How often changing items?

[Elektringa]

Hello,
I started thinking whether I am not changing my items, such as Towels, kitchen towels, bedding maybe even curtains often enough? Oh and the cushions.. I might think of more.
I am attached to staff and was decluttering a bit when I realised I had bedding from ten year ago, my towels were actually 8 years old.kitchen towels up to 5 years old. Curtains are now 6 years old.
I donated bedding and towels, they are in absolutely great condition...
I like to save money, thinking of investment rather than new bedding every year.
How often do you change such things? If they are clean and not damaged I don't really see a point of getting new ones.

I agree, I keep things until they are knackered pretty much (e.g. permanently stained an unpleasant colour, badly torn or fraying and coming apart), and even then I try to reuse in some way rather than binning e.g. old towels can be cut up to make wash cloths or relegated to the 'messy jobs' pile, bedding can make face wipes/make up removal wipes or can be re-purposed as animal bedding. If I was more crafty/creative I am sure I could come up with more as well, e.g. a friend makes lovely quilts out of old scraps of material.

When I do have to buy new I try and go for high quality so it will last and also as plain as possible so it won't 'age' or look obviously out of fashion by the time its a few years old. I think well looked after bedding and towels should last 10 years or more, maybe tea towels and things which are more heavy usage more like 5 years but certainly should not need to be replaced every year. Curtains, don't they last forever (if occasionally professionally laundered?)? I'm pretty sure my Granny had a lot of the household linen she was given when she married 50 years later in near perfect condition, admittedly she was a far better less slatternly housekeeper than I am and used to do things like delicately hand-wash her net curtains once a month but if that could be done without the benefit of a lot of the modern cleaning products and fabrics then I am sure we can do the same!

Personally I think people who buy things like tea towels or pillow cases new every year are just doing it for fashion or out of habit, it's not great for the environment to keep buying more and chucking away perfectly serviceable items (fabric is very hard to recycle on a mass scale) and I have better things to be spending money on as well!

Goodness. I replace them when they are worn out. Even then I've cut up old towels to use as cleaning rags, old duvet covers are being made into facemasks atm.
My mum still uses tea-towels from my childhood. I'd imagine my Grandad has some older than that.

I keep mine until it’s worn out, generally. My bedding wears out fairly quickly as I only have a couple of sets and change it weekly, so it’s generally knackered after (say) two years.

I tend to keep them until worn out but I want to change this. Life is too short.

Till they fall apart. Who on earth would change towels or bedding because of fashion? Who would notice?

Goodness, who replaces towels or tea towels before they are worn out? I have several of my mother's tea towels. They are soft and lint free and perfect for glasses. I believe she got them the year she was married, coronation year 1953.

Still going strong.

My tea towels get replaced fairly regularly because I have a habit of setting fire to them. Bedding and bath towels last forever though, and things like cushions and curtains will be reviewed when I redecorate the room - every five years or so.

As everyone else, when they're worn out. Is there fashion in tea towels? 😆

I buy new when I spot something I really love, and that gradually replaces the older ones as they wear out. Curtains are changed when we move house or redecorate and they no longer go, or I go off them... but that's not often. I think I'm on my third set of living room curtains in 15 years and five houses?

Our bedding is all white, good quality and I expect it to last. The kids bedding is newer and for things like Disney themed bedcovers I expect to change it as they grow out of it. Towels are all plain white or blue and at least 10 years old. I would only change them when they wear out. It surprises me when people change perfectly good curtains or bedding for no reason other than they get bored of it. Seems a massive waste to me

I have so many duvet covers its embarrassing, but most of them came from my mums house- they were either ones she didn't like (that were pretty much brand new) or old ones that are really soft and comfy. But i only really use 2 sets on rotation as does dd. So I'm going to send a few to the charity clothes bank.

I bought some tea towels at the start of lockdown because I use alot of kitchen roll and wanted to get out of that habit, but they are microfibre so just smear the wetness round 🙄. I thought they were dishcloths or dusters when they arrived but they definitely said tea towels on the packet. But they will be used for something.

Towels last years. I got some grim mustard coloured ones from MIL, they are hideous but massive and really good for drying. All the mismatched towels go in the towel box, and my posh, expensive, rarely used cos they're shit and too small M&S ones live on the towel rail.

I prefer my old knackered towels for drying off after a shower. I don't like fluffy towels.

I buy good quality and get rid of stuff when it's knackard/stained/faded/unusable. I get so much satisfaction from chucking something out that is truly spent, I love that feeling of having got my money's worth.

@Nutrigrainygoodness I had quite a few mismatched towels and dyed them, was really pleased with the result, would recommend if it is just the colour you aren't keen on

I have eiderdowns and metis sheets that are 100-130 years old.

No intention of changing them.

My hand towels are the thin linen ones, also mostly Edwardian.

I have 3 bath sheets I've had 20 years which I use for my body.

And a super king goose down duvet 22 years old.

IMO these things last a lifetime if you treat them properly.

I don't change things, I like to keep things as long as possible.I don't see the point in wasting money on new and more fashionable things that you see in shops or online etc. But I have a cream coloured duvet,edged with a goldish coloured border all round, and just made it into a door curtain for my back door which is half wood and half glass.
Old house and a bit draughty in the winter.

You guys shared a lot - definitely learnt a thing or two!

Things like that, I would only change if they were torn, had holes in etc.

Towels might get repurposed as cleaning cloths.

DC (teen) still has duvet covers bought at age 3, I was actually thinking yesterday that they might get rejected as "babyish" at some point. Hasn't happened yet though, and they are still perfectly good to use.

I've towels and stuff I bought for going to uni twenty years ago. They're still going strong although they don't match our bathrooms so they're not used as often.

Tea towels get relegated to the rag bag if too stained to hang up in the kitchen.

Bedding I have started now to buy high thread count fitted sheets and I tend to take the lot off, wash it and dry it and get it back in the bed that day. My duvet cover is just one that was twenty quid from IKEA but I love the pattern and it's really soft and it dries quickly. The guest room duvets are ones Ive had for about twenty years. They don't necessarily go with the rooms but when I decorate I'll buy something that matches.