Goodbye July!

Well the July no buying challenge is over. I have to admit that I wasn't completely faithful. I bought a hand made yarn bowl for The Gadabout Knitter's Birthday, and some beautiful Handmaiden Sea Silk when a local store had a sale. Overall I feel like the month was a success for me and my family. I didn't find it especially hard to wait to wait to buy items that were not necessary. Some of the sales were a bit difficult to resist, as I like to buy things that I know I will eventually use while it is on sale. I didn't realize that July is considered the end of the summer season in most stores (we still have a few months of summer here), and lots of stores were having end of season sales. I have been most surprised that many of the things I have made a mental note to buy at the end of the month, have not been bought yet. I haven't bought much more than laundry detergent since the beginning of August. I won't say that I have been able to completely break with consumerism, but its a start.

As a last addition to our challenge, here are a few things you can stop buying;

• Paper Towels - use cloth rags instead
• Herbs - All you need to grow them is a sunny window
• Cleaning Products - make your own instead, there are recipes online (my favorite all purpose cleaner is water and soap in a spray bottle)
• Fabric Softener - Vinegar in the wash does the same job, but most fabric doesn't require softener at all
• Plastic Sandwich Bags - reuse glass or plastic containers instead
• Shaving Cream - out of date sunscreen does a great job