Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I paid $600 for a Dyson Animal vacuum back in 2008. My cat is a complete fur ball and runs the house so it's been worth every penny I've paid for it.
One of my cats is like the one on tv where she sneezes and there's clods of fur all around her..... I brush and brush her and the brush is bare.... but she lays down, gets up and tons of hair. How do they do that?
One of my cats is like the one on tv where she sneezes and there's clods of fur all around her..... I brush and brush her and the brush is bare.... but she lays down, gets up and tons of hair. How do they do that?
I doubt very much you brushing the cars hair on her underside. While your getting all the loose hair when you brush her back, your doing nothing for her stomach or backside of her legs.
$15,000 for a Birkin bag. My car cost less than that.
Penn and Teller actually did an episode about "having the best" on the show "Bullsh*t". They did an experiment where they had a trailer behind a fancy restaurant, in which this guy, cigarette hanging out of his mouth, was preparing food with the use of a microwave, a toaster oven, and a blowtorch. The waiter, who was a BS artist or epic proportions, was going on and on about how the ingredients were so rare and of the finest quality, hand-picked this, artisan that, when in fact everything was out of a can or from a gas station. I thought it was hilarious.
People like to show off how rich they are, but in reality there's a fine line between how rich you are and how foolish. I wager, this Birkin bag doesn't cost more then a few hundred dollars to make, even with the gold plated hardware. While sometimes it pays to buy a better brand and pay more money for it, I highly doubt a 15k handbag is going to outlive a $20 handbag in usefulness.
People like to show off how rich they are, but in reality there's a fine line between how rich you are and how foolish. I wager, this Birkin bag doesn't cost more then a few hundred dollars to make, even with the gold plated hardware. While sometimes it pays to buy a better brand and pay more money for it, I highly doubt a 15k handbag is going to outlive a $20 handbag in usefulness.
A $15k handbag is very likely to outlive a $20 handbag. However, a $15k handbag may not outlive a cheaper $500 handbag. But when it comes down to it, there's not much of a difference between $500 and $15k to an individual buying a $15k bag. It's all relative. I wouldn't call it foolish by any means. I'd reserve foolish for the person who works an hour and receives $20 compared to the person who works an hour and receives $100. Now that's not frugal.
Any examples of high prices that shock you -- and you've seen people pay them? And you think no way in the world you'd pay that.
This is prompted by a commercial for Dyson vacuum cleaner -- for 700.00. (which was being promoted and a cleanliness/health purchase because of pet hair, dander, dirt.)
And I'm thinking:
-- can a vacuum cleaner POSSIBLY be worth $700?
-- am I a filthy slob because I'd never pay that
-- my low price range vacuum is 15 years old, OMG what's in MY carpet that Im' breathing in?
Other examples which a good friend has bought:
-- 1,000 Burberry handbag
-- $100 Gucci flip-flops
-- $600 Dooney and Bourke and Coach bags
-- $175 small bandana-type Burberry neck scarf
TO BE FAIR: we all have our times and areas when we splurge -- these are just her splurges. She also shops for bargains at TJ Maxx/Ross. Gap, Old Navy etc. THOSE are bargains for her. She wouldn't get caught dead in a thrift shop or buying clothes in Walmart. She shops for bargains on travel packages, home items, uses a gas card for discounts, etc.
((you know I'm too addicted to this 'frugal' issue when I see spending or a commercial and all I think is "is that FRUGAL?"))
Would you pay $700 for a vacuum cleaner?
When you hear what you think is a ridiculous price, do you do the math and think I could buy SEVEN vacuum cleaners that would last me the rest of my life for that price....or "X" number of "whatever item" for less than than and have it last just as long?....
Other prices (I just can't afford to pay)
-- there's a high-end mattress company that sells $33,000 hand made mattresses
-- $6,000 sheet sets
-- $200.00 face cream....
Who knew....I never HEARD of prices and items like these....not my world, but it must be nice.....(or is it stupid to buy stuff like that even if you CAN afford it.)
And to think I was shocked $3,000 Bose home stereo, and $5,000 TVs
Hi selhars--
Oh, boy, can I go on and on about the stuff I won't buy simply because the prices have gotten too high. I get especially incensed when the package of food gets smaller but the price remains the same - and I can visibly tell the difference. But I can list quite a few everyday items that I refuse to pay more than a certain amount for:
- Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup. For some reason, it's 94 cents at Kroger's. I won't pay more than 60 cents. Occasionally Wal-Mart has them on sale for that price, at which point I buy several cases and they last for months.
- Almost any fast food joint's "value menu." The worst offender is Wendy's, followed closely by Arby's - I remember in high school (mind you, I'm 23) when a double stack and a junior bacon cheeseburger were both $1 each. Now a double stack is $1.99 and a JBC is $1.59. It's seriously curtailed my eating on the go (and I've lost about 10lbs in the past two months).
- Shredded cheese, any variety. I'm the guy that buys ten bags when the two pound bag is on sale for $2.99. Because normally its $6-7 or more.
- Pretty much any clothes at the mall. Except maybe the occasional Kohl's or Penney's - I won't go within a mile of Von Maur, Abercrombie, or any of that designer stuff. I'm within 30 minutes of two outlet malls, and I can get the same stuff for a fraction of what the sucker's pay at the regular mall.
- I spent $40 on my vacuum cleaner. Despite having two cats that shed incessantly, that vacuum is still going strong after two years. I pity the fool that spends $700 on one.
- I don't think I'll ever, ever buy a car at the stealership without having a solid game plan to get the guy as low as possible. (I'm thinking that by the time the manager has been called down from his office, the salesman is stoked about the sale, and he will bend even more if you threaten to walk.)
- Above all, why would I want to appear conspicuously rich? The nail that sticks up gets hammered down.
Only bought one Kirby at full price in 1972 or '73. I have a couple of newer ones that I purchased second hand, my original one plus another newer, heavy duty model that got left at my house by an acquaintance and I love them. I have had Hoovers and Eurekas and they worked for what I wanted but, I love my fleet of Kirbys....LOL. I also picked up a couple at the Sal. Army but they had been abused too much. I still use them with attachments for garage cleanup.
I would spend the money for a Sebo, of which i have never heard of until now, if my whole house was carpeted.
I am also a firm believer in getting the best quality you can afford but that takes research and thinking.
I totally get what you mean about being surprised about how much people will pay for some things. However, when it comes to vacuums in about 1995 I spent almost $500 on a vacuum and I think it was a good deal. Here's why...I was spending about $100 a year on cheap vacuums at discount stores like Walmart. They just wouldn't last, so I bit the bullet and bought a good vacuum. I kept it until last year and it was still in good working order. The only reason I don't still have it is that it was an upright vacuum and I needed a canister type that would be easier on my back (I'm getting a bit older, so the upright type was a bit harder to use.) But, I figure I saved hundreds of dollars over the years, by buying a good quality vacuum.
The new one I purchased was a Dyson, but I got it on sale for around $300. It's a nice canister type, easy on my back, and one year later it's working great. I hope to get many years out of this one, as well.
$700 for a vacuum? I hate to vacuum. We have no carpeting in our house. A little damp moping or sweeping the hardwood floors and vinyl and done.
I also would never spend thousands of dollars on a washer and dryer set. Those fancy ones in fancy colors with all kind of bells and whistles that cost more than some of the cars I have had are ridiculous. No one is ever going to use much more than Warm/Cold temperature, and High/Low water levels 90% of the time. I don't even have the High Efficiency, just a very basic newer set, and yet my power and water costs are very low. What do people think, that someone is going to come into your house and say "Ohhh, I just love your washer and dryer set!"?
People think other people are paying a lot more attention to them then they really are.
I look to see what kind of purse other people are carrying exactly - never. I assume that is how important it is to other people what kind of purse I am carrying. A co-worker has to point out to us her purses and tell us all what the brands are and what she paid for them, otherwise we would never notice, and nobody cares a rats butt anyway.
I will spend money on a good hairdresser. Even if my clothes are from the thrift store, if my haircut and style looks great, I feel like a million bucks. These are the things people really do notice.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
