No Gazingus Pins for 2018!

[MustacheAnxiety]

I was undone for December already by free wine.  So much free wine.  Specifically 12 bottles of free wine.  There was an intentional purchase of 2 bottles of fancy wine for Christmas gifts, and then the sign.  Buy 4 bottles and get 10 percent off.  So I could get 2 bottles of cheap wine to go with 2 bottles of fancy wine for the same price.  But then the cheap wine had a rebate $30 off 12 bottles that only cost $36 dollars plus $8 off the fancy wine.  At least it will get consumed eventually.

Thanks for the insight on your year of not buying @Serendip. 

I want to do something achievable in 2019 to reduce (or at least not expand) the clutter while not having a spouse fully on board.  Since major vices have been tools and grocery related a year of no personal purchases won't do much.
So I was thinking of starting a habit of 2 same size or larger items out for each 1 in.

[Poundwise]

For 2019, I still need to keep up limitations on my craft purchases, but I'll focus on a new gazingus pin that I noticed... exotic food ingredients.  I suddenly realize that is a common line item in my grocery bill... tamarind pods, file powder,  coconuts, jars of mince. I see an ingredient for sale, and it may be something that I have made in the past or have always enjoyed in restaurants, I buy it, and it sits in my pantry for a few years.

I just don't have the time I used to have for elaborate cooking and craft projects, and at any rate I have enough supplies in storage that I should use them up first. 

@diapasoun , the insight about having a separate shopping hobby wasn't mine, it came up early on in this thread. But it is so true. It seems that when I see a craft supply, I get such a lovely idea about what I am going to do that my hand reaches out and I buy it!  But that is quite different from actually planning and doing the craft.

[mspym]

I have really enjoyed this gauntlet - thank you everyone for being so supportive AND challenging, it has been really good for my brain. I've started a 2019 waitlist gauntlet - https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/30-day-purchase-wait-for-2019-100131/ in case anyone wants to join in.

[Rosy]

I think I'll simply take a break in 2019 - other than the jewelry addiction I don't really buy a great deal. I found this to be one of the hardest challenges I've ever took part in, a real eye-opener in many ways.
Other than my one remaining savings goal and continuing to be vigilant about my budget and expenses I have no challenges planned for 2019.

I do have a number of goals for 2019 but that is for another thread. Thanks everyone, I really enjoyed exchanging views and insights with you!
... and no, I don't even want jewelry for Christmas - haven't even watched the jewelry shows or looked online.

[diapasoun]

I think the book gazingus pin is largely dealt with. I want to keep at my current level of spending (for book club only, very rare exceptions such as a friend coming out with a book) for the next year, but I don't think it's going to need gazingus pin support.

[zeli2033]

This challenge has been a fantastic one for 2018! I did buy a couple GPs this month (Books) for some life stuff coming up but I did it very intentionally. All in all, buying books 2 months out of 12 is pretty dang good.

Need to start thinking about plans for 2019!

[I'm a red panda]

This was a really good challenge for me.  I think I got through the whole year with no quilting supplies purchased, and only a few on the nail polish end.

[zee dot]

My goal for 2018 was not to buy any clothes.

I had to cave and buy two sports bras, two pairs of jeans and some running shoes since those items gave out mid-year.
Now that I think about it I also bought a new hat to support a team my uncle is involved in coaching to wear at the games. 

But overall it was a HUGE change from previous years and I'm really proud of myself. 

There were times when I saw a coupon or link online and had items in my cart before I even remembered my goal.  But I deleted the items each time. 

It was this thread that inspired it so thank you to all of you who posted and put it on my radar in the first place. 

[SquashingDebt]

I think I can safely say I will finish out the year without buying any pens. I did ask for and receive an inexpensive fountain pen for Christmas.  That seemed to fit the challenge because I had been planning to buy one in January to celebrate making it a year, and instead was able to direct my mother's gift-buying energy toward something specific that I wanted.

Now that I have the fountain pen to play with, I want to continue my no-fun-pen-buying challenge into 2019, resolving to not buy any new ones until I've worked through my entire stash.

[Laura33]

Checking in:  I finished the year with one more tea purchase in November, and my tea cabinet is stuffed again.  So part of me feels bad.  But the other part feels ok with it:  I bought the tea because I unexpectedly found myself in San Francisco again, and so I trekked to the same tea store I had visited in August and bought a pound of each of the two teas I have been drinking all the time from that earlier trip.  I had run out of them both, and did an Amazon shop to try to find replacements, but the replacements weren't nearly the same.  So when I went out there, I decided to stock up on the stuff I loved instead of waste more money on teas that end up being meh.

So, really, what I regret is the attempted Amazon replacement -- that's what added more teas I don't like too much back to my cabinet. 

The nice thing about this challenge, though, is that it completely cured me of the desire to just sort of pick up a whole bunch of different/new teas whenever I pass by a tea shop -- really, the failed Amazon shop itself taught me the futility of blindly buying untried stuff.  I now have a few teas that I adore -- even more than the white peach tea I also love -- and so I am going to just stick with replacing those as they run out, and buying any new stuff only if/when I try something and completely fall in love with it to that same level.  (Also, the SF tea shop now has a new website, so I can order replacements directly from there and don't have to worry about running out any more or trying inferior replacements.)  Meanwhile, I will make myself drink the inferior stuff once a week or so so it gets used up and stops taking up valuable space in my tea cabinet.  ;-)

[Roadrunner53]

Checking in:  I finished the year with one more tea purchase in November, and my tea cabinet is stuffed again.  So part of me feels bad.  But the other part feels ok with it:  I bought the tea because I unexpectedly found myself in San Francisco again, and so I trekked to the same tea store I had visited in August and bought a pound of each of the two teas I have been drinking all the time from that earlier trip.  I had run out of them both, and did an Amazon shop to try to find replacements, but the replacements weren't nearly the same.  So when I went out there, I decided to stock up on the stuff I loved instead of waste more money on teas that end up being meh.

So, really, what I regret is the attempted Amazon replacement -- that's what added more teas I don't like too much back to my cabinet. 

The nice thing about this challenge, though, is that it completely cured me of the desire to just sort of pick up a whole bunch of different/new teas whenever I pass by a tea shop -- really, the failed Amazon shop itself taught me the futility of blindly buying untried stuff.  I now have a few teas that I adore -- even more than the white peach tea I also love -- and so I am going to just stick with replacing those as they run out, and buying any new stuff only if/when I try something and completely fall in love with it to that same level.  (Also, the SF tea shop now has a new website, so I can order replacements directly from there and don't have to worry about running out any more or trying inferior replacements.)  Meanwhile, I will make myself drink the inferior stuff once a week or so so it gets used up and stops taking up valuable space in my tea cabinet.  ;-)

Hello Laura33, don't drink tea you don't like! Life is too short. Here are some recommendations on what to do with tea you don't like: https://www.thekitchn.com/the-quickest-way-to-use-up-flavored-teas-you-dont-like-164721

[HappierAtHome]

Perfect marks for me: no Tupperware whatsoever.

[wenchsenior]

Checking in:  I finished the year with one more tea purchase in November, and my tea cabinet is stuffed again.  So part of me feels bad.  But the other part feels ok with it:  I bought the tea because I unexpectedly found myself in San Francisco again, and so I trekked to the same tea store I had visited in August and bought a pound of each of the two teas I have been drinking all the time from that earlier trip.  I had run out of them both, and did an Amazon shop to try to find replacements, but the replacements weren't nearly the same.  So when I went out there, I decided to stock up on the stuff I loved instead of waste more money on teas that end up being meh.

So, really, what I regret is the attempted Amazon replacement -- that's what added more teas I don't like too much back to my cabinet. 

The nice thing about this challenge, though, is that it completely cured me of the desire to just sort of pick up a whole bunch of different/new teas whenever I pass by a tea shop -- really, the failed Amazon shop itself taught me the futility of blindly buying untried stuff.  I now have a few teas that I adore -- even more than the white peach tea I also love -- and so I am going to just stick with replacing those as they run out, and buying any new stuff only if/when I try something and completely fall in love with it to that same level.  (Also, the SF tea shop now has a new website, so I can order replacements directly from there and don't have to worry about running out any more or trying inferior replacements.)  Meanwhile, I will make myself drink the inferior stuff once a week or so so it gets used up and stops taking up valuable space in my tea cabinet.  ;-)

Hello Laura33, don't drink tea you don't like! Life is too short. Here are some recommendations on what to do with tea you don't like: https://www.thekitchn.com/the-quickest-way-to-use-up-flavored-teas-you-dont-like-164721

Co-incidentally, I have just been faced with a similar problem of many 'just-found-out-that-I-shouldn't-be-drinking-this' teas in my cupboard (for the reason that I just got an unexpected diagnosis of yet ANOTHER weird and unusual health condition that will require life-long monitoring and management...story of my friggin' life).  I'll probably still drink some of them, but Roadrunner's link made me think of other possibilities. Thanks!

Given that I only started monitoring a couple of my own GPs a few months ago (puzzles, random greeting cards bought while traveling, books to add to the 200 or so unread that I already have), I am happy to report that looking back on 2018, I bought 0 puzzles, 0 greeting cards (despite 3 trips!), and only 3 or 4 (I think?...I can specifically remember purchasing 2, but I assume given my habits there were a couple others that I forgot about) books (but only 1 after I discovered this thread).

I don't know if I can actually do 0 book purchases in 2019, but I'm thinking of aiming for 5 books out/1 book purchased rule for myself. 

[Laura33]

@Roadrunner53 -- Hah!  Thanks, but I find the exercise useful:  it reminds me why I don't want to run out and buy a whole bunch more tea that I may not like all that much.  ;-) 

[RetiredAt63]

This worked for me.  One fail but basically it made me realize that there will always be more fleece/yarn/whatever out there when I need it.  I am determined to not get into a SABLE* situation.

*Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy, expression not original to me

[mspym]

Almost as soon as the year was up I found 2 gorgeous patterns I wanted to buy but I've put them on my wait list and am going to make up a couple of the dresses I already have patterns for.

[Harper]

I joined in January and maybe checked in once.  My apologies BUT I feel I did really well on my gazingus pin of workout DVDs - I had 2 purchases ($8 for 8 at Dollar Tree and my favorite teacher new 8 disc set for $70).  Under $100 is a win in my book.  Thanks for setting it up.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

Loved this challenge! I'm going to continue with the "only usable gift cards with a budgeted plan" from 2018, and add in keeping clothing to $250 for 2019. I'm not interested in $0, as I know I will need to get new running shoes, would love to find sports bras that fit, etc.

[Poundwise]

So I've already screwed up and bought edible pearlescent powder for making fondant pearls (in 2 colors! $9 per tiny vial).  We need a No Gazingus Pins for 2019 thread!