1. Cosmetics
To begin with, I don't think I own that many cosmetics. Currently, I only own the Laneige cushion, colourpop eyeliner, some make up brushes, colour palette and eye shadow palette. Sadly, I've come to a conclusion that I really will not wear make up on a daily basis and there is no point for me to buy an array of cosmetics... it wouldn't really change my innate laziness to put on some makeup before I leave the house haha. Therefore, in other not to waste the existing make up, I've decided to try my best to finish them up and not add anything to the current collection. I am 100% sure that these products would either turn mouldy or expire way before I manage to finish them.
Ever since COVID started and mask wearing has become mandatory, I've only put on my BB cushion ONCE(?!) and I still didn't like the feeling of having my make up rubbed off onto my mask. So really kudos to those warriors out there who doll themselves up nicely before they leave the house each day. I.really.cant. and I am just plain lazy >:
2. Beauty products
I used to have this obsession with J-beauty, k-beauty and whatever beauty products that the market throws at me. I was a staunch believer of whatever routines that were thrown at me because I thought it could get my skin to be clearer and brighter. Hence, my beauty products included facial toner, essence, serum, eye cream, face cream, spot reducing cream, sleeping cream and sunblock (in the day). However, some way along last year, I've noticed that instead of getting clearer skin, it seemed that my skin had little bumps growing on it (yikes!) and perhaps it was getting saturated from the amount of stuff I slather onto my skin.
I'm not denying the benefits of the different products but somehow I felt that my skin became better as I began to cut down on the number of products I use. Currently, I am only using toner, face cream +/- sunblock and occasionally some face mask. While I still have 3 different toners and 2 different face cream, I am trying to finish the bottles and focus on maximum 2 products each line in future.
Cutting down on the steps of my skin care frees up time as well as mental space, which can be used to focus on more important or meaningful things (like blogging!). There is also less FOMO-ness as I used to catch up on what is the latest beauty trend. Life seems much simpler right now and I think my skin is loving it :)
3. Fast fashion
As you all know, I cleared out almost 3-4 bags of my old clothes previously and many of them belonged to the fast fashion category.
I used to LOVE going to Bugis street or buying from those $10-20 dollars clothing stores. These clothes are often in fashion and the price tag doesn't cause a huge damage to my wallet. However, what I failed to realise about fast fashion is that - they come and go. The materials used are often not of top quality, which is justified by the price tag, and cannot be worn over a long periods of time. This creates financial and environmental wastage.
By avoiding fast fashion, I can channel my resources into better use: buy better quality clothes which can be worn multiple times and on different occasions :)
4. Shoes
I could be a caterpillar in my previous life, I do not know... I still have 2 pairs of pazzion shoes in my room unworn since 2019 because the current pairs of shoes I have are still serving me relatively well. Oh, this brings me to another point that when buying shoes, one should also try to buy good quality shoes. While the pazzion shoes are darn expensive (~$80-90) per pair on average, I'm quite confident that I would be able to wear them for at least 2-3 years before needing a new pair. This is compared to my $15-$30 dollars pasat/taobao/ezbuy shoes which would often fall apart/delaminate after wearing <1 year or worse still <6 months after being insulted by rain :(
Similarly, I also have a pair of Onisuka tiger shoes that I've been wearing for 2 years plus now and it's still serving me really well. Although it has began to show signs of fatigue like holes at the back of the shoes, I must say that it has been a faithful servant haha.
If you guys are looking for reliable working shoes, I highly recommend Pazzion! While they are expensive, their shoes have been one of the most comfortable shoes I've worn and my feet are blessed to have found them. Taking $90 as the cost price and if you are able to wear them for at least 3 years, it would be priced at $30 per year! Definitely a steal!
When they say 一分钱一分货，it's really true!
5. Bags
Writing this post really reminds me of my shopaholic tendencies when I was younger. I remember rather vividly how I really wanted to buy a few bags such as the rattan bags that was highly raved a few years back, and my soul was not calmed till I got my hands on it. However, shortly after getting it, the excitement worn off and now the poor bag is just sitting inside my cupboard. When my desires are controlled by materials, it is difficult to stay contented because there will always be more things that I can want.
Moving on, I would continue to make use of the bags that I currently own and try not to add any additional ones into my stash unless I manage to give away/sell the ones that I already have. Even so, the bag should be functional, multi-purpose and versatile. This reduces the need for different types of bag and reduces clutter in my house. Again, I am also trying to move away from buying cheap and poor quality bags because they really do not last. My friend's bugis bag lasted for a week(?) while mine lasted for max 5 wears.
I often overvalue how much an item could bring happiness to me. However, in reality these things will never confer the kind of lasting joy my soul longs for. We are but just nomads in this life and I am trying to remind myself to live light and enjoy the sceneries instead. I hope to adjust my life so that it is less cluttered and my mind would be freer to pursue what really satisfies.
So here are the 5 things I would (*hopefully*) stop buying in 2021. What are some of yours?
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