Does Everything We Buy Have to Be Practical?

I am probably the last person who should be writing about sensible shopping.

I’m an impulse buyer. I can see something, decide I love it, and somehow we’ve reached “order confirmed” before the sensible part of my brain has even joined the conversation.

Just recently, I came across a handmade creepy candle from Under the Sycamores. Did I need a handmade wooden creepy candle? Absolutely not.

Did I love it and buy it anyway? Yes.

Then I discovered they were making ghosts too.

There’s a ghost on the way.

So we’re off to a great start.

Do We Always Have to Need Something?

I feel like we’re always supposed to have a reason for buying something.

We need it. It’s useful. It’s replacing something. It was a bargain. We’ll use it all the time.

But what about just really liking something?

Obviously I’m not suggesting spending money you don’t have or buying absolutely everything that catches your eye. Trust me, as someone who impulse buys a LOT, sometimes I absolutely need to put the thing down and back away.

But I also don’t think every spare penny has to be spent on something sensible.

I love cards, pins, jewellery, candles, Disney things and all sorts of other things that I definitely couldn’t argue are essential.

They make me happy though.

Surely that’s allowed to count for something?

The Things That Are Worth It to Me

Handmade things are a particular weakness of mine.

I love knowing that an actual person has sat there and made the thing I’ve bought. I get something a little different and my money has gone directly towards supporting the person who created it.

My creepy candle isn’t practical. Neither is the ghost I’ve now bought.

But they’re incredibly well made, I love them and buying them supported a small business.

I’m happy with that.

Collecting is another one for me. I’ve got cards, pins and all sorts of other bits and pieces that serve very little practical purpose beyond the fact I enjoy having them.

Although trying to be sensible with those hasn’t always ended well either.

Ash once talked me out of going into a card break.

The 1/1 came out.

I’m still not over it.

Quite frankly, I’m not sure he’s qualified to tell me not to buy something ever again.

Sometimes “I Like It” Is Enough

I do get that little pang of guilt after buying things sometimes.

Did I really need that? Couldn’t I have saved the money? Should I have spent it on something more sensible?

And sometimes the answer probably is that I shouldn’t have bought it. I’m definitely not going to pretend all of my impulse purchases are fantastic life choices.

But I don’t want to feel guilty every time I spend money on something simply because I like it either.

Perhaps the question doesn’t always have to be “Do I need it?”

Can I afford it? Do I actually want it? Is it going to make me happy?

Sometimes that might be enough.

And sometimes I probably still need someone to confiscate my bank card.

What’s something you’ve bought simply because you liked it?

Win a Disney Loungefly Robin Hood Cardholder

And because I’ve just spent an entire post talking about things we don’t necessarily need but really quite like, it seems like a good time for a giveaway.

I have a Disney x Loungefly Robin Hood Cardholder for one lucky Life in a Break Down reader.

Okay, technically a cardholder is practical, so apparently I’m failing at my own theme.

But it’s also Disney and rather cute, so I’m counting it.

To enter, simply use the Gleam widget below.

Win a Disney x Loungefly Robin Hood Cardholder

This competition has no mandatory entry; once this is completed, all entries are optional. The more entry methods you enter via, the more chances you will have in the final draw.

Open to UK residents only. Giveaway closes 29/10. The winner will be chosen at random and contacted by email.

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