Best Purchase You Made (Durable Consumer Goods)

[scfr]

Has anyone else noticed that a lot of younger folks have joined our forum lately? That is really terrific; I certainly wish that I had gotten as smart about money at a young age as you all are.

We older folks talk a lot about what we are doing now and make occasional references to the "what was I thinking?" purchases we made in our younger days, but I thought it might be helpful to our new members who might be getting a place of their own for the first time if we shared what our SMARTEST purchases were in terms of durable consumer goods.

Here are 2 of mine.

PLAIN WHITE DISHES: After I got out of college and wanted my first set of "real" dishes I went with plain white ones (neither super formal nor super casual ... right in between) and 20-plus years later I am still using them! They go with everything, and they make even my food look good. (Nothing clashes with white.) While they have never looked trendy or "of the moment," they have also never looked dated or sadly out of style. I can jazz up my table by using brightly colored table cloths, candles, etc. Those same white dishes go with absolutely everything. I am still really happy with my decision to buy them.

GOOD QUALITY COOKING PANS: I have had cheap pans and they just don't last and so they aren't worth it if you cook a lot. Many years back I decided to "splurge" on good quality cooking pans and it has really paid off for me. Good quality does mean spending a bit more money than buying cheap pans, but if you check the clearance racks for "last year's model" of a pan you can still save quite a bit. One other note: The pans don't have to match and you only need a few; you don't need a big humongous set! Look for discounted, good-quality pans and don't worry if they don't match.

[MonkeyMama]

Agreed. It's funny you mentioned because we picked up our plain offwhite dishes on sale and always get comments on them. I find it funny because I consider them kind of boring and bought them because they were cheap, but everyone seems to like them and you make a point they won't go out of style really - just plain - goes with everything.

We had some crummy pans and bought some really nice ones on sale as well since I was sick of replacing everything in the kitchen after just a couple of years. We really didn't spend that much but now have much more high quality cookware.

Though the funny thing is the endless set of glasses we also got on sale dirt cheap - those seem to be of good quality.

I have also seen on the forums mentioned a lot - mattresses. We have a very nice mattress - probably one of the most expensive items in our house - well worth it. Most of our furniture and appliances are hand-me-down or used so we didn't spend much on the rest of the stuff in our home, but I see over and over most of us agree a really nice mattress/new is worth paying for.

[Kirbycruiser]

We too have white dishes! Isn't that funny. All of my life I have never had a matching set of anything, DH and I went out a couple of years ago specifically to buy dishes (Ours were awfull from years of handing down). We chose the white ones (they were on sale too) and I am sure I will have them for years and years.

[scfr]

Very good point about a good mattress, Monkeymama! A good night's sleep is worth every penny. If you sleep well, you do better at work. If you wait for a warehouse clearance sale and maybe buy a mattress and boxspring that don't match (that's what we did), you can get good quality and still save some money.

[disneysteve]

Funny - When I saw the thread title, the first thing that came to mind was cookware. DW and I both love to cook. We've gone through a few sets of inexpensive cookware and finally splurged a couple of years ago and bought a set of Calphalon tri-ply stainless. We LOVE it. It heats well, cooks evenly, feels substantial in your hand and clean up is a snap. And it still looks brand new. Worth every penny.

We don't have white dishes, but I do highly recommend Correlle. It is very durable, tough to break (though not impossible), easy to clean and inexpensive.

Quality knives would be on my list also. Well cared for, they should last a lifetime.

Regarding appliances, both small and large, go for the most basic model that has the features you really need. Fancier models come with higher price tags and lots of bells and whistles, most of which you will never use and just result in more things that can break or go wrong. Very often, the expensive model is virtually identical mechanically to the cheaper model, same guts, same quality, just more doodads that can break and wear out.

[ithaca]

A few purchases over the years that have been well worth it for me....

Weber grill - I had heard enough horror stories about cheap grills so I decided to spend the money on a quality grill. Let me tell you this grill keeps a consistent cooking temperature and makes it VERY easy to create a quality meal for myself.

IPod/MP3 player - But not for musical reasons. I've downloaded and listened to hundreds of podcasts that have really made a difference in my life. Tech and Financial information available to me every time I drive to work.

Dremel rotary tool - All I have to do is switch the attachment and I go from sharpening my lawnmower blade to routing a wooden sign to sanding down my dog's nails. A very useful tool.

[poundwise]

A sturdy file cabinet. There are a lot of those thin, flimsy file cabinets sold for less but one of the good, heavy, variety will work much better and last much longer.

And ditto on the cookware. Stainless steel pots and pan are solid buy.

[LuxLiving]

Funny - I have a great mattress, white dishware, a nice solid wood file cabinet, a very nice knife set and a great set of cookware! All solid, hefty, quality and built to LAST. So far, it looks like I'm good to go! At last in life I finally fit in somewhere!!

My one suggestion is tiny, but will save a lifetime of irritation... A good hand can opener - I recommend the Swing-A-Way brand. Those cheap ones will drive a good cook insane. I'm not an electric can-opener kind of gal, but would pay you a good $20 more to have a decent hand can opener, so I don't end up cursing in the kitchen at a tool that won't do what it is designed to do! Swing-A-Way also offers a wall-mount style that is terrific too.

Amazon.com: Swing-A-Way Can Opener (709-20): Home & Garden

Great thread!

[Coleroo]

Our pillowtop kingsize mattress - im sure it will last for the next 2 decades (it better!!!). My twin mattress at my parents, I had it for over 15 years and it came to me used.... so I like good, long lasting matresses.

I feel the same way about my dishes - when I was getting married, some of my family almost got mad at me for not wanting to do a traditional place setting registry (for fine china). I was like, why the heck do I want a $50 fork??? thats bullcrockery. So my mom got me some blue willow dishes instead - and I LOVE them. They're very old fashion and display beautifully. We use them & abuse them all the time and they still look brand new.

[Ima saver]

Well, my best purchase was my poodle Holly. We do need a new mattress cause our backs hurt every morning. What do you all reccommend? We have serta perfect sleeper.

[Gruntina]

My biggest advice is not to buy any household items, furniture’s, dishes etc until you bought a house or in a long term rental. So many of my of friends in the past got caught up into cute home decorators items, bought furniture’s when they got their first apartments and they were college students. What happened is a lot of stuff ended up being in storage, got ruined from moving one place to another, roommates not taking attentive care to belongings of another that it was a waste of a lot of money, time and space(sometimes wasted on storage rentals).

If I could only have lived with the simplest things and hand me downs, I would have saved a lot of money, hassles, stress and so on.

Unfortunatley, I have a few girlfriends who continue to by nice household items in hope that they meet someone who has a house to put them in since they are splurging their money on stuff instead of saving for an actual house to put the stuff in.

[plumpossum]

Ithaca- it's funny you mention the grill. The first serious joint purchase my husband and I made is our Weber! We were 18 & 19, had bought a tiny $10 one from the grocery store with no kind of ventilation holes at the bottom and it ruined everything. It took a lot of discussion and saving for us to come up with $60 to buy the grill, it's five years later and I expect it to last another 15.

I had tons of great ideas, and then realized that most of them we got for free (dehumidifiers in the basement, full size freezer, antique maple bedroom suite, etc.)!

But I realized what my favorite is: our couch & ottoman. We went through four different hand-me-down couches, where we were the third or fourth family to receive them, with torn cushions and bulging springs, and really odd smells, and they didn't match our style. When we got rid of our dog we went all out and got the world's most comfortable and amazing couch and matching ottoman...

wait for it...wait for it...



At a huge discount at JCPenney furniture outlet. Broyhill sofa was $1000 and 70% off (so $300) and the matching ottoman was $500 with 90% off ($50). They were overstock from an older collection.

[jmjj215]

One of my best purchases was a Craftsman 250 pc. ratchet set. The quality is great. To that end, my Craftsmen set of screwdrivers are nice as well.

Our dining table purchased used from Craigslist -- durable, fold-out leaves, solid wood, seats up to eight, and half off for two uses (it was being sold b/c the new girlfriend didn't like that the old girlfriend and guy had purchased it together).

[disneysteve]

One of my best purchases was a Craftsman 250 pc. ratchet set. The quality is great. To that end, my Craftsmen set of screwdrivers are nice as well.

I second this. Growing up, we always had cheap tools, bought at flea markets or discount shops. These were the kind that when you tried to turn a really tight screw, the tip of the screwdriver would start to chip away.

It wasn't until I started doing set construction in college theater that I discovered the tremendous difference quality tools made. From then on, it was Craftsman all the way. They are well worth the price as they last forever and are guaranteed forever if you do somehow manage to destroy one. We broke a hammer once in theater, took the pieces to Sears and they gave us a new one, no questions asked.

[elouise]

When I was about 15 I bought my mum a new electric hand held mixer with 2 beaters. She baked cakes and sold them to help support the family. She did this on a big scale and her baking paid for our education, things she needed at home like carpet, a car and eventually my wedding. she continued her baking after we left home and everyone knows her as ' the lady who makes the cakes".

My mum is now 70 and I am 45, she used that little mixer for her whole baking career, giving up about 5 years ago. The mixer still works and it is still in it's orginal box! Definitely one of the best purchases I ever made!