SYB is "shop your budget" - I guess it's what I'd like to be able to call "normal, reasonable spending habits," but I'm not quite reasonable enough.

Haven't you ever been shopping with $$$ burning a hole in your pocket but you can't find anything you really love? And vice verse, when you shouldn't spend the $ then you stumble on the best thing ever? Irony kills me.

I think you give up the trench and wellie plan and fill a few summer holes but budget for next couple of months so you can play with trends and be ready to strike when you find a great item.

I use a monthly budget, but if I go over then I have to make it up in the following month. I often buy more at the start of a season when the full selection is available and I am excited about new things. Then I hold off for a couple of months or only buy little things. Then I check the sales for anything I really wanted but was over budget. This works pretty well for me. I don't think SYC is something for me because I feel like I already make good use of the things I have/know what I have, what I don't. No shopping until December seems really extreme, especially considering that you seem to be very careful with your budget already. It's logical you needed to buy some new things for your new job. Don't punish yourself for that.
P.S. Stop it already with all these posts about wedge sneakers because you are making me want them too

SYC for so long...I would have got mentally ill seeing trends and cute things that I restricted myself from buying. Yes, I would Shop my closet for jeans but tops are too beautiful and ok to buy once in a while. So maybe SYC in moderation and go shopping in moderation. That's best.
Your SYC is really appreciated by me cause it needs determination and self restraint. So kudos to you. But you can buy one or two much desired items to please yourself Rae. Is ok if its SYB too.
Love and thumbs up for your SYC.

SYB is much more reasonable than SYC; just thinking about SYC makes me want to rip my hair out - I don't know how you guys do it! The knowledge that I -can- go and get something else is very liberating (even if I do not)

I think it is really important to decide what your goals are. SYC and SYB and the terms of each only make sense if you have a problem or a goal to work on and can structure SYC or SYB in a way that makes sense towards that goal.

December is a lofty goal indeed. I think one item a month would be enough of an SYC type of situation for you. Are you counting thrifted stuff?

The Ash wedges are going to be my summer shoe purchase. I just can't decide on a color. (Don't forget you have a pair of jeans coming your way from me that will look perfect on you!)

I am SYB'ing 1 item per month. It is rough but I need to focus on adding things that are higher quality and need to streamline my slightly oversized wardrobe. I end up buying my monthly "thing" on like the first or second day of the month because I've been making a list of needs all month long.

Thanks, ladies, I needed this. I do tend to do things to one extreme or the other, so I can see how Dec did seem like a good idea at one point. I think I did really underestimate how much this hobby means to me.

1 item a month, I think I can do. First things first: I need to return the items that did not work out! I kind of forgot about them during my vacation. The wedge shoes are on their way for April, and once I return my jeans I will have a vacancy for March. I don't remember when I started this whole thing, but I won't worry about what happened in Jan and Feb. Onward and upward.

I WILL count thrifted stuff in this, since my goals are more about space and efficiency than money - I hope this will help me be more choosey re: my swap meet items. I also want to keep it to one-in-two out for a while, but I'll do the purge first, and build up "credit" based on how much room I want to have.