My beautiful mother used to often say to me – ‘less is more’ and as a young girl I couldn’t really quite make sense of how ‘less’ could be ‘more’. But as an adult I have reflected on this old saying and I think I’ve inadvertently applied it to my (thing of the past) shopaholic tendencies. In this world where we are mostly all full steam into accumulating ‘stuff’ – we watch shows about clearing clutter on tv and read mags about storage solutions to store all our clutter - we can see maybe now is the time for all of us to embrace the ‘less is more’ mindset.
Now this is rich (I hear you say) – how can a shopaholic be preaching less is more? Well let me explain how these wise old words have manifested themselves in my life. I have a new philosophy when it comes to shopping. Rather than shopping myself silly buying massive quantities of bargain pieces and rummaging through racks of reduced remnants, and then guiltily cramming them into my already overcrowded wardrobe - I now afford myself the luxury to shop in beautiful shops, and carefully select a few key pieces that I absolutely love and can mix and match to get me through the whole season. Most of us do washing at least every second day – so explain to me (and my old self) why we need to have 27 tops, 12 pairs of jeans, 17 singlets, 21 pairs of socks, 14 cardigans, 18 t-shirts, 12 skirts and 19 shorts? If you’re anything like me – you end up recycling the same 3 favourite outfits anyway and the rest stay in the cupboard never to be worn again!
I’m sure with my ‘less is more’ strategy I end up spending less overall (even though each individual piece is more expensive), I enjoy every time I wear each beautifully crafted piece and my whole house isn’t bulging under the pressure of exploding drawers and cupboards. It makes for a much calmer life in general! And this very theory I am now applying to baby number 3.
As I have had quite a break between number 2 and 3 and have long since passed on all my bags and boxes of baby things down the hand me-down-trail, I have the pleasure of starting again, and this time with my new ‘less is more’ philosophy. I am making a carefully written list of essentials and then going straight to my favourite brands for a few key pieces. Starting with the amazing Puebaby Zip Growsuit….
I love my new shopping theory – just thinking about it makes me feel totally calm and not the slightest bit guilty for buying all the beautiful things I love!
