Must have kitchen gadgets

purpleheather2810

Yep agreed on the pans and knives - Look out for good offers in debenhams 50% or 75% off sales. We have Meyer pans which were a wedding present 9 years ago and still going strong despite constant, daily use. However, when we first got together we bought 2 chef's knives from Sainsburys and we have used them every day for the last 12 years - and they have lasted surpisingly well. We got a new sabatier knife set at Christmas in Deb 75% sale with a gift voucher. I would say, when starting out, buy 1 decent thing rather than a set of mediocre things. You can always add to your collection later.

purpleheather2810

Lol rachc, I took a long time to write my message and in the meantime you have written something so similar! It's obviously very true!

VfM4meplse

I am so lovin' this thread.....! :T

Vitreous enamel roasting / baking trays are a a good investment - although a little more pricey than standard aluminium / tin pans they don't warp with heat and last forever.

vodkawitch1

Definetly a goose down duvet and pillows but buy in the sales as they are expensive.

lostinrates

rachbc wrote: »

Bedding I spend on good cotton, but i buy cheaper towels as no matter what colours fade/ whites go grey. Good goose down duvets and pillows will last a lifetime.

I think this is a modern towel thing.

Funnily enough today dh asked when I had got a particular towel, oit looked new and he rarely saw it. I got it from a bbq when I was 8: its possibly a little faded, but its been very heavily used (its one of my weekday towels). Its nothing ''fancy'' it advertises a brand of lager:o:o but for some reason I've always loved it. It is a good quality towel. My newer expensive coloured towels have not lasted half so well.

I prefer white towels, and thick, but always have some coloured ones for really ''grubby'' days :o I buy my towels and linen only in sales these days.

Pink.

Hi Plan for chaos,

These threaads should help you to decide what you need:

Must have kitchen gadgets

Unused kitchen gadgets

There is also more advice on these threads:

Storecupboard Essentials

OS wedding list

I'll add your thread to the first link later to keep the suggestions together.

Pink

paddy's_mum

For everyday wear, the best quality shoes you can afford. Perhaps track down a Clark's Outlet Store. Cheap and cheerful shoes, such as flipflops, crocs, plimsolls etc, are one thing but sturdy shoes will pay for themselves over and over again, and protect the health of your feet at the same time - here speaks a 60 year old with no corns, bunions or twisted toes.

Marmite - there's no substitute.

Buy either 80/20 wool carpet or good quality (refurbished from office upgrades?) carpet tiles. You'll get 10 times more use/wear from them than you'll ever get from Carpetright nylon/polyamide rubbish. Carpet tiles can also be power washed (on a hot day, they're dry and ready to re-lay inside two hours) to keep them bright and clean. Perhaps part of your annual Spring clean.

A Ka***er type power washer. Most people have no idea of just how much can be cleaned, from rugs (again, on a hot day so that drying time is quick) to garden ornaments to paving.

Buy from a cleaning-supplies-for-the-professional shop a set of quality window cleaning tools, normally a lambswool scrubber-bar and a squeegee. Learn how to use them efficiently (I asked a shop window cleaner, who gladly (and with a smile) showed me how to use them) and save yourself £££'s every month. If you don't like ladders, do the ground floor yourself and just pay the local window cleaner to do the upstairs windows.

I wholeheartedly agree with the poster who recommended goose or duck down pillows and duvet. Why pay £15 for the euphemistically named hollowfibre (which irretrievably lumps the first time you wash it) when for £75 you can buy an M&S one that will be a pleasure to sleep under, clean up well and more than earn its keep for many, many years to come. I've got one I bought in 1998 that has been used every winter since and it is still good enough that if my ultra old style mother helps me to change the bed, I have nothing to apologise for. In the same vein, I'd always recommend the use of mattress protectors and good quality duvet covers (changed weekly!) in order to protect the hygiene of the goose down duvet.

OP - do you know the biggest saver of all? It's this - don't follow fashion! I've lost count of the number of items I've seen in charity shops that cost £100 last year but are now 'obsolete' and discarded. The sheer waste is horrifying.

Don't get me wong - my home is very comfortable (so people tell me) and certainly not a testament to the 1970's but you have only to invest £3 in this summer's latest style magazine, and read that article 'you too can pep up your living room' (with a new suite at £2,500, a superduper coffee table at £900, sexy rugs at £300 each and a 'stylish' lamp at £175) to realise that someone is making big money from convincing others that big spend = big status. Apparently, quality and taste mean nothing nowadays. Frankly .. I don't believe it.

Buy pieces of art that appeal to you. You don't have to be constrained by what the buyer for Homebase or Argos think is great this year. One piece, even if it's tiny, that pleases you down to your little cotton socks will still be a pleasure 10 years from now. Check out little local art shows - many are dross but sometimes among the tat is a little gem ... and it's that one you'll keep for most of your life. Your own ideas of what is beautiful or striking can't be dictated.

And, finally, find out how to paint/decorate a property. Perhaps a father in law, a local handyman, a fellow church member who is retired and has time to spare to teach you. Go on a course if need be because once learned, you will save thousands of pounds over a lifetime. Round here, even the most basic painting job is £200 per room. I'm hopeless at glossing but hubby is good at it. His off-key wallpapering would suit only a helter-skelter but I can hang paper accurately for days at a time .. and sometimes have done (see aliasojo's recent thread)

You are about to embark upon such an adventure. I envy you. Good luck.

msb5262

Hello OP,
I'd say really good knives, saucepans and quality towels.
To the poster who commented that towels fade or go grey, my towels are still in fantastic condition after 15 years of constant use by the whole family!
I only buy high quality towels (Chr**** Egyptian cotton), always in the sales, and they have really kept their colour, texture and weight. What's more, I usually buy white towels and so far haven't had either to bleach or dye them...and I don't generally use biological washing powder. A decent wash and drying in the sunlight is all they need.
I don't use house towels for swimming, though. We have beach towels which are used only for beach or pool, and that has definitely helped!
HTH
MsB

MaggieBaking

There's two words that are bleeped out in the last couple of posts... I'm having great fun trying to work out what they were :rotfl:

lapis_lazuli

Pans: get a BIG casserole pan, cast iron and enamelled, that can be used on the stove. My mum has one by Le Creuset, and I'm saving up to get a second hand one. Because they work both on the stove and in the oven you can use them for anything, and you can brown the meat for a casserole in them without having to use a second pan. Others here have said IKEA do good ones which are relatively cheap. Get a medium sized one of the same kind. They are totally brilliant for sauces, and much more forgiving, as they won't burn when you're not looking.

Knives: Victorinox are good. Get a good breadknife. I don't understand places which don't have them. You'll save money by making your own bread and it's yummier anyway.

If you're doing a lot of baking (esp bread) get a Kenwood Chef cheap off eBay. The old ones are workhorses, plus you can make 2-4 loaves' worth of dough in one clean go, rather than just the one loaf in the breadmaker.