Items the advertisers try to convince us are essential

meritaten

Bottled water! !!!!!!! My OH works for a large water company and carries bottles of water on his van to dispense to customers having a temp problem with water. This tastes lovely after a few hours in the fridge - I can remember his reaction to me asking which 'make' of water it was............he doubled up laughing! apparently its ordinary tap water! 24 hours in a bottle and a few hours in the fridge and it tasted wonderful - (not that I would actually 'buy' any - and no, he doesnt supply me with freebies - my water had 'gone off' cos the gas company had punctured the mains when doing a gas leak!) and no, we dont get 'free' water as an employee - we are customers like everyone else!

Saturnalia

I agree with the scented laundry products gripe. I like to wear perfume and the washing stuff clashes with it badly. I've found the budget brands like Lidl etc. tend to be a bit lighter on the fragrance and using half as much as the manufacturer recommends gets the clothes clean and far less floral too.

(What do men wash their clothes with as all the laundry stuff nowadays is very floral feminine perfumes???)

elfen

I can't stand the prodcuts that put out a scent....thanks for setting off my asthma....cheap concentrate and line drying makes my clothes smell nice...as does the deodorant and the squirt or two of perfume....I still have a 3kg bag of cheapo washing powder in my cupboard....my £1 box has lasted AGES!

Air freshener....if I use them, its the block ones and in the bathroom as there's no window....and in the bedroom and front room to get the whiff off the air if I can't open the windows.

Charis

My teenage son's deodorant (the brand named after a big cat) literally takes my breath away. I find myself gasping for breath if it wafts near me from his room when he puts it on. I hate to think what it's doing to him as he absorbs it through his skin.

I just did a quick Google and it seems I'm not alone http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2006/mar/24/schools.uk3 Of course the firm producing the stuff is deaf to complaints.

spandles

I find most of the items in the Lakeland catalogues either pointless, expensive or both.

susyrosy

I think quite a few of the products mentioned above (scented quilted things, for example) are a matter of personal preference. They'll only hurt your pocket.

The thing which really worries me is this 'germless' society we are meant to raise our children in (or grandchildren, for me).

I heard something on the radio today about the dramatic rise in auto-immune problems, allergies and irritable bowel syndrome can be traced to being over-hygienic. Our bodies are meant to fight off parasites to become stronger. Interestingly, an experiment in the States involved patients being given some worm eggs (sorry, can't remember which ones) in Gatorade as a treatment for ibs, and apparently it had a very good success rate. My problem would be swallowing the Gatorade. It would have to be gin. Gordons.

BitterAndTwisted

Bombay Sapphire for me!

Gatorade. Don't some people feed their kids some muck? I'm sure there are dozens of UK equivalents but can't think of any offhand. Kia-Ora maybe.

I wonder what happened to the intestinal worms and whether the subjects were given drugs to get rid of them? Probs round-worms, I remember having those as a child. Blech!

soupdragon10

Why does anyone buy ice cubes? For the cost of a bag of these they could buy plastic ice cube trays to make their own! Reusable as well!

Don't like aerosol air fresheners (bad for my snakes), use essential oils if I want a nice smell, either a few drops on a cloth on the radiator (in the winter, or in cleaning water or oil burner in the summer.

nobodyspecial

Ellie83 wrote: »

The motion activated soap dispenser..... Yeah, it has germs on it, but the first thing you do after touching it is washing your hands... So what's the point? What is wrong with washing the bottle once in a while if you are afraid of germs?

Yes OK I'll grant you the advert is selling it on one level BUT my friend who lost an arm to meningitis is incredibly pleased with his dispenser, makes life that little bit easier in just one respect.

He also loves that supermarkets sell ready prepared veg for stirfry, bagged salads etc. If "ordinary" none disabled people didn't avail themselves of these products, can you imagine what they would cost????:eek: It's only money, you can't take it with you, and providing you're not incurring debt, surely it's a matter of choice. We'll all have different "things" we feel worth the extra. My bum certainly notices the difference between premium toilet paper and the own brand sandpaper variety :rotfl:

esmf73

Guess this is why we're all on the Old Style board. There are things that I would spend money on that I'm sure most wouldn't - I like nice face creams (but I buy them from the supermarket when they're on offer!). Otherwise I'm not too bothered about brands. I buy what I buy because it works for me. So I do have the antibac wipes (1 pack) which I use for a quick swish around the bathroom every day. I do have the battery timed air fresheners, because with dogs and children the house can get a bit doggy sometimes and living in the country sometimes the smell is worse outside!!!

But I don't feel the need to buy certain dishwasher tablets or other branded things - own label (and usually basic) items are good enough for me.