How much money would you spend?
sushipup1
7 years ago
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palimpsest
7 years agopalimpsest
7 years agoRelated Discussions
How much are you, or did you spend on Host gifts?
Comments (5)Posted by sweet_pea10 (My Page) on Sun, May 3, 09 at 15:16 "In the U.S. we don't usually have that many party hosts. Generally, a simple gift that fits the personality and tastes of each host is given, such as a plant, bottle of wine, etc. " sweet_pea10 - We also live in the U.S. and in our area, it is very common to have multiple parties given to the bride and groom. This one party has 15 couples giving the party. We have one shower given by 4 ladies, and one couples shower given by three couples. We also have the 3 relatives that will host the bridal brunch. ----------------------------------------------------------- gellchom - The $50 gift certificate was very generous! As host in the past, we have received: Basket of mums Silver coffee scoop (I use in my sugar canister and love it!) Silver ice scoop Monogrammed linen hand towels Monogrammed soaps Monogrammed napkins Flowered bud vase Candle snuffer Set of paper products Two other parties were given, but I cannot for the life of me remember what the hostess gifts were. They must not have been very memorable, or nothing was given - wish is fine. LOL As you can see from the above list, I am stumped to give something new and different. The gifts came from the same group of friends, so I cannot copy the ideas (other than the napkins - which are always a welcomed gift - if you entertain a lot.)...See MoreOT: How do you make a decision to spend a lot of money?
Comments (19)I can't spare you some of the agonizing, but it might help you to separate out one type of concern from another and so maybe whittle down to the real priorities. Since it sounds like you are buying the piano to really play it, and you have the ability to detect differences in pianos and what you like and don't, I would first focus on that--the piano you would most like to play ( that fits in your house, of course!). Holding value (monetary value) has some importance but maybe less for pianos than for cars, say, since most people go through several cars for themselves, kids, etc. and get future benefits from a good trade-in. You might not end up buying the piano that you most love to play if it in fact is so expensive it would hurt your finances in some way. Everyone has some price that is too high--though the number of OO's might vary a lot! Or you might determine that you simply don't VALUE the very best piano. I bought a guitar a while back and I knew I did not need or want the "best" guitar and did not need to impress anybody with how cool my guitar was. Also I am a beginner and knew I might not become a real expert. I did buy a better guitar than I expected, and maybe I should have bought one much cheaper until I learned more, but the price was okay for my finances so I made a "match". If I were actually a good guitar player, I would not hesitate to buy a much better one than I did but again, I think the focus would be on what played the best, felt the best, that I myself got the best sound from, and that might be different for me than for another musician. I am sure that must be true of pianos to some extent. So if there is one single piano you keep going back to because you love how it sounds/plays and you "can" afford it, buy that one. If there are a couple that are sort of equally good but in different ways--and I mean in terms of musical quality, not prestige or later value ( I had that dilemma with guitars) , that is where I would get some feedback from another musician/piano expert. The car price comparison is fine as long as you look at in the right way--you don't value European sedans (neither do I) so you drive something cheaper and buy pianos. For other people it is the opposite and that is perfectly fine. You might enjoy reading some things by Amy Dacyzn (The Tightwad Gazette). She is or has been an extreme saver and re-user and most people would not want to do as much of that as she does. But that was not her main point or her greatest strength. Her mantra was, save on everything that you can that really has no value or benefit to you if you were to spend more; don't let your money just slip away on this and that. Don't buy things just because other people do if you really want something else. Decide what is really important and don't whine that you can't afford it, because it is likely that if you really focus and avoid daily spending traps you can afford a lot of really nice things--just not EVERYTHING. Her deal was empowerment to be in control of spending. Several posters above gave good examples of that. Typical examples that have been used in some budget/happiness books is a person who wistfully says they would love to take a trip to Europe,it's their heart's desire, but just can't afford it--said while sitting on their new sofa that cost $2000. So your situation is an extension of that--there are people who have your same income who actually cannot afford a major piano purchase because they have a huge mortgage and have bought cars, and furniture, and jewelry instead. Which is perfectly fine unless all they really want is a piano!...See MoreHow Much Money are you spending on Gifts
Comments (31)Well I probably spent more than I should have on a couple of things but they were things we were planning to get anyway. I bought DH a laptop computer. Our main computer is down in the basement and he is having a lot of trouble walking these days and stairs are difficult for him. It has WIFI with it so he can play with it upstairs. Our other computer is really old to today's standards so there is a bit of a learning curve to it. We also have a fortune spent in vet bills this year so I am putting a bow on his dog! We bought something nice for my sister and her husband that they wanted and have a few little things for under the tree. Since she reads this forum, I'm not saying what it is but I know she will be pleased. I just exchange Christmas cards with friends as we all have cut back since most of us are retired or have large families to support. We adopted two families for Christmas and spoiled them completely. We delivered to one family yesterday and will do the other family today. It gives us much joy to know that these families will have food to last at least a week and the kids will get the toys that they wanted under the tree. I really had quite the time searching for the one gift that a little boy wanted. In our neck of the woods Elmo wasn't anywhere to be found. I finally found one in about the 10th store I had been in at the very top shelf and he was their last one. Elmo says 60 sentences and does some really cute antics. I fell in love with him and bought extra batteries as I figure he will be played with non-stop. I know my gift already.....DH had to buy me an alternator and battery for my car. PFFFT! ;-)...See MoreHow much time do you spend researching your projects?
Comments (5)Oh, I think you'll find that most of the folks here and on some of the other forums herein like Decorating, Bathroom, yada yada, are incessant researchers as well. I think that trait is what draws us here in the first place. I don't know if budget issues increases that time commitment. I've definitely seen people buying fridges that cost more than my entire remodel doing hours of due diligence as well. Sure, we get a few folks who post and run and just want some hand-holding and then we don't see them here again. That's fine. That's what we're here for. Of course, they could be doing hours of research other places as well so that' not a sure-fire way of knowing just how much time they put in. I have analysis paralysis in most areas of my life. Changing eating habits, researching gear for hiking/biking, trails and bike routes, exercise routines, how to pack light when traveling, planning a vacation, gardening, etc. Sometimes I have to force myself to just pull the trigger and do it, whatever it is, instead of just reading about it. :)...See MoreEm11
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