Retail Therapy?

Spoke to Lipstick today. Another friend who has deserted me and is off doing rep somewhere. I'm basically a tour widow at the moment.

She was shopping. It's not a rare occurence for Lipstick to be found scouring the UK's high streets lately. When I call her these days she's never more than an arm's length away from a Topshop clothes rail.

"What are you buying now?" I said, half in admiration, half enviously.

I heard her lipstick-y laugh bubble down the phone line.

"Another pair of jeans. I know! What is wrong with me?" she exclaimed. "I don't even need them."

"Then why are you buying them?" I asked.

The giggle faded to a long silence.

"They'll make me feel better." Her voice sounded subdued.

"Life will be so much cheaper when you're not feeling sad anymore," I said.

Lipstick is a little under the weather at the moment, emotionally speaking. But forget counselling. She's gone down the retail avenue of therapy. It's just a phase, and one that I'm certain she'll grow out of, in time. For now, though, she's destined to wander aimlessly around department stores, seduced by their bright colours and pretty things, helplessly buying into their quick-fix sales pitches. Have me and you'll be happy. Take me home now, hassle-free. Buy me and your life will be just a little bit better.

Now, as you may have guessed, Witch isn't averse to a healthy injection of new glamour from time to time. It's odd, though. I haven't bought anything for about six months and I feel strangely better for it. Considering I used to buy myself something at least every week, that's quite a turnaround.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not boasting about my new-found thriftiness, or showing off about my unshakable grip on the purse strings. It's mainly due to budget reasons. If I could afford to shop, I probably would. But there has been a change, and interestingly it has coincided with a huge change in my life.

I used to shop all the time. I would kid myself that it was just how I was. I just liked to shop, right? What was the problem with that? Nevertheless, I would hide new purchases from friends - guiltily telling myself it was fear of their reproach that was forcing me into hiding. I'm sure partly it was. But I think the greater fear was of being challenged about the reasons behind my spending habits. What was I looking to replace? Was I trying to fill a gap, a void?

It's funny how I don't even want to shop any more. I guess I don't need to. All those beautiful dresses are really just a symbol of how unhappy I was.

Anyway, I'm grateful for them now, because they'll make the Wardrobe Challenge so much easier. Those impulse buys are going to come in handy...