Extreme Resolutions--No New Clothes in 2011

From WCSH-6, Portland (MA).

"There is nothing impulsive about the way Chrystie Corns shops. She is a couponing expert, pairing sales with coupons to save money on everything from groceries to toiletries. But this penny pinching single mom has one retail weakness. Chrystie has a bit of a shopping problem. She spends hundreds of dollars a month on new clothes. On Black Friday, she reached her breaking point.

"This past Black Friday, I was completely done with all my Christmas shopping for the kids, I had been done for a little while, but I went out and there were such good deals that I spent three hundred dollars on clothes for myself that I didn't even need" Corns said.

Chrystie realized that if she was really going to get her finances under control, she had to kick her shopping habit. She decided the only way to do it was to quit, cold turkey. She resolved that as of January 1st, she wouldn't be buying any new clothes in 2011.

A month and a half in a Chrystie has yet to fall off the wagon. She almost slipped when she started planning for an upcoming trip. But instead of hitting the mall, she tapped into her own wardrobe.

"I went into my storage clothes and actually got pieces that i'll need for my trip, pieces that I haven't worn in months, if not years," Corns said. "I'm just sort of revisiting all that stuff."

Of course, that doesn't make walking through the clothing aisles any easier, as we discovered walking through the clothing section of Target. Chrystie went straight for the bikinis, immediately eyeing a gold and white striped one with pink ruffles.

"This would be perfect for my Hawaiian vacation," Chrystie said. "But nope, I can't buy it. I want to buy it, but no, I'm going to be really good."

Guess what? I found a loophole, Chrystie--second-hand shopping. Yard sales, thrift stores, flea markets, even Freecycle and Craig's List.