I can only have two of these three things. Help me choose?

[AngeloMysterioso]

DH and I have just over £300 in JL gift vouchers left over from our wedding. I also have £240 “treat money” from this year’s bonus with which to get something “for myself”. So here are my options-

Thing 1 - £229
We recently moved into a fairly small flat which has largely been furnished with hideous, chunky, black Ikea furniture - bought when DH was furnishing his bachelor flat (before I showed up). At the moment we are stuck with a dining table not dissimilar to this, with 4 matching chairs. We can’t fit all 4 chairs under the table at once and DH is using the table as his desk atm (new one due to arrive in a few weeks and it will go in our bedroom) so his office chair is in the sitting room and two of the chairs are currently in our bedroom.
One of the three things I have my eye on is this table and chairs set- it is pretty perfect for us in that it folds up nice and compactly and will look much nicer in the space than the awkward black one we have now. If I used the gift vouchers to get it we’d have roughly £80 left.

Thing 2 - £449-£675
I have wanted a Vitamix for so long. At least 7 years. I have watched the videos on YouTube more times than I’d like to admit. I have a Pinterest board full of delicious recipes I would make with one. Baby DS is also weaning at the moment and I would love to be able to make lots of lovely homemade things for him. I know there are other, cheaper blenders out there but I want one so badly!!
The Explorian is out of stock at JL atm so in order to get one of the more expensive better ones I would have to combine both gift vouchers and treat money. If I wanted the most fancy pants one I’d have to save up a bit more on top as well. DH is happy for me to get one with the gift vouchers and would probably use it too but to him any blender would do so he’s not fussed really.

Thing 3 - £240
I recently completed my first half marathon 5 months after having my first baby and have well and truly caught the running bug. I’ve been using my phone for tracking, listening to music etc but would love a proper fitness watch, and really like the look of the Garmin Vivoactive 4S. Of the three things, this is the only thing that would really be just for me is. The dining table, while being something only I really want, would be used by the whole family, the blender too but the fact that it’s a Vitamix is what makes it a treat for me.

My options are

A- get the table and the watch, spend the remaining vouchers on a shitty cheaper blender and continue to lust over a Vitamix for the rest of my days.

B- wait for the cheapest Vitamix to come back in stock, get that and the table or watch

C- combine vouchers and treat money for a more expensive Vitamix, make my peace with the ugly table, get a cheaper fitness watch for my birthday in a few months time.

What would Mumsnet do??

I'd buy the blender and the watch and a tin of Frenchic paint and paint the current table.

www.argos.co.uk/product/9308583

This table and the Vitamix blender. Maybe ask for the watch for your birthday.

D! Get a table and chairs and the slightly cheaper vitamix. And a watch for your birthday. I've got a Fitbit and it's great and my husband just got a huwai sports tracker and hw says it's even better. And that was under £200 and on sale.

Not the table, gate legs and drop leaves are a nuisance and you will be forever banging your knees on it. Get a pot of paint and repaint your existing table and chairs.

I don’t know about Vitamix but I can say that I felt the same about my Magimix. It was madly extravagant at the time and required much sacrifice but thirty five years later it’s still going strong. Never regretted it.

I'd go with A and C. I've had a Vitamix. It was an awesome bit of kit but not so great with very small quantities (as not enough volume to mix it properly). Therefore I wouldn't recommend it for baby food making etc (mine was spectacularly crap with houmous, pesto etc for the same reasons). Soups made in it tasted rank, like the food really needed cooking first. I kept mine for 3 years then sold it when I realised that I was really only using it for smoothies. Luckily, as they'd gone up in price, I got almost as much back as I'd paid for it in the first place. I then bought a £40 Nutribullet which in all honesty I've used a lot more.

Ooh - you made me check out Vitamix just now. A bit disappointing really. I watched some woman trying to scrape all her ingredients out of that big jug. Left loads round the edges. Nothing like my Magimix where nothing gets left behind. And which grates carrots for me almost every day to go in our salad..many years after finishing with purees. Magimix is a proper work horse with easy buttons too. And seems to be £200 or so cheaper. I'm sure you've checked out all the competition... but really?? If you're going to get it, make sure you will always have room to keep it and the attachments you need on your kitchen counter otherwise it will never ever get used. The watch you love and the blender you love seem to me to be better investments than a table that will just make do but never be amazing. Happy shopping!

Cheaper Vitamix and Watch. A table you can get cheap/free anywhere. Those two are things you wouldn’t get and judging by the responses the people who have them, love them.

Option A. Daily enjoyment of nicer table and cheaper blenders will do the job just as well.

What is it you’re going to blend for that kind of money? As it’s not baby food, that only needs a stick blender for £10-20.
I’d choose A, but I agree about the comments on the table so would probably just paint it.
I think you should get the watch and use a previous mumsnetter’s offer of a code to get it cheaper!!
And I’d like you to get the blender you’ve always wanted, but...... what if it’s just a blender? don’t take the risk and destroy the dream!

@easterbrook

A. No blender is worth that much money.

It really is. I prevaricated for years and finally got one three years ago. I often use it multiple times a day. OP, I think the Vitamix and table/chairs but why don't you get a reconditioned Vitamix, they are still brilliant, more environmentally friendly and you will be able to get the watch too

I've got a table set like that it's annoying uncomfortable and the folding action is downright dangerous

I'd save the money til u have enough for everything.

Also have a look in oakland furniture love my table

Wow, I did not expect this many responses!

To answer one point- I know the vouchers are going on something only I really want either way, but honestly DH isn’t fussed.

@Alarae - that’d be great if you wouldn’t mind!

@babychange12 - wanna sell it?

The issue about the folding chairs not really being suitable for toddlers is a good point and not something I’d thought of. We aren’t expecting to live here longer than 5 years or so as if all goes to plan there’ll be another DC before too long and we’ll be earning enough to buy an actual house as opposed to a 2 bed flat. I do think a longer narrow table would make more sense than the square one we have now though- I’ve attached a pic of the space it currently occupies if anyone has suggestions? I like the bench one but think proper chairs would be more suitable. I have been looking in all the usual secondhand places but haven’t found anything that would really work yet.

I don’t only want the Vitamix to make stuff for DS, it’s just an added (albeit temporary) justification. I am enjoying how the opinion of that is pretty much either “WTF?! It’s a blender!” or “Vitamix is the shit!” FWIW either way I won’t be going for the £600 odd model. Even I’m not that bonkers.

Vitamix & cheap 2nd hand Garmin type thing.
Your child will trash the table, btw.

I've just looked on eBay at the vitamin and realised my dads got one in the utility thats not being used! I was going to say buy one second hand on eBay

look for a nice table and chairs set on eBay and chalk paint them white and leave pine or oak etc to be similar to the set you've seen. If you look for under £50 there are tables and chairs set that are nice enough at that price and stick a table cloth on

get the watch for running that you want

Sorry to be dull but I think buy smart and buy once. Get the garmin if you really want. Save up for the other things you want but get the things you actually want otherwise you will always hanker over e.g the blender.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/dinning-table-and-4-chairs-used/254614307105?hash=item3b48320121%3Ag%3A8lAAAOSwOK5ey9T9&LH_Auction=1

Id go for something like this and paint it apart from the top or leave as it is and put a table cloth over it - as pp says children do tend to mark tables etc

A definitely

I used my cheapo blender to make a smoothie this morning, would your £675 blender made it taste any different, I highly doubt it.

I would buy this table with you cash.

www.futoncompany.co.uk/tables-and-chairs/collection/dining/oak-console-table.html

A Vitamix is sooooooo much more than a blender .

But I'd spend £250 on a Bamix stick blender and some attachments (easier to store too) .

The table chairs will be a pain to fold up/put away each time and they look seriously uncomfortable .

Watch - no idea

A, definitely.

You can get a perfectly cromulent Kenwood food processor with blender for under £100.

Cheaper vitamix and watch.

You could always buy a refurbished vitamix. I bought a refurbished one and after about 18 months I needed a new part and they sent it to me for free. No other blender compares.

Forget the table

Definitely A

I'd paint the table/chairs. We just painted some furniture and it looks much better. Paint cost around £20
I can't imagine why a blender would be so expensive, id just get a cheaper one.
So number 3.