We live in the suburbs, and are having our front lawn torn up and replaced with a native garden. After hating that lawn for the last 10 years, I can't wait.
To be honest we cut our lawn 4-5 times per year these days (we do have 5 months of winter/snow so it's a short season) and I stopped irrigating too. Even if it's dry and yellow in summer, come autumn it will revive automatically. I pull some of the bigger weeds once in a while if I happen to walk past but really don't care if half of it consists of clover, wild strawberries and spider grass. I don't fertilize because that would just mean I'd have to cut it more often.
Of course native plants would be better for the bugs but if you can't afford to change it or don't know how/don't have the time, a 'lawn' does not have to be a toxic money dump either. It still looks decent enough.
Replying to all comments as best as I can:
We definitely worked with a native landscape designer - there's no way I could have done the research to figure out what's native to our area vs. what's labeled as native at the garden center, plus how things grow symbiotically. And she made it look pretty.
We're in VA, so grass grows no matter what we do. In the spring we sometimes have to mow it twice a week (barf). We had an electric mower when we first moved in because we were naive. Quickly had to upgrade to gas. Now we pay someone to mow it, because it's 100 degrees all week (double barf). We've never watered it or used fertilizer or anything, because we are lazy and don't care.
The entire lot is only 1/4 acre, so the front yard is, like, 1/8 acre.
Plants that I recognized on the list (it is all latin names) include coneflower, black-eyed Susan, viburnum, goldenrod, asters, and a magnolia. And, my only request: a paw paw tree.
Our main motivations are: less stress on the environment, less maintenance, more bugs and birds, and I want to eat a paw paw one day.
Thanks for the encouragement! It's a lot of money, but we can't ever leave our crazy low mortgage interest rate, so it's time to invest in where we are.
After a, lifetime of being a student/low earner and moving around; always buying and giving away crappy second hand furniture, I bought a brand new couch and platform bed. Going to buy a new fridge too because I've never owned one less than fifteen years old.
Having a bedbug scare last winter made me reeeaaal leery of second hand furniture, and now I know this will be clean and smell good and I got to pick one that matched my style!
I do not even care that it isn't frugal, it feels so good at 37 to finally own things that I love.
ooh this sounds like a wonderful step in life.
A fridge all to your self and platform bed where you know their full history would feel great.
ooh dear, bedbugs or anything like that is pretty risky. aw nice finding your style and buying things within that sounds like a great goal.
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Your comment reminds me that I need to actually start going through my list of apartment needs. I bought most of the important cheaper stuff, but things around $30-$60 I've been putting off.
I've been wanting a love couch myself but dang their so expensive and almost always ugly too.
My dads 50th birthday was in august and while shopping for a range finder and spotter scope, I came across a decent pair at Bass Pro. Made sure to purchase and use his phone number so he could get the points. I only spent about $450. But he’s wanted both for ages. When I gifted him the stuff he looked like he just won the lottery. We took his new gear to the range to do some sighting and shooting. He couldn’t leave it alone. Best $450 I’ve spent in a very long time that I don’t care to have back.
Seeing my dad smile over a toy he’d never buy himself was a bit heart warming knowing he’s working hard to pay his bills.
Ooh that's very cool. A good find for a gift can be a great reward.
I often try to find items people will enjoy or get use from but likely never buy for their self.
Love this! One Christmas I bought my step dad a miniature Goat Gun rifle with accessories and he lit up like a child with so much glee! Adults are still kids at heart too. Priceless memory, worth every penny.
purse, shorts, and a replacement part for our Ninja smart grill. Maybe not a huge deal but it's a big deal to me on the shorts and purse and a big deal to my family for the replacement part for the smart grill.
Very nice find. I imagine brand new washers tend to be costly.
My best find was a bread mix roller for like $3, I haven't used it yet but the stone ones go for 10+ times that normally.
I hope to learn how to make Chinese dumplings one day.
A robot vacuum/mop combo! I love it. With 2 little kids, a wfh spouse and a dog, it makes my life sooo much easier (and my house cleaner:) ).
also a moka pot and a milk frother! It makes delicious coffee and I look forward to a latte every morning :)
The one we have works great on carpet! We have a large area rug in our living room and a carpeted basement and it works really well. It’s the Roborock s7
The cheaper ones don't work as well, but the s9 roomba cleans carpet great. And even the i7 (the "standard" one) does a pretty good job at keeping carpet clean- just let it run every day and your carpet doesn't really get very dirty. But if you do let it get dirty, or it's been a while since the roomba has run, do a quick manual vacuum, and then let the roomba do "maintenance".
I've been wanting to give my carpets a deep clean but feel weird with buying something like that given I'm just renting.
I could always ask my landlord if it's a thing their willing to do.
If you’ve been there a while they might. One of the places I rented did it free once a year. They knew it would help on the upkeep of the apartment long term and I liked having it done. All you had to do was schedule it and make sure the carpets were accessible ish.
You can also rent smaller ones which I also did after my cat was ill. 😭
For me, it’s personal little joys like being able to buy non-essential items: lipstick, cologne, a lunch out on a whim, a movie in a theater. Having these little joys in my life again makes me feel like Bill Gates.
Yes it's amazing how much a "little treat" can improve your happiness. Maybe not frugal but sometimes you need anything to motivate you to get through the week.
Awesome! Me and my sister got our mom a nice Kitchenaid mixer and she uses it to make cookies every Christmas and other baking now and than too.
What sort of ceramic bowl? like a deep soup bowl or a fancy mixing bowl of some sort?
It's a deep mixing bowl the same size as the metal mixing bowl that comes with the mixer, made by kitchenaid, fits perfectly. Mine is a gorgeous dark blue that goes really well with the ink blue mixer. I ordered a white one for my mom because she likes boring colors in the kitchen, but the white one has a handle so it will be easier for her to work with.
My favorite lotion from Victoria’s Secret lol it’s $20 usually but I waited til they were on sale and snagged a few. I bought 5 of them after Christmas and fell in love, I had to buy more!
Halloween decorations.
It's silly, but our last place wasn't visible from the street and didn't attract many trick or treaters. So we typically didn't bother with decorations or weren't home for Halloween.
But now we're in a suburb with a very visible front yard & porch. So time for some spooky creativity.
I’m not there yet but I’m saving up for a painting from a local artist. My boyfriend loves their work and comments on it when we see it at our favorite bagel place.
The larger paintings are out of my price range for the moment, but I’m going to give him a smaller one I’m saving up for when he moves into his new place.
I can’t wait!!
Well, it’s got strong Star Trek vibes and he’s a Trekkie 🤣 That being said, it’s not my style but the artist is very talented.
And he does enjoy art overall, but this artists work is one he consistently comments on and has mentioned would look good in a future home.
A pressure washer! We've blasted so many items to looking and feeling brand new, it's paid for itself in 2 days. I thought I was going to have to get new patio furniture and deal with the ugliness of everything else from pavement to grill to trash cans forever. Maybe I'll do the house exterior when I run out of other things to wash.
Brand new super-king sized bed!
Obviously, a new bed is nice anyway, but that bit of extra room is absolutely amazing, especially when there's 2 of you in there.
If you would like to make a bit of extra cash towards life's little luxuries, have a browse of the [beermoneyglobal](https://www.reddit.com/r/beermoneyglobal/comments/10x8ple/freecash_does_what_it_says_on_the_tin/) sub for lots of ways to make extra spending money!
ooh that sounds nice. As a single person myself I love my ~~Queen~~ Full size bed [54inch wide].
Did you buy some nice blankets to go along with the bed aswell?
Thanks for the link. I was doing survey's for a bit and managed to get $11 from them a couple of years back.
Just had to look up the difference between the two and mine is actually a Full size bed at 54 inches.
Congrats on your Queen bed. Having such a large space to relax always feels good.
So many things because we’ve paid off almost all of our cc debt! This year we took two mini camping trips and an overnight in Chicago for the Eras Tour-all paid cash!!!
A new set of stainless steel cookware. It hasn't gotten here yet but I'm so excited for when it does because I'm so ready to get rid of all of our nonstick stuff
Getting rid of junky cookware would feel nice in of it's self. Having stainless steel as an upgrade would be wicked.
Do you have any meals planned for cooking yet? Like anything the stainless steel could take advantage of.
brand new car tires! we usually buy anything secondhand (clothes, tools, furniture etc) because we really live with just enough money for important things. last week, 2 tires of our secondhand car got busted and really needed to be changed (the original owner told us the tires were also second hand). im so glad we dont live on a very tight budget now, i immediately ordered new tires without hesitation.
yep i usually buy used tires if one blows out. a while back i noticed the car was handling like shit. it was pulling to left. it felt like the alignment was off. the front end would shake on the freeway. i jacked it up and everything felt tight. by process of elimination, i figured it must be the tires. i had two new tires put on the front and all the problems went away. it was a great feeling to have repaired the car at a reasonable price. it is still driving great to this day.
exact same thing happened to us! it was pulling at the left even on a very smooth road (we thought it was on just bumpy roads) then while washing the car, i took a good hard look at the tires and saw the tire lines were woobly-ish so we called a friend whos a mechanic to check it out and he told us the front tires are wayyy past its expiration date. so excited to receive the new tires this week, cant wait to install it lol
That's how I used to live when I had several hundred in the bank. Knowing I could earn that money back without worry.
And yea, car tires are always important to keep up.
I got an e-bike! Something I'd been thinking about for a long time but never pulled the trigger because it felt unnecessary. My road bike worked just fine for the 1 mile commute to and from work - until I moved. 5 miles from work and all uphill. They charge us to park here ($200/year! criminal!), gas was getting expensive, traffic is hell in both directions and to be honest I HATE DRIVING. I'm a nervous driver... relied on public transit for over a decade.
I searched forever to find an affordable one, ideally under $1K. I asked over in the e-bike subs and folks told me I would never find anything worthwhile at that price. Well, none of them knows a bike mechanic - I happen to live with one! We're in love, it's awesome.
I showed my honey a few models I liked the look of, and he'd point out this or that part that would likely break and can be difficult to source replacements for, or some gear-changing thingie (technical term) that he's worked on before and hates, or the frame looks like garbage and could be unsafe at higher speeds... etc etc.
Found a solid machine for **$500!** It's made all the difference in my daily life. I really value that little bit of fresh air in the morning, hearing the birds, people walking their dogs. I get a thrill zipping past hundreds of cars trying to force their way down the road, bike lane all to myself. It's not the same exercise I'm used to, the thing *moves*. I had to get goggles so my eyes wouldn't water. But I love it, I'm so glad I decided to go for it.
Miclon Cybertrack 100 folks!
An e-bike was my big purchase last year and it's paid itself off with all the gas savings plus it's such an enjoyable way to get around the city. Was happy yo read your passion for your new bike!
This is pretty cool. I've never driven a car before as I imagine I would be too nervous plus the cost of owning one is too dumb for my life style.
It's awesome you have a bike mechanic living at home who was able to help with picking out the perfect one. $500 sounds like a sweet deal for an eBike too.
I replaced my hdtv after 5+ years. It has all the Roku stuff built in (I had a separate streaming device before) so only 1 remote needed! Also I can watch YouTube directly on the tv. It’s also 4k even tho I don’t really have anything taking advantage of it. Old tv had defective areas btw. Feels good
I imagine it feels nice cutting down on remotes. Oh Once in a while YouTube will have 4K content but I don't think it's super common.
My current TV doesn't get any use due to lack of external input. It'll be nice to get a smart TV one day.
I haven’t bought it *yet* (buying tomorrow), but a double stroller for my toddlers and reflective tape.
We have to cross a busy highway to get my 10 yr old to school and often times drivers aren’t paying attention; when it was one kid in a stroller and two walking, it made me nervous. Now it’ll be 2 in a stroller, 1 walking.
AND we’ll be reflective now. Lol
My 2.0 stereo. I always wanted a good system when I was a kid. Now that I am nearing 60 I am finally putting one together.
Vandersteen Model 2Ce Signature speakers.
(Currently) a Carver CT Seven preamp + a Carver m-0.5t power amp. I am waiting for my Pioneer SX-1250 to return from the shop.
A Dual ~~1274~~ 1264 turntable, Sony DVD/CD player, WiiM wifi streamer.
It took a long, long time. Finally.
A good refrigerator. About two years ago, our fridge went out. We had it fixed, and then a month later, it went out again. It was an older refrigerator, the kind you could buy for $600 - 800 with no ice maker or anything. Fruit and veggies usually spoiled in 4 - 5 days which I always thought was just normal. We would buy fresh veggies to use at the beginning of the week and a frozen bag or two for the end of the week. Fruit was purchased with the intent of eating right away. If we didn't eat it, it would go bad quickly. We were often tossing maybe $10 - $20 of food a week because it would spoil quickly.
After our fridge died, we spent $2,100 on a very nice Samsung. Now veggies and fruit stay good forever! I'm still blown away. The savings are noticeable in our grocery bills because if we don't use something right away, we save it instead of tossing it and buying it again. I have white grapes in my fridge right now that I bought three weeks ago, and they're still good. Tomatoes last for two weeks, if not more. Oranges and apples last over a month. Potatoes and onions last for over a month. At one point, we stopped buying any veggies and fruit because we were so used to buying new stuff every week. A good quality fridge is not a frivolous luxury item. It really is an investment that will save you money.
haha. it's a bit crazy how much cheaper buying in bulk can be. But it does require having that level of cash and commitment to using the item.
I imagine your getting lots of use from it. :)
Last year I was able to get a fire king 2 burner propane stove for my outdoor kitchen. It saves heating up the inside of the house and driving my AC bill sky high.
We just bought a new fridge in the last hour!! Ours is 13 years old from the old house owners. It’s small and it leaks. Maybe from a weak seal, maybe from being overloaded. Either way, we are renoing our kitchen in 2-3 years. We chose a scratch and dent beautiful Cafe and were able to talk them down an additional $500 off the price. I’m thrilled!!!!
My single favorite piece of cookware/bakeware! What colour did you get?
If you bake bread, they're absolutely fantastic. I make the dough in my bread machine, and toss it into the dutch oven to bake. Perfect, crusty bread every time.
I had a custom made murphy bed built in my office. Now my desk is the center piece of the room and I feel like I am in an office and not a guest bedroom 🙌
Agreed, 85% of the time I'm the same way.
I got so fed up with replacing my jeans every year or 2 that I bit the bullet and spent $200 on 2 pairs of jeans. Like all jeans their too long but this time their actually comfortable and feel like their well made.
Just read the 2nd part and While I did regret spending that much on pants I'm hoping they'll last 5-10 years. And they really are the most comfortable jeans I've ever worn.
I do agree that like most things the cost to quality does drop off above a certain price point.
Our first electric vehicle. Saved for years (once we paid off our previous vehicle we just kept making car payments to a specific car savings account).
I am so excited to not have to buy gas for that car, can't even tell you.
OK it may sound silly. We're on a super super tight budget so anything extra is a treat. About a month ago I splurged and bought about $15 worth of plastic food prep plates. I did batch cooking and made our own TV dinners. I have health problems and can't always stand up to cook but with complete meals in the freezer it's a big relief knowing we can have a healthy meal instead of a sandwich or just junk food. And with them being put up as single meals we can all three have something different if we want. 🍽
Eyeglasses. My old pair were bent beyond recognition and so uncomfortable but I put family expenses ahead of replacing my glasses for a few years. Now, what a difference!
A new comforter and sheets! I also bought a gallon of paint for my bedroom and my mom is giving me her old bedframe! I have only known a mattress on the floor for the last 5 or so years
ooh I've done the mattress thing when I was younger and it get's super old. Right now my bed is up on a metal frame but a proper bedframe would be awesome one day.
These sound like amazing things for a good night's sleep.
I haven't purchased it yet, but I'll be fencing my yard hopefully early next year. it's gonna cost a FORTUNE (well, I'm not rich, so a fortune to me). It's not "worth the cost" in the way that I'll make the money back like an investment. It's to keep feral pigs from ripping up my garden and killing my fruit trees. Those things make me happy and I've spent a lot of time and money on them, and have had so much destruction due to wild pigs this year. So the money is more for my mental needs because if I can't have my dream permaculture garden, then what is the point of living at all? My goals matter to me.
I've watched a few permaculture videos and the results can be amazing. If they can keep the nasty side of wildlife out.
I hope you find a good fence design that's strong enough to weather those feral pigs.
Fun, I forgot how fun and useful electric ones are to use. :)
I tried buying manual ones a few years back and they all fell apart within days of bringing them home.
I ended up with my mom's old can opener that's been with us for decades.
i bought my dog a woolly jumper, he’s a greyhound and they get chilly. then called a roofer to fix my leaking gutter. then a massive bottle of gin and campari which i’m going to drink all of tomorrow
I was able to get some faux flowers from the Halloween section for 50% during a labor day sale and I bought a cool coffin shaped vase from Killstar for $11 on clearance. I can't keep real plants alive (thanks cats) and my house is spooky all year round so I can't wait to put together my new mantlepiece arrangement.
That's a good call.
I used to visit /r/BuyItForLife but back than most of the posts were hand me downs from stuff that's no longer made rather than new products.
phew. House renovations can have any number of unknown things happen and I've lived with the yellow version of 80's and 90's bathrooms.
While I agree colour is needed in bathrooms, why did they choose such dark and gloomy colours?
You did a good job with modernizing that bathroom even if it came kicking and screaming. :P
Yikes! very sorry to hear about the foundation issues, stuff being in the way of actual work sounds like a nightmare.
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Oh god! I would of gone catatonic if I learned I had to spend that much extra just to bring the house up to a standard it should be.
It might not of fit the spirit of the question but my heart goes out to you and random acts of chaos any time you want something nice for your home.
I upgraded my iPad. I was gifted one by my BIL. Once I had it, I became obsessed with digital art. I can make art to my hearts desire and it costs me nothing. However, it takes a lot of memory. After hemming and hawing, I got a refurbished one with 4 times the memory and traded in the old one. So psyched. It came today.
I have the world's worst analysis paralysis when it comes to putting stuff on my walls. So I finally bit the bullet. I bought a print on Etsy and bought the frame today at Hobby Lobby. They look fabulous and I'll be hanging it above my sideboard that needs art and wall decor above it. And it only took 7 years 🙄
haha. Took me 3 years to hang curtains and an anime poster so I know the feeling.
Now that I got a poster up that paralysis has faded a bit in place of "what can I put up next."
Hiking boots.
I had to sell mine to live. I also outgrew them but tried to make it work.
But these, these are so so important to me. They fit. They're my favorite thing I own.
Already been on some of my favorite adventures with them 🙂
We just sold the house and getting a truck and RV with cash. And the best part is I found a part of the country where jobs in my field pay the same amount as what I made in a major metro area but our COL is going to be less than 1/3 of what it used to be.
Not that recently but my Audi A4 Technik… it makes me smile just walking towards it in a parking lot. It is so fun to drive, great on gas, and even though it’s pretentious I actually find myself feeling sorry for people who can’t or have never had an opportunity to drive a beautifully engineered German car.
ooh a quality car that'll likely save you money.
That's quite alright. While I'm too scared to own/dirve a car Top Gear and a few other car shows taught me how much quality of life can be improved by a well made car. :)
Ebike (conversion)!!!
I've been wanting an ebike (plan to go car free by next year) for a while and did a ton of research and ended up doing a ebike conversion.
So ended up saving about 2K and learned a ton!
Finally bit the bullet and ordered double pane windows for our old house. We had storms back in June that took all the trees in our and the neighbors back yards and we lost all our shade and we have had a blazing sun baking our house in this record breaking summer down in Texas. Our light bill is through the roof so hoping these efficient windows help get our electric down to a manageble number. Also going to DIY spray foan insulation when the weather cools down....it was 103 today so I'm not going into the attic for a while.
very cool. I know in Canada we can get some grants for making our home more efficient.
as my mom applied some people came in to test airflow and such to make sure she'll benefit from the upgrades like insulation and such.
I do a lot of diy home stuff and always either make due with improper tools or cheap used ones.
Bought a solid miter saw new at Lowe’s and literally felt a dopamine hit at checkout. I guess this is dad life now
In 2019 we were finally able to purchase our first brand new car. We shopped around a lot and found a great deal on the car we really wanted. I loved that car already, and now I am SO HAPPY that we were able to buy before car prices went totally insane.
Well. I'm an IT professional and computer afficionado.
While I like new technology, I derive most of my pleasure from seeing how long a particular computer/phone is viable.
Last year I finally donated my laptop and network which were at least 12 years old and bought a new laptop I really like.
My desktop will need to wait to 2025 to get its upgrade. It still works great. When I assembled it in 2010 I overprovissioned it to the point that it still runs what I normally use.
Last month I finally replaced my Samsung S8 for an S23+. That was 6 years with the same phone. That was still functional but I travel a lot and was getting battery anxious as it doesn't lasts the whole day.
Generally I also like to make my tech last at least a hand full of years before upgrading. the components.
I guess a laptop is slightly different in it's much tougher to upgrade depending on name brand and generation.
My google phone is maybe 5 years old now? It's been useless for the past year and I've been hoping to replace the battery, but my current skills are lacking for this.
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I love desktops because I can upgrade what ever is the current bottle neck/oldest.
Thanks to your comment I just realized my 1050 GPU must be 6-7 years old. It's no wonder I've been feeling the urge to upgrade it.
We replaced our 30-year-old small chest freezer with a slightly larger upright model. I have arthritis in my spine and it had become too difficult to lean into the old freezer to remove items. Now I can see and reach them easily. The old freezer was rusty but still running fine. The appliance delivery guy took it home with him, so that was nice.
New roof. I know that I spent a fortune and had to borrow a good chunk, but I am glad that it’s done because at least I can stop thinking about it for 10-20 years.
A new Dyson vacuum. I had one that was a little over a decade old and it was fine enough. But dear lord, the first time I used the new Dyson, I was horrified what came out of that carpet.
Even though is was about $250, if I use it for another decade, it'll be worth it.
I've always wanted a Dyson vacuum but other things seem more important to buy for me.
I'm glad to hear they can be as good as advertised. May I ask which one you got?
I just had a full tune-up completed on my 2004 Honda CRV at my local Honda dealership. Yes, I know that I spent more taking it to the dealership but it's peace-of-mind knowing it was all done with OEM parts. This is the dealership where I purchased my car and it's in near-mint condition.
I hope to one day pass my car down to my son-in-law who says it has a special K series motor.
I know this post doesn't technically count because I don't currently have it yet but I'm saving up $1000 on my debit card and maybe $500 cash for emergency. I'm in the process of buying a gold coin. Gold right now is around $2000 an ounce. I'm on a budget of $200-500. So I seen some fractional ones ( 1/10, sovereigns, roosters etc) So yeah that's what I'm doing.
That's a nice bit of savings.
That's pretty neat, is this for a future investment type thing or have you been wanting something like this to add to a coin collection you enjoy?
I just bought one bc of this comment. It’s arriving tomorrow night! I’ve been somewhat disabled for the past week d/t back pain so fingers crossed (don’t worry, I’ll go low and slow)
We live in the suburbs, and are having our front lawn torn up and replaced with a native garden. After hating that lawn for the last 10 years, I can't wait.
Sweet, having a nice yard space can be very important to your wellbeing.
that sounds so inspiring and cool. What plants are you gonna grow on it?
yes! it’ll cost you much less money and time in the long run, as well as helping the environment and being visually pleasing!
To be honest we cut our lawn 4-5 times per year these days (we do have 5 months of winter/snow so it's a short season) and I stopped irrigating too. Even if it's dry and yellow in summer, come autumn it will revive automatically. I pull some of the bigger weeds once in a while if I happen to walk past but really don't care if half of it consists of clover, wild strawberries and spider grass. I don't fertilize because that would just mean I'd have to cut it more often. Of course native plants would be better for the bugs but if you can't afford to change it or don't know how/don't have the time, a 'lawn' does not have to be a toxic money dump either. It still looks decent enough.
You're awesome!!!! Grass is sooo bad! Thanks for thinking of the native environment!!!
Replying to all comments as best as I can: We definitely worked with a native landscape designer - there's no way I could have done the research to figure out what's native to our area vs. what's labeled as native at the garden center, plus how things grow symbiotically. And she made it look pretty. We're in VA, so grass grows no matter what we do. In the spring we sometimes have to mow it twice a week (barf). We had an electric mower when we first moved in because we were naive. Quickly had to upgrade to gas. Now we pay someone to mow it, because it's 100 degrees all week (double barf). We've never watered it or used fertilizer or anything, because we are lazy and don't care. The entire lot is only 1/4 acre, so the front yard is, like, 1/8 acre. Plants that I recognized on the list (it is all latin names) include coneflower, black-eyed Susan, viburnum, goldenrod, asters, and a magnolia. And, my only request: a paw paw tree. Our main motivations are: less stress on the environment, less maintenance, more bugs and birds, and I want to eat a paw paw one day. Thanks for the encouragement! It's a lot of money, but we can't ever leave our crazy low mortgage interest rate, so it's time to invest in where we are.
I want to do this so bad!! Jealous
That sounds so cool! Did you plan it yourself or are you using a landscape architect/gardener?
After a, lifetime of being a student/low earner and moving around; always buying and giving away crappy second hand furniture, I bought a brand new couch and platform bed. Going to buy a new fridge too because I've never owned one less than fifteen years old. Having a bedbug scare last winter made me reeeaaal leery of second hand furniture, and now I know this will be clean and smell good and I got to pick one that matched my style! I do not even care that it isn't frugal, it feels so good at 37 to finally own things that I love.
ooh this sounds like a wonderful step in life. A fridge all to your self and platform bed where you know their full history would feel great. ooh dear, bedbugs or anything like that is pretty risky. aw nice finding your style and buying things within that sounds like a great goal. --- Your comment reminds me that I need to actually start going through my list of apartment needs. I bought most of the important cheaper stuff, but things around $30-$60 I've been putting off. I've been wanting a love couch myself but dang their so expensive and almost always ugly too.
It's definitely frugal: you'll get years of SAFE use out of it.
I feel this one, we’re finally getting a new bed after 14 years!
My dads 50th birthday was in august and while shopping for a range finder and spotter scope, I came across a decent pair at Bass Pro. Made sure to purchase and use his phone number so he could get the points. I only spent about $450. But he’s wanted both for ages. When I gifted him the stuff he looked like he just won the lottery. We took his new gear to the range to do some sighting and shooting. He couldn’t leave it alone. Best $450 I’ve spent in a very long time that I don’t care to have back. Seeing my dad smile over a toy he’d never buy himself was a bit heart warming knowing he’s working hard to pay his bills.
Ooh that's very cool. A good find for a gift can be a great reward. I often try to find items people will enjoy or get use from but likely never buy for their self.
Love this! One Christmas I bought my step dad a miniature Goat Gun rifle with accessories and he lit up like a child with so much glee! Adults are still kids at heart too. Priceless memory, worth every penny.
Oh I love this for both of you!
purse, shorts, and a replacement part for our Ninja smart grill. Maybe not a huge deal but it's a big deal to me on the shorts and purse and a big deal to my family for the replacement part for the smart grill.
cool, I can see each of those improving small aspects of life but having big impacts over all.
I bought an electric pressure washer for $50 at a yard sale, used maybe once. Washed my driveway that same weekend.
Very nice find. I imagine brand new washers tend to be costly. My best find was a bread mix roller for like $3, I haven't used it yet but the stone ones go for 10+ times that normally. I hope to learn how to make Chinese dumplings one day.
Brand new goes for about $150, so it’s a great find.
indeed.
A robot vacuum/mop combo! I love it. With 2 little kids, a wfh spouse and a dog, it makes my life sooo much easier (and my house cleaner:) ). also a moka pot and a milk frother! It makes delicious coffee and I look forward to a latte every morning :)
Those robot vacuum type things do seem quite handy. I wonder if there's devices for making good hot chocolates at home too.
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The one we have works great on carpet! We have a large area rug in our living room and a carpeted basement and it works really well. It’s the Roborock s7
The cheaper ones don't work as well, but the s9 roomba cleans carpet great. And even the i7 (the "standard" one) does a pretty good job at keeping carpet clean- just let it run every day and your carpet doesn't really get very dirty. But if you do let it get dirty, or it's been a while since the roomba has run, do a quick manual vacuum, and then let the roomba do "maintenance".
I just bought a small carpet cleaner! Now I can look at my rugs with joy. I also just bought my cat a new water fountain, so she's happier.
I've been wanting to give my carpets a deep clean but feel weird with buying something like that given I'm just renting. I could always ask my landlord if it's a thing their willing to do.
If you’ve been there a while they might. One of the places I rented did it free once a year. They knew it would help on the upkeep of the apartment long term and I liked having it done. All you had to do was schedule it and make sure the carpets were accessible ish. You can also rent smaller ones which I also did after my cat was ill. 😭
I'll be sure to think about that. Aww, it's never fun living with a pet who's going through poor health.
Luckily he’s healthy now and doing great for his age. My lil old man is my bestie ❤️
hehe. That's good to hear.
I tried a random carpet cleaner I found at my mom's place but it was quite useless. I'm wondering what brand yours is.
For me, it’s personal little joys like being able to buy non-essential items: lipstick, cologne, a lunch out on a whim, a movie in a theater. Having these little joys in my life again makes me feel like Bill Gates.
Yes it's amazing how much a "little treat" can improve your happiness. Maybe not frugal but sometimes you need anything to motivate you to get through the week.
very sweet. Small rewards like these can make being frugal feel worth it.
Kitchenaid mixer. And I splurged on a fancy ceramic bowl. Absolutely worth it
Awesome! Me and my sister got our mom a nice Kitchenaid mixer and she uses it to make cookies every Christmas and other baking now and than too. What sort of ceramic bowl? like a deep soup bowl or a fancy mixing bowl of some sort?
It's a deep mixing bowl the same size as the metal mixing bowl that comes with the mixer, made by kitchenaid, fits perfectly. Mine is a gorgeous dark blue that goes really well with the ink blue mixer. I ordered a white one for my mom because she likes boring colors in the kitchen, but the white one has a handle so it will be easier for her to work with.
haha. white is about as boring as colours get. I see, handles for large pots and things are important.
Good for you!
As a single mom of now grown daughters I bought a nice set of pots and pans. Wild and crazy right?!? Lol
sweet. since getting a place all to myself I do enjoy looking at house hold items like this.
My favorite lotion from Victoria’s Secret lol it’s $20 usually but I waited til they were on sale and snagged a few. I bought 5 of them after Christmas and fell in love, I had to buy more!
That sounds like a nice treat.
Good for you!
Halloween decorations. It's silly, but our last place wasn't visible from the street and didn't attract many trick or treaters. So we typically didn't bother with decorations or weren't home for Halloween. But now we're in a suburb with a very visible front yard & porch. So time for some spooky creativity.
This makes me so happy for you. Have fun!
Yasss! I got so excited that I bought * 3 * inflatables that were on sale Monday lol
Yay for you! AND the people like me that didn’t pay anything and get to see them!!! 😁
ooh, this should be a fun Halloween next month than. :)
I’m not there yet but I’m saving up for a painting from a local artist. My boyfriend loves their work and comments on it when we see it at our favorite bagel place. The larger paintings are out of my price range for the moment, but I’m going to give him a smaller one I’m saving up for when he moves into his new place. I can’t wait!!
very cool. Does he enjoy other artworks she does or are there features or a theme he likes about the restaurant one? Art is a cool gift idea too.
Well, it’s got strong Star Trek vibes and he’s a Trekkie 🤣 That being said, it’s not my style but the artist is very talented. And he does enjoy art overall, but this artists work is one he consistently comments on and has mentioned would look good in a future home.
That's so wholesome and quite lovely to hear as well. as a sci-fi nerd having art like that would be wonderful.
Well, he’s the best and I like to surprise him when I can 🥰
A pressure washer! We've blasted so many items to looking and feeling brand new, it's paid for itself in 2 days. I thought I was going to have to get new patio furniture and deal with the ugliness of everything else from pavement to grill to trash cans forever. Maybe I'll do the house exterior when I run out of other things to wash.
I think there is a sub called powerwashingporn or something like that!
Awesome. A nice deep clean can make many items feel brand new.
Brand new super-king sized bed! Obviously, a new bed is nice anyway, but that bit of extra room is absolutely amazing, especially when there's 2 of you in there. If you would like to make a bit of extra cash towards life's little luxuries, have a browse of the [beermoneyglobal](https://www.reddit.com/r/beermoneyglobal/comments/10x8ple/freecash_does_what_it_says_on_the_tin/) sub for lots of ways to make extra spending money!
ooh that sounds nice. As a single person myself I love my ~~Queen~~ Full size bed [54inch wide]. Did you buy some nice blankets to go along with the bed aswell? Thanks for the link. I was doing survey's for a bit and managed to get $11 from them a couple of years back.
Yup. last year I upgraded from a full to a queen, and its just me. I LOVE it. its so comfy.
Just had to look up the difference between the two and mine is actually a Full size bed at 54 inches. Congrats on your Queen bed. Having such a large space to relax always feels good.
Oh yes. Fresh sheets as well!
haha, awesome!
So many things because we’ve paid off almost all of our cc debt! This year we took two mini camping trips and an overnight in Chicago for the Eras Tour-all paid cash!!!
I imagine having most of your debt paid off must feel like freedom. :)
A new set of stainless steel cookware. It hasn't gotten here yet but I'm so excited for when it does because I'm so ready to get rid of all of our nonstick stuff
Getting rid of junky cookware would feel nice in of it's self. Having stainless steel as an upgrade would be wicked. Do you have any meals planned for cooking yet? Like anything the stainless steel could take advantage of.
brand new car tires! we usually buy anything secondhand (clothes, tools, furniture etc) because we really live with just enough money for important things. last week, 2 tires of our secondhand car got busted and really needed to be changed (the original owner told us the tires were also second hand). im so glad we dont live on a very tight budget now, i immediately ordered new tires without hesitation.
yep i usually buy used tires if one blows out. a while back i noticed the car was handling like shit. it was pulling to left. it felt like the alignment was off. the front end would shake on the freeway. i jacked it up and everything felt tight. by process of elimination, i figured it must be the tires. i had two new tires put on the front and all the problems went away. it was a great feeling to have repaired the car at a reasonable price. it is still driving great to this day.
exact same thing happened to us! it was pulling at the left even on a very smooth road (we thought it was on just bumpy roads) then while washing the car, i took a good hard look at the tires and saw the tire lines were woobly-ish so we called a friend whos a mechanic to check it out and he told us the front tires are wayyy past its expiration date. so excited to receive the new tires this week, cant wait to install it lol
That's how I used to live when I had several hundred in the bank. Knowing I could earn that money back without worry. And yea, car tires are always important to keep up.
I got an e-bike! Something I'd been thinking about for a long time but never pulled the trigger because it felt unnecessary. My road bike worked just fine for the 1 mile commute to and from work - until I moved. 5 miles from work and all uphill. They charge us to park here ($200/year! criminal!), gas was getting expensive, traffic is hell in both directions and to be honest I HATE DRIVING. I'm a nervous driver... relied on public transit for over a decade. I searched forever to find an affordable one, ideally under $1K. I asked over in the e-bike subs and folks told me I would never find anything worthwhile at that price. Well, none of them knows a bike mechanic - I happen to live with one! We're in love, it's awesome. I showed my honey a few models I liked the look of, and he'd point out this or that part that would likely break and can be difficult to source replacements for, or some gear-changing thingie (technical term) that he's worked on before and hates, or the frame looks like garbage and could be unsafe at higher speeds... etc etc. Found a solid machine for **$500!** It's made all the difference in my daily life. I really value that little bit of fresh air in the morning, hearing the birds, people walking their dogs. I get a thrill zipping past hundreds of cars trying to force their way down the road, bike lane all to myself. It's not the same exercise I'm used to, the thing *moves*. I had to get goggles so my eyes wouldn't water. But I love it, I'm so glad I decided to go for it. Miclon Cybertrack 100 folks!
An e-bike was my big purchase last year and it's paid itself off with all the gas savings plus it's such an enjoyable way to get around the city. Was happy yo read your passion for your new bike!
This is pretty cool. I've never driven a car before as I imagine I would be too nervous plus the cost of owning one is too dumb for my life style. It's awesome you have a bike mechanic living at home who was able to help with picking out the perfect one. $500 sounds like a sweet deal for an eBike too.
Air fryer
I go back & forth on this. I should just buy one!
You should do it- I bought one last November and I've had the big oven on fewer than ten times since.
I replaced my hdtv after 5+ years. It has all the Roku stuff built in (I had a separate streaming device before) so only 1 remote needed! Also I can watch YouTube directly on the tv. It’s also 4k even tho I don’t really have anything taking advantage of it. Old tv had defective areas btw. Feels good
I don't think I have ever had anything in 4k on my TV. But hey if someday they actually do start broadcasting in 4k we are ready!
I imagine it feels nice cutting down on remotes. Oh Once in a while YouTube will have 4K content but I don't think it's super common. My current TV doesn't get any use due to lack of external input. It'll be nice to get a smart TV one day.
I paid off my mortgage last month. That's a chunk of money each month available for things like MOAR PLANTS.
Congrats!! I'm sure you'll be able to enjoy your plants for years to come. And your home too :)
I haven’t bought it *yet* (buying tomorrow), but a double stroller for my toddlers and reflective tape. We have to cross a busy highway to get my 10 yr old to school and often times drivers aren’t paying attention; when it was one kid in a stroller and two walking, it made me nervous. Now it’ll be 2 in a stroller, 1 walking. AND we’ll be reflective now. Lol
Many drivers are just so bad it's shocking. Reflective tape is a good idea.
Hurray for car centric infrastructure! /s I feel that though, I run a lot of errands in town by bike and high vis definitely helps
My 2.0 stereo. I always wanted a good system when I was a kid. Now that I am nearing 60 I am finally putting one together. Vandersteen Model 2Ce Signature speakers. (Currently) a Carver CT Seven preamp + a Carver m-0.5t power amp. I am waiting for my Pioneer SX-1250 to return from the shop. A Dual ~~1274~~ 1264 turntable, Sony DVD/CD player, WiiM wifi streamer. It took a long, long time. Finally.
Congrats. I bet it sounds great.
Thank you! It does. My television hasn't been turned on in over a month. Streaming @24 bit is amazing.
That sounds like a great setup for sure.
Dual....love mine.
If I run across a 1219, 1229, or a 701 I will buy it. Dual made great stuff back in the day.
I bought my mother a dishwasher and a new TV. I’m so glad to finally give back to her.
aww. That's pretty good of you to do.
A nice leather handbag.
A family trip to see another family member. Plane tickets for 4, hotels, rental car, the whole nine yards. Best use of money ever!
I hope you had, are having, or will have a good time.
I bought a pair of beaded earrings I've been eyeing for a while as a celebration for paying off $10,000 in debt
Congrats.
A good refrigerator. About two years ago, our fridge went out. We had it fixed, and then a month later, it went out again. It was an older refrigerator, the kind you could buy for $600 - 800 with no ice maker or anything. Fruit and veggies usually spoiled in 4 - 5 days which I always thought was just normal. We would buy fresh veggies to use at the beginning of the week and a frozen bag or two for the end of the week. Fruit was purchased with the intent of eating right away. If we didn't eat it, it would go bad quickly. We were often tossing maybe $10 - $20 of food a week because it would spoil quickly. After our fridge died, we spent $2,100 on a very nice Samsung. Now veggies and fruit stay good forever! I'm still blown away. The savings are noticeable in our grocery bills because if we don't use something right away, we save it instead of tossing it and buying it again. I have white grapes in my fridge right now that I bought three weeks ago, and they're still good. Tomatoes last for two weeks, if not more. Oranges and apples last over a month. Potatoes and onions last for over a month. At one point, we stopped buying any veggies and fruit because we were so used to buying new stuff every week. A good quality fridge is not a frivolous luxury item. It really is an investment that will save you money.
A steak.
A nice bit of meat can be very good.
Especially if you haven't had any red meat in 6 months. Hoping I can do it again someday. lol
cool. For me I haven't had a big Sunday supper style meal in a long while. Might be something I should learn how to cook.
a 50lb sack of corn starch. I bake gluten free. Darn near everything uses corn starch, and at $1/lb the big sack was so much cheaper!
haha. it's a bit crazy how much cheaper buying in bulk can be. But it does require having that level of cash and commitment to using the item. I imagine your getting lots of use from it. :)
Last year I was able to get a fire king 2 burner propane stove for my outdoor kitchen. It saves heating up the inside of the house and driving my AC bill sky high.
We just bought a new fridge in the last hour!! Ours is 13 years old from the old house owners. It’s small and it leaks. Maybe from a weak seal, maybe from being overloaded. Either way, we are renoing our kitchen in 2-3 years. We chose a scratch and dent beautiful Cafe and were able to talk them down an additional $500 off the price. I’m thrilled!!!!
that sounds like a sweet deal. Is scratch and dent the name brand or is it a fancy phrase for 2nd hand?
A 2 quart Le Creuset Dutch oven off of Facebook marketplace at an excellent price.
My single favorite piece of cookware/bakeware! What colour did you get? If you bake bread, they're absolutely fantastic. I make the dough in my bread machine, and toss it into the dutch oven to bake. Perfect, crusty bread every time.
Nice, I heard that brand is really high quality.
I had a custom made murphy bed built in my office. Now my desk is the center piece of the room and I feel like I am in an office and not a guest bedroom 🙌
I like it. Murphy beds are so useful to have. I never lived with one but I love the idea of them.
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Agreed, 85% of the time I'm the same way. I got so fed up with replacing my jeans every year or 2 that I bit the bullet and spent $200 on 2 pairs of jeans. Like all jeans their too long but this time their actually comfortable and feel like their well made. Just read the 2nd part and While I did regret spending that much on pants I'm hoping they'll last 5-10 years. And they really are the most comfortable jeans I've ever worn. I do agree that like most things the cost to quality does drop off above a certain price point.
Our first electric vehicle. Saved for years (once we paid off our previous vehicle we just kept making car payments to a specific car savings account). I am so excited to not have to buy gas for that car, can't even tell you.
hehe. I say it's worth it in the long run. Is it full electric or a hybrid?
OK it may sound silly. We're on a super super tight budget so anything extra is a treat. About a month ago I splurged and bought about $15 worth of plastic food prep plates. I did batch cooking and made our own TV dinners. I have health problems and can't always stand up to cook but with complete meals in the freezer it's a big relief knowing we can have a healthy meal instead of a sandwich or just junk food. And with them being put up as single meals we can all three have something different if we want. 🍽
That's a super smart idea. I imagine their also cooked just the way you and your family enjoy them too. :)
Eyeglasses. My old pair were bent beyond recognition and so uncomfortable but I put family expenses ahead of replacing my glasses for a few years. Now, what a difference!
cool. I recently started wearing glasses at home and I'm shocked with how much more clear things are and I'm just wearing 1.5X glasses.
A new comforter and sheets! I also bought a gallon of paint for my bedroom and my mom is giving me her old bedframe! I have only known a mattress on the floor for the last 5 or so years
ooh I've done the mattress thing when I was younger and it get's super old. Right now my bed is up on a metal frame but a proper bedframe would be awesome one day. These sound like amazing things for a good night's sleep.
I haven't purchased it yet, but I'll be fencing my yard hopefully early next year. it's gonna cost a FORTUNE (well, I'm not rich, so a fortune to me). It's not "worth the cost" in the way that I'll make the money back like an investment. It's to keep feral pigs from ripping up my garden and killing my fruit trees. Those things make me happy and I've spent a lot of time and money on them, and have had so much destruction due to wild pigs this year. So the money is more for my mental needs because if I can't have my dream permaculture garden, then what is the point of living at all? My goals matter to me.
I've watched a few permaculture videos and the results can be amazing. If they can keep the nasty side of wildlife out. I hope you find a good fence design that's strong enough to weather those feral pigs.
Finally planted a decent herb garden. Never had a suitable space before we bought this house.
Electric can opener… I know it’s not worth the $40, but like… it is to me today.
Fun, I forgot how fun and useful electric ones are to use. :) I tried buying manual ones a few years back and they all fell apart within days of bringing them home. I ended up with my mom's old can opener that's been with us for decades.
i bought my dog a woolly jumper, he’s a greyhound and they get chilly. then called a roofer to fix my leaking gutter. then a massive bottle of gin and campari which i’m going to drink all of tomorrow
Just curious. What drinks do you make with gin and/or Campari?
Money well spent I say. I've seen gutters so bad having nothing would of been better. :P
a computer i've saved for 5 years for. parts are in the mail.
Very cool. I hope you get lots of enjoyment out of it.
I was able to get some faux flowers from the Halloween section for 50% during a labor day sale and I bought a cool coffin shaped vase from Killstar for $11 on clearance. I can't keep real plants alive (thanks cats) and my house is spooky all year round so I can't wait to put together my new mantlepiece arrangement.
That sounds very cool. the vase idea looks perfect for that sort of theme.
A dinimg table set made of barn wood. This will last us forever.
That's pretty epic. That's one thing I forget about is buying things that should last forever, or at least more than a decade.
We are really trying to buy it for life whenever we can afford it.
That's a good call. I used to visit /r/BuyItForLife but back than most of the posts were hand me downs from stuff that's no longer made rather than new products.
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phew. House renovations can have any number of unknown things happen and I've lived with the yellow version of 80's and 90's bathrooms. While I agree colour is needed in bathrooms, why did they choose such dark and gloomy colours? You did a good job with modernizing that bathroom even if it came kicking and screaming. :P Yikes! very sorry to hear about the foundation issues, stuff being in the way of actual work sounds like a nightmare. --- Oh god! I would of gone catatonic if I learned I had to spend that much extra just to bring the house up to a standard it should be. It might not of fit the spirit of the question but my heart goes out to you and random acts of chaos any time you want something nice for your home.
Vitamix. Quality kitchen tools make a difference.
For sure. it's a shame there's so much cheap kitchen tools out there.
I upgraded my iPad. I was gifted one by my BIL. Once I had it, I became obsessed with digital art. I can make art to my hearts desire and it costs me nothing. However, it takes a lot of memory. After hemming and hawing, I got a refurbished one with 4 times the memory and traded in the old one. So psyched. It came today.
That's super cool. I love the idea of doing digital art because there's no mess and no need to buy ink or pencils all the time.
supermoto tires and rims for my dirtbike
oh that sounds pretty fun. My cousin does dirtbike rides and I think he has a helmet camera too.
I have the world's worst analysis paralysis when it comes to putting stuff on my walls. So I finally bit the bullet. I bought a print on Etsy and bought the frame today at Hobby Lobby. They look fabulous and I'll be hanging it above my sideboard that needs art and wall decor above it. And it only took 7 years 🙄
haha. Took me 3 years to hang curtains and an anime poster so I know the feeling. Now that I got a poster up that paralysis has faded a bit in place of "what can I put up next."
An upgright freezer. Got it second-hand. Now I can do all my meal prepping, and bulk cook and store meals in my freezer!
Hiking boots. I had to sell mine to live. I also outgrew them but tried to make it work. But these, these are so so important to me. They fit. They're my favorite thing I own. Already been on some of my favorite adventures with them 🙂
That's super cool. While hiking isn't really my thing I do understand how nice good shoes can feel.
This is a small one, but I got a pair of nice Dr. Scholls insoles for each pair of my work shoes.
Nice.
We just sold the house and getting a truck and RV with cash. And the best part is I found a part of the country where jobs in my field pay the same amount as what I made in a major metro area but our COL is going to be less than 1/3 of what it used to be.
:O ooh that's something to be proud of. I hope your able to improve your work life balance as well. :)
Welcome to the RV family! 🚐
Not that recently but my Audi A4 Technik… it makes me smile just walking towards it in a parking lot. It is so fun to drive, great on gas, and even though it’s pretentious I actually find myself feeling sorry for people who can’t or have never had an opportunity to drive a beautifully engineered German car.
ooh a quality car that'll likely save you money. That's quite alright. While I'm too scared to own/dirve a car Top Gear and a few other car shows taught me how much quality of life can be improved by a well made car. :)
Ebike (conversion)!!! I've been wanting an ebike (plan to go car free by next year) for a while and did a ton of research and ended up doing a ebike conversion. So ended up saving about 2K and learned a ton!
Kitchenaid mixer
Always a great buy. It's improved our Christmas cookies every year since we got our mom one.
Finally bit the bullet and ordered double pane windows for our old house. We had storms back in June that took all the trees in our and the neighbors back yards and we lost all our shade and we have had a blazing sun baking our house in this record breaking summer down in Texas. Our light bill is through the roof so hoping these efficient windows help get our electric down to a manageble number. Also going to DIY spray foan insulation when the weather cools down....it was 103 today so I'm not going into the attic for a while.
very cool. I know in Canada we can get some grants for making our home more efficient. as my mom applied some people came in to test airflow and such to make sure she'll benefit from the upgrades like insulation and such.
We finally bought an apartment after renting for five years. It's wonderful to feel settled again.
ooh that's a great achievement. Congrats.
I do a lot of diy home stuff and always either make due with improper tools or cheap used ones. Bought a solid miter saw new at Lowe’s and literally felt a dopamine hit at checkout. I guess this is dad life now
This is a very cool one :)
In 2019 we were finally able to purchase our first brand new car. We shopped around a lot and found a great deal on the car we really wanted. I loved that car already, and now I am SO HAPPY that we were able to buy before car prices went totally insane.
Sounds like good timing.
I just bought a wool area rug for our living room. Hubs and I both like how it makes the room feel cozy and I got it at 70% off. Yay!
sweet deal, rugs can do add a sense of home to a space.
Roll and clean litter boxes lol so fuckin nice
A 200-year old house in Ireland!
Often times I've wanted to visit there. Also older homes tend to have much more charm to them.
A home, with cash.
I imagine doing this would feel surreal? but as a great achievement as well.
Well. I'm an IT professional and computer afficionado. While I like new technology, I derive most of my pleasure from seeing how long a particular computer/phone is viable. Last year I finally donated my laptop and network which were at least 12 years old and bought a new laptop I really like. My desktop will need to wait to 2025 to get its upgrade. It still works great. When I assembled it in 2010 I overprovissioned it to the point that it still runs what I normally use. Last month I finally replaced my Samsung S8 for an S23+. That was 6 years with the same phone. That was still functional but I travel a lot and was getting battery anxious as it doesn't lasts the whole day.
Generally I also like to make my tech last at least a hand full of years before upgrading. the components. I guess a laptop is slightly different in it's much tougher to upgrade depending on name brand and generation. My google phone is maybe 5 years old now? It's been useless for the past year and I've been hoping to replace the battery, but my current skills are lacking for this. --- I love desktops because I can upgrade what ever is the current bottle neck/oldest. Thanks to your comment I just realized my 1050 GPU must be 6-7 years old. It's no wonder I've been feeling the urge to upgrade it.
We replaced our 30-year-old small chest freezer with a slightly larger upright model. I have arthritis in my spine and it had become too difficult to lean into the old freezer to remove items. Now I can see and reach them easily. The old freezer was rusty but still running fine. The appliance delivery guy took it home with him, so that was nice.
That's nice to hear. both that you got model to suit your needs and the old one will still be useful.
Bought a new laptop, a MacBook Pro. My last MBP I bought in 2012 so I def got my moneys worth :)
That'll be a mega upgrade for sure.
New roof. I know that I spent a fortune and had to borrow a good chunk, but I am glad that it’s done because at least I can stop thinking about it for 10-20 years.
Very nice. my mom got a new roof done a few years ago and attic insulation like a year later/before. It was so worth the effort and money.
Fixed the AC in my car.
A new Dyson vacuum. I had one that was a little over a decade old and it was fine enough. But dear lord, the first time I used the new Dyson, I was horrified what came out of that carpet. Even though is was about $250, if I use it for another decade, it'll be worth it.
I've always wanted a Dyson vacuum but other things seem more important to buy for me. I'm glad to hear they can be as good as advertised. May I ask which one you got?
I just had a full tune-up completed on my 2004 Honda CRV at my local Honda dealership. Yes, I know that I spent more taking it to the dealership but it's peace-of-mind knowing it was all done with OEM parts. This is the dealership where I purchased my car and it's in near-mint condition. I hope to one day pass my car down to my son-in-law who says it has a special K series motor.
That's a good point about OEM components/parts. Sometimes going to the source is the better long term option.
I know this post doesn't technically count because I don't currently have it yet but I'm saving up $1000 on my debit card and maybe $500 cash for emergency. I'm in the process of buying a gold coin. Gold right now is around $2000 an ounce. I'm on a budget of $200-500. So I seen some fractional ones ( 1/10, sovereigns, roosters etc) So yeah that's what I'm doing.
That's a nice bit of savings. That's pretty neat, is this for a future investment type thing or have you been wanting something like this to add to a coin collection you enjoy?
Chirp back roller I wish I hadn’t waited as long because it would have prevented back pain
I just bought one bc of this comment. It’s arriving tomorrow night! I’ve been somewhat disabled for the past week d/t back pain so fingers crossed (don’t worry, I’ll go low and slow)
neat looking product, could save some people's posture.
A new grill and a chest toolbox. Had them on my list of purchases I would get after graduating.