No-Buy July: Testing the Internet’s Favorite Money Challenge

Christina Mychaskiw: From Shopaholic to Financially Stable

In 2019, Christina Mychaskiw was a full-time pharmacist and a part-time style blogger. She was also about $100,000 in debt, thanks to student loans and a compulsive shopping habit she just couldn’t seem to kick. Mychaskiw, now 38, says she was constantly worried about the financial hole she was digging herself into. Her vacation time went unused because she could never afford to take a trip, and her lack of a rainy day fund meant occasional inconveniences like an unexpected car repair came with crushing anxiety.

But paradoxically, Mychaskiw says, she dealt with that stress using the only coping mechanism she had: by buying as many trendy, designer clothes as she could squeeze from every paycheck.

“I realized I was never going to live the life that I envisioned for myself if I didn’t change something,” Mychaskiw says. Launching headfirst into a “no-buy” challenge, a perennial social media trend like “No-buy July” that resurfaces every so often and inspires participants to eliminate superfluous spending, seemed like her ticket out.

Mychaskiw committed to a year-long no-buy with strict rules, chronicling her journey through shopping addiction on YouTube. She budgeted for the essentials— rent, electricity, groceries, transportation — and cut out everything else. She kept her gym membership and a handful of streaming services.

“The detox really opened my eyes,” Mychaskiw tells her 330,000 followers in a 2019 video. “Without the crutch of shopping, I had to face who I was, my emotions, insecurities and financial mistakes head-on.”

Today, her endorsement of the no-buy lifestyle comes with a caveat. No-buys aren’t a magic wand for quickly getting your finances in order. But if you do them right, she says, they can deeply influence your mindset around money.

Who’s actually doing no-buys?

At its core, a no-buy is exactly what it sounds like: choosing not to purchase certain items for a set period of time.

The practice looks different for everyone. Some people cut out their biggest discretionary expenses—books, skincare, takeout—while others commit to making zero purchases for months, years or longer. Social media platforms like TikTok, Reddit and Instagram have become hubs for participants to chronicle their progress, posting updates about their struggles and successes.

It’s an exercise that can, at times, seem a bit out of touch. In an era when more than half of Americans report living paycheck to paycheck, a social media challenge that urges people to “just spend less” overlooks the reality that, for many, expenses are already cut to the bone.

Out of 44% of Americans who are doing or considering a no-buy this year, 25% haven’t saved much; day-to-day expenses still eat up most of their monthly income, according to a survey by Inuit Credit Karma.

No-buys aren’t the secret to financial freedom, but for many people, they’re a useful tool nonetheless.

Take Alyssa Barber, a 25-year-old content creator. After working at a boutique for seven years, she had a well-established shopping habit. In 2022, she did her first no-buy: no clothes, no shoes, no accessories for an entire year. To make styling easier, she did a “closet audit,” pulling her favorite and most-worn outfits front and center. After realizing she had a penchant for spending money on new clothes, Sarah Barber decided to challenge herself to a year-long no-buy in an effort to break free from her shopping habits. During this time, whenever she got the urge to shop, she would either borrow clothes from her sister’s closet or host a clothing swap with friends. However, Barber admits that there were some challenges along the way.

Throughout the year, Barber found herself constantly adding items to a running list of things she wanted to buy. She would often browse the websites of her favorite clothing brands and follow influencers on Instagram, which only fueled her desire to shop. Reflecting on her experience, Barber realized that she may have missed the point of the no-buy challenge altogether.

When the year was up, Barber decided to take a different approach to her shopping habits. She started by unsubscribing from newsletters and unfollowing influencers and brands that encouraged her to shop. She also reevaluated the strict rules she had set for herself during the no-buy challenge, acknowledging that it may have been too rigid.

Barber’s financial savings from the first year were modest, but the experience sparked a profound shift in her mindset. Instead of spending money on clothes, she redirected her time and energy towards experiences like concerts and dinners with loved ones. She even started hosting an annual clothing swap at a local shop and created a free digital guide for others interested in doing the same.

These days, Barber approaches shopping in a more thoughtful and intentional way. She focuses on buying second-hand furnishings to decorate her new home, which she proudly states she would not have been able to afford if she had stuck to her old shopping habits.

Barber’s story serves as a reminder that cutting back on impulse buys is a journey that requires patience and a shift in mindset. By taking a more intentional approach to spending, individuals like Barber and others, such as Ashley Viola and Mychaskiw, have found greater fulfillment and financial stability in their lives. Through mindful consumption and a deeper understanding of the environmental and social impacts of fast fashion, they have been able to break free from the cycle of excessive shopping and embrace a more balanced lifestyle.