AIBU to want to start my own 'working class Mumsnet'?

[shoplifteroftheworld]

I see so many topics and conversations on here that just don't relate to my own life and experiences. Lots of well off women talking about their recent purchases from Boden or Uniqlo or some other place I can't afford to shop. Chat about dinner parties and holidays abroad. I'd like a site for mums and women on lower incomes as this site can leave a lot of us feeling left out of certain conversations.

@onlychildhamster- Fair play to you, you love a bargain as do I! I used to love clothes when I was younger-and slimmer- but I'm not bothered anymore, because I live in a small Irish village where no one except the youngsters care what anyone wears and myself and the husband don't really go out much anymore. We're happier staying in with each other. I do have the odd thing I can dress up a bit in for the rare occasion I go anywhere that warrants it, but they were cheap as chips. Primark/Penney's is great for a bargain but it does be mobbed and now my son tells me they have to queue, so I've stayed away. I haven't the heads for crowds nor long queues anymore! I'm getting too old for that craic, lol!

Ive just been reading the what luxuries do you enjoy thread and its a different world. Dont know why i click on those threads, just depressing.

@ssd

Ive just been reading the what luxuries do you enjoy thread and its a different world. Dont know why i click on those threads, just depressing.

I’m from a family with a relatively high income and I still think the luxuries thread is fucking ridiculous. Fresh flowers every week??? People have money to burn.

Flowers don’t have to be expensive, Lidl flowers are good and cheap, only a couple of quid for the small ones. But every week does seem ridiculous, if you look after them they can stay good for closer to 2 weeks.

@ssd I read that thread

a lot of people seem to be going to nail bars every 2 weeks, there seem to be multiple on many high streets, i figured someone must be visiting to keep them in business. And now I know why John Lewis have crap sales on bedding, Mumsnetters are buying it up at RRP! And I am glad someone is buying from Molton Brown (british brand) as I really can't see the point or tell the difference.

A lot of British brands cater to the mid range/middle class consumer. Not uber uber £££ but wouldn't be considered good value either. John Lewis, M & S, all saints, baukjen, hobbs, hush, joules, oliver bonas for the big brands. The small british brands selling jumpers and chocolate and smellies also seem to fall into that same price range- suppose its hard to make a profit if you have Primark prices. I have read that its the mid range brands that is the most in danger, i guess due to the shrinking middle class and inequality. If they go out of business, it will be a blow to the high street and also mean loss of jobs.

It is also the middle class who are paying for the bulk of taxes. The truly rich have offshore accounts and the poor need subsidies. It is said you need to earn 30k and above as a single person to be a net contributer to the system. I can't afford a lot of the above brands, but it makes me happy that other women can because it means the british middle class is still spending and also have the disposable income to perhaps stomach future tax rises (which would be needed if we still want the NHS).

I felt like this on a recent necklace thread. I literally own one necklace and I think it cost 79p from Amazon! I was seeing page after page of necklaces that were £200, £300, £500 - it actually was a massive eyeopener as I'd expected the average price to be about £10-£20 or something. I couldn't really relate to it although it's inspired me to want to buy another necklace!

I feel the opposite but I guess it’s all perspective. I just ignore the posts I don’t relate to or sometimes I read through them out of curiosity but generally I pick and choose the subjects that mean something to me .

@shoplifteroftheworld

I see so many topics and conversations on here that just don't relate to my own life and experiences. Lots of well off women talking about their recent purchases from Boden or Uniqlo or some other place I can't afford to shop. Chat about dinner parties and holidays abroad. I'd like a site for mums and women on lower incomes as this site can leave a lot of us feeling left out of certain conversations.

Isn’t that netmums aka net huns?

Having never heard of Uniqlo I had a look, although the pricing isn't excessively high I agree that it might be too high for those on a lower/tighter budget. That said, there was very little which appealed to me during my shortish look around, all far too muted/pastel for my liking. Getting back to the actual topic, I do just ignore threads that don't interest me, but I do think that we all need to be mindful of other folk's circumstances too, and try to be open to other experiences and lifestyles. There should be absolutely no benefit shaming, or any other shaming for that matter, but none of us are perfect and so folk will say things that might make others go at times!

Can you get promoted from working class to middle class? I grew up working class and earn a good salary so can afford Boden and to shop at Waitrose.

My mum is WC yet her sister is MC, is this possible? Is being MC really about a high income, or lots more things? I used to feel MC shopping in Sainsbury’s but then Waitrose knocked them off MC supermarket!! 🤣🤣🤣

I find it really interesting to read others opinions and viewpoints on here. In real life people aren’t as candid; and I don’t meet the same variety of other women in my day to day life. Some things are eye openers. I’m not sure if I’m WC or MC, but some of the salaries on here are a lot higher than most of my social circle.

@BoopTheFloof. “Mawsnet” love it

@ScottishAngryBird in the UK, it is an identity... As I said upthread, my DH has a colleague who is a VP in an investment bank, he earns well enough to buy a 4 bedroom house in the home counties on a single income which is no mean feat these days. Yet he calls himself working class (despite having a university degree and a well paid job by most standards). There are many many people who identify as middle class who are poorer than him.

In America, it's more tied up with income. Of course in America, cost of living and salaries can vary widely but generally a middle class family owns their own home, has good health insurance, a college fund for their kids, pensions, money for holidays, savings and is able to afford consumer goods like the latest technology. Basically enough to live off and enjoy holidays and also some to save for old age as well as education/future healthcare needs. Which is why when they say the middle class is shrinking, they generally mean the economic middle class- it's getting harder to buy a home, pay for childcare/university education outright, save for retirement on an average salary plus also enjoy life a little. Ability to shop at waitrose or a higher priced shop because you like it/it is more convenient than always defaulting to the lowest priced option.

Also nowadays due to the high cost of property in metropolitan areas, many young people are either priced out of home ownership or aren't interested in it (more interested in other alternative investments like crypto). But they generally still can afford property, just in less fashionable locations and often they also have expensive tastes//hobbies i.e. soul cycle classes; lots of expensive restaurants and bars. Like many of the renter's in my block probably don't have low incomes and they probably earn more than us given that their rent is higher than our mortgage but they still are able to afford BMWs, pedigree French bulldogs and Gousto boxes for every meal. I wouldn't consider them to have a typical working class income in the American sense. Of course in the British sense, you can earn 300k and still call yourself working class if you grew up on a council estate in Nottingham and prefer football to the opera and shop at ASDA. So yes I guess your sister can be MC because she identifies with it and she probably has a reason to.

Netmums feels a lot more supportive, class neutral and like a community of mothers giving actual advice to each other (no I don’t work for them!) it’s what I imagine mumsnet was like when it started up.

Mumsnet IMO is far more interesting although I agree it does seem to be dominated by aspiring upper middle class men and women, many of whom are actually child free. Nothing wrong with this - but maybe it’s time mumsnet had a name change as it could be misleading for any new posters logging on for genuine mum advice, who then get pounced on and ripped to threads by all the argumentative AIBU posters.

Uniqlo is primark prices if you buy in the sale
Two pack of baby gros are about £7

I'm working class and have hosted dinner parties in the past and attended some, and travelled abroad (yes, shock, even to the Maldives), please don't automatically equate "working class" with "low income" it's disingenuous at best, offensive to the whole wide spectrum of different working class people at worst.

[quote onlychildhamster]@shoplifteroftheworld I often feel the opposite,there are a lot of women on Mumsnet saying that paying XXX amount for a flat in London is insane and who can afford that. Well what am I supposed to do about it? I lived in London; if we all moved out of London wouldn't the prices up north increase more than the 8% it currently is increasing at?

But at the same time, I would never be able to afford a house in my part of London and I do want a child but I ignore the women who say that you need a garden for a child. I do find my tribe on the London threads full of women on good salaries and who live in flats with DC.[/quote]
👍👍👍 Can I please join the gardenless professional women mumsnet club?

@altiara

Can you get promoted from working class to middle class? I grew up working class and earn a good salary so can afford Boden and to shop at Waitrose.

No, stay in your lane and don't get ideas above your station, as posted by someone earlier on in the thread; because you're working class; you're not allowed to advance to the level of "dinner parties", unfortunately you have to be satiated with working class "BBQ piss up's" only I'm afraid.

@Frozentoes2 well I am not old enough to be a Mumsnet pioneer but Xenia has been here for donkey years, everyone knows who she is, and she is always saying women shouldn't be stay at home mums and should try to earn at least 6 figures and send 5 kids to private school like she did. And take no maternity leave at all. Not exactly accessible.

Justine started Mumsnet in her Islington house and she used to work in banking. She remembers accosting women in the street (probably Islington) to get them to review prams. Those were probably the early users.

@TakeMe2Insanity The comment about Netmums isn't funny, isn't clever and isn't original . You just make yourself look like an insensitive prat.

I am working class and would happily join in anything you set up OP.
I also don’t feel represented.

I think there should be a separate London mumsnet because it seems that’s the center of the universe for a lot of people on here

@BoopTheFloof

Mamsnet

Mawsnet

Masnet

Clap 😁

I always feel inspired and encouraged on the 'how do you earn six figures' threads until Xenia comes on and urinates on my dreams 😂
I'd love to be a lurker on a London living board, it's my dream!