Scrimp or Splurge - What Is A False Economy?

moneyistooshorttomention

I'm guessing that peoples feelings about thriftiness will be based - a LOT - on whether they are having to be by necessity or doing so because they think they ought to on the other hand.

Even if someone is widely regarded as thrifty - they might still do things that others wouldnt regard as thrifty (eg having a car). Since moving area - I can certainly see that one literally can't live in some places (or it's quite a struggle to do so) because of poor public transport in some parts of the country. So - a car is necessity for some, but a luxury for others (and it does depend basically on where one lives).

By and large I'm pretty thrifty by choice (as well as necessity). Now - some on here might not consider I am - but I know how wealthy some people I've associated are with and that I too could have been wealthy (by marriage) - but chose not to. So - 20 odd years down the line - my expectation is my solicitor will be telling my chosen beneficiary charity "Well she lived a pretty modest lifestyle - and so it's just a modest little 2 bedroom house and some modest savings that you are inheriting from her".

But - I do have to admit that, if given the chance (that Lottery win we all dream of....) that it might be two houses my solicitor was telling the charity they would inherit from me (one here and one I would buy back in my home area). So - we all make different choices to some extent - according to our own personal necessities or wishes and they may not be subject to any amount of reasoning by someone else. It's only the person themselves that knows what matters to them most - and...yep....I still wouldnt own a car (wherever I lived)on the one hand - but I would probably own a second house (if I had the chance) because I've moved. If I hadnt moved - then I'd stick to one.

But - yep....we are tending to some priorities in common. I've noticed many of us will splurge on decent loopaper and coffee for instance. Free-range eggs isn't a splurge imo - it's a necessity (with the alternative being battery eggs - bar going vegan).

Spendless

House repairs/maintenance is splurge for me. Not being the slightest bit handy or crafty, reliant on other people makes it 'buy cheap, buy twice' for me. If you are good at DIY makes sense to do it yourself though.

I've shopped in Aldi for around 18 months now and I am appalled how high my grocery shopping is when I go to a bigger named supermarket. You don't *need* brand name items in many things (a lot of cost is down to advertising, rather than anything superior is going in to the product)

Larumbelle

GreyQueen wrote: »

I've sometimes been asked to give people (friends, acquaintances) thrifty counselling

GreyQueen wrote: »

I've learned to be very wary of doing so, as most people are extremely resistant to change and become uncomfortable with even relatively modest changes being proposed for their consideration.

YES! Been there, done that, never again :rotfl: I never offered unsolicited advice, only helped when I was asked (sometimes begged) for it, but to be honest while I have known a few souls who honestly did not know how to cut their cloth, there were far more who did know how to economise, but chose not to, even as financial disaster loomed. I think most people hoped that I had a magic wand and were a little miffed when they realised that I didn't. Now, I point people in the directions of these forums, and if they start making changes themselves and get a little enthusiasm, then I will get involved a little more.

I think it is almost like smoking - people who smoke know it is bad for them, and they shouldn't do it, but they have to want to quit more than they want that next addictive cigarette. It is difficult to do, but millions manage it, and if you are truly motivated to do it you can, if not you won't.

catkins

I only buy good coffee beans and organic eggs.

Loo rolls - I buy the Nicky ones from Farm Foods. They are pretty cheap but just as good quality as the expensive ones my mum buys.

I hate clothes buying and only really ever buy from charity shops or ebay. I buy cheap shoes (Primark, ebay or Deichmann) but they last me years and I never have any problem with them being uncomfortable.

Bedding I buy in Primark, Wilkinsons or ebay.

My pots and pans are Tefal so not particularly expensive and yet last me years. I have just replaced my wok which I had had for around 12 years which, considering I use it most days, I think is pretty good.

Me and OH do like to go to the theatre in London so will splurge on that although I do surveys that pay in vouchers so I always choose theatre ones. I nearly always have at least a small amount in vouchers to use when I buy tickets. We do like to have pretty good seats though. Tried sitting all cramped in the highest seats and not being able to see the stage properly!

We sometimes go to concerts and will pay to get good seats.

I buy quite a lot of books but try to get them in charity shops or somewhere like Amazon that has them reduced.

I use Yankee candles and melts but usually buy them when they are on offer - often half price

TheGardener

Like many posters:
Splurge - good shoes, best mattress I can afford and coffee but my real splurge is black trousers, I always buy the best black work/office trousers I can afford using the pence per wear principle - cheap never works for me for office clothes. Quality trousers last years - cheap ones are shiny and thin with unravelled hems or burst zips in months. Always hang trousers full length (creases aligned) by the hem using clip hangers - never fold over regular hangers or you end up with rumpled knees :cool:

elona

I love my shoes from Hotter (I have awkward feet) as I can walk in them and just realised that I need shoes half a size bigger and extra wide for when my feet swell. I do buy them in the sales and take advantage if there is "3 for 2" as well.

It never occurs to me not to get free range eggs (DH used to keep chickens).

I have a good quality and comfortable big bed and mattress but did a lot of research and got it from a website rather than a store so it was a lot cheaper.

I used to make do as far as clothes were concerned but now dds are adults I treat myself to good coats, jackets and outfits but usually from tk maximus or from an online site that sometimes have sales where everything is £19 or £29 or whatever ( even items that were originally over £100.)

I scrimp by trying to buy things I need in a sale, shopping at Aldi whenever I can get there, making my own soups and home made frozen meals, getting good deals on bills like house insurance, energy, water etc. I try very hard not to waste anything and feel chuffed when I make something out of nothing.

At the moment I am considering the best way to insulate a bedroom above a garage and will be phoning builders after the new year. It will cost but will make the house more usable for family when they stay over so needs done. Looks like I will need to scrimp a bit more.

TheGardener

elona wrote: »

...At the moment I am considering the best way to insulate a bedroom above a garage ....

We had a bedroom over a 'ginnel' (side entry to the house)and the floors were so cold! The room was several degrees cooler than other bedrooms. We didn't have much money so we used rolls of what look like aluminium foil bubble wrap insulation under good underlay and carpet - it had a dramatic effect and was so easy to do and very cost effective. We got them from a local DIY store and they lasted many years.

[Deleted User]

I am by nature and upbringing a frugal person, I have more than enough to live on ,but would find it very hard to waste cash..I enjoy cooking from scratch and streetching out meals and the cash I save on these frugalities help to pay for my "luxuries'

As a older member of the family I enjoy our family holidays, and I pay for the house rental and DD buys the food

There are usually 7 of us plus the two dogs and a hamster who go on holiday (plus a G/F of one of the DGS) so we always need at least a 4 bedroomed house ,we go to the same area every year as we enjoy it (IOW) and I have various pots for the Ice creams (road kill) and a seperate account for spending money, and any left over cash from my food purse at the end of the month gets popped into that account apart from regular savings monthly.

If by shopping carefully throughout the year it means we can have a really nice holiday then thats probably my luxury spend. I am quite happy to be frugal throughout the rest of the year to pay for it

I do run a car, as I find it a reasonable expense and can afford to, but come the day when I can't, then it would go and I would just as easily get a bus (walking too far carrying stuff wouldn't be great at my age :)) But I only use it as and when needed

I do spend on a six week trim at the hairdressers but its a dry cut to keep it tidy more than anything else

I am helping to support my DGS Ben through Uni at the moment as I did with DGD Holly when she was studying Investment in their future with their education to me is more important than having the money in the bank

So I will happily buy stuff in Aldis and Lidls and cook from scratch and still have some rainy day cash tucked away every month for emergencies

moneyistooshorttomention

Certainly agree with making sure of a decent bed. There is a world of difference between a "cheapie" and a decent one. I tried a few nights sleeping on a "cheapie" guest bed I'd bought a while back - and then bought a down mattress topper and put on top of it (which did make a world of difference and made the mattress feel reasonable to me).

As regards beds - it's not as if one buys them very often after all. I bought my first bed for myself (a Myers) in my 30s and then replaced it with another Myers bed in my 50s. So I guess I'll need to do it once more before "popping my clogs" (in my 80s presumably....). That's 3 beds from 30 something to 80 something - so not that many. They're not a dear brand after all - though not a cheapie one either - just "middle of the road - fair enough to expect to have that" imo.

I like to be able to just lie down on my bed and go "Ah....comfort...:)". After all - we spend an average of 8 hours daily in them and, if we're feeling ill, then longer than that (and it's even more important to have that comfort).

LameWolf

Like JackieO I reckon I'm frugal by nature (some would probably say "tight" lol); I think it stems from when I was first married to the XH, and was skipping meals to save money and still only having pennies left at the end of the week (paid weekly in those days). Plus I am by nature debt-phobic. If having something, even if it was "essential" meant taking out a loan or having it on finance, I simply couldn't bring myself to do it. The only exception was the mortgage, which is now, thankfully, a thing of the past.:T

We do run a car; in our case it is essential, because I'm disabled, and cannot get on a bus with the wheelchair, even if there was a bus to get on (we don't get them round our estate at all).

When my lovely Mr LW was out of work back in 2002/3, we stopped doing gifts of any sort, (Yule, birthdays, that sort of thing) as we were living on my disability money plus the pittance of JSA that he got, and we still had the mortgage then. We have carefully never re-started with gifts.

Also I don't buy a a tonne of extra food at Yule; I figure we've both worked hard to lose weight over the past 6 years, and I see no logic in stuffing our faces for the sake of it and undoing all that good work.:D So we don't actually spend any more at Yule than the rest of the year!