Friends, I have a frugal tip for you. Depending on the type of psychology you roll through life with, it may help or it may not. But it does help me.

I make wishlists of things I want.

You see… I am kind of a crazy hoarder and a neurotic organizer.

So I hoard the list of things I want (but totally don’t need) and organize them somewhere. Usually Pinterest.

And a solid 75% of the time, I totally forget about the item within a few days.

And sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I think about those items for months or even years but the link to the item is just waiting there for me (most of the time – I was recently pretty sad that a candle I had actually been thinking about for a year was discontinued when I finally decided to buy it but it was a tolerable level of sadness and in its own way, even that saved me money).

Of course, there are some items that you would be so sad if you didn’t buy. If you can afford it, buy those suckers. But if you, like me, are endlessly target by very well-tailored ads, a really helpful thing I’ve done is pin those items and then move on with my life.

As an added bonus, I have a waiting Christmas/birthday list for if anyone asks me what I want, because lots of times my mind literally goes blank if someone asks and I’m like… nothing. In reality, I’ve got this list of bizarre tchotchkes the internet keeps serving me up that I am actually interested in. Before one of those events, I’ll pop on and check the links. Sometimes, sadly, something is no longer available. Other times I’ll realize I either don’t want that item or bought a similar one somewhere else throughout the year, so I remove it. But lots of times it means I’ve got the perfect little list of things to pass on to family and friends if they ask.

Or, if I am particularly flush and still thinking about these things, I can go follow the link later on and order the item. A month ago I bought a pair of leggings, a pair of earrings and two candles that had been on that list for more than a year and, you know what? I didn’t feel any splurge-y guilt even though they were all initially random internet ads that got me. Because I still liked each of those items months later. AND I actually have been really happy with all of those purchases.

I find overall that I have a higher satisfaction rate with the purchases from the wishlist. Maybe it’s the total lack of guilt when I do go back months later and buy them.

What do you do to keep impulse spending at bay?