Anyone else regret big ticket items in their home?

[Mum8929]

DH and I bought some new couches recently and really regret our decision to get recliners. These sofas were quite expensive and can’t return, we also regret some blinds we got and wish we’d opted for shutters in our lounge. I guess I just wonder if it’s normal to have these regrets and if anyone else feels they have regretted some big items they bought for their house?

Put it on the floor and jump up and down on it a lot, it works

I also regret recliners as a sofa choice and as I opted for 4 years interest free credit, I’m still paying for them. Life is too short to dwell on it though.

Yes, 3 weeks ago ordered the Pinntorp gateleg table online from the cheapo Swedish company. About to assemble it & saw a huge crack in the table top, so drove 30 miles to my nearest store, they refunded me but without the delivery fee. Then bought circular table which is not a gateleg/dropleaf from FB Marketplace, but not happy with this either as it takes up too much space (43" diameter) despite measuring allocated space beforehand. Table seems to dominate the room.

I had a lovely sofa, bought many years ago at the Ideal Home exhibition. The cats shredded it and two small kids further attacked it. Replaced by a DFS sofa, then we got a second DFS sofa to go with and I hated that brown thing so much. Youngest was sick on it on its first day in the house.

We now have a Loaf sofa, bought with a bit of damage so cheaper but the seat cushions already need replacing and even with long legs it’s too low. If I could trade it in for my old Ideal Home sofa I would. May be using the cushion replacement company upthread.

I've always wanted a medium sized animal to keep my feet warm but instead, I get a cat that insists on nesting just where I want to put my feet and a chubby hubby who doesn't have a hair coat !

Was feeling grateful I didn't have any stories to put on this thread then I read this
The handheld rechargeable Dyson thing that only lasts 10 minutes then needs charging.**

yes! Sadly we have one too. If the filter gets one piece of fluff on it it stops working until you clean it. I hate having to hold the On button on. The charge lasts no time at all. Yet it still just about does the job so can't really justify buying a new one....

Not in my house no (love a freebie or preloved bit of furniture in my house) but I hate my car. Cost a small fortune but I can’t stand it. Replacing it this year as soon as I can!!!!

@Poniesandpigs

we have original 1930s door but they are so battered. They also all have inexplicably been either cut too short -like 10-15cm too short or are very warped:

thinking we will replace with Oak.
Whetr did you get yours from and why do you regret it? If you don’t mind me asking

Lol

I don’t regret my oven but if it broke, I’d buy the cheapest to fit the space. I went with the one I have as it has a self clean setting. That does bollocks all. I think the new oven cost about £600. Next time, it will be the cheapest.

The fireplace in our lounge. The mantelpiece is nice enough but too big for the room and the gas fire always smells whenever we put it on (we do have a carbon monoxide detector so nothing dangerous, just annoying). So we barely use it, I wish we’d just gone for a wood burner in a smaller surround.

We have two secondhand Bluebells. The one I sit on stays in shape; the one DP and DD commandeer looks like it’s hungover. They treat the back cushion like some kind of raised seat.

@Poniesandpigs On the ugly appliances, do you have the kind of kitchen style where you can get away with a fabric skirt? £3 tension wire from Amazon plus the easier bit of sewing ever and a couple of metres of ticking fabric, never look at an appliance again.

My ex and I had a close shave with what was, in the cold light of day, a frankly hideous sofa.

We'd just moved into a 1920's house and got weirdly excited by this art deco -ish style bright yellow sofa with black trim. It had kind of pointy corners, don't know how to explain it. We sat and filled in the paperwork with a salesman (yeah it was a while back!) and pledged to pay many £££ for this hideous thing.

On the way home we came to our senses and were horrified at what we'd done. When we got home the salesman called as we hadn't signed the order form - what a strike of luck that was 😂😂

The salesman was very annoyed but we were completely within our rights, thank god 😂

I'm really happy with the choices I made, as I researched every item to death. Probably have enough samples, etc, to fill a new house!

But not happy with the builders that did the work. The finish is a bit lacking. Wonky walls, paint on the new floors, the kitchen had to be fitted three times and it's still not 100% right. I wish I could have had specialist tradespeople, instead of all-rounders, and coordinated it myself (though that would have been impossible alongside my day job..!).

So disappointing when you spend so long planning, and saving.

Oh and I HATE the toilet the previous owners chose. I have never come across one like it in my life. No matter how many times you flush there's always some tissue in the bowl! How??! It flushes strong, so must be something about the bowl shape or hydrodynamics..!?

Literally a piece of shit toilet.

I love our recliner sofa, it was a massive bargain reduced from almost 4k to 1.5k. I occasionally regret the bean to cup coffee machine as I’m a lazy mare that hates cleaning it out.

Yes to the sofas too, we bought recliners because my dh likes them. They are comfy but they look like something that should be in an old age pensioners home. Thank his they are nearly 5 years old and almost knackered so will have to be replaced soon

Eufy robot vacuum. I had buyers remorse almost as soon as it arrived and I tried to set it up, which was an arse and I realised that it would have to live in the living room because it's the only place with a plug socket at the right height. I sent it straight back

My sil has Recliners, to be honest, they are far from stylish, massive in brown shiny leather. But they are very comfy, no doubt about that.

@Monkeyfloor we got a joiner to source them, I think they were from howdons. I just wish I had kept my original doors, they fit with the house better and the oak will date. The oak is hard to clean compared to the other ones too, but I could never paint them because they were stupidly expensive.

I didn’t think of a curtain to hide appliances- might look into it! I just hate seeing a washing machine rather than it being hidden. I wish I had gone with my gut and not listened to DH moaning about how small intergrated ones are 🙄

I very seldom regret a big purchase because I am always very sure of what I want. Bought a new corner sofa last year, leather with one electric reclining seat, and we just never use it. I am worried about it because we have three cats! It's the most comfortable sofa ever, just love it. Unfortunately the cats have scratched it (mostly our new addition! Not so much deliberately as when they are playing!) but I took out cover so will hopefully be able to get it repaired.

I hated my last dishwasher because it never cleaned properly. The new one is a little bit better.

I hate, hate, hate my Shark vacuum! It's was the dog's bollocks to begin with - the amount of shit it took out of that carpet was unbelievable. Now it will barely pick up. Did I say how much I hate it?!

I also hate my Chinese slate kitchen floor but that's only in more recent years, and it's been down 25 years and I have plans to replace it.

After much consideration I bought a 3k lazyboy modular sofa.
It was shit. Would not stay clipped together.
I was told it wasn't meant to be moved! Wtf? Who doesn't move their sofa at some point?
I complained. Used the right terminology apparently because the agreed I could 'reselect '.
I now have a non lazyboy and a refund for the difference 😊

I just remembered our range cooker. I bought a John Lewis version because it was so much cheaper than the main brand. JL cookers are made by Smeg, so I assumed it would be good. I have always hated it. The oven is inconsistent in temperature and I’m the baker in the house (DH is the cook), so the oven is my domain. I can’t justify shelling out for another when the thing works. They are so expensive and the money could be spent on more important things like travel. It’s 12 years now and just won’t die 😡

On the whole, no, we do take a while (several visits and quite a bit of investigation) to make final decisions on big ticket items though. However, the Emma mattress is not something I would buy again, even in the very good sale we got it in at the time!

Regret over the actual house purchase. Now trying to resell after 17 months.