Being on the Fashionista Wagon

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Originally uploaded by BeanTipton.

Me Being Stupid
Originally uploaded by BeanTipton.

Wagons are not comfortable and anyone who says a hayride is a pleasurable mode of transportation is clearly delusional. Jolting, jostling rides are not the carriage for today's fashionista. We were meant to ride in rock star Bentley-style. However, there are only a few people out there who can actually afford this lifestyle and I am not one of them.

About a month ago, I put myself on the proverbial wagon. No fashion mags, no mall-shopping, no catalog-shopping, no Internet-shopping. I have spent more in my twenty-seven years than most people would consider comprehendible for a lifetime of clothes, shoes and bags. I have seen tens of thousands of dollars down the tube in a wardrobe war-path. And this sickness has put me in debt. This is why I rent. This is why, even though I have a great, well-paying job, I am just now coming out of living paycheck to paycheck. This is why I have a miniscule balance in my savings and retirement accounts. My pathetic shopping illness had taken over my life.

Have you ever hear of closet shopping? Oh yeah, that's me. Since my obsession began in 1997, I have become the master at hiding my growing wardrobe from inquisitive eyes. If my parents were home when I got back from shopping, the bags would stay in my car until they went to sleep. If they noticed something new, I would either tell them it was given to me or it was on sale (however it is safe to say that until recently my clothes are rarely found during sales). In fact, I clean out my closest every 4 months to make my collection look smaller - which spurs the idea to replenish, leading to another spree.

My endless cycle had to stop. Frances told me that maybe I needed to get rid of the source that makes me feel like: I need, I need, I need; or as the fashion mags say: I need it, I want it, I gotta have it. Who would have thunk it? By turning away from my beloved InStyle and W, my desire to shop has not stopped, but it has dwindled, slightly. I still see things that make me yearn to get new shoes with a handbag to match. This is going to be a long, hard ride. I need constant encouragement to spend wisely, and by wisely I do not mean finding a great deal at Kenneth Cole.

Shannon told me once that I would always be a shopper. I believe that is true, but I also believe that I have the power to control it. I need to develop the 12 steps for my own wagon-program. Perhaps I can lead women of today into a realm where we are happy with what we have and desire the unnecessary no more. A place where we can burst in wearing our faux-Manolo's with our knock-off Kate Spade bags and be proud to turn-down even the juiciest sale rack. Maybe we can even start to enjoy the hayride - of course the wagon should, at least, have a Mercedes emblem on it.

I told you it would be a long, hard ride...