6 Things Not To Bargain Shop For
We all love a good bargain. Saving money is awesome and unless you are one of the nearly 500 billionaires in the United States, it is often a necessity. As the financial adviser in my family, I try my best to get the most bang for my buck on every purchase. I check ebates to see if I can earn cashback. I use my paypal debit card to purchase nearly everything I buy because I earn 1% cashback each month, which adds up! I look for sales, coupons and discounts. I even shop the closeout stores like Big Lots and Ollie's Bargain Outlet. Who doesn't like buying stuff at a lower cost?
In all of my attempts to save money, I have discovered things you should not scrimp on. Things that are just worth the cost in the long run. I want to share these suggestions with you to help you in your attempts to save as much as you can.
I say buy something good for several good reasons. One your clothes are meant to last. Washing them in something like the brand from Dollar Tree is going to take a toll on your clothes. You can take my word for this. I bought a new pair of jeans, washed them in the cheap cheap LA Awesome (or something like that) brand exclusively. Ya know what? In 6 months time the denim was so worn and threadbare all over that I was afraid to go outdoors in them for fear they might just fall apart! I bought a new pair of jeans to replace the holy than thou pair and went back to Tide... same brand of jeans, same style. That was 5 years ago... I still have the 2nd new pair today. Secondly, your clothes should look and smell good after washing them. A cheap detergent is mostly water, it just can't do the job as well as Tide.
2. Deodorant
This should be a no brainer. Buy something good, don't try to save money here... cause no one wants to smell your attempts to save money on a hot summer day....
3. Pet Food
If you can't afford to feed a pet quality food, you shouldn't have a pet. Feeding off brands of food, such as EverPet, will lead to health issues. Pets deserve to be cared for in many ways, but their diet is vital to the overall health and well being of any pet.
I have bought cheap trash bags before and ended up picking my trash up off the lawn as the bag rips, tears or whatever on the way to the curb. No fun, not worth saving $2 in my opinion.
5. Shoes
I think buying quality footwear is important. Not only do your feet feel better in great shoes, but they are safer. When my son was about 18 months old and on the go, go, go we found a great deal on a pair of well known kids shoes. I jumped on them. Days later I realized why they were so affordable... the hard way. The sole of the shoe detached, causing my toddler to fall and he got a black eye out of it. Since that moment, no more bargain buys on shoes. Find the new air force 1 here.
6. Pillows
I am not saying you need to spend a few hundred on a great pillow, but invest in one that is going to give you a good quality of sleep. I use a Technogel pillow. I love it. I can't sleep without it, without waking up in pain or exhausted. A good pillow is an investment in your quality of life.
Do you have any items to add to this list? What do you think you should buy without bargain hunting?
Oh my goodness. I only purchased cheap trash bags once. Worst mistake ever. Then a few months ago I sent my husband to the grocery store as I was recovering from surgery and was on bed rest so couldn't do it myself. He bought store brand. Now we're dealing with broken bags all over again. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteLife is too short for generic Cheerios and soda. Since I can get Cheerios, Pepsi, and ginger ale all pretty cheap with coupons/sales anyway, it actually doesn't really cost me any more money anyway.
(visiting from Titus 2 Tuesday)
these are great tips. I agree so much. I have definitely tried cheaping out and always regret it. I get Glad trash bags on Amazon actually I get a lot of my household items on Amazon using subscribe and save.I have read too many bad stories on pets dying from cheap dog food so I spend quite a bit for a bag but at least I know it is not going make him sick.
ReplyDeleteI'm guilty of buying the $5 pillow for myself. My teenage son, on the other hand, has a $50 pillow and over a year after he got it, I JUST realized how awesome it is and I'm FINALLY ready to invest.
ReplyDeleteI've been able to find some decent detergent, but I buy it when it's on sale. It's name brand, not an off brand. I've been trying to transition to natural products. I'm willing to fork out the money for that.
Once I find a brand of deodorant that I like, I stick to it. I try to get coupons or buy on sale, but if I need it, I will pay full price.
As for trash bags, you can buy off-brand or private label, but you really have to experiment. What you put in your trash can says a lot about what will work for you. I've found some great replica trash bags for the ultra strong brand names at Aldi, Walmart and Kroger under their private labels.
For shoes, it sounds like you just got beat up by experience. When my son was younger, I bought Walmart and Payless shoes or even Target because he feet grew so fast. Now that he's 16, I do invest, but that's because his shoes generally last 6 months to a year.
I can't say that there is really anything I've developed a strong distaste for as far as bargains go. I just asked Travis and he said the same thing, though I'm sure over the next 24 hours I'll have a huge list for you!
I love this post! I'd love to hear more feedback from others.
This is such a great list and I totally agree with each one.
ReplyDeleteI usually wait until laundry detergent is on sale at Costco though to get it then so I am saving and yet getting a quality product too!
I won't skimp on my toothpaste or body wash either. Just no. Or lotion.
This is a great list! I recently started using Tide again after having stains not coming out that would have before.... plus honestly I just liked the scent better. Never really thought about how the cheap stuff would be harder on clothes too. Now I feel fine with my decision even if our budget is a bit tighter.
ReplyDelete