I have mentioned a few times on the blog recently how I am just throwing money down the drain thanks to buying so many new clothes whilst I am on a weight loss journey. It is actually getting ridiculous at the moment just how much I spend each month when clothes just aren't lasting on me and this is only getting worse as the weight is dropping off more and my body size & shape is changing so often. I can buy a new item of clothing and just a month later that item no longer fits and is pushed to the back of my wardrobe never to be seen again. I even have a lot of clothing in my wardrobe with tags on them that I bought and never got around to wearing thanks to them not fitting in the season they were purchased for. I am really just buying clothing for the sake of it at the moment, mainly so I don't leave a shopping trip empty handed and I am now realising that I really need to stop doing this to not only save money but to also stop overcrowding my wardrobe. I am also noticing that my style is starting to change as the weight drops off so again items of clothing are purchased but then no longer fit into the style I am opting for so go unused, another waste of money. 

As the weight is starting to drop off more frequently now I know that I can't go on buying clothing like I have been doing and I really need to make changes and simply make do with the clothing I have so that I have the money available to buy clothing when I really need to which could be months or weeks down the line, plus it will mean even more money in my goal shop fund ready for when I do hit that final goal and go on a big shopping trip to completely rebuild my wardrobe in the clothing that fits my style and new shape perfectly. 

One simple way of making do with the clothing I buy is simply adding a belt to my trousers or jeans. This is going to save me plenty of money rather than buying new trousers every two minutes and should mean I get a few more months out of each pair rather than buying a size down which might not be fully comfortable yet. Belts are a pretty cheap way to add some extra life to items and it should mean I get plenty more wear out of the pairs I already own rather than just getting rid the second they get a little bit big on me. 

The over-sized look seems to be in fashion right now so that could work in my favour. I actually don't mind my t-shirts and hoodies being on the over-sized of things so I am just going to make do with opting for that look rather than a fitted one all the time which I have to admit I do prefer but sometimes you have to adjust what you like for a short period to get what you really want and I am starting to learn that more and more as my journey progresses. To be honest I think I could have a fair bit of fun playing around with styling what I own in an over-sized way.

I am also making do with cheaper clothing, I know now that I really don't need to be buying designer & branded clothing at this moment in time as I am just throwing the money away when I do this and I might as well save that money for when I am at my settled weight and size and treat myself to the items that are going to make me feel more like me. If I do need a new item I will be looking for dupes to the expensive ones I want and putting the money saved to one side for my goal shop. I have found sometimes the cheaper items purchased actually fit me better for longer so let's hope this is the case as I will be making do with the cheaper purchase for now, anything expensive comes once the weight drops off. 

Whilst I am losing the weight I am going to be making sure that when I do go out and buy clothing I am only replacing the clothing that I actually wear. If I have an item in my wardrobe that I don't wear but see a similar one whilst out shopping then I clearly don't need the similar item as there is already something unworn in my wardrobe that I could get the wear out of without spending unnecessary money on a new item. I don't need every Primark printed t-shirt just because they are dupes this time around, I can easily wait, save and treat myself to the real thing if I really want to when the weight drops off.

Sticking to the basics is going to be key to this little making do journey too as it is going to be much more effective. Rather than getting fancy items every time I desperately need to size down if I just stick to the basics of some jeans, shorts if it is in season, t-shirts and maybe a shirt or two. If I stick to those few basics then I should be able to reduce the size of my wardrobe as I go along which is something I definitely need to do and it should also mean a fair bit of money saved as I won't be buying too many clothes that aren't going to last. 

I am hoping that I can really learn to make do with the clothing I have got and just power through with them being a bit baggier on me so that I can stop wasting money on clothing I really don't need and save ready for that big shopping trip when I hit my goal at long last, if I do manage to cut out buying clothing by the time it comes to me actually having that big shopping trip I should have a lot of money ready to be put towards building my dream wardrobe for my new shape & size.

Get used to seeing me in baggier clothes from now on though as I am determined to stick to this and only buy when I really have to.