✨Art of underconsumption✨ (for beginners)

You've probably heard this term being used around lately on social media -*underconsumption* - and people randomly showing their stuff (as if it's meant to mean something), but you're probably wondering what it is. Yes? Then it's simple. It's when you purposely don't want to buy too much and focus on a selected few, whether it be clothes, makeup, skincare, hair products, or books, etc. But if your answer was no, then I guess you already knew that so you can move along...👀

(please don't leave)

It is a pretty simple concept, but the real question is, how much is too less? Some may believe it's having one of each item, yet some may think it's just the number of items you have in total.

I'm an under-consumer myself (well I like to make myself believe that) purely because of space issues. But I like to think that's keeping me in check. This could also be for sustainable or money-saving reasons. I can babble on forever, but let's get straight into the art of underconsumption.

Tip 1: Clothes

Underconsumption in clothes can easily be done with a capsule wardrobe, where you have a few staple pieces that can be used over multiple occasions. This can then mean you have fewer clothes. But the sound of that just sounds...boring and sometimes overwhelming (which is very contradicting), especially as a fashion girly myself.

To resolve this issue, I don't limit myself in the amount of clothes I own, but with the types of clothing I keep. For example, I'm not going to buy multiple colours of the same tank top, but I can buy two or three different coloured tops of a different style instead. Thus I can still have multiple styling options without consuming unnecessary amount of tank tops. Having one is better than none.

If you have the urge to buy that *cough cough hideous* jumper, then go for it, as long as you don't go buying more jumpers that are just as hideous.

Tip 2: Makeup & Skincare

Sometimes you can't help but to buy a new beauty item when you see it on sale (or at full price) because it's new and exciting. And when you get home, your table is 90% skincare. Yes, we've all been there. I've been there, especially with k-beauty!

It's so tempting to try out new makeup or skincare items, but you've got to remember your other unused lonely friends sitting on your desk. I don't go by expiration dates, but the first thing you need to remember for makeup is that foundation or concealer can oxidise and go orange, or mascara can dry up, plus they are so expensive, you don't want to waste your money on unusable makeup. Use this concept with most of your makeup and don't consume more than you need (especially if you barely use your makeup like me) to prevent waste.

Secondly, with skincare, note what you use the most and why you don't use the rest. Once you've identified this, you can stick to a skincare routine that needs minimal products. For example, if you go by the skin-cycling routine, you only need three main products, which then won't take up space. It's okay to have the odd barely-used product, just as long as you don't have a bunch.

Tip 3: Marie Kondo method

Lastly, a lady you may have heard of, the icon, the legend, the cleaning queen herself, Marie Kondo. Her method requires only one question, does this item bring you joy? If the answer's no, it should no longer be with you. So simple yet a very effective method, something I always use when doing my bedroom clear-outs.

This method can instantly serve underconsumption because there are a lot of items that don't bring you as much joy as you think. Chances are, you've probably forgotten about them. This third tip can be used on anything you own (and maybe people if you really think about it, oop). It puts things into perspective, what you really use vs what isn't you anymore.

Et voila, you end up becoming an underconsumption professional.

Hope these tips help you start thinking about your consumption in the future, and comment below any other tips that have helped you reduce your unnecessary consumption.

Mona out.