What I Learned From “My Year of Things”
Is it true that experiences, not things, bring us lasting joy?
It’s been almost a year since I left journalism to join the world of corporate communications. With a new job and a significant raise, I decided to celebrate by buying myself some designer shoes, a pair of $550 black suede Isabel Marant boots, the kind that everyone liked five years ago but until now I couldn’t afford. That was my first pair of actual nice, leather shoes, and the first time I had ever spent more than $100 on footwear.
I justified the purchase because they boots are a classic style that I could wear over and over again, and because I could finally afford them. Expensive means quality and quality means getting lots of wear out of them, I told myself. After all, did I really want to buy another pair of shoes that would fall apart in six months?
Since that luxury purchase, I’ve bought a lot of expensive things that before my corporate job I couldn’t afford. Three Sunday Riley face oils that ranged from $80–105. An acid toner from a French skincare brand that cost about $70 for five ounces. A $950 single speed mountain bike (on sale from $1,499, so really, a steal!). A $475 tattoo from my favorite artist. And a whole lot of other small purchases, mostly of the beauty/skincare variety. In total, I spent about $1,000 overhauling my skincare routine this year. My most recent purchase was a pair of $630 leather Gucci loafers that I keep swearing to myself will last a decade if I take good care of them.
Spending this much money on things is a first for me. When I made a lot less, my spending money went toward small trips, where I CouchSurfed or stayed with friends, walked a lot, and ate cheaply, or lots of meals and drinks with friends. In other words, experiences. This year, as my budget changed, has been an entirely different story.
By now, we’ve all heard that people are often happier when they spend their money on experiences rather than stuff, and when they spend less in general. Because for the longest time I lived on a meager reporter’s salary and sometimes couldn’t even afford my student loans, I had never known the joy of unboxing a new pair of fancy shoes or putting on layers and layers worth of pricey skincare products. Still, I have mixed feelings about buying nice things. Having grown up in a working-class household, and then gone on to work in a poorly paid field, it makes me feel good when I can buy a luxury item and not feel any significant financial pressure as a result. Purchases serve to prove that I’m doing OK.
Of course, those purchases don’t come without guilt. I can hear my mom shriek every time I buy something I know is too expensive. So at the very least, I try to make quality purchases: leather, non-stretchy denim and products with reputable reviews. Also, I should note I don’t actually own a lot of things: I consistently donate old clothes I no longer wear, and I keep my very affordable 400-square-foot apartment fairly minimal.
But guilt aside, my new, expensive purchases are a wonderful treat after scraping by for so long.
My Year of Things needs to come to a close — or at least a pause. I haven’t traveled anywhere this year. Not to see friends, not to visit a new town in my own state, not anywhere, except camping. I did make a trip to Las Vegas last weekend that I was looking forward to, not for the casinos or the shopping, but for the change of scenery and some time to myself (even though I went with my mom and sister).
In the end, “luxury consumer” is not my long-term state. I want 2017 to be the year I finally go back to Europe and maybe even the year I finally move to a new city. But I can’t say that I’ll give up high-end purchases all together in the future, either. This year has helped me learn the value of quality items. Those Isabel Marant boots I bought last fall? I’ve worn them at least 100 times. Those skincare items? They worked so well! I’ve even bought jeans ($128) that have held up time and time again. So no, I’m not ready to give up luxury items completely. Sometimes, expensive items are an investment. That is something I’ve come to learn.
But I can do without buying more than one face oil at a time or buying more than one pair of shoes at a time. I’m ready to get back to intense saving mode, with a few more travel plans sprinkled in.
