As the month draws to a close, let’s have a look at how it has been going so far.
- Second Hand – Soap making gear for workshop; including a spoon, chopping board, pot, jugs, etc.
- Second Hand – Clothing; a belt.
- Second Hand – I bought an iPad 2 for Kim from my youngest daughter Megan. She no longer needed it, so I took it off her hands.
- Swapped – Stick blender from L @ 500m2 for a gift!
- New – Today I broke the drought, and purchased something new for hygiene purposes. I bought a new apron for tomorrow’s cheese making course. We could have made one, but ran out of time. I managed to pick it up for $16, so it did not break the bank, and was the only item I bought all month brand new.
- New – Oh, I also bought a few more kit beer cans and some light malt, so I can make some more Aztec Gold Cerveza over the weekend. As it falls under the food and drink category, it was an allowable purchase, and even more so that I am making the beer myself. The batch I bottled a few weeks ago is just so drinkable, that when shared with friends, it won’t last too long!
Just by my observations at the factory outlet today, where I bought the apron, I could tell that not many people are giving second hand much of a chance. There were shoppers laden with bags as they walked out of the shopping centre. I felt abnormal with just an apron in my hand (no bag required) as I travelled back to work.
This challenge has also had an effect upon Kim and Ben, who joined me on the quest for second hand. We found all sorts of wonderful things in the op shops that we visited, some useful, some not. However, we did not stray from our list, which is always a good method that we use to avoid impulse buying.
I might even take another visit to our local op shop on Sunday. You never know what I might find. I do need a new pair of dress jeans, which is how I bought my last pair two years ago.
How did you go during Buy Nothing New Month? Did you give it a go? What was your result?
Good work Gavin, it’s a change of mindset, isn’t it? Now I find myself thinking ” Which op shop would be most likely to have that?”. Happy to say that Major shopping centres are so annoying and painful to visit for me now. Maybe once a year I will trudge off and hyperventilate with the herd. It’s so dull.
All the best,
Prue
Very true Prue. Shopping centres are avoided as much as possible here. Markets are much better. Gav
Well done Gavin! 🙂
I’d like to give it a go. Might try next month!
Cheers Paul.
Hi Gavin,
The only things I really purchased were some new vegie seeds for the garden which I think should come under food and a packet of paper plates and napkins for a bake sale to support charity, I figure thats allowable too. I brought a few children’s toys second hand and am currently looking for 2nd hand maternity clothes or ways to make/trasform some and a potty training steps for my son. I will try second hand first but have not been having much luck at the moment. I have found i totally avoid shopping centres with exception of my local supermarket and generally just shop at the food markets.
Hope ther people have done well.
Nice one grumble. I like your ethos.
Gavin
I did better than I thought I would. The only new thing I purchased over the month was a pad of specialized graph paper that I ordered back in September, which finally arrived, which my daugher needs for her math course. I keep a large tote of unused school supplies left over from previous years, but only had the generic larger squared graph paper in it. We had great success pulling together the same daughters hallowe’en costume from a second hand shop – pointy shoes and fairy wings to complete her image as a goth fairy (need I say she’s a teenager?). And my other daughter ran out of chalk for her wall climbing and bought a new ball. That’s her third chalk ball in a year – but she climbs daily, so there’s no real choice.
Good point about Halloween Dawn. I can imagine the it is quite the consumer frenzy during this festival. Second hand up cycled costumes are the only way to go.
Well done. Gav
What a great idea Gavin. I’m into goal setting so might just give it a go too. Luckily we’re not big shoppers here and loathe the giant consumerist traps aka shopping centre and only go when we absolutely have to. Trying to stick to buying only what we need which works most of the time.
Great work Gavin. It is something we should all practise.
Cheers Fiona! It was pretty easy for me as I have been living like this for ages.