I made a list of 33 things I want to do before I turn 33 in June 2014.  See the full list here.

18.  Institute a No-Spend month.  31 days of not buying stuff.  Read this for more.

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28 more days of not buying stuff, actually.  Hello, March 3.   I was inspired by Rachel at Small Notebook‘s no-spend experiment a few years ago, and have always wanted to try one of my own.  She defines the process as “no spending except for basic necessities” and I think that’s a good way to define it for me as well.  Here’s my guidelines for myself this month:

• I won’t buy clothing.
• I won’t buy home decor.
• I won’t buy colored markers, lip gloss, washi tape, or a new pair of shoes, simply because we did actually need toothpaste.

Target, I’m looking at you.

• I will spend my small monthly Starbucks budget while getting together with a friend, rather than on days when I’m feeling lazy or just have a craving.  I’m a junkie, it’s true.
• I won’t get a haircut or pedicure or buy makeup or skincare products unless I legitimately run out of lotion. Because winter.
• I will be intentional about meal planning when we are home, organize my small food cabinet to use up what I have on hand, and eat out less.

I will still buy groceries, I will still buy gas for my car, we will still go to Denver for a pre-planned weekend getaway with a friend, we will still pay our regular bills.  Since we never know how many days each month we will actually be home rather than traveling for work, I haven’t set a specific lowered budget for the month.

The goal is to not spend money on anything other than necessities.  The goal is to allow a little more space in my brain. Space to think less about what I could buy that might improve my home, appearance, or productivity.  To be grateful for what I have.

Let’s go.