I’ve mentioned before that I am a huge bargain-hunter. Getting a good deal makes me very happy indeed however it it falls apart several days later then the smile is soon wiped off my face.
I remember feeling I was a changed woman when I heard two ladies scrambling over £1.50 vests in Primark exclaiming “at this price you can wear them once and then throw them away”. I was horrified by such a declaration, surely it’s not cost effective or ethical to throw away products after such limited use. Wouldn’t it be better to save up and invest in several high quality threads that would last you many years?
Around the same time my £4.99 Toaster blew up (after just one week of use) and so I decided to take note of the the “buy cheap, buy twice” saying. I’d like to think I’ve now become a more considered purchaser and spend where it matters.
Splurge – Kitchen Appliances
In our first house, our kitchen was smaller than most people’s utility rooms. You wouldn’t have been able to swing a cat (not that you would ever want to) and I had to store all my pretty crockery and glasses in a glass cupboard in the hall. Therefore we ended up with a space-saving fridge (with a poor excuse for a freezer compartment) for several years. When we moved into our cottage the little fridge was dwarfed in the recess and the inability to store Magnum ice-creams was really beginning to grate. It was time for an upgrade and the little fridge went off to my sister-in-law’s very first flat.
I suppose we all have several things in life that we aspire to own, yes this makes us materialistic and I am somewhat ashamed that I have bought products rather than experiences to mark milestones in my professional and personal life. I suppose I am not alone though as I have seen several Mulberry bags purchased for this very purpose! My personal aspiration was to own a Smeg fridge, and I appreciate that the desire to own an appliance wouldn’t necessarily be high on everyone’s wish list.
After a long period proving myself at work I was rewarded with a promotion and so to mark my climb up the corporate ladder I went out and bought a shiny black fridge. I know there are cheaper white goods that can do far fancier things and I’ve heard many reports of style over substance. However in the two years of ownership I have nothing bad to say about mine and would definitely make the decision again.
I replaced my burnt-out toaster with a second-hand Dualit. The beauty of this was that I got a design classic at the bargain price of £40 thanks to a work colleague heading to the States. I’ve had it over 5 years and its still going strong so I think even if I had splashed out on a £200 brand-spanking-new one, I would still be quids in on a cost-per-use basis.
Splurge – Bed
We’re in the market for a new bed. Mr C doesn’t know it yet but my research period is about to commence. No doubt I will devour hundreds of reviews before committing and it’ll take months of saving before I finally make the decision. Does anyone else agree that when you’ve waited months for something, it’s so much better when it finally becomes your own?!
Team RMS had a good chat about the expense of office chairs a few weeks ago but the same principle applies. You can end up using your bed and chair for over eight hours a day so surely it makes sense to invest in a quality product. As much as I love my friends and family though, our spare beds are only used once or twice a month so they are subjected to Argos’ finest mattresses instead.
Splurge – Sofa
I remember when our first sofa was delivered. It was a modern cream three seater from sofasofa.co.uk bought for less than £350. A bargain. We may have jumped on it in glee as we could now move the futon bed out of the living room of our flat and sit on a settee like proper grown-ups. Interestingly enough the same three seater sofa now resides in the office and so proves that you don’t actually have to spend thousands to get furniture that lasts.
However, moving from a new-build to a character property we felt that we needed a more traditional style of seating to complement the decor. I was used to seeing adverts for sofa.com in the back of my Living Etc magazine and so it was my first port of call when looking for a new settee. Several visits later to their very friendly Battersea showroom, we became the proud owners of two comfy brushed linen Snowdrop sofas and shelled out more than we have done for any other home-related purchase. However I know the classic design will suit us for many years. Personally we had a negative aftersales experience with sofasofa.com, however the range of designs, breadth of knowledge from the staff, and comfiness of the sofas wouldn’t deter me from ordering again or recommending them to you.
Save – Accessories
I rarely splurge on any of the accents in my house; most of my cushions are from H&M, I get all my bedding and towels from HomeSense and although I adore my ‘posh’ candles the majority of my tealights and votives are from Ikea, I love my anglepoise lamp but the rest of my lighting is from TK Maxx, BHS, Achica or picked up from antique shops.
Art is one thing in the future that I would really like to invest in, in the mean time though I am more than happy to buy prints from Etsy.
Save – Occasional Furniture
My coffee table and side ‘table’ were created from old palettes and apple crates picked up for next to nothing and my lounge bookcase is a vintage ladder that was about £30. In the spare room the chest of drawers and dressing table were second-hand and given a new lease of life with a lick of paint. I wouldn’t begrudge anyone who splashed out on an expensive coffee table but if it was a choice between that an a gorgeous comfy chair then I’d opt for where to sit every time.
Anyway, enough about me and I how I like to spend my hard-earned cash. What are your splurges and saves in your own home? Are there any pieces you firmly believe in investing in or any that you would never splash out on? If money were no object what item would you have in your pad?
Completely agree Lauren! I’m like the poster girl for Kenwood K-Mix appliances in all their forms. A bit of extra cash but the quality is spot on and they look amazing – I still have my old Kenwood Cheffette mixer that is older than I am. I cant bring myself to chuck it out even though its been replaced now.
I’m all for seeking out old design classics and quality furniture too – which I tend to pick up second hand. We have an amazing vintage furniture store in Liverpool where we’ve picked up some beautiful solid pieces for a fraction of what you’d pay for a DIY flatpack elsewhere.
The best thing is, the more you get to know them the more they know what you like and will often keep stuff to one side… this is how we managed to get our 60’s G-Plan sofa and chairs for the bargain price of 200 sheets. Now I know this goes against your splurge rule for sofas, but it’s lasted this long, so I’m sure we can get a few more years out of it 😉
x
A design classic for an absolute bargain? That’s the best kind of deal! x
Where is your polka dot wallpaper from? I’ve just bought a house, all by myself! Feeling very grown up!
Pammy you’ve bought a house? girl we need a catch up!
There’s similar wallpaper to Lauren’s in this months Good Homes mag – I forget where from but it’s dead nice xxx
Ahh, massive congrats.
The paper was from John Lewis, in their nursery section!
It looks cream here but I’m pretty sure it was this one – http://www.johnlewis.com/prestigious-textiles-polka-dot-wallpaper/p355574?colour=Graphite,%201940/912
Hiya Karen! Yes! I’ve bought a house! So it’s not my first house as obviously there were houses before, but yes, I now own one all by myself. It’s not a forever home, more of an investment, this is where I am now house, but it will all be very nice!
I will have a look at wallpaper. I am pacing myself and not jumping into any decisions yet about schemes…the only thing I know is it will be tonal throughout and that I want these amazing floor tiles I’ve seen in the kitchen. Yes, everyone tells me if I spill water on them they could be a death trap…but whatever, I love them and if I break a leg on them, so be it!
Owning one all by yourself is such a good feeling though! Congrats my love.
I had breaking house news today – accepted an offer on my house and made an offer on another house. exciting times. Let’s go shopping!
Floor tiles leg breakage is fine – but what if you drop your wine? xx
Congrats to you too Karen! x
Thank you gorgeous. I’ll be email you guys for advice very soon I think (modern fireplace vulgarity dilemma) x
Oooh. Yes, let us know if there’s anything we can do to help x
We don’t have loads of cash so our idea of a splurge is probably someone else’s save, but we forked out for a good frost-free freezer and two lovely brand-new sofas from Harveys, which we got in the Boxing Day sale. (Cancelled the weekend papers which had been piling up and got the sofas on a buy now pay later deal so we’re not actually any poorer, but we are decidedly more comfortable.) We rent so another splurge has been curtains (spent hundreds on ’em after we moved in) as having nice ones can make all the difference and it’s a way to decorate without decorating.
Hi Annie,
Totally agree on the curtains. They can end up being such a splurge (aren’t good quality ones expensive?!) but they make the world of difference x
Oooh, I love my Smeg too. We went for a red one and got rather excited buying it before we had moved in to our house. When we moved in we realised it didn’t fit anywhere and so spent 2 years with it half covering our back door. Oops! Once we had our kitchen done we finally had a home for it. I think kitchen appliances are worth the splurge as they get so much use. We redid our whole kitchen just because I wanted a bigger oven and after overspending on the kitchen I almost didn’t get the oven I wanted until my husband reminded me why we had done it all. It was worth the cost as now I have my lovely big Rangemaster and it gets so much use. I’m with you on saving on accessories. There are so many fab places to get things that don’t cost the earth and I also like revamping furniture rather than always buying new. Saves the pennies for the things I really want. xx
Oh no! Smegs are so flipping chunky and have such peculiar dimensions!
Rather selfishly I am very glad that you went for the Rangemaster. It produces very fine cakes 😉 x
He he! Glad you approve! It’s currently in overdrive and makes me glad I have the nice double oven version – more space for cakes! x
DEFINITELY splurge on a mattress. Ours was eye-wateringly expensive but worth every penny. We bought a nice fame (that we may or may not update at some point depending on our whims) But went all-out on the worlds comfiest mattress that should last a really long time and can be used on any frame.
A good tip is to find your ideal mattress at the likes of John Lewis, And So To Bed or Feather & Black, then buy direct from the manufacturer. Harrison Spinks make most of the premium JL and F&B mattresses. Ours was £500 cheaper buying direct from them than had we bought it in store.
factory-beds-direct.co.uk. sounds like the naffest URL ever but gives some excellent pointers to guide through the minefield that is choosing a mattress.
£500 cheaper! I like the sound of that.
Thanks for the tips on mattress hunting. I definitely need them – I don’t know where to start! x
We have a lot of things that are hand me down, second hand or just simple cheap and cheerful Ikea but we have splurged on our bed which we bought recently. The husband is 6 ft 3 so our old double wasn’t really any good, as it was too small for him so we went for a King Size and splurged on quite a pricey divan and mattress from Harrison. Mattress is all natural fibres and has a summer side with hemp and cotton and winter side with wool to keep you all toasty. The divan has storage draws, and was also made to order in your choice of fabric/colour – we got a nice dove grey.
We’ve just moved in to a new house (hooray!) but didn’t have an oven in there. The gap for it is well over a metre wide and a normal sized oven would have looked tres stupide so we’ve splashed out on a 110cm Rangemaster. It’s not been delivered yet, but I’m already planning what we’re going to be cooking in it – can’t wait.
Way I’ve justified these is that you spend a lot of time in the bed and if you break it down over the at least 10 years it’s meant to last it works out you’re only paying something like 12p per night, which for a good night’s sleep is pretty reasonable. And likewise the Rangemaster – that thing will be with us for years now, so we’re thinking of all the great meals we’ll cook it and how many Xmas dinners etc!
Oooh, Kitty good choice on the 110 Rangemaster. That’s what I have and it is AMAZING! Which model did you go for? You’ll love it? x
Always a good idea to break it down to a cost-per-use basis Kitty. Your bed sounds divine x
Love your bed – where is it from? Or is the headboard separate? xx
Hello Holly Mia, Headboard was from an eBay seller and was an absolute bargain. I think it was about £60 and there were loads of different fabrics to choose from x
Charlotte I think we went for the Professional Deluxe – which had the multizone on the hob which is two ceramic induction hobs with a griddle/hot plate that can sit on top of it or be removed as needed. Looking forward to some American style pancakes on that I can tell you! Then it has the double oven and a storage drawer – we wanted the one where the storage drawer was actually a slow cooker but at over £2500 that was just too much for us!
I love our bed – some of the best money we’ve spent, but the downside is I really hate getting out of it in the morning!
We’ve just moved into our new house and this post rings massively true – there are some things you just HAVE to invest in, and rightly so!
If you’re looking for a bed, I’d highly recommend Warren Evans. We just bought our bed from there and it’s gorgeous. We also got one of their pocket sprung mattresses which is amazing (quite firm which we like) – we toyed with the idea of a memory foam one but they’re a lot more expensive and I’m not 100% convinced about them yet.
The one thing I’m regretting in terms of the house is we bought some chairs online (made.com – they were cheap) and, while they look nice, the seat part isn’t very firm so you sink in quite a lot. I dislike. But this is all part of the learning process or something. Def think it’s worth trying before you buy with things like chairs.
So true Kate, you should definitely invest in the places you sit and lay!
Thanks for the tip on the bed. The search has commenced… x
mmmmmm Smeg. I bought my first home on my own 15 years ago. ALL I wanted was a Smeg, which with the help of a few industry contacts (worked in marketing interiors) I got for a relative bargain. The money was set aside for a good sofa to replace the tiny one I already had. But I went for the Smeg instead. The sofa had to wait (almost 9 years until I bought a new home with the fiancé!) and visitors perched wherever they could in the interim. I used to stand in the kitchen with an arm draped over my Smeg while cooking my meal. Almost like a substitute boyfriend until the real thing came along! Sharing too much? Yeh, thought so!
Haha Sara! At least you could give your guests a chilled glass of vino when they arrived, even if they didn’t get anywhere to sit x
I’m an unashamed bargain hunter- the budget forces it upon me. However, I am very much of the opinion that buying decent quality second hand is far better than cheap things new.
To that end, I am an eBay fiend and bought my beautiful, battered but in a good way, chesterfield settee for £160. My husband works in an auctioneers, so we have lots of lovely second hand things including our decent, solid chest of drawers which cost £45- why don’t new chests ever have solid wood drawer bottoms and backs?! We overfill our drawers, so solid wood was a must.
I got my wooden dresser in a charity furniture shop for £60, and bought a stunning nest of tables (my grandma would be so proud) from a car boot sale for £35.
It’s knowing where to look that’s the trick!!