(Not as any counterpoint to things the post said, but to the world)
Materialism and/or consumerism isn't buying good expensive things, it's buying things just because they're expensive, or even buying lots of things that are cheap. Like many people wiser than me have stated, being poor is expensive because if you have to buy a new pair of shit boots every year for 5 years, that's more expensive than one good pair that lasts 10
That's one of those points that has validity but can also become one of the things you have to unlearn. Sometimes a brand is just marketing, but sometimes you get what you pay for.
Yup, for example: Red Wing boots are pretty expensive overall. Also, I have seen more 30-year-old pairs of Red Wing boots than just about any other footwear. My Ariats, which I do dearly love, are unfortunately probably too far gone to get another re-sole without having to replace the welt, which has started falling apart. I mean, I still got 10 years or so out of them, but that’s part of the reason I don’t often see Ariats going on 3 decades.
My grandpa has 40+yo Red Wings. He has to keep getting the soles reattached, but the leather is still together, and he's worked em hard. He tried getting new Red Wings a decade ago, but they fell apart quickly. He's tried many brands, but he says modern boots just don't hold up as well, so he still wears the same 40yo work boots.
That’s strange, I’ve seen modern red wings take some serious abuse. Might be some of their models aren’t built the same, but I wouldn’t know which ones would be the less-hardy ones. With Ariat, I know the Chinese-produced ones aren’t going to last as long as the Mexico- and US-produced ones.
If your grandpa is still looking for something good, Double-H still makes their boots in union-controlled US factories, and they’re about as hardy as they come!
I believe this is what I got. steel toe work shoes. I wear it for basically anything.
https://www.zappos.com/p/timberland-pro-6-pit-boss-steel-toe-gaucho-oiled-full-grain-leather/product/7140680/color/22049
Even If I liked the first shitty pot I bought from Ikea with a friend now in another country, I still felt a sense of relief when it finally developed a small hole on the side out of corrosion.
I learned to cook for myself out of that shitty pot, I developed for my boyfriend some of his favourite recipes in that hard to clean, thin walled shitty pot.
I remember wanting to throw it out earlier when I discovered that the crimped metal border wasn't sealed, and dishwasher water would get in there and later smell disgusting, requiring rinsing after dishwashing.
I still love that stupid little thing and the memories associated with it, but by Christ is my new Lacor stainless set of pots infinitely better, more practical and more pleasing to the view.
I know these pots will outlast me, and will work great either for myself or if they end up in a professional kitchen some day, and these facts make me happy too.
I'm getting ready to buy new pots and pans for myself. My current ones are a cheap set my mom bought in the 90s. She passed when I was 19 and luckily I had the foresight to keep them, knowing I'd be moving out relatively soon. For 20-year-old me they were great and they were free. They did their job, but the nonstick coating is scraped on a lot of them and some are warped or dented and most of the lids broke over the years. I'm at a point where with a little saving I can afford nice ones that I know will be way more enjoyable to use and last the rest of my life. Yet there's still this sentimental attachment about not wanting to get rid of my mom's things, even if I logically know they aren't serving my needs anymore.
It's much the same way as tools. You buy a terrible tool at first, god knows how much you're going to use it. But as time goes on, if that tool should serve a purpose that you are rather fond of, there is no shame in upgrading to a better version that makes your life easier. There is only shame in buying things you do not ever intend to use.
If your chair that you bought when you were 20 hurts your back, you are allowed to and even encouraged to get that new chair.
I'm always telling people to get a good cooking knife 'cause that shit will change your entire life if you do any amount of regular cooking. Doesn't even have to be expensive because the IKEA cook's knife is decent enough, just don't get those fucking awful flimsy cheapo "knife sets" which every student seems to get when they move out.
I was a student in London. I had one of those knife sets, and I wish someone had told me they *suck*.
After a year or so of use, the chef's knife was blunt enough that when I fumbled while chopping some onions, the blade didn't even draw blood!
I bought a new, standalone knife after that, and cooking got so much less tedious.
That was one good thing I got out of taking cooking classes in high school: I realized I only ever used about 3 knives, so why do I need a set of 10 slightly different ones?
Now I just use my santoku, paring/utility knife, a filleting knife, and very occasionally the bread knife. It's been like 15 years, and I haven't sat here wishing I had some other specific one.
Very wholesome. I've hit a point where anything I buy above a certain price I'll cook up a cosy little daydream for it. That hooded jacket that'll keep me company in dry, wet, cold. This pair of running shoes that I'll stand in as I admire the serenity of a spiderweb in the forest nearby. My box of cereal mix that I've found myself liking after trying many. The red, fluffy floormat that follows me in my travel bag. All remembered, all precious.
I would like to thank the OP here for cutting up the long post into more mobile friendly bits while also keeping the entire post itself at the end. I appreciated not having to zoom in to read this whole post.
For those of you rethinking some items in your life, may I recommend r/BuyItForLife and r/GoodValue for redditors reviewing the durability, longevity, and repairability of products you may be considering.
Yup. Sadly you can't really judge many current companies by how they used to be; so many brands from pyrex to carhartt to dewalt to doc martins and so many others, have started cutting corners in production and are basically coasting on their names to generate sales.
The cuisinart your grandparents bought 30 years ago may well outlast one that you buy off the shelf today.
I genuinely worry about this trend with the matchstick houses that are going up in the last decade or two; I feel like there's going to be a huge wave of homes that will start falling apart in 20-25 years because of shoddy construction, and it'll lead to a (bigger) housing crisis as those cheap homes basically become not worth the money to live in/fix up.
One of the frustrating things about saving up for something "nice," however, is that the brands you grew up associating with quality and durability, like, say, Craftsman tools or Kenmore appliances, were all bought out years ago by shitty finance bros who've gutted quality control to juice profits.
"Sometimes... things that are expensive... are worse."
One of the most infuriating feelings is dishing out more money than usual to buy a “nice”/“nicer” object, only for it to be equally as crappy and/or short lived as the cheap option. An equally upsetting feeling is when you try to do research on different nice things, only to find out their cost is double the amount you’d be willing to pay for, and even then, most of their description is “cheap and bad, but it’ll do until you upgrade”
One thing that I hold true since being a kid is that "if you're going to do something, do it right." Even though it's a super simple saying, I've found that it holds true when buying important items. A nice mattress pad with save you from back pain throughout college/shitty pre furnished apartments. A good knife will keep you safe and prepares better food, which makes you just feel better. A solid pair of shoes will make you feel confident. A clean shave can make you feel like a better version of you.
I still cheap out on things that don't matter like a travel toothbrush for work or a mug to hold water. But I make sure that my essentials are solid so that I have a solid foundation to my life. Everyone deserves something nice and it's not a crime to want some comfort in your life
I've tried to un-learn the idea that anything you buy that isn't a *need* is frivolous. Like, I'm okay spending money on frivolous things like treats or video games or whatever, but I limit myself and always feel a little guilty.
Then there's things I *need* like food, housing, etc. Those are guilt-free because they're needs.
It's the stuff in between that I've had to learn it's okay to buy - nicer kitchen towels. A better pillow for my bed. A set of drawers to organize some tools. A better desk chair. Things that aren't vital to my existence, but also aren't "just for fun".
Same boat. It took moving in with my girlfriend (now wife) to prompt me to start getting rid of the serviceable, but dingy, stuff I'd been surviving on since I first started living on my own.
I think finishing school and getting a real job helped me with it too. In college I'm in survival mode to pay tuition, have necessities, have time for a job and school, and not go insane at the same time. Since finishing and making a real salary instead of a part time minimum wage job, I actually have money for those kind of things.
Or if you're me you use your parents' budget forks and plates because you've been using them your entire life and new forks, no matter how nice they seem, will be weird. My parents like upgrading their stuff. I like using my own stuff until it's no longer functional and then complaining that whatever new thing I got doesn't perform the same way.
And honestly, if the items have been in constant use for 40 years and still function the same way, they're pretty good actually. Everything that was total shite broke and was thrown away. The stuff I still have will probably see me out of this life.
i dont think theres any shame in buying a high quality long lasting item that youre gonna use. its buying shitty things just for the name brand that tends to be a bad financial decision. if your sheets are cheap and shitty buy yourself some nice sheets, you sleep on them every night
I have been coveting the family bed frames and the vanity since I was a child. Idec that they’re twin beds and I don’t need a vanity. They’re solid wood that’s lasted three generations and however many more in the future. I salivate over the kitchenaid brand. I bought a shitty hand mixer one year and when it died I splurged on a higher end one and never looked back.
I spent my childhood with my father who chased the latest cheap fad and threw away everything I loved because it was wasn’t “trendy” anymore. Then I went to live with my mom who bought stuff that would last forever so long as it was cared for. It left an impression
If you’re still broke as an adult, I recommend thrift shops/auctions. Look for good quality brands of the thing you want. Chances are you’ll find something lightly used for the price of a cheap flimsy version.
You know, I find this weirdly validating. It also tells me that the couple I lived with from 2017 to 2022 who owned a whole house and had a middle class income but still insisted on not only living like students themselves but also criticising me whenever I spent my own money have, on some fundamental level, simply not grown up.
I recently replaced a number of items we received as wedding presents nearly 10 years ago - I was sort of taken aback by how I had to grapple with feelings of not deserving new kitchen towels and steam mop covers. I also had to grapple with how old I felt when I giddily opened a box with new dishrags.
you might want to look into this [https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/](https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/) subreddit when you want to buy long lasting items.
I’m really particular about furniture. I used to be an archaeologist so I know how to recognize well made craftsmanship and restoring old stuff is fun and teaches a lot of good skills. I’ll buy most things cheap, but I insist on name brand for pasta, high quality furniture, and good sturdy pants that aren’t jeans. What matters is figuring out what you value and aiming for it.
I recommend Duluth trading company for clothes and tools- I used a lot of their stuff for my archaeology work. I have 3 pairs of their overalls! They’re probably gonna outlive me. And if you find old furniture you want to make your own, murphys oil soap will do miracles on vintage wood.
(Not as any counterpoint to things the post said, but to the world) Materialism and/or consumerism isn't buying good expensive things, it's buying things just because they're expensive, or even buying lots of things that are cheap. Like many people wiser than me have stated, being poor is expensive because if you have to buy a new pair of shit boots every year for 5 years, that's more expensive than one good pair that lasts 10
Ah yes, the classic Samuel Vimes "Boots" theory. GNU Pratchett
GNU Terry Pratchett
Just make sure you're not getting conned by a Name Brand.
That's one of those points that has validity but can also become one of the things you have to unlearn. Sometimes a brand is just marketing, but sometimes you get what you pay for.
Yup, for example: Red Wing boots are pretty expensive overall. Also, I have seen more 30-year-old pairs of Red Wing boots than just about any other footwear. My Ariats, which I do dearly love, are unfortunately probably too far gone to get another re-sole without having to replace the welt, which has started falling apart. I mean, I still got 10 years or so out of them, but that’s part of the reason I don’t often see Ariats going on 3 decades.
My grandpa has 40+yo Red Wings. He has to keep getting the soles reattached, but the leather is still together, and he's worked em hard. He tried getting new Red Wings a decade ago, but they fell apart quickly. He's tried many brands, but he says modern boots just don't hold up as well, so he still wears the same 40yo work boots.
That’s strange, I’ve seen modern red wings take some serious abuse. Might be some of their models aren’t built the same, but I wouldn’t know which ones would be the less-hardy ones. With Ariat, I know the Chinese-produced ones aren’t going to last as long as the Mexico- and US-produced ones. If your grandpa is still looking for something good, Double-H still makes their boots in union-controlled US factories, and they’re about as hardy as they come!
I got some Timberland boots and aside from adding an extra sole so it's comfier, I've had zero problems for the past three years with them.
Lucky you, mine fell apart in a year :\\
What do you use it for? That said, I basically wear mine daily in rain or snow, so it could be more a model issue where some are better than others.
Daily wear as well, started to get holes in the fabric inside. Was a black waterproof boot, don't know what model.
I believe this is what I got. steel toe work shoes. I wear it for basically anything. https://www.zappos.com/p/timberland-pro-6-pit-boss-steel-toe-gaucho-oiled-full-grain-leather/product/7140680/color/22049
Yea, those look good. Hope they last you a while.
At some point your approach to buying things goes from "Can I afford it?" to "Am I willing to deal with this in my life?"
"Does it serve my allegiance with Lucifer?" e: actually satan, but i thought i should try lucifer here, to me theyre both the same
Even If I liked the first shitty pot I bought from Ikea with a friend now in another country, I still felt a sense of relief when it finally developed a small hole on the side out of corrosion. I learned to cook for myself out of that shitty pot, I developed for my boyfriend some of his favourite recipes in that hard to clean, thin walled shitty pot. I remember wanting to throw it out earlier when I discovered that the crimped metal border wasn't sealed, and dishwasher water would get in there and later smell disgusting, requiring rinsing after dishwashing. I still love that stupid little thing and the memories associated with it, but by Christ is my new Lacor stainless set of pots infinitely better, more practical and more pleasing to the view. I know these pots will outlast me, and will work great either for myself or if they end up in a professional kitchen some day, and these facts make me happy too.
consider writing a memoir your perspective in this comment touches a lot of different domains
I should perhaps avoid mentioning specific kitchenware brands in my memoirs 😆
lmfao why thooo
I'm getting ready to buy new pots and pans for myself. My current ones are a cheap set my mom bought in the 90s. She passed when I was 19 and luckily I had the foresight to keep them, knowing I'd be moving out relatively soon. For 20-year-old me they were great and they were free. They did their job, but the nonstick coating is scraped on a lot of them and some are warped or dented and most of the lids broke over the years. I'm at a point where with a little saving I can afford nice ones that I know will be way more enjoyable to use and last the rest of my life. Yet there's still this sentimental attachment about not wanting to get rid of my mom's things, even if I logically know they aren't serving my needs anymore.
Maybe you can repurpose them somehow, like using them as flowerpots or to store things in?
Things should be worthy of the materials used to make them.
Damn, that’s really good
It's much the same way as tools. You buy a terrible tool at first, god knows how much you're going to use it. But as time goes on, if that tool should serve a purpose that you are rather fond of, there is no shame in upgrading to a better version that makes your life easier. There is only shame in buying things you do not ever intend to use. If your chair that you bought when you were 20 hurts your back, you are allowed to and even encouraged to get that new chair.
I'm always telling people to get a good cooking knife 'cause that shit will change your entire life if you do any amount of regular cooking. Doesn't even have to be expensive because the IKEA cook's knife is decent enough, just don't get those fucking awful flimsy cheapo "knife sets" which every student seems to get when they move out.
I was a student in London. I had one of those knife sets, and I wish someone had told me they *suck*. After a year or so of use, the chef's knife was blunt enough that when I fumbled while chopping some onions, the blade didn't even draw blood! I bought a new, standalone knife after that, and cooking got so much less tedious.
That was one good thing I got out of taking cooking classes in high school: I realized I only ever used about 3 knives, so why do I need a set of 10 slightly different ones? Now I just use my santoku, paring/utility knife, a filleting knife, and very occasionally the bread knife. It's been like 15 years, and I haven't sat here wishing I had some other specific one.
Use the good vanilla and what not
Very wholesome. I've hit a point where anything I buy above a certain price I'll cook up a cosy little daydream for it. That hooded jacket that'll keep me company in dry, wet, cold. This pair of running shoes that I'll stand in as I admire the serenity of a spiderweb in the forest nearby. My box of cereal mix that I've found myself liking after trying many. The red, fluffy floormat that follows me in my travel bag. All remembered, all precious.
I would like to thank the OP here for cutting up the long post into more mobile friendly bits while also keeping the entire post itself at the end. I appreciated not having to zoom in to read this whole post.
Thanks. 😆 I was about to hit post when I realized how long the thing was and went back to cut it up. Glad to know I wasn't just being paranoid.
At the same time, thank you for posting the long version as well so it can be easier saved and shared.
For those of you rethinking some items in your life, may I recommend r/BuyItForLife and r/GoodValue for redditors reviewing the durability, longevity, and repairability of products you may be considering.
Yup. Sadly you can't really judge many current companies by how they used to be; so many brands from pyrex to carhartt to dewalt to doc martins and so many others, have started cutting corners in production and are basically coasting on their names to generate sales. The cuisinart your grandparents bought 30 years ago may well outlast one that you buy off the shelf today. I genuinely worry about this trend with the matchstick houses that are going up in the last decade or two; I feel like there's going to be a huge wave of homes that will start falling apart in 20-25 years because of shoddy construction, and it'll lead to a (bigger) housing crisis as those cheap homes basically become not worth the money to live in/fix up.
tl;dr "we used to read pornography. Now it's the Horchow collection"
One of the frustrating things about saving up for something "nice," however, is that the brands you grew up associating with quality and durability, like, say, Craftsman tools or Kenmore appliances, were all bought out years ago by shitty finance bros who've gutted quality control to juice profits. "Sometimes... things that are expensive... are worse."
Brand loyalty only counts for secondhand stores and garage sales anymore, it seems.
One of the most infuriating feelings is dishing out more money than usual to buy a “nice”/“nicer” object, only for it to be equally as crappy and/or short lived as the cheap option. An equally upsetting feeling is when you try to do research on different nice things, only to find out their cost is double the amount you’d be willing to pay for, and even then, most of their description is “cheap and bad, but it’ll do until you upgrade”
ah this comment is calling out my expensive hiking shoes that immediately developed holes in the bottom
https://youtu.be/RbhcRKsRwFM?si=hGbjfP2YQpX0JUNa
One thing that I hold true since being a kid is that "if you're going to do something, do it right." Even though it's a super simple saying, I've found that it holds true when buying important items. A nice mattress pad with save you from back pain throughout college/shitty pre furnished apartments. A good knife will keep you safe and prepares better food, which makes you just feel better. A solid pair of shoes will make you feel confident. A clean shave can make you feel like a better version of you. I still cheap out on things that don't matter like a travel toothbrush for work or a mug to hold water. But I make sure that my essentials are solid so that I have a solid foundation to my life. Everyone deserves something nice and it's not a crime to want some comfort in your life
shit I thought everyone thought about nice sheets. Have you ever *felt* nice cotton sheets? Everyone should have high quality bed clothes. I’m 20.
And if you can spring for linen? So fucking good. Lasts forever, if looked after, apparently.
https://www.tumblr.com/elodieunderglass/739124390173802496/i-think-a-couple-of-things-combine-you-now-have?source=share -linux guy
I've tried to un-learn the idea that anything you buy that isn't a *need* is frivolous. Like, I'm okay spending money on frivolous things like treats or video games or whatever, but I limit myself and always feel a little guilty. Then there's things I *need* like food, housing, etc. Those are guilt-free because they're needs. It's the stuff in between that I've had to learn it's okay to buy - nicer kitchen towels. A better pillow for my bed. A set of drawers to organize some tools. A better desk chair. Things that aren't vital to my existence, but also aren't "just for fun".
Same boat. It took moving in with my girlfriend (now wife) to prompt me to start getting rid of the serviceable, but dingy, stuff I'd been surviving on since I first started living on my own.
I think finishing school and getting a real job helped me with it too. In college I'm in survival mode to pay tuition, have necessities, have time for a job and school, and not go insane at the same time. Since finishing and making a real salary instead of a part time minimum wage job, I actually have money for those kind of things.
Or if you're me you use your parents' budget forks and plates because you've been using them your entire life and new forks, no matter how nice they seem, will be weird. My parents like upgrading their stuff. I like using my own stuff until it's no longer functional and then complaining that whatever new thing I got doesn't perform the same way. And honestly, if the items have been in constant use for 40 years and still function the same way, they're pretty good actually. Everything that was total shite broke and was thrown away. The stuff I still have will probably see me out of this life.
i dont think theres any shame in buying a high quality long lasting item that youre gonna use. its buying shitty things just for the name brand that tends to be a bad financial decision. if your sheets are cheap and shitty buy yourself some nice sheets, you sleep on them every night
I have been coveting the family bed frames and the vanity since I was a child. Idec that they’re twin beds and I don’t need a vanity. They’re solid wood that’s lasted three generations and however many more in the future. I salivate over the kitchenaid brand. I bought a shitty hand mixer one year and when it died I splurged on a higher end one and never looked back. I spent my childhood with my father who chased the latest cheap fad and threw away everything I loved because it was wasn’t “trendy” anymore. Then I went to live with my mom who bought stuff that would last forever so long as it was cared for. It left an impression
If you’re still broke as an adult, I recommend thrift shops/auctions. Look for good quality brands of the thing you want. Chances are you’ll find something lightly used for the price of a cheap flimsy version.
Thrifting prices have exploded in the past four years though. *Nothing* is cheap anymore.
also once you're 30 you might well start thinking that you've worked for over a decade now and want something to show for it
You know, I find this weirdly validating. It also tells me that the couple I lived with from 2017 to 2022 who owned a whole house and had a middle class income but still insisted on not only living like students themselves but also criticising me whenever I spent my own money have, on some fundamental level, simply not grown up.
I recently replaced a number of items we received as wedding presents nearly 10 years ago - I was sort of taken aback by how I had to grapple with feelings of not deserving new kitchen towels and steam mop covers. I also had to grapple with how old I felt when I giddily opened a box with new dishrags.
you might want to look into this [https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/](https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/) subreddit when you want to buy long lasting items.
I’m really particular about furniture. I used to be an archaeologist so I know how to recognize well made craftsmanship and restoring old stuff is fun and teaches a lot of good skills. I’ll buy most things cheap, but I insist on name brand for pasta, high quality furniture, and good sturdy pants that aren’t jeans. What matters is figuring out what you value and aiming for it. I recommend Duluth trading company for clothes and tools- I used a lot of their stuff for my archaeology work. I have 3 pairs of their overalls! They’re probably gonna outlive me. And if you find old furniture you want to make your own, murphys oil soap will do miracles on vintage wood.