How much mail ordering do you guys do?

[MrsGrump]

Following on the What's so Great About Lakeland? thread!
I buy very little remotely, by catalogue, mail order etc. I always think it's funny when the market researchers accost me and ask and I can tell them categorically that I think buying from catalogues is foolhardy. Only if the price is very good or item is unavailable elsewhere and I really want it and I know it's exactly what I want do I dare. I especially don't understand buying clothes you can't try on, or books that you can't browse through by post/Internet/phone. Or... much of anything, really! Yes you can usually send it back, but the postage costs are often high. If I try to order stuff from Tesco they substitute things I would never choose myself... So annoying.
Do most people buy lots and lots by mail order?

I've started buying online since ds arrived, for the same reasons as everyone else. And have become addicted. Sending clothes back is a pain but not as much as going out to buy them in the high street. I used to browse through catalogues like Lakeland and Ocean just for distraction but find that eventually you have to order something just to see.. and then they've really got their hooks into you...

I do loads of shopping online: Lakeland, ELC, Boots, Amazon, Ebay, train tickets, theatre tickets, ... I hate shopping esp with ds1 in tow, and our local shops are naff. DS2 actually really enjoys shopping and is a delight to take. When I've had enough, he begs me to go in one more shop, and loves choosing clothes for me! Isn't that odd? But I still hate it anyway.

hi mrsgrump/zebra, congratulations! i sympathise entirely with your pg grumpiness and was actually wondering if preg-head had made me forget that i came in here, changed my name and posted a lot of grumpy messages!

Loads. Amazon, Ocado, John Lewis Online, Boots.com, Little Green Earthlets, PHP, Tridias, Letterbox, Verbaudet, La Redoute (I resent that remark Janh! Come over here and I'll....bite your kneecaps or something...), Boden sale.
I work in a part of London where the shopping is totally HOPELESS.
Many congratulations MrsGrumpyZebra.

LOL, Marina!

Actually midgets isn't the right word but I couldn't think of a snappy term for small slender people (I always look at La Redoute thinking "I don't want the clothes, I want the body"!) - even when I ordered the biggest size the sleeves were too short and too tight...sigh...feel like the BFG sometimes!

I buy almost everything online too - food, clothes, books, CDs & DVDs, washing machine & tumble drier, etc etc. The biggest problem for me is organising delivery, when no-one is at home all day. Smaller items are delivered to work, but for larger items (e.g. toys at Christmas from E.L.C.) the companies cannot even give a delivery date, and then send goods in batches. My neighbours have very kindly taken in goods for me a number of times.

far too much!

john lewis, amazon, red house, book people, vertabaudet, boden, little green earthlets, urchin, grobag, naturebotts, the list could go on and on... it's frightening! mostly for dh! when he realises the credit card has been flashed again... for me? it's a joy!!!!

I buy things I can't get here: mostly cards (Moonpig too! ), children's clothes, books and terry nappies.

But I daren't buy clothes for myself online. My threadbare wardrobe has a couple of years in it left!

That sounds odd doesn't it? Obviously you can buy children's clothes here, but they are either cheap and rubbish - with extra long sleeves in case your baby is a monkey - or they are expensive. Also clothes for "young women" rarely go above a size 12 and I'm not ready for the "older women" ranges yet!