everything I bought during the first month of my low-buy 2025 😂

and how I'm approaching shopping in the new year

Fashion-centric initiatives and resolutions abound online each January—in the last couple of years, the most prominent ones have been the Rule of Five and Mandy Lee’s style-centric adaptation of the 75 Hard challenge. While there are many fervent advocates of no-buy and low-buy years, there are also some valid critiques, including the uncomfortable parallels to diet culture.

First the year of Ozempic in which everyone is eating less and then the year of No Buy in which everyone is consuming less? Are we just trying to make ourselves take up less space? - Corinne Fay

But I knew I needed to make some changes. Guardrails, not deprivation. And ceremony, structure, constraint—I function well with a combination of the three. Add to that the 75 Hard chat threads, and I knew I’d have company in keeping up my new habits—and a better chance of adhering to my guidelines if I started at the beginning of the calendar year (it’s just more satisfying!)

Here are the things I want to do/feel less of:

-Succumb to scarcity mindset. This [fill in the blank item] will not be the only item of clothing I ever like again. I’m also pretty good at finding duplicates of secondhand items if I pass something up and regret it—I do it for the links in my ‘week of outfits’ posts all the time. There’s no need to buy something right now before the cart times out—there will be other things I like!

-Online browsing without a plan. It’s different when I’m looking for items for a friend or for a specific post, but right now, just scrolling through new items on the RealReal or the recommended items on Depop—I don’t need to be doing that. I have books to read, friends to FaceTime, quilts to make!

-Buying things that don’t fit. This is another cursed aspect of online secondhand shopping. A pit to pit measurement can only get you so far—there are some intangible aspects of a garment that you just can’t get a sense for until you try it on IRL.

-Buying things I don’t wear. Yes, this is different from buying things that don’t fit. I’m drawn to many things that aren’t necessarily my style, and that I would never actually wear. I can appreciate a garment without needing to buy it. That means you all can expect some more links to items I think are cool or fun or beautifully made, but that I don’t need in my own wardrobe.

“It’s nice I saw it, but I don’t need it in my possession. Thank you, cool item, for teaching me something about my taste, now be free!” - Mackinley Jade of YeeHawt

And what am I giving myself explicit permission to do this year?

-In-person thrifting is okay! Thrifting is meditative, inspiring, and gives me the opportunity to try things on in person. A Dunkin iced coffee, golden oldies on the radio, and aisles of clothing (I can hear the screech of hangers being shoved to the back of a rack now) will put me into a flow state. It’s also not terribly expensive—the last time I spent more than $50 on a thrift store trip. I rarely go thrifting in New York, so it’s not something I’ll be engaging in often, but while I was in Florida with family in January I gave myself permission to thrift. When I needed to, I texted photos of certain items to a couple friends so they could join me in appreciating something that I didn’t need to buy. I likely won’t go thrifting again until I’m back in Florida later this year.

-Renting is also okay! Out of everything I’ve added to my wardrobe in the past few years, the rental items I’ve purchased have ended up being the most frequently worn. I don’t buy it until I already know I love it and it works with the rest of my wardrobe. I also have a black-tie wedding to attend in April, so I know I’ll be renting something for that. So I’m still keeping my Rent the Runway membership.

-I can buy one item of clothing online each month! I decided not to give myself a budgetary constraint—I think if I set specific dollar amount, I’d drive myself crazy trying to maximize my haul: one thing from eBay, another from Poshmark, a final sale item from the RealReal plus shipping... The point isn’t to maximize my consumption, it’s to be more thoughtful and choosy about it. Buying a rental garment will count as an item purchased online.

At the end of the year, I’ll have accumulated twelve (at most) thoughtfully chosen items from online secondhand shopping or Rent the Runway, and a small collection of secondhand clothes from whenever I find myself in a thrift or vintage store. I can live with that.

So what did I end up getting in January? Well… a lot.

My complete Florida thrift haul!

Top row: White men’s Ralph Lauren button-up shirt, blue and white striped Ralph Lauren button-up shirt, Calvin Klein western-style contrast button-up*, Prada men’s black and grey checked button-up shirt.
Middle row: Ralph Lauren plaid button-up shirt, Burberry houndstooth wool sweater vest*, plaid Land’s End flannel shirt, purple cotton Lizwear sweater, Calvin Klein logo rugby shirt*.
Bottom row: Red wool Jones New York jacket, plaid G.H. Bass flannel shirt, grey Ralph Lauren polo shirt, KR Editions green ribbed turtleneck.
*The three starred garments are from a vintage store, the rest are from various thrift stores.

trying on some of my finds

Obviously this was not a “low-buy” month in the technical sense of the word, but I adhered to the (made-up! and probably shifting!) guidelines I set at the beginning of the year, and I feel good about the things I ended up with. I’ve worn all but two of them already! In terms of money spent, my thrift store finds totaled about $50. The vintage store items also added up to about $50, but I consigned a couple items so the total spent was closer to $25.

For my one online purchase of the month, I bought an Opening Ceremony denim jacket (yes, I influenced myself by writing this piece) on eBay. I left it in my cart for at least a week (partly to see if the seller would send a discount offer, which they didn’t.) Then I messaged the seller for measurements to confirm that it would fit. And then I waited until I was headed back to New York to actually buy it so it wouldn’t arrive before I got home. I finally picked it up at the post office earlier this week! I may not end up wearing it until the weather warms up a bit, but it’s big enough that I can layer a jacket or a thick sweater underneath, so I’m going to try to wear it as soon as possible.

If you’ve decided to change your approach to shopping in the new year, I want to hear about it! Let me know in the comments. And some further Substack reading after the jump if you’re interested.

Is a No-Buy That Bad?

Not Another Low Buy

Is Everyone Doing No Buy 2025??

My 2025 shopping goal: Buy whatever I want.

Reflections on a Low-Buy Year

What comes after Rule of Five?!

Reaching No-Buy Nirvana