i can't look into my closet and pinpoint exactly what's what.
ok, i'm down, but not out. after this alarming news sunk in, i came up with a plan. i was going to have to "budget." project time! i love projects. so, i'm going to give myself a budget of $1,000 for spring/summer shopping and see what happens. like i've said before, i think limiting yourself really brings out your creative side, so i see this as a fun challenge. with the new budget, i will most likely be able to buy only a handful of quality items, which is a shopping-style i've always admired. game on.
$1,700!!!
that might not much to some, but for me, it's pretty insane. worst case scenario--if i spend that much four times a year, i'm looking at a total of over $6,000 a year on material things. ok, i'm bad at math, obviously. that's probably how i got into this whole dilemma in the first place. what makes it even worse, is that there are probably two or three things that i bought that i really love , and combined their total is a mere $550. as for the rest of the money spent, i can't look into my closet and pinpoint exactly what's what.
ok, i'm down, but not out. after this alarming news sunk in, i came up with a plan. i was going to have to "budget." project time! i love projects. so, i'm going to give myself a budget of $1,000 for spring/summer shopping and see what happens. like i've said before, i think limiting yourself really brings out your creative side, so i see this as a fun challenge. with the new budget, i will most likely be able to buy only a handful of quality items, which is a shopping-style i've always admired. game on.
posted by pork chop girl at 11:02 PM
3 Comments:
$1000 is still a substantial amount of money - good luck!
A good way to keep track of your spending (both on and offline) is to organize your receipts as you get them on Shoeboxed.com. The premier receipt organization service online, Shoeboxed can organize all your receipts. For the pesky paper ones, just mail them to Shoeboxed through the Receipt Mail-In program. They are scanned in, uploaded to your account (itemized), and then mailed back to you. All your purchases are organized in a table that gives you a complete overview of your spending. That way, you'll never have to look back and be surprised at spending so much!
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Dan Englander
www.shoeboxed.com
sounds like a fun challenge. i'm finally getting into budgeting and thinking about what i buy each week, so i wonder how much i've been spending!? hmmmmmm
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