Why are you materialistic?

[sugarandcream]

Without a doubt, I am materialistic. Not always for bigger is better, but usually for higher quality things. I undeniably want a nice house in a posh area. I want a decent car. I want to be able to go out for dinner when I want. I like to spend 20 quid on a bottle of plonk and not think twice.

But why? some people are more materialistic than others?

For me, I grew up relatively poor. My parents didn't have much spare cash due to bad investment decisions. The house was always cold. I was shouted at if I used too much hot water. I was made to feel like I was always asking for too much if I wanted a new pair of shoes etc

I'm the opposite.
I grew up in terrible poverty and my goal was to have financial security.
I own my house and I'm mortgage free.
I can afford all things needed and have money in the bank.
Wearing my disposable income was never of interest to me

I'm not sure if any of that makes you materialistic. I'm sure most people want a nice home and want to be able to go to the shops without having to worry about having enough money. And buying good quality things saves you money in the long run as they last longer but sadly not everyone has the money to do that. I'm not materialistic at all and will mend things of make do I used to get skitted about my telly cos it wasn't flat screen but didn't see the point buying new if it worked.

Interesting. DH is similar to you and now is quite materialistic (and aware of it). He also falls for "brands" and high status things in a way that I don't. He grew up in absolute poverty though, and I don't use the term loosely.

I grew up in a middle class family abroad, but with amenities / opportunities that in the UK would look wealthy. I am a bit of an inverse snob - I want the battered 30 year old car, my kids in 3rd hand clothes etc.

I don't go for 'brands' but I go for quality brands if that makes sense? I wouldn't be seen in Gucci or the like but would spend happily £400 on a cardigan from Brora or £200 on jeans made in the UK.

By nice house, I mean I want a 5 bed detached with pool and tennis courts in a nice area of the south (think £3m+)

I'm a massive fan of materialism.

For me, it's a measure of how far I've come in my life. I'm not comparing myself with others who have more, but with my past and what I had then.

I didn't work my arse off in my career to queue up at the bus stop in the rain like I did when I was a broke student.

I always, always get the best brand/quality I can afford of everything I buy.

I will travel business or first class when I can afford to.

I love new cars and all the modern tech in them, I change my car every two years for a brand new model.

I also love gadgets, phones, robot vacuum cleaners, coffee machines, I'll buy them just to have a new box to open.

I have fully embraced the materialistic consumer culture and wouldn't have it any other way.

I couldn't give a stiff about JSO and fly at least a dozen long haul trips a year. My current car is a 2l petrol Auto and I love it.

my friend is very materialistic and has to be branded. I get my prescription glasses from Specsavers, (2 for 1) she goes independent and buys D&G.

my foundation is Boots, hers is nothing but Dior

my down jacket is Peter Storm, hers has to be North Face

everything has to be branded.

brands mean nothing to me.

my foundation is Boots, hers is nothing but Dior

Interestingly I treated myself years ago to some Yves St Laurent Touché Eclat. However I wasn't that impressed with it and actually found Barbara Daly for Tesco concealer better. Half the time you're just paying for the name.

Our 2 big spends are the house and private education. Those are invisible if you met me or dh. Nothing else we buy has designer brands, my makeup and toiletries is high street and our holidays are relatively modest.

I would not consider myself materialistic. I consider people who visibly spend on brands or luxury to be a little naive to fall for the marketing.

I wouldn't say that's necessarily materialistic. A dior foundation will be better than boots. North face although has a price tag from the brand is a better quality down jacket than Peter storm. I would prefer to support an independent opticians than specsavers.

I don't think wanting things to be better quality is materialistic. If anything buying something cheap rather than a measured purchase of good quality that will last is probably more materialistic. Materialism to me I'd buying foe the sake of buying and getting happiness out of buying things, I don't think the price is necessarily important

Some people are more impressionable and insecure. Some people take their identity and sense of value from actions rather than possessions.
It's not linked to poverty. We were poor. I'm not matetialistic. We were brought up to share any wealth or belongings. Community was more important than competitive avarice. DH's family was wealthier but they also mixed with richer people - he's very matetialistic. Although he's noticed it lessens with age for him.

We do like a nice house and a decent car but as I've got older I've found that buying less of stuff but better quality makes sense - so we have a 6 year old Volvo, more clothes from fat face or similar rather than say H&M- H likes All saints (in sales) good jackets for all weathers that we bought in Denmark etc and we like good quality food. I wouldn't say we are materialistic- just that what we have is decent quality- I bought a great pair of necker boots in Denmark, for £125 look like new and worn an awful lot for 3 years

I don't think I'm materialistic in that I don't care about 'stuff', I'm not really aspirational and I don't envy what other people own.

Grew up in a middle class but single parent household, not skint but not well off. My sister grew up in the same circumstances and is definitely more into buying things, pushing herself to go bigger and better, much more ambitious in eduvation and now her career.

Is materialism linked to your sense of achievement/success? I think I measure my own life based on how easy it is 😂

I want a big house because having space would benefit me. Tennis courts would enable me to play tennis everyday.

I want good quality, well made ethically sourced clothes. That comes with a price tag. But I think they look better and are better environmentally

I want to go out for dinner because it's fun and means I don't have to cook dinner/wash up.

But I don't necessarily want to be covered in designer gear. I have no desire to look rich or have people think I'm rich. I don't think that makes me materialistic

Like a pp, I (embarrassingly) do the inverse snobbery thing of wanting a big country pile, country boots, loads of horses and a dirty land rover. In reality, I have a suburban starter home and I imagine my kids will aspire more to designer trainers than ponies (because they're a lot more affordable) 😂

I grew up in a big, old house but we weren't a posh family. We all have regional (NI) accents and grew up in a town. Went to a grammar school not public school in England which is what posh families from NI used to do. But we were never short of anything. My parents were a nurse and a surgeon, so one highly paid and the other not so well paid. They still gave off at us if we used the phone or hot water too much though. Think that's normal for most families except maybe the mega rich.

I drive a Range Rover - I like it and it's safe for the kids.

We have moved home to build up to the perfect area (very expensive house prices) and we have been desperate to move there. House under offer and selling ours - so our kids are in the best possible environment with good people and a good school.

Good holidays very regularly - to expose the kids to different cultures and to have maximum outside time for them.

In terms of materialism like handbags/shoes etc I'm not fussed. We have a great income but aren't silly with our money.

So I guess I am fairly materialistic on behalf of my children and for wanting the best for them. I was in no way bothered with which car I drove/which area I lived in before I had them.

Because ’things’ can in fact make you (one) happy. Not profound happiness obviously but they can bring you pleasure (if you’re that way inclined).

I like nice things, nice clothes, etc. It’s no deeper than that. No meaningful childhood story, trying to fill a void or worrying about what other people think of me/what I’m wearing/where I live/etc.

Grew up poor with self employed dad, so income fluctuated.
I’m not massively materialistic, don’t care about fancy car and designer labels, but being able to buy stuff meant everything was ok. I can remember relief when my mum brought in bags of groceries, she also had a bit of a spend it while you’ve got it attitude, so us kids would be decked out in fancy clothes when we had money. I associate spending with comfort and safety. I inherited a lot of bad spending habits from my upbringing that I’ve had to re-educate myself about unfortunately.

We were taught aspiration as a child . We didn't have much money growing up and my parents wanted better for us . I love that my career and rewards can now help my parents out financially if needs be . I am definitely a labels person and like branded stuff . To me money has always equalled success maybe as a result of not having any when young . I am materialistic but hopefully don't judge others who aren't motivated by money .
One thing that has made me very grateful for my choices is reading some of the threads on here from people who can't put a meal on the table or who will never afford to retire . There's a lot of comfort to be had with having money including major life choices .

Interesting to read a different perspective. I was just talking with DH yesterday about the LV bag I bought to bring to my friend abroad (she will pay me back, just a favour as it's cheaper here).

DH jokily said to me, need to keep it safe, as it's probably the one most expensive thing in the house. £1800 for a tiny backpack. I think I will never understand it.

I like certain brands, because of their quality and their design. But not luxury brands purely to prop up image and status.

I usually don't care about materialistic things, as I don't think my personal value is defined by them. But unfortunately, people do treat others based on image. I learned it over years and have to concede that for certain stuff , I do have to go beyond what I feel necessary, just to not to be looked down. Especially for the sake of the kids.

A dior foundation will be better than boots

Not necessarily. See my earlier comment about Touché Eclat v. Barbara Daly for Tesco concealer.

Agree - I think it's the NEED for material things that key. I think the majority (if not all) people would find some enjoyment in having expensive/good quality things to hand. But for some their sense of self remains the same whether they're living in a 1 bed flat or a mansion; while it might be nice, they don't NEED the mansion to feel satisfied, they can find contentment without it.

For a truly materialistic person, the possession of expensive/high value things forms part of their self-identity - they feel less of a person / unfulfilled without them.

I never had nice things growing. My clothes were always hand me downs. Didn't get over indulged at Christmas- got nice things, but just not as much as everyone else seemed to- because my parents just didn't have it. I was often called 'trampy,' and people laughed at me. I was always aware of this.- Interestingly, my parents both worked, we had a nice house (nicest in my area, out of my friends definitely,) nice furniture, reasonable food, television, foreign holidays every year, parents drove decent enough car etc... but I never would've had been given money to get a mcdonalds, sweets at the cinema, new clothes, particular brands etc. And I was always aware of having less than my peers. (Also aware that my house was nicer and had 2 parents at decent jobs.)
Looking back, I realise my parents just did the best they could on an average income. They were are still are debt free. (Other than mortgage, until it was paid.) My Mum never had an overdraft or credit card, or even a catalogue account (grew up in the 80s when most people had these.)
Anyway, to answer your question, I think it has left me with a 'sort of materialistic,' attitude. I also like to be debt free- but, am very happy wasting 50quids here an there, just because I want to. I splash out on make up, jewellery, travel, bottles of booze ALL the time- BUT, I also look for bargains in the supermarket, try not to waste electricity, water etc.
I would say I'm definitely a product of my upbringing in this sense.

I grew up in a very very wealthy but very very absusive and dysfunctional family. I know how unimportant money is in relation to happiness.

Those of you who consider yourselves materialistic, do you consider the carbon emissions and the impact on other people associated with all your stuff? Have you done anything to mitigate it?

some of JL own brand cashmere isn’t a mile away from brora though and is a third the price (obviously the difference is very noticeable lol).

I have a 5 bed near the south coast with a generous plot, but I’m still miserable sometimes because 1. It’s only a semi not a detached, 2. I haven’t got a big enough kitchen that I can put a massive island in the middle and the layout of the house prevents me from doing so, 3. Haven’t got half an acre of land around it so I can put an massive Victorian style greenhouse in my garden and fill it with tropical plants and live butterflies. Can’t tell anyone in real life about it apart from to h because they’ll just find me silly and entitled, but this is genuinely how I feel, I window shop for houses a lot. I love my current house though, it’s a very nice house, just not my dream house yet.