Is it a hobby or is it an addiction?
I feel like i am developing a shopping addiction due to me always looking through different brand catalogues. It's not just one or two pages of browsing, its going to the 'shop all' tab and going through 10s to 100s of pages of items to 'hunt' for the right product. I do this on both cheap and expensive websites. And if at the end of it i don't have something to put on my wish list at least, there is disappointment like it was a waste of time. I don't always end up buying the item if i do find something i like. Usually i'd like to keep it in the basket for a couple days to make sure i really do like it as i am poor and usually spending too much gets concerning for my day to day living (i do have a job and i'm a full time student funding my life independently). If it is a couple 100s I try to make it a goal to save up for it to eventually buy it in a couple months.
At this point i cant tell if it is just a very specific hobby where i need to know everything that is actually available before spending my money. I've always went down on investigative rabbit holes, like watching every single video on a channel, or listening to every single song an artist has put out even if i dont like some of it, and then reading everything available on the wiki or 'about us page' but lately its been with shopping brands. When i say everything, i mean everything!
The concern for me is when after i get the item, there is a sense of euphoria and awe as the quality of item is really nice and i get weirdly proud of myself for finding it. Then off it goes to the closet or cupboard and I go back to hunting for the next thing in my free time. I have yet to spend a lubricous amount in the 1000s, as i purely connot afford that, but something in the 0-200 GBP in one sitting is something that is becoming a bit too frequent. Usually that is half to most of all my spending allowance that i give myself including for food. I have been constantly reminding myself to stay aware of what i am doing and to stay rational, but also not sure maybe i am just copism?
For context, in the last year i have been trying to curate my wardrobe and find a cohesive style rather than randomly buying everything i like. I did a colour analysis, found out my body measurements, figured out what silhouettes and cuts look flattering, and sold or donated half of my wardrobe that had been the same since i was a child cuz i haven't grown since and i do not have the same fashion sense as my mum. I also got rid of a lot of clothes that i had just got as a result of buying for the sake of buying which made me even more aware of my actions.
So the question is, is this a hobby or a shopping addiction?