Have you heard of our Shopping Fast challenge? Check out our brave dieters right here.

We asked shopaholics to take up a challenge, with a difference. It’s sort of like a diet, but what they’re skimping on is not food, it’s clothes! (for a whole three months)

In the spirit of the Great American Apparel Diet, we got some shoppers with a serious addiction to take on a three-month clothes-buying fast.

So here are three volunteers embarking on this perilous journey, describing themselves in their own words. Want to join them? They’ll be updating us regularly throughout the experience.

Ellie Ng, fashion designer, fashion writer, fashion lover, fashion blogger

These are the obsessive titles caused by the genetic defaults of a fashion victim, or in this case, Eleanor Ng.

A Bachelor’s Degree graduate from Raffles LaSalle and self-confessed shopaholic, Eleanor made an obvious choice many years ago, to abandon all common sense for the sake of style. With daily buys of trendy whatnots – and a blackout here and there – Eleanor is officially wallowing in the depths of debt. Oh, and she just found out that she is two months pregnant, a revelation which she tried to hide by buying a trashy leopard-printed top at Forever 21 with. But of course, there is no buying denial. And more importantly, there is no buying love. This leaves all hopes of fashion independence coiled in the corner of her crammed pink closet.

Ellie Ng

Thus, enters the need for discipline. In hopes of relinquishing all desires to buy yet another faulty blouse from the crappy streets of Bangsar (not to mention the irrevocable clicks online), Eleanor has decided to forgo freedom for a much-needed shopping detox. For the sake of diapers and baby rash cream, Eleanor will check in to Shopping Fast, and (hopefully) check out with nothing but a new lease in life.

Or perhaps a dress or two…

Alexandra Prabaharan, food editor

I’m a Food Editor at a food media company. We do everything from food reviews to recipe development to food TV shows. I used to be a major shopaholic, as in I bought stuff ALL the time. I swear the Shopaholic series must have been written about me because I used to get a thrill in shopping for anything be it clothing, food, toiletries, and all kinds of useless crap.

Alexandra

I used to shop at least once a week. I’ve toned down quite a bit lately, mostly because of my lack of cash. I think this challenge will help me to save some money which is much needed right now. I also would rather learn how to switch things up a bit in my wardrobe to create different looks rather than head out to the stores each time I want something a bit different or new.

Nadine Fernandez, senior writer.

Hey, my name is Nadine Fernandez and I’m a shopaholic. Ok, maybe that’s a tad extreme but man, do I LOVE to shop. I am a single, brown female who lives right here in KL. Apart from the usual drone of a 9-6 weekday where I spend my time writing as well as covering events for a magazine, I go to the gym regularly, meet up with friends for mini catch-up seshs or just enjoy some R&R at home.

Despite my day sounding full up with no time nor space to fit in some shopping, please know that my office is located right smack in the middle of Mid Valley Megamall and Gardens KL which really does not help with my lunchtime need to fit in some walking and retail therapy. What!?!? A girls gotta de-stress…almost every lunchtime….

Nadine

Also with work events, I find myself at various other well known malls in our city where shopping has become the best form of killing time and on days where a last minute assignment is obtained, a brand new outfit to suit the events dress code. When I’m not spending time with family on the weekends, one can usually find me at a shopping mall scouring the boutiques and outlets for that particular piece I may have overlooked or decided to buy after thinking about it for a day…or something like that.

There ARE days where I return home with nothing new purchased BUT I definitely would have purchased something(if not a few somethings) by the end of the week. I know that there are people out there who are worse off than I but believe me when I say, I’m bad enough. With the big 3-0 knocking at my door, in the end, I hope this challenge will bring back some form of sense with regard to me realizing what I need as opposed to what I want as well as a renewed appreciation of money and its power. It would also be nice to have enough money saved for that big investment, such as my dream home, soon too.