A blog by Cameron and Shannon

Whoo hoo! I am almost halfway through not buying anything. Or a third. Shut up.

Currently I am trying to scrape up the self-motivation it would take to either clean my house or go to Borders (i.e. Do Something), which of course actually motivates me to blog. Of course.

The thing I wish I was buying today is another item brought on by my current obsession with fall GETTING HERE, LIKE, NOW.

Nashville has now reached the point of the summer where all the water begins to smell severely suspect, apparently due to the “chemicals that make it smell good” evaporating out of the water when it gets really, really hot outside. (Doesn’t that make you nervous/want to hurl? That’s totally what the maintenance guys told us last year when this happened and we were convinced that somehow a sewer line had gotten into our water pipes. Yes, it really is That Bad.)

So, in the spirit of wishing for fall, I’d like to buy this merino v-neck sweater from J. Crew.

And I would like it in black, kelly green and maybe even grey.

This is what happens EVERY YEAR: I decide to buy sweaters. I decide that the going price for sweaters is EXORBITANT and I will! not! pay!

So I do one of the following:

1. Buy sweaters from Old Navy, which often end up looking too bulky/not suitable for work/not suitable after one season.

2. Buy a sweater that is of a reasonable quality/longevity, and is on a good sale (during the fall/winter season!) in multiple colors. These sweaters are usually a little too stylized (super-deep v-neck, ribbing, etc.) and end up being in great condition but not-so-great in actual style after a season or two. Also, because they are on such a great sale when it’s actually cold outside, what happens is EVERY WOMAN YOU KNOW also owns two of this sweater. That bothers you. Admit it.

3. Buy a sweater that has a reasonable starting price because it is made of 100% cotton, which sounds like a good idea, because it’s cotton, right? Where can you go wrong with COTTON? And then it ends up pilling up/losing shape kind of quickly.

I kind of stumbled on a quality lesson with sweaters last year at Banana Republic. There was this red crew neck sweater I wanted ALL SEASON LONG. The red was so vivid I referred to it as “technicolor” (yes, I referred to this sweater in conversation) and the texture just looked SO GOOD. Crisp. I almost bought it. Twice. I put it on my Christmas list and nothing happened. It was $70 and I didn’t really want to spend $70 on a sweater.

And then FINALLY when shopping in Atlanta with Cameron’s family after Christmas I FOUND IT. ON SALE. For $35. Which was incredibly lucky. Yet, even if I had spent the entire $70, it would have been worth it. I wore that sweater at least once a week for the next 3-4 months, and it STILL looks new. Also, it is still in style. Which means I won’t have to buy another red sweater for $35 this year. And possibly next year. (See how this works?)

I attribute all of this largely to two factors:

• The sweater is merino wool.

• Buying a simple style (no ribbing, etc.)

I’m kind of at the point in my life where I don’t need a lot of sweaters that only work with jeans - let’s be realistic, most of the time, if I am dressed and out of the house, I am going to work. I’m also at an age where my wardrobe can’t tolerate very much stylized/trendy clothing, and it serves me better to buy pieces that are going to stick around in the closet a long time, rather than something that will just be in the closet for a year. Not to mention, when you’re buying a simpler, more classic piece it can become so you that it’s not a problem if someone else owns the same item.

I’ve cleaned out my closet so many times and given away so many clothes over the past two years (just ask Cameron’s family, or the Goodwill closest to us) that I had to come to the realization that some of my buying habits had to change - one of the major points being that buying quality is worth it.

So I’m completely willing to shell out the $70 for this merino sweater, in a couple of colors, especially if it means next year I won’t have to buy ANOTHER black sweater because the one I bought last year is no longer wearable. Although I would thoroughly enjoy getting it on sale. :)