What did you do/use/buy that you wouldn’t dream of now?

[CurlsandCurves]

I was at the supermarket this afternoon, and I saw someone with a 10 pack of Capri Sun. It jogged a memory in me, as I used to buy these. Some weeks I’d buy 2 packs, one orange, one blackcurrant at £3 a pop.

Now I can’t believe I did that, it’s such a massive amount to spend on juice!

Absolutely not wanting this to be a judgemental thread, we are all different and what’s excessive to some is standard to others. But if you’ve changed your habits, what do you look back at now and think ‘I can’t believe I used to do, have, buy that!’

Magazines here too, tbf they used to be really good 20 years ago but now it’s all adverts. I got £1 an issue for Harper’s bazaar which had interesting articles years ago but not now.

I’ve done the skin care and hair care thing too 🤦🏻‍♀️

When I first started working I bought lunch everyday, coffee and muffin on way to work every day, trashy magazines, expensive beauty products, expensive haircuts, nice clothes, expensive gym membership, etc. Looking back at it now I just don’t know how I afforded it! (Earned way less but never had any debt. I’m baffled)

Magazines - vogue Cosmo psychologies and red. Why?

Takeaway coffee - £2 a pop minimum on my way to work.

Lunches at work. £5 a day roughly....

Now takeaway coffee is a treat (or we have coffee to stay in) and take lunch to work 4 days a week. One day buying lunch is a treat.

Cigarettes 🤮

cigarettes, tampons, magazines, bottled water, squash/cordial, takeaway coffee, hair dye, makeup that I never used.

@fluffycloudland77 hi!! delighted to see you still around mumsnet

Books that I liked the look of. Just can’t afford it now 🤦‍♀️ Need to join the library. Barely ever buy clothes now.

Doterra essential oils. Spent £££. Now trying much cheaper brands which are supposed ti be good... Tisserand/neal’s yard..

Magazines

Lunch at work £4 for an inedible sandwich, crisps and a drink

Don't. I now take my lunch every day. I have had a terrible Itsu habit....can't even think about it.

Buying lunch at work. Forgot my lunch for the first time in ages today and really resented paying £2.40 for a sandwich!

You can get all the glossy magazines free online through your local library app, I read them on my phone, hello, good housekeeping etc

Hotchoc most libraries have online books so you don’t even need to visit after the first time getting your card - then no fines either with ebooks

Pre kids i used to use Clinique make up...£20 for a lipstick....
Nowadays i use the cheapest i can find and cant tell the difference.

Horses !
Serious equestrian events at national level - eye watering costs
Must have been mad

Lunch/take away coffee. Now I pretty much always take a packed lunch (helped, I guess, by fact I now have a DC so only get 30 mins for lunch so can pick him up earlier). Magazines - don’t bother now as never have time to read them! Same with books though sad about that as live a book!

Basically never buy anything for myself any more as never have the time or the energy due to working FT and having a DC!

Glossy house magazines - at least one a week

Lunch (M and S) every working day

Fresh orange juice/coffee/good wine - drank all every day

Can't afford any of the above anymore but don't miss them and regret the £££ wasted.

Bottled water when the stuff from the taps where we live is great. Processed food. My meals consisted of beige and chips 15 years ago. I wasted the most money when I earned the least.

Newspapers. I used to have the Guardian delivered every day, and the Sunday Times. The cost was roughly the equivalent of £20 a week in today’s money.

Now, I read the Guardian online for free, like everyone else.

Cigarettes

Magazines definitely! And often I never got round to reading them or they were full of nonsense. I used to buy at least one a week.

New clothes "just because ". No I only buy to replace something I use regularly.

drinking ! I was never a heavy drinker but DH is basically teetotal as alcohol gives him bad IBS and it is now a shock to me how much I would have spent on a couple of drinks with a meal out /a bottle of wine on a regular basis.

I don't think extreme frugality is a virtue either though. We spend quite a bit on days out as a family/holidays as I think life is for living.

Plants from the garden centre.
Must have spent thousands, all those David Austin Rose's that just died

Magazines. I spent a fortune and they really didn’t give me anything positive. I indulge occasionally when I am at the hairdressers.

I used to buy expensive make up. I still buy the odd pricey lipstick or foundation but most of my make up now is Rimmel and I don’t notice the difference if I am honest. I still love my Urban Decay eyeshadow pallets but they have all been gifts and I am slowly working through them.

Cigarettes (quit 16.5yrs), can’t believe how much I used to spend (waste) on them. And the cost now is so much more. Also wine. I used to drink wine on weekends before I developed a serious pancreas disease (not linked to the drinking, but alcohol isn’t good for the pancreas). So now I don’t buy either. I’ll have an odd drink on a special occasion but never buy in the supermarket. If I added up the cost of both it would be huge