Low Buy Update: May

A month of shopping excess, including lime green linen pants that logically make no sense.

Okay, I’ll admit it: I bought a lot in May—or at least it felt like a lot to me, especially when I’m supposedly doing a low buy.

I bought 8 items this month, 2 of them secondhand. Compared to previous months, where I only bought one or two things at a time, it definitely feels more excessive. Which brings my total for the year to 12 items, 4 of them secondhand.

But when I looked back at my tracking from last year, I’d actually bought 11 items by the end of May, so maybe this isn’t actually that far off my usual shopping patterns.

It also shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that I shopped more this month than earlier in the year. May (along with October) is usually one of my biggest shopping month. Probably because I’ve had time to figure out what’s working—and what’s missing—in my spring wardrobe, while also starting to think about summer (and any upcoming vacation).

And honestly? I found some really great things that filled actual gaps in my wardrobe, and I’ve already worn them a lot (along with a few more impulsive choices and one regret).

What I bought

Massimo Dutti jacket, Gossia brown pants, M&S striped shirt, Oysho lime green linen pants, ASICS sneakers, Oxford shirt via Sellpy, Uniqlo Windbreaker via Vinted, Vero Moda technical pants.

ASICS Sneakers
A very practical (but still stylish) purchase that I’ve worn basically every day since I bought them. Sportier than what I’d normally gravitate towards, but apparently khaki sneakers are exactly what my wardrobe wanted.

M&S Striped shirt
Maybe the MVP of this month. Within the first week alone, I wore it four times! To the office, while WFH, for brunch with friends, and for a casual dinner with my in-laws. It really proved that the non-white shirt I mentioned wanting truly was a great addition to my wardrobe.

Technically I’ve worn the sneakers more, but this shirt somehow already feels oddly essential.

The fact that it’s 100% cotton and has woven stripes rather than just a print makes it feel like an even better purchase.

Massimo Dutti light weight jacket
I’m not over funnel necks yet, and the jacket from Massimo Dutti just spoke to me. It’s called dark blue on the website, but in reality it’s more of a dark grey with purplish-blue undertones. Maybe slate grey?? Very Tibi ring 3.

And when I tried on my summer jackets in preparation for warmer weather, I realised most of them didn’t really fit anymore, so this fills a true gap in my wardrobe.

Oysho lime green linen pants
Okay, this is probably the purchase that makes the least sense. It’s not particularly practical, and it isn’t really filling a gap—although I did declutter a pair of linen pants this month as they no longer fit.

But you know when you try something on and it just feels right? That was exactly how I felt in these pants, even though they had quite a few things stacked against them. They’re linen—and I literally just wrote about wanting to wear less linen. They’re bright lime green—and I don’t normally wear bright colours. Although, admittedly, I have been very drawn to chartreuse this year.

But this was a Have-to-Have, to use Tibi-terminology. Hopefully I won’t end up regretting it. But I honestly don’t think so. I immediately thought of several outfits for both work, travel and more dressed-up occasions.

Apparently, I’m a lime green pants person now.

Lime green pants for WFH, in the office and for travel.

What else did I buy?

Other things I bought this month were a black Uniqlo windbreaker and a blue Oxford shirt—both secondhand. Unfortunately, the windbreaker turned out to be a mistake, as it didn’t fit the way I’d hoped. That’s the one downside of buying things on Vinted. You can’t try things on, and measurements can only tell you so much.

I finally decided on a colour for the Gossia pants from last month’s low buy update, so I added those in brown. Somehow I also ended up adding a pair of cropped dark khaki pants in a technical fabric. And there are still a few things on their way to me…

So yes, I bought quite a lot this month. Oops.

What does that mean for my low buy? Since I’m not counting secondhand items towards my allotted 20 items for the year, I’m technically still doing okay with 8 new items—but it’s definitely time to slow down a little. I must admit I don’t feel great having shopped this much. But I still did it.

So far this year, I’ve also sold or donated 20 items, so at least my wardrobe hasn’t really grown in size.

Low buy count - May:
New items: 8/20 (6 items added this month!)
Secondhand: 4 (2 items added this month)

I’ve decided I need a break from posting on Substack—probably for a month or two. It just feels like time to step back a little and spend more time offline, hopefully returning with renewed energy and inspiration.

I’ll be travelling for part of that time and might not always have access to wi-fi, and I don’t want to worry about responding to comments or keeping up with posting schedules while away. I’ll probably still check in from time to time and catch up on some reading, though.

I’m also curious to see how stepping away from Substack for a while might influence my shopping and possibly my relationship with getting dressed.

Before I take my break, I’d love to know: how do you think being online influences your shopping habits?