I was watching Jessica Braun on Youtube as she talked about “10 Beauty Things I No Longer Buy” and I thought that it would be a good blog topic. Before I got lazy and let the opportunity-this fleeting idea-pass by, I sat myself down, faced the computer and attacked the keyboard so here we are.

Like any of my lists, this doesn’t have a particular order.

Pens

I know. It’s a miracle. How come I don’t buy pens anymore? I know that my friend Tina is probably rolling her eyes at me, or my blog for that matter, but with the accessibility of posting articles using an app or keeping drafts on my phone, I rarely do reach for the old writing instrument. It takes years for me to finish a pen now as I only use it for writing journals –which I hardly ever do, sorry my 366 Days planner. Besides, I have already found my best pens for every occasion like signing documents, jotting notes, practicing Kanji.

Notebooks and papers

The same reason I don’t buy pens is basically why I don’t buy notebooks any longer. I also have a number of spare given by friends and colleagues who didn’t know each other but had apparently had the same observation that I like to write–or probably giving notebooks have become ubiquitous.

Concealer

With quarantine and all, I barely have the reason to conceal the imperfections on my face. However, even before that, I had not purchased any concealer. Paying attention to my skin care has become more important to me than masking my skin condition so I invest my money in sheet masks, facial washes and eyeshadows.

Chunky High-Heels

Staying at home has given me the best excuse not to purchase footwear in general but I have stopped buying and even wearing high heels for five years, give or take. I did not even wear them on my wedding. Although I still chunky high-heels and believe I –my feet I mean– look good in them, I won’t trade my boots and sneakers for one expensive pair of heels.

Dresses

I’m just not a dress person. Most of the dresses I have in my closet are from friends and relatives and even when they are gifted, I hardly wear them. When I go to the mall, I wear shirts and jeans. When I go on a date, I also wear shirts and jeans. When I have to attend a special occasion, I wear a blazer on top of my shirt and jeans. So unless I really have to, say, attend a wedding or any event that has a specific dress code, I won’t buy a dress. Particularly when it’s pink.

Physical Books

Shocking? Working in a publishing company has taught me many things and that includes paper spoilage. Also, I have taught myself to be mindful of my purchases that if I can’t use an object for several times in a year, I don’t have to buy it and this includes books. If I don’t see myself reading the book over and over again, I can probably use the space it would potentially occupy in my room for other stuff. I will probably have to address this in a different blog post: Transitioning from Physical Books to eBooks but you’ll have to wait for that as I gather my thoughts and make the post more meaningful.

Physical Albums

The last CD I bought was ONE OK ROCK’s 3xxxv5 and I have not opened it to this day since I also bought their digital album. With Spotify and Youtube music, I don’t see myself buying physical albums unless it’s from an artist I really like .

Combs and hair brushes

Combs and brushes are the enemy of my wavy hair. I simply towel dry my hair and tie it in a braid, bun or ponytail to get the strands out of my face. Apart from that, I found a conditioner that makes my hair so soft that I only use my fingers to detangle.

Phone Cases

There was a time in my life that I just want to buy phone cases per month– that may be an exaggeration as I don’t have 48 phone cases for disposal. Now, I’m only stuck with one and joined the rest of the world’s population that thinks this is normal.

Keyrings

I’m a firm believer of the idea that people only need three keyrings: the first one to hold all of our keys, the second, to hold our partners’ keys when it’s time for us to leap unto the next phase of the relationship, and the last one to hold the spare keys for those days when we accuse the ones we own for suddenly disappearing.

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I may come up with an updated version of this in the future or another version, perhaps The Top 10 Things I Spend My Money On. What do you think?

I’m tagging everyone who has read this blog entry to try and make their own list of ten things they don’t buy anymore so don’t hesitate to make yours and just leave your link in the comment section so I can read them as well. Ciao.