Secret non-MSE Vices

Prinzessilein

*Sneaks in with brown-paper bag over head to conceal her identity!!!!

I can't be MSE when it comes to tea and coffee.

I have tried - honestly!

The 'value' teabags were actually a money-loss as I threw them away as undrinkable. I have tried to just drop-a-brand-level ....but I really CAN taste the difference!

Butter is another non-negotiable. I don't eat a huge amount....but sometimes when baking - especially the little rich Christmas biscuits - it HAS to be butter, marge and low-fat spread just doesn't 'do it'!

Old books are a real joy for me - especially school stories for girls (the 'classic' period especially.....Brent Dyer...Fairlie Bruce...Oxenham(although the Abbey series is not strictly speaking 'school' stories)...amongst others)...some you can pick up in charity shops and 2nd hand stores....but increasingly I have to rely on Birthday/Christmas present and using my COnsumer Pulse vouchers for Girls Gone By re-issues!

Cosmetics are no MSE problem for me...serious skin issues (and I MEAN serious!) have led to me being told not to use any skin products - including shampoo and soap..and I get special stuff prescribed - and my prescriptions come free due to my being on benefits......but having lost weight I have found a new interest in clothes which needs to be reined in!

And finally...chocolate....I'm still not sure how it happened...but a few years ago I got a taste of Hotel Chocolat...OH MY!....they are serious choccies!....but too expensive for me to indulge very often! (Just as well really...or that lost weight would be finding its way back!)....oh and a propos Hotel Chocolat, Santa brought me a small bottle of their Cocoa Gin.....nuff said!

Phew...now that is off my chest I can go back to my frugal living!

Living_proof

wort wrote: »

A new one for me is semi permanent lashes. I don't feel the need for make up when I have them !

I had gel nails for a holiday several years ago and loved them, so I bought the red carpet set which was the only one at the time, and it's fab I get cheap polish from eBay, and take it off with little foam pads dipped in acetone and the little plastic clip on keepers whilst I watch telly at night.
I only lightly file the nail with a buffing file so no damage is done.

I managed to pick up a Sensationail UV machine at a car boot yesterday for just £6. I also got four lovely OPI varnishes for a total of £1.30 but I understand I need special gel varnish etc. for gel nails?

Living_proof

mardatha wrote: »

Candlelight my hair was almost black, and when I went grey I dyed it black. Until one day I looked in the mirror when I had flu and saw Elvis' ghost looking back at me. I stopped dyeing, let the roots come through to 2", and then got all the black cut off. It was really short and really gorgeous, and since then I've been playing with blond & silver shades. I think when we get older we need good hair. So its not an indulgence at all. no... really!

I envy anyone who goes an all-over grey. Mine is still very dark in parts, salt-and-pepper in others and plain grey here and there. I have gone lighter and lighter in the last year or two and that way the roots aren't such a shock and blend in a bit more. Also get a few blond streaks in spring and summer, but don't bother in winter in case it looks too brassy and unnatural. Someone I once worked with shaved her hair off completely and wore a wig until all the hair came through grey - well, white actually. It looked stunning in the end!

juliettet

Coffee pods, still cheaper than posh coffee shops. I now wait until I get home so it must have paid for itself by now? French butter, Neom candles and diffusers. Amazing scents.

System

Makeup. Mainly Estee Lauder and Urban Decay.

mardatha

Urban Decay is gorgeous!

System

mardatha wrote: »

Urban Decay is gorgeous!

isnt it just. I just love colour and their eyeshadows and lipsticks are just out of this world!

Foundation is always Estee Lauder though.

tara747

Travel! It's not cheap, but I love it and will never give it up. I'm not into 'stuff', I just love to see the world.


If something makes you happy, go for it

katkin

juliettet wrote: »

Coffee pods, still cheaper than posh coffee shops. I now wait until I get home so it must have paid for itself by now? French butter, Neom candles and diffusers. Amazing scents.

I'm going to blame my hubby for this one but his treat was the Nescaf! Dulce Gusto machine and pods. He's a massive coffee lover and I reckon it's working out around 20p for a posh real coffee. It's easy and quick to use and I've become fond of their macchiato lattes

40 calories of treat!

Larumbelle

Prinzessilein wrote: »

Old books are a real joy for me - especially school stories for girls (the 'classic' period especially.....Brent Dyer...Fairlie Bruce...Oxenham(although the Abbey series is not strictly speaking 'school' stories)...amongst others)...some you can pick up in charity shops and 2nd hand stores....but increasingly I have to rely on Birthday/Christmas present and using my COnsumer Pulse vouchers for Girls Gone By re-issues!

I can relate to this, although in my case it is a secret vice only because people don't understand why a grown adult wants to read them :rotfl: I have a collection of school stories and a lot of other children's literature. Like you, I have mostly aquired them through MSE methods, I used to love the thrill of the chase as much as the finding!!! I don't get out much anymore, but since I have no spare cash for them that is probably just as well. I love what Girls Gone By do but they are expensive, so I have never bought from them. Although I do have my eye on the Bannermere series by Geoffrey Trease that they reissued a few years back. I read them some years back and loved them. They are 'school stories' in one sense, but they are pretty atypical for their time. If you ever see them cheap I recommend them!