Just heard a story the other day.
A couple we know went on a vacation and saw the most amazing handmade wall covering for $1000. Think of it as like a quilt, just.. hung on the wall.
They brought it back, placed it on the wall of their bedroom, and paused.
Wife: We need to upgrade the drapes now. Nothing matches.
Husband: What?
Wife: Well look! A beautiful piece of art needs beautiful pieces to compliment it.
Husband: And so it begins.
They started upgrading the bedroom to match this handmade wall covering by:
- Painting the walls
- Buying new drapes
- Buying new bed covers/bed sheets
- New bedroom furniture
- New rug
Total cost of a $1000 wall covering?
$5000 including the $1000 wall covering
Moral of the story:
Don’t let pretty things sway you and think about the follow-on costs of items.
Extra reading:
- Pretty Things Make us Buy More (EurekAlert!)
Just a girl trying to find a balance between being a Shopaholic and a Saver.
I cleared $60,000 in 18 months earning $65,000 gross/year.
Now I am self-employed, and you can read more about 
Totally valid point which also translates into fashion. I am guilty of shopping and buying statement pieces I fall in love with. When I get home I realize I haven’t thought of what I am going to wear them with…. so then I end up buying an entire outfit including shoes and a purse, puke.
This is exactly my problem right now. The good news is that any “statement”
piece I buy, I have a basic to pair with it 🙂
I have this amazing skirt from Anthro (Fantastic Fields) and I’ll just throw
a simple navy tank on top of it instead of trying to buy something nice to
pair with it… Simple is better.
I agree with Melissa on this one–I was thinking the same thing about outfits! Luckily I hate wall coverings and drapes and the like of them!
White walls are the way to go! I have a lot of nice wall coverings, mostly quilts made by myself or friends, and I just put them wherever they match. A couple of nice photographs too by a local artist. But nothing that required new drapes!
It made me laugh to think that a quilt could:
A) Cost $1000
B) Cost him MORE MONEY (she doesn’t work) to redecorate
I like white walls too!
Great point! I often find myself starting to fall into this trap when I buy a new outfit for an event. Like, if I have to buy a cocktail dress for a party, then I HAVE to buy new shoes, and a purse to match and maybe a necklace and…etc. etc. Usually I’m pretty good about stopping myself, though, but it’s not hard to fall into that mentality.
I am starting to realize I have everything in my wardrobe that I will ever
need for most events. 🙂 This stops me from buying… 90% of the time