Recently two bloggers I admire a great deal, Morning Madonna and Marionette Mew, got me thinking about how I can be more transparent about both my spending habits and my lingerie collection with their great posts; Life: Buying Transparency and Lingerie & Transparency Revisited. Two very excellent posts which I suggest you go have a read of if you're interested in this topic.
If you've been around the lingerie 'community' for more than 18 months you'll have noticed the sudden influx of new lingerie accounts across all social media and no matter how long you've been kicking about you may have found yourself balking and feeling intimidated at how many seem to have any endless supply of new season, high end lingerie to post. I know I have. And it's not for us to debate how others finance their collections or how much they disclose about their means but a question that crops up time and time again, one asked of me a lot and i'm sure is asked of others, is: "How do you afford your lingerie?" or "How can I build a collection like yours, do I have to be rich?" And as bloggers, I personally feel we should follow by the example already set by others to make sure we're not perpetuating some kind of unsustainable lifestyle to our readers.
I've touched on my finances in my FAQ post but some part of me wants to be a lot more open with my spending habits so this post is a thorough case study of all the lingerie that has entered my collection since the 1st of January 2016. I don't have an exceptionally well paying job and I have rent/bills/taxes dominating my income so I definitely don't ever want to give off the impression that i'm either supremely wealthy or living beyond my means. I have lingerie higher than most in my priorities but I still have to save or make non essential sacrifices to purchase. I have debated posting something like this because I can already picture the passive aggressive mentions in some people's posts but sod them and their shameless hate stalking attempts. This is not a poor attempt at bragging or showing off. Frankly I work my arse off for every piece of lingerie that I add to my collection, even those gifted to me for reviews are paid for with the hours I spend photographing/writing/promoting my posts. Also worth mentioning that I don't earn any money whatsoever from my blog. Absolutely nada so i'm thankful for every brand who works with Of Lambs and Lace and helps me keep a relatively regular flow of posts. I just want to give a flavour of what this lingerie blogger spends so that anyone looking to follow in my footsteps or just curate a collection similar to mine can see exactly where my own money has gone:
| MONTH | BRAND | ITEM | PRICE | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Lascivious | Logo Knickers | N/A | Press Freebie from The Lingerie Edit | |
| January | Sapph | Thong | £11.50 | Press Freebie from The Lingerie Edit | |
| January | TLBC | Charlotte Bra | £41.51 | PR Gift | |
| January | TLBC | Charlotte Brief | £22.14 | PR Gift | |
| January | Cassandra | Dinah Bodysuit | £32.63 | Paid out of my wages | |
| January | Agashi | Belle Choker | £38 | Paid out of my wages | |
| January | Agashi | Seifuku Panty | £44.50 | Paid out of my wages (pictured) | |
| January | Agashi | Seifuku Top | £51.50 | Paid out of my wages (pictured) | |
| January | Agashi | Bettie Choker | £8.30 | Free with purchase | |
| January | Bluebella | Selena Set | £14 | Gift from Becky ♥ | |
| February | Bluebella | Blake Bra | £36 | Gifted free from Bluebella for a review | |
| February | Bluebella | Blake Brief | £20 | Gifted free from Bluebella for a review | |
| March | BunnyRibs | Justine Garter Belt | £79 | Paid out of wages (pictured: review to come soon) | |
| March | BunnyRibs | Valentina Harness | £44.60 | Paid out of wages (pictured: review to come soon) | |
| April | Creepyyeha | Waist Cincher | £82.30 | Paid out of long term savings | |
| April | Creepyyeha | Fenti Bra | £126.85 | Paid out of long term savings | |
| April | Creepyyeha | Fenti Garter Belt | £126.85 | Paid out of long term savings | |
| April | Cream Intimates | Iris Set | £60 | Gift from Beau for anniversary ♥ | |
| April | NightProwl London | Elysium Bra | £140 | Gifted free from NightProwl for a review | |
| April | NightProwl London | Elysium Brief | £60 | Gifted free from NightProwl for a review | |
| May | Agent Provocateur | Cate Bra | £125 | Gift from Mother for birthday ♥ (pictured) | |
| May | Agent Provocateur | Cate Thong | £175 | Gift from Mother for birthday ♥ | |
| May | Agent Provocateur | Cate Suspender | £110 | Gift from Mother for birthday ♥ | |
| May | Martha Rose | Dahlia Bra | £56 | Gifted free from Martha Rose for review | |
| May | Martha Rose | Patchwork Knicker | £38 | Gifted free from Martha Rose for review | |
| May | Lascivious | Annie Bodysuit | £375 | 50% off press discount/£100 cheque from Father for birthday/paid from wages | |
| May | TLBC | Alana Bra | £41.51 | Gifted from TLBC for a review (review to come soon) | |
| May | TLBC | Alana Brief | £22.14 | Gifted from TLBC for a review (review to come soon) | |
| May | TLBC | Kaia Bra | £41.51 | Gifted from TLBC for a review (review to come soon) | |
| May | TLBC | Kaia Brief | £22.14 | Gifted from TLBC for a review (review to come soon) |
As you can see, I tend to make, on average, one big lingerie purchase a month. I also request lingerie as gifts from loved ones (although i don't expect them to buy me it) and I receive samples for the purpose of reviews. The first half of 2016 has been one mostly dominated by press samples (of which i'm very grateful) and less of my own spending because I started a new job in January (having been a carefree student for the previous 4 years), got promoted in February and decided to channel my disposable income elsewhere for the time being so lingerie hasn't been my highest priority. I've also fairly recently (within the past year) decided to buy more ethically and occasionally spend a higher amount on items from indie brands than spend a lower amount on fast fashion lingerie but more frequently. I used my long term savings once this period, these are savings from previous jobs and my inheritance from a few deceased loved ones who have died in the past 6 years and occasionally I spoil myself rotten and use them for something frivolous like lingerie or holidays as opposed to having them as an emergency fund.
I'm not sure if i'll keep this up, although if anyone is into the idea then I can certainly try to post an update at the end of the year. Let me know what you think in the comments about these kinds of posts. I know it may seem daft and unnecessary to some but I felt the need.
Edit: Another great post on this topic has been written by Vicky and you can read it at The Lingerista
Edit: Another great post on this topic has been written by Vicky and you can read it at The Lingerista