21 Things I’m Not Buying in 2021

On my minimalist journey, I have been pretty focused on my wardrobe/clothing situation and living in a tiny apartment. Aside from that, I haven’t made it super far into being what I think a minimalist really is. BUT, that’s why I’m documenting my journey, in case you want to dive into the world of living with less things!

With that being said, I’ve decided to do a challenge that I saw on Youtube from Ashlynne Eaton, Things that people aren’t buying for the year. This seemed like such a great way to get me to buy less stuff! Some of the things on this list will be easier to stay away from than others and that’s ok!

In no particular order, here’s the list!

1. Coffee Mugs: my shelf is full, so I don’t need any more!
2. Books: this will be hard for me, but I’m going to try it! Plus the library and audio books are kind of my jam right now!
3. Resusable Totes: I don’t remember actually ever buying these, but I have a ton of them, which is helpful when I forget to put them back into my trunk!
4. Shoes: I can’t foresee myself needing any particular type of shoe, also I don’t really go many places (ya know, it’s a pandemic…)
5. Purses: I did technically buy my dream tote bag that I’ve had my idea for like 5 years from Poshmark, but I’m not buying any more bags!
6. Apps on my phone: I don’t really buy these, but I mean downloading new ones. I need to actually clean out home screen as there’s apps I don’t use anymore on my phone.
7. Hair Accessories: I have a ton of bobby pins and hair ties so I don’t need more
8. Planner Stickers: I just went through all my stickers and I’m set for the year. No more things to decorate my planner!
9. Storage Bins: I have empty bins in my apartment so I clearly don’t need any more!
10. Pens: I have at least 50 colored pens probably just in my apartment, not including my classroom.
11. School Supplies: similar to the pens, I have a lot of post-it notes, notepads, paperclips, binders and other school supplies.
12. Excess Fridge Food: I’m going to try to get better about food waste, mainly fruit and veggies. With only 1 person, I don’t eat nearly as much fruit as I think I will in a week.
13. Kitchen Gadgets: I don’t cook much or when I do, it’s not fancy things anyway. This one should be pretty easy for me to not buy for.
14. Subscriptions: The only exception I’m making for this is if I can get the Panera coffee subscription for free again, then I will sign up for that one. Other than that, no random subscriptions.
15. Socks: I have an entire drawer to just socks. I’m good on socks of all shapes and sizes. I would replace these if they have holes in them.
16. Fast Fashion: I’m slowly trekking along on my slow fashion journey so I’m not buying any fast fashion this year!
17. Lip Sticks: I have so many red lip sticks. With masks, I can’t even wear it, so they are sitting around and taking up space. I don’t need to add any more to the collection.
18. Jewelry: I don’t wear much jewelry in general so this should be pretty easy to keep in a pandemic world.
19. Soda: I don’t need soda and I honestly find it so sweet and sticky almost. This should be another easy one to keep.
20. Sweatshirts: as a cold person, I love a cozy sweatshirt but I have a drawer full of 7 grey ones, I don’t need any more!
21. Spices: I have found myself with a lot of different spices in my cabinet and I don’t know what to do with them. Don’t buy any more!

And there you have it, 21 things I’m not buying this year! What are somethings you would add to the list? Which ones would you have a hard time with following through on?