What do you spend the least on in the course of a year?

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I wear brooks running shoes. I run through my shoes pretty quickly, they should last around 500 miles. Other shoes last a lot longer. But the tread on the running shoes?

I haven't gotten too chubby except recently, but since when do female undergarments last years? And I still have gowns I wore since 1990s that fit.

But I do wear out my clothes.

[fruitbowlk]

Mine would be clothes also. I really haven't brought myself any clothes since I had my dd and I buy her clothes at 80% off or at cosignment sales.

[GREENBACK]

Another problem is weight management. Many people constantly buy new clothing out of necessity because they keep gaining more and more weight. I can't speak for anyone else here, but personally, I eat healthy and keep active in order to maintain my weight. I still wear the same size clothing I wore when I graduated high school in 1982. Aside from the health benefits, it also helps keep the clothing spending under control. I can still wear things that I bought 10 or 15 years ago.

This is a good point. I'm a runner,both because of fitness standards of my job, and for my health. I'm the same size I was in high school and have clothes from then that I still can wear. Someone who isn't controlling their weight is certainly going to have higher expenditures for clothing and other things which will eventually include healthcare.

[whitestripe]

i unfortunately am in that high expense (ie. over $600 a year) category for clothes

umm... what do i spend little on?
HEALTH! i have yearly checkups which cost nothing. we do not have health insurance yet (will probably get it in the next 4 years or so, but don't require it at the moment - also our health system is quite good). the only money i spend on health is $44.95 every 6 months on a calcium supplement.

i'd say we are much like monkeymama, where our spending is 'all or nothing'. but i would have to really go through and tally up our expenses for the past year to see what i have spent the least on. will be interesting though!

[wincrasher]

I think clothing is something that you can spend as much as you want.

Is there really much difference (other than the logo) between a $25 and a $100 shirt? For the life of me, I can't tell. In fact, I've bought several "expensive" shirts that fell apart long before the "cheap" ones.

I usually get 1 to 2 years out of clothing items - tops. You guys wearing the same stuff 10 years or more? I don't know how you do it. Between stains, fading, fraying, etc. - they end up in the rag bag.

I am the king of the $10 sneaker though. I once bought 15 pairs at a
Dollar store of these great leather no-name sneakers. Can't get them anymore though

When I find a deal, I usually stock up. Get alot of perplexed looks from cashiers. I once bought 19 bottles of ketchup because with a coupon, they were 5 cents each. That was all I bought on that trip. The cashier looks at me and says - you like ketchup sir?

[PrincessPerky]

I still have clothes from highschool, and yes that was more than 10 years ago.

I think our lowest category would be clothes, most everything is gifted/handmedowns. Except shoes, I kinda prefer new shoes. Been looking for sandals for me for ... 5 years? I finally found a pair the other day for $8.

Still looking for a pair of boots, I have decided I don't care what they cost so long as the fit and look good, been looking for over 7 years with no luck.

I just don't tend to spend money on things. Though on the other hand when I want something, I will spend what it takes..no doller store stale cookies please

[disneysteve]

Is there really much difference (other than the logo) between a $25 and a $100 shirt?

I wouldn't know. I've never had a $100 shirt.
I do think there is a difference in feel, at least, between the really cheap stuff and the middle of the road stuff. Better grade of material, softer fabric, better quality dyes, etc. Beyond a certain point, though, I think you are paying for name more than anything else.

I usually get 1 to 2 years out of clothing items - tops. You guys wearing the same stuff 10 years or more? I don't know how you do it. Between stains, fading, fraying, etc. - they end up in the rag bag.

You must be really rough on your clothes. I wear dress shirts to the office every day. I know for a fact that quite a few of my shirts are more than 15 years old. My father-in-law and I wore the same size. When he died in 1993, I got all of his dress shirts, most of which he had for a while before that. I still wear them and they still look just fine. I get most of my shirts from the Van Heusen outlet for less than $20 each.

[scfr]

Trash Removal - $296 per year.

Regarding how long clothes last, the climate where you live makes a big difference. Having moved recently from Seattle to Austin, I am surprised by how much more quickly I am going through shirts. Not to be too gross, but I'm sweating all the time, all summer long (April - Nov). In Seattle I'd easily wear shirts 10 years or more. I don't see that happening here. Here I think it's going to be 2-3 years for shirts (except winter weight ones).

[Goldy1]

dog grooming=I do it.

[sandrark]

Re: clothes, we spend for quality, but it's still not a lot.

DH owns 3 trucks and 4 vans for his business, so he's hard on his work clothes. The Carhartt jeans he prefers run $50 a pair, even online. He typically buys 3-4 pairs per year, or gets them as bday/Xmas gifts from family. His other big expense is work boots - they run $200 per pair from Redwing, and he resoles them 2-3 times before the uppers separate and are irreparable.

For me - I try to buy 2-3 jackets for work each year, and they run ~ $200 each. Then I wear black or brown pants with a white or black top, and good shoes and jewelry. It works well enough for the constant mucky-muck meetings I have to attend.

Where we spend the least? Probably entertainment. We have Netflix for $15 per month, plus cable. We don't see a lot of movies, go to clubs, etc. Most of our entertainment tends to be time spent with each other or family, camping or weekend trips done cheaply.

Sandi

[snafu]

several categories have decreased significantly. 1st I'm almost reluctant to admit for fear of jinx but auto repair has been $0. operating costs are lower; maintenance is based on mileage & cost has gone down.

Friends who used to instigate trying out new restaurants have drastically cut back, likely because restaurants here are closing down, not much new.

3rd vacation expense $0. Likewise no expense for family and friends visiting here during our big festivals.

[whitestripe]

Is there really much difference (other than the logo) between a $25 and a $100 shirt? For the life of me, I can't tell. In fact, I've bought several "expensive" shirts that fell apart long before the "cheap" ones.

I usually get 1 to 2 years out of clothing items - tops. You guys wearing the same stuff 10 years or more? I don't know how you do it. Between stains, fading, fraying, etc. - they end up in the rag bag.

I am the king of the $10 sneaker though. I once bought 15 pairs at a
Dollar store of these great leather no-name sneakers. Can't get them anymore though

the only difference for me, when clothes shopping, between a $25 or $100 shirt is whether i like it or not! i do not buy things emblazoned with branding, i buy them for a nice print, or a nice material, or a funky pattern, or a good fit. tbh i've never spent $100 on a shirt, but i have spent ~$70.

with items of clothing i wear a lot, i get the same life out of them, a couple of years.

shoes, i spend good money on running shoes, but my work shoes are $30 dunlops that last me 8-12 months, and i buy many many pairs of ballet flats which are what i wear when i'm not at work

[wnlbutterfly]

Haircuts: I am the only one that pays to have my hair done. I do everyone else's because I went to Barber College. I always knew even if I didn't stay in that career, it wouldn't be wasted. I groom the pets also.

Clothing: Yes, weight is an issue and can cause you to have to spend more. However, I would think you would find most people struggling with their weight don't just go out and buy a new wardrobe. Usually we have several sizes in our closet at any given time, and when we HAVE to buy something in a larger size, we will buy just what we have to with the hopes of losing the weight. I have had to spend more money on clothing LOSING weight than I had to gaining weight, but it was more fun!

Kids growing out of the clothes is probably a bigger expense. I don't know how I got so lucky, but my 20 yr old DD is not a clothes horse and never has been. In fact before holidays last year she told us she didn't need any more clothes. She would love this site actually, she is very frugal. My other is an almost teen boy (next week we start into those teen years), and as long as he has a couple of shirts, jeans and shoes, he doesn't really care. When I decide he needs some new jeans I have to practically drag him to the store. But the fact is kids out grow their clothing.

So for almost all the categories we underspend except for eating out (even if it is cheaper places or pizza, it adds up), we buy too many video games (although we trade in games and try to get used ones). Overall if that is our only problem areas to work on, I think we are making good progress.