No-Buy Year List: 10 Surprising Things We’re Not Buying in 2025

Curious about the surprising items on our no-buy year list and why we’re skipping them?

Reflecting on Our Spending Habits

As I started creating this list, I spent some time reflecting on my shopping habits.

I’ve never been much of a shopper when it comes to clothes, shoes, accessories, jewelry, or anything fashion-related.

Instead, my spending habits revolve around my passions and hobbies—and I tend to have a lot of them! I love reading, crafting, DIY projects, painting, and anything connected to homemaking: from decorating and organizing to hosting family and friends.

With our second baby on the way, I’ve also found myself adding a new “hobby” to the mix—nesting!

Lately, I can’t help but get lost in nursery inspiration on Pinterest. But I’ve also learned the hard way that not all the trendy solutions actually worked for us.

Being More Mindful This Year

This time, I really want to be more mindful of what we bring into our home. That doesn’t mean the temptations aren’t still there!

Here is our no-buy year list of 10 surprising things we’re not to buying as a family with young kids.

Some of these choices might seem small. However, they can have a big impact on our daily lives if we’re able to stick with them.

No-Buy Year List: Things We’re Not Buying for the Kids

Raising soon two little ones doesn’t mean we’re immune to the temptation of buying new toys and cute baby gear.

1. New Toys

Now that we’re expecting another baby, we’ve been reflecting on what we could do differently the second time around. When our first baby was born, we received so many baby toys as gifts and we also bought some ourselves.

But we quickly learned that newborns aren’t really that into toys. Instead, they love looking at high-contrast patterns, like black-and-white images, and later, other contrasting colors. We realized that it doesn’t take a fancy toy to captivate a small baby—anything with contrast could do the trick!

Now, as our toddler approaches 2 years old, she has become more interested in toys. However, she already has plenty of options at home and even more at daycare. With so many things available to her throughout the day, we’ve decided to focus more on downtime and creative play at home.

Our toddler has also started to enjoy “helping” around the house. Activities like putting toys away, emptying the dishwasher or even just playing with an empty toilet paper roll have been just as engaging.

So, this year, we’re not buying any new toys. Instead, we’ll rely on hand-me-downs, second-hand finds, and creative DIY activities to entertain our kids.

2. New Clothes and Accessories

With a newborn on the way and a growing toddler to care for, we’re rethinking how we approach clothing and accessories for our kids.

This year, we’re aiming for 100% second-hand options.

Kids grow so quickly, and there are so many barely used items out there waiting for a new home.

We’ll explore local second-hand shops, and accept hand-me-downs from friends and family. This approach not only reduces waste but also helps us save money while making thoughtful choices.

3. Fancy New Baby Gear

As we prepare for our second baby to arrive in 2025, we’ve been thinking about the temptation to buy new baby gear, and how we can approach it differently this time.

I used to think that investing in popular baby products would be a good idea, assuming I could easily sell them later. But I’ve realized that selling used items is actually pretty exhausting and time-consuming, especially when life gets busy.

This year we’ll look into renting baby supplies, a concept I hadn’t considered before, but one that makes so much sense now. Renting items that we only need for a short period of time will save us money and help avoid cluttering our home with unnecessary things.

We’ve decided to focus on avoiding any unnecessary items, especially since we already have most of the basics from our first baby.

4. Single-Use Items for Baby Care and Meals

Raising young kids can be demanding, and convenience items often help make the day-to-day struggles a little easier.

Items, such as:

• disposable diapers,
• wipes, and
• pre-packaged baby food.

can be very helpful.

However, they create a lot of waste and they’re also expensive! With our second baby on the way, we’re thinking about ways to reduce these items to a minimum.

When our first baby was born, we relied heavily on disposables and ready-made foods. Even the idea of cloth diapering felt overwhelming.

Now, I’m more confident about trying small, realistic changes, like part-time cloth diapering and making more snacks and meals from scratch.

We’ll try our best to reserve pre-packaged options only for travel or very busy days.

No Buy Year List: Things I’m Not Buying for Myself

As much as I love homemaking, hosting, reading and crafting, this year I will focus on finishing what I’ve started rather than buying more supplies or decor.

5. New Clothes and Accessories

I’ve never been someone who loves buying new clothes. Even trying on clothes at stores has always felt like a chore.

This is why I’m so intrigued by the idea of a capsule wardrobe, where you focus on a few pieces only that are interchangeable and all go together.

I’ve been trying this out for a while, but sometimes I struggle with styling the same pieces in different ways.

For example, I might wear the same long knit dress for several days without much variation. Styling is something I’d really like to learn more about.

With pregnancy, a changing body, and weight fluctuations this year, I’ve had to adjust my approach. I still have some maternity clothes in storage that I’ve started to use. I’m also committed to not buying new items because I feel I already have enough.

I don’t know what size I’ll be postpartum, or if my old clothes will fit. Either way I’ll stick to my commitment and try to find second-hand options or support sustainable, local labels—if there’s something I really need.

6. New Books

Finnish people borrow books and use library services a lot!

Libraries in Finland don’t just offer books, but also things like ice skates, sports equipment, sewing machines, and even 3D printing.

I’ve always loved reading, and sometimes I buy books because I’m too impatient to wait for them at the library.

I think buying books was more of an issue when I was at university. I wanted my bookshelf to reflect my academic identity.

After graduating, I’ve realized my interests have shifted, and I’m no longer attached to that collection.

I still have many of those books left, and I’m experiencing somewhat of an identity crisis about letting them go.

We’ve also bought a lot of second-hand children’s books, and I have even more from my own childhood waiting in storage to be read with our kids.

This year, I want to stop buying books, even second-hand, and instead make more use of our local libraries. Finnish libraries are amazing, and I want to take full advantage of their resources.

7. Hobby Upgrades

I love starting new projects, but I often struggle with consistency and making a plan to stick with what I have going on.

This year, I’m committed to not buying any new hobby gear and instead, focusing on the projects I’ve already started.

My big goals for this year are completing some home improvement projects and decluttering and organizing our new home. This is no small task, especially as we’ll also be taking care of a newborn.

This means I’m going to have to prioritize my hobbies and focus on what matters most. I’ll make sure I’m using the resources I already have to reach these goals.

If I feel tempted to buy something, I’ll weigh my options carefully and choose sustainable options that will bring long-term value.

No-Buy Year List: Things We’re Not Buying for the Family and Household

Simplifying our family life means reconsidering the things we bring into our shared spaces and routines.

8. Storage Bins and Baskets

I made a bet with my husband to not buy any storage bins or containers during our no-buy year.

This is my absolute worst problem area when it comes to shopping.

I’m a bit obsessed with home storage solutions and organizing the stuff in our home.

Naturally, my husband just laughed when I confidently said I wouldn’t buy any storage items for a whole year. He didn’t believe I could do it.

Stubborn as I am, I’m now even more determined to break my habit and tackle this addiction head-on.

9. Mass-Produced, Low-Quality Furniture and Home Decor

This will be another difficult one for me, as I love browsing home decor items wherever I can find them.

However, we’ve really noticed the decline in quality, especially with mass-produced furniture.

It’s frustrating to throw something out after just a few months because it wasn’t made to last.

For this year, we’re going to focus on making do with what we already have.

If we think we need something new, we’ll carefully consider our options and prioritize supporting local, small-scale businesses. We’ll try our best to choose sustainable or custom furniture and decor instead of mass-produced items.

10. Exchanging Material Gifts

This year, we’ve decided to skip buying material gifts.

Instead, we want to focus on creating memories together as a family and investing in experiences rather than things.

We’ve realized that experiences often bring more lasting joy than physical items, and we want to prioritize time spent together.

For example, instead of buying a new toy for a birthday, we might plan a trip to an indoor play park or organize a fun family outing.

This year, we’re all about enjoying the present moment and making family memories that will last far longer than anything we could buy.

Did Our No-Buy Year List Surprise You?

This year we’re committed to making more mindful choices and finding new ways to meet our family’s needs without buying unnecessary things.

We’ll try our best to focus on reusing, repurposing, and prioritizing what really matters. Experiences over material things, sustainability over convenience, and quality over quantity.

I’m sure it won’t be easy, but we’re excited to challenge ourselves.

If you’re also considering a no-buy year or simplifying your family’s consumption, make sure to bookmark this blog and follow us on Instagram for more updates.

I’d love to hear what your plans are and what you’ve decided to put on your family’s no-buy list this year. Let me know in the comments or send me a message!