Splurging

I do not count the pennies when it comes to buying food ingredients if I'm cooking. I figure if I'm going to go to all that trouble to make food and feed it to other people, it shouldn't be held back by poor ingredients. Of course I have often found that, for certain ingredients, I can't tell the difference between the cheapo stuff and the good stuff. If this is the case I'll cheap out. But if there's a noticeable difference I'll go for it.

 

One of my coworkers has fairly bad muscle pain in his quads and glutes from his first gym session in a while. He's also a notorious penny pincher. So I've spent today splurging on throwing change places where he'll have to bend over and pick it up and trying to find places where he'll have to stretch to do it.

It's been 6 or 7 dollars today, that was a complete waste on my part. But the satisfaction from watching him struggle with pain vs greed, and reminding him of all his shittalking has made it well worth the extravagance.

 

I have a reasonable amount of hair for my age, but I splurge on shampoo made for "thinning hair" in the vain hope that they might just, maybe, slow down the thinning process ever so slightly.

I haven't yet gone down the Regaine path though.

 

I agree with Frylock here, we pretty much never go out to eat to save cash, but we sure as shit treat ourselves right eating at home.

I make my own beer and wine, but when I buy it's almost always Sam Adam's or better, I don't hold back on quality booze.

I mentioned in the other thread that I use Klean Kanteens to carry my water/juice/booze and consider it a cost saving strategy, but in reality there are plenty of cheaper options. I think it's totally worth it since you can clean it out properly and not have any of that lingering flavor from previous drinks or that plastic smell that seems to infest a Nalgene after the first time you wash it. I use to 'forget' to bring my Nalgene with me so I could justify buying bottled water, no longer.

This one is retarded since I NEVER use the full functionality, but I always spend a few hundred more than I really need to get a top of the line computer because I keep thinking I'm going to get into PC gaming or some other shit, then it ultimately becomes another youtube and web surfer, I've probably wasted well over a grand on this. The best/worst was putting a blue ray player on a laptop three years ago for $500. I used it maybe three times. Then when I bought the next laptop, even though I knew I wouldn't use it, I put a blue ray player on it as well, because it'll be a cold day in hell if I let the old laptop have something over the new one.

Edit- I also splurge on stuff like body wash, toothpaste and the like, all Burt's Bees and Tom's of Maine. The toothpaste is legit though as I use to get canker sores with Crest and Colgate, haven't had one since I switched to the natural stuff about three years ago.

And toilet paper, can't skimp on that.

 

I pinch pennies on some things so I can splurge on others. I'll mimic what the others said about food. I very rarely spend $10 on a mediocre chain restaurant lunch when it is much healthier and cheaper to just bring last night's leftovers. What most would probably consider my biggest splurge is also what I consider the best $150 I spend a month. We have somebody come in and clean the house every two weeks. My husband and I work hard at very busy jobs, and despise scrubbing toilets and floors, so why not? This started when I was in grad school and things were kind of falling by the wayside so we broke down. It was a real splurge at that time because I was paying expensive tuition while only working part time, but if I had to eat nothing but ramen noodles all month to keep her, it was totally worth it. It keeps the peace in the household and frees us up to do things we enjoy more, such as posting on TiB.

 

We don't have one since we're in a one bedroom, but if/when we upgrade (I'd honestly rather not, and it's not about the money, I just really like our place) I'll definitely get one. I remember when we lived in a bigger place and we'd have to pretty much sacrifice an entire Saturday or Sunday afternoon once or twice a month to keep the place looking nice. If you told me I could get that time back for just $150 a month I would have done it in a heartbeat.

Also, especially if you're a guy, cleaning ladies are a MUST HAVE if you have roommates. It keeps the peace very well since you don't have to argue about who's cleaning what, and split 3-4 ways it's dirt cheap.

 

I splurge on anything related to my house or home improvement. I look for deals, but that's only a consequence of always buying high-end materials: Super-soft carpet, solid oak moulding, six-panel oak doors, high-efficiency furnance, and so forth.

My biggest splurge expense out of all of that is tools. I absolutely detest cheap, shitty tools that break or wear out after moderate use so I always buy top-of-the-line even if it's a tool I don't anticipate using too often.

 

I don't have the funds to splurge on many things, but I did actually laugh out loud at the original post when $7 was quoted as a splurge for shampoo and conditioner. I think that's around what my normal shampoo costs (Pantene Pro-V or Treseme), and my budget brand is Garnier at around $4 or 5. I have a mane of super thick, super curly, and now super long hair, so it needs work to not look like I'm a beast. So, I'll usually have at least one product, usually a styling cream/leave in conditioner, that's on the more expensive side - like Catwalk, Aveda, or Ouidad between $10 and $20, or Bumble and Bumble in the $20s - to help with the upkeep. I also really like Kheils' face products and makeup (in the $teens) and MAC mascara and lipstick/gloss. I also have a small tub of Dead Sea exfoliating scrub that I got in Israel which was, I think, in the $thirties. I don't have a stockpile of this stuff, but I tend to have at least one splurge in each category of hair/face/body product and makeup and the rest are things from what's on sale at the drugstore. And I don't even consider myself a product junkie.

 

I splurge on hotels and vacations in general. My wife and I made a pact that we would do as much traveling as we can before we have kids. It's almost impossible for me to get more than a week off for work, so I'm always willing to pay up for location and quality when we do travel. I'll sacrifice a bit of quality if we're in a city like NY or Paris, since we're not really spending much time in the room, but great location is a must. If we're doing a beach vacation, and planning to be parked at the resort all week long, I'll spend $500-$800 a night sometimes.

 

This dickhead just splurged on a Samsung LCD Flat Screen TV. I dropped $850 on it yesterday. It is wonderful. Up until yesterday, I never spent more than 50 bucks on a TV.

 

I am actually kind of shocked that this hasn't come up from some of the other girls, but I refuse to buy cheap quality lingerie. A huge pet peeve of mine is to buy a bra, and then a week later have it start falling apart. It drives me crazy. I would rather spend a little bit more for something that is better quality than end up spending more money in the long run, because I am replacing the cheap garbage more frequently. I hate bras that lose their shape. I hate underwear that frays. Fuck that, I will buy the good stuff, thanks.

So yes, I am a Victoria's Secret and Frederick's of Hollywood whore, and I am proud of it.

 

I spend big money on bedding. Mattresses, sheets, duvets, etc. If I'm going to spend that much of my life sleeping, I want to do so in fluffy, luxurious comfort.

Also, I will second the quality lingerie purchases. Why pay $40 for a bra you'll replace in 2 months, when you could spend $60 on one that will keep your girls around your chin for a year or more?

 

I am definitely guilty of splurging on my appearance. Of the 6 products I use daily on the my hair, the average cost of one is $25. I also use good make-up because I can't stand the feeling of cheap shit on my face; my tinted moisturizer is $50, eyeliner is $25, blush/bronzer combo is $50 and mascara is $30.

Clothes are also another guilty pleasure. I can't remember the last time I spent less than $200 on pants. I aim for quality rather than quantity and aim for stuff that will last me years rather than having a bunch of cheap stuff that will just fall apart.

I'm not high-maintenance, I swear.

 

Coffee. I order it from a roaster in NY. At $7.99/lb., it's more expensive than the run-of-the-mill brands, but it's still cheaper than the 12 oz. bags of "premium" coffees sold in grocery stores or even the larger sizes sold in Costco on a cost-per-ounce basis, and in my opinion, superior coffee.

Bottled water. Our tap water is highly chlorinated and isn't very tasty. We bought a water cooler years ago and have 5 gallon bottles of water delivered. Each of us has one of those clean-canteen bottles, so we're not plowing through metric tons of plastic.

Cookware and cutlery. I bought a full set of All-Clad pots and pans and we received a full set of Henkel's when we got married. I don't plan on replacing either.

As for food/groceries, it depends on the item and how it's being used. Throwing a can of corn into a casserole or such? Store brand is fine. Brats? Keep the Johnsonvilles, I'll go to another store for Usinger's.

 

Feet and teeth. The two areas where any skimping is a false economy that will come back to bite you (ha! ha!) in the long run.

I get my teeth cleaned more than my insurance pays for, I got the high-end filling for my cavity, I use the electric toothbrush and the "professional grade" toothpaste and mouthwash.

On the lower end (ha! ha!) I get fancy inserts for all my shoes and replace them every year or so, I've got the expensive SmartWool socks, and I'm replacing my cow leather with cordovan as funds become available.

Both feet and teeth take a lot of abuse over a lifetime, and you only get one set of each, so take care of them. Even though it's a huge bite (ha! ha!) out of the wallet, I'm happy to foot the bill (I'll be here all week, try the veal).