Budgeting

Lately, all I've wanted to do is shop til I drop, but that's not entirely feasible on a graduate student salary. To help me keep my resolution of budgeting better, I've decided to join a group called the Budgeting Bloggers, which is hosted by Franziska of Franish. Every month, we update with what we purchased that month and the price of each item as a way to keep us on track.

I've thought about what I want my budget to be (and what it should be considering other life goals I have), and I've decided to start with a quarterly budget. We'll see how that goes. I predict that I'll have to alter it to a monthly budget, because it's just too hard for me to do a no-buy if I end up spending it all before the quarter is over, especially considering the fact that I shop sales.

I'm starting with a quarterly budget of $500 per season. My seasons correspond with the meteorological seasons, so my quarterly budget will start tomorrow (March) and go through May. I do sell quite a bit on eBay, and right now I'm not counting that money as part of my budget. It's a fun extra!

So. That said, I'm hoping this will help me to not impulse buy so much and really consider what I need to add to my wardrobe. I keep a list of pieces I want to add and mull over it. If I think about a certain piece constantly, I know I should seriously consider adding it.

At the end of January, I mentioned that Chris and I were doing a no-buy through February. Well, I wasn't successful (and neither was he--a 50% off sale got us). I'm ashamed. (Sybil expresses my feelings perfectly.) I bought six things; however, two things were purchased with PayPal funds (and were on sale). Two other things were purchased at 50% off, and the last two items I have not yet received but are from Hautelook. I also grabbed a new makeup product (Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, which I wore in the last two posts), but I'm not counting makeup in my budget for now because I don't buy it very often. If I get really into it like I am with clothes, then I'll work it into my budget. If I end up keeping the items I bought, the money I spent this month is being taken out of the March-April-May budget, and I'll report them in my March budget post.

Wish me luck! xo

Linking up with Franish