the freeze is over!

gap//factory//old navy

So my 30 day spending freeze is over but in the interest of full disclosure: I did make three purchases. 

1. Gap Henley Shift Dress- I knew this dress would transition well into fall and even last into winter with thick fleece lined tights and boots. It was majorly discounted at the time and I was able to pay for it completely with BR card reward points so I felt it was justified...

2. J. Crew Factory Winnie Pants- I've been needing (like actually, not just wanting) a new pair of these for quite some time and during one of their 40% off sales, I couldn't pass up the opportunity. YES, I know this is the reason I went on the spending freeze on the first place. In my defense, I had never seen, nor have seen since, the pants marked at such a low price.

3. Old Navy Graphic Crew Neck- Umm... here's the truth: I was perusing Pinterest after having one too many glasses of wine and couldn't resist when I saw this. I mean the pink glasses? Come on now. I had to have it. 

Continuing with the full disclosure, this is what I learned during my freeze:

• My personal style was being very influenced by blogs! And not the good outfit inspiration way! Trends sweep through the blogging/instagram world (this herringbone vest from Factory ringing any bells?) and I would confuse something that perhaps another blogger could rock but was not quite my own personal style for something that I loved. The truth is: I love it on YOU, not me. Taking 30 days off from spending made me think twice about what was an impulse purchase vs something that truly reflected my personal style.
• When lusting over something, I needed to think about how many ways I can wear it. When I thought about the dress from the Gap, I knew I would wear it with or without tights, with booties or heels, with a motojacket or a jean jacket. I had 5 different things already in my closet I knew I would wear with it which made it a sensible purchase. 
• Items I thought I HAD to have, I eventually forgot about. During my freeze, I created a secret pinterest board of things I would like to purchase when my freeze was over. I looked at the board today - man, did I pin some funky stuff! And some of the funky stuff I didn't even remember pinning! I pinned tons that  I liked but was not practical at ALL and did not follow my (new) mantra above. Previously, I was justifying purchases by the items being a sale. Who cares if its on sale if you're only going to wear it once! I'm looking at your palazzo pants from Anthropologie. 
• I have a lot of wonderful things already in my closet! This was the best lesson learned. I have a lot of neutrals and staple pieces that are easily remixed by trendy accessories or a mixing with other staples in novel ways. 

Because of all this, I made a little flow chart to help make the best and most practical decisions for my closet (and of course, my wallet!)