Saving stuff for best.

Valli

Something on a hamper thread prompted this question.

Do you save stuff 'for best'?

I used to but no longer. Many years ago I had a canteen of cutlery for a wedding gift and used it maybe once a year. For day-to-day use I had a cheap set I had bought and the canteen took up room in a cupboard. Then I decided (having joined the Flylady thread and started to declutter) that I ought to use the gifted set everyday, as it was so nice and it was bought by members of my family I don't get to see very often (and by this time both that marriage and my subsequent one had ended). So I decluttered the 'old' set to the staff room at work and use the 'best' cutlery everyday.

A few years later another family member died and the stuff she had stashed, and never used, was incredible. Prestige stainless steel copper bottomed pans - excellent quality! They are used everyday now in Villa Valli (and that's why I have 7 pans and some doubles - but they are ALL used!
(I also got unused dishcloths; tea towels, a cardi; other kitchen equipment - and other members of the family were given things too!)

Bitsy_Beans

I save nothing for best either. Well apart from some napkin rings that were a wedding present. Although thats more to do with the lack of napkins

lostinrates

we do save soe stuff for best. Our silver utlery is a PITA to clean daily and its easier to chuck stuff in a drawer in th kitchen than a canteen in the dining room through the week. Also clothes: I wear worn, torn and forlorn clothes around the house and change to go out...I'm abusive of clothes and the torn happens quickly, well before the worn...to not wear them would be wasteful.

regarding things like pots and pans: no.

we do use napkins, and like clothes, I use the older, unmatched and sometimes stained (but clean) through the week and the smarter ones when dh is here n the smartest ones when other people are here too!

Ther is no point having stuff and not using it, but using everyday and using once a year are both a little extreme for me.

Spendless

Only a tablecloth that gets used just at Christmastime. It is long, thick material and a lovely colour. it came from the very old style place of my Grandmother's cupboards and I doubt if I would ever be able to find (or afford) something of a similar quality ever again. That's why it's not in regular use as it would get trashed.

LondonDreamer

We don't save anything for 'best' but we do save some things for 'last' - e.g. we received a couple of beautiful mugs as gifts that are hand wash only. They tend to only get used when all of the dishwasher safe mugs are dirty. Won't put the dishwasher on unless it's absolutely full, so it happens from time to time.

dandy-candy

I have an expensive posh dress that I treated myself to and planned to wear it only for special occasions. I only got to wear it once in the 12 years since I bought it because I ended up putting on weight - what a waste!
Now I use everything as much as possible

System

I cant see the point in keeping things for a special occasion.... well apart from clothes. I wouldnt go out of the house in what i am wearing at the moment (but i dont look a mess either if you know what i mean and i wouldnt scare the postman either). I'd rather throw out a pair of tatty leggings and a tunic top that didnt cost much than a dress thats cost me a fair bit more and i feel comfortable and look good in. I'm 5ft tall and my waist dissappeared with my periods its not very often I find something that fits me perfectly so i tend to treasure it.

My Mom has a silver cutlery set that she keeps for special occasions. She had it as a wedding present over 50 years ago and has never used it. Well she is 83 now and if she hasnt used it yet, i guess she never will.

MrsAtobe

I've got some napkins and a tablecloth that are kept for special occasions; we tend to just use mats on the table normally and like LiR, use the stained napkins:). Everything else gets used though -the house isn't big enough fo me to store stuff for best.

valk_scot

When my mother died we found wedding presents like sheet sets and tablecloth sets still in their wrappers, from 40 years ago. They had been dragged half way round the world over the course of her married life and saved for a special occassion. When I opened them, they were all discoloured and split along the edges. What a waste.

We have a couple of sets of good wine glasses we save for best, but that's only because I can't put them in the dishwasher. The rest of the time we use the Royal Doulton Ironstone, the Edinburgh Crystal, the Egyptian cotton sheets and duvet covers, most of which have come from deceased relatives' houses and which had been kept for "best". We enjoy them, they wear and wash well and it saves cluttering up the cupboards with two sets of everything.

As for clothes, I've got good clothes, everyday clothes and gardening clothes. There would be no point in digging the garden in a £100 cashmere sweater unless, like mine, it was so worn out it had holes under the arms! (Was my late SIL's btw...I never spent £100 on a sweater in my life!)

scottishminnie

When I was first married I was terrified to use some things like the Wedgewood dinner service and the masses of Edinburgh crystal. Although I still only use the dinner service when I've got guests the crystal gets used daily and has proven very hardwearing.

I've inherited countless things from both grandmothers who kept them for "best" - not sure how they would feel about the fact that I use them often!

KolaKube

OH and I got married recently; have to say all of our wedding presents (denby dinner sets, le creuset pans, wine glasses, good cutlery, crystal candle sticks, nice bedding etc etc) are in use! These things are there to be enjoyed, I would hate to wake up (or even worse, for OH and I to pass away!) in 50 years time having 'kept them for best' and not have got to use them. They're high quality, and in time if they're still around they'll be passed on, but at the end of the day things are just that, 'things', and lifes too short not to use and enjoy them :T