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Shopping

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Original poster

"I wish I hadn't bought"....the things you regret you have bought

99 replies

MamanFlo · 04/04/2005 17:39

Hello supermums !

Is there things you have bought (or received as a gift) that you profoundly regret ? because it proved either totally useless or not working properly.

A friend was telling me yesterday that her travel system was a total mistake...and that she had to buy a new stroller as soon as her DD was able to sit in one...That's money out of the window...

This thread could prove very useful for anyone looking at the right equipment...

Cheers !

flo

OP posts:

moondog · 04/04/2005 20:48

Quel dommage!!
Actually, my best buy was a £5 Moses basket from Age Concern, and the bits and pieces of fabric I got from 2nd hand shops to make patchwork quilts for my children.
Don't really care what things cost or where they're from tbh, just that they are tasteful.
Too right, Ikea do brilliant kids' stuff.

collision · 04/04/2005 20:49

I use baby lotion to remove my makeup! LOL

Stuffed soft toys....I HATE THEM! There is no play value in them at all and they sit on top of the wardrobe.

MIL who ds2 has never seen has just sent a HUGE Giant Nemo for him. It terrifies him as it is bigger than him and has the biggest eyes ever! Why could she not have bought him a nice outfit for summer or given me the cash!!!!!

sansouci · 04/04/2005 20:51

I had a wonderful time buying all kinds of stuff for my firstborn. My mum was living in the US at the time & we shopped like maniacs. It was SO much fun & much cheaper than here. I think that's the point, really. It's a bit like having a doll & wanting all the accesories that go with it... Barbie & her stupid pink plastic castle, for instance.

moondog · 04/04/2005 20:51

I know collision. I inwardly groan when we receive yet another (God I sound like a bitch!)

Gave dh a bollocking when he returned from a work trip to Ukraine with an armful of them. He obviously hadn't listened to any of my rants about soft bloody toys.

sansouci · 04/04/2005 20:54

(That damned Barbie castle. I know I'll end up buying it for dd's birthday because she wants one soooooo badly but I regret it already.)

fruitful · 04/04/2005 20:54

But what is useless for one person is an essential for another... Lots of people say newborn size clothes are pointless but dd was in them for a couple of months, and ds is 7 weeks and hasn't even grown into the newborn size yet!

And the moses basket fitted dd for months. And the sling was great too... Oh and the breast pump - she never drank any of it but it was sooo useful when I was bursting and she wouldn't feed!

Oh and the Bumbo - dd got out of it straight away, onto her head. I told them and they gave me my money back, and let me keep it - two friends with chunky-thighed babies have got plenty of use out of it!

Useless things - raspberry leaf tablets and all labour aids - never got as far as going into labour!

Best advice - don't buy much in advance, get the absolute minimum and wait to see what you need. And then borrow it all! Or check out ebay - loads of stuff on there, in good condition cos the previous 6 owners discovered they didn't really need it.

expatinscotland · 04/04/2005 20:54

Thanks for the tip about the lotion being a good makeup remover, collision! I was wondering what the hell to do w/that stuff - it gave DD a horrid rash.

moondog · 04/04/2005 20:56

lol sanssouci

It is so much fun though isn't it, even if 2 weeks later you're going mental because yourhouse is full of crap!!

sansouci · 04/04/2005 20:56

Steer clear of anything in pink plastic, be it J&J baby lotion or Barbie castles!

louli · 04/04/2005 20:57

Pram that was too big to fit in the car.
stinky nappy big.
baby bath - ended up as another laundry basket until I finally got rid of it.
agree with the baby shoes another waste of time.
I could just keep going on but I won't.

collision · 04/04/2005 21:00

I put the lotion all over my face and it is great for taking off mascara and SO cheap! No allergic rash either!

Am seriously thinking of taking the soft toys to a hospital or something. They take up so much room and I am damned if they are coming back to the UK with us when we relocate this year! I am a cow!

sansouci · 04/04/2005 21:01

Good baby baths at Ikea... cheaper than meatballs, even!

WideWebWitch · 04/04/2005 21:02

Oh there are so many things I regret buying for baby1:
Sangenic nappy disposal thing, deesgusting!
Bottle warmer, durr, used microwave 2nd time
Bath thermometer, um, feel it
a plate that changed colour if food was too hot
A big bulky pram/pushchair, a M&P blue and yellow monstrosity

Mosschops30 · 04/04/2005 21:04

Message withdrawn

Gwenick · 04/04/2005 21:09

We loved our baby bath - our bathroom was REALLY cold so DH used to bath the boys when they were little in the living room in the warm

Katemum · 04/04/2005 21:09

My ds and dd both love their soft toys. We have at least 4 with us every time we leave the house!

Gwenick · 04/04/2005 21:10

someone bought us a nappy wrapper thing for christmas for DS2 - used it quite a lot - but in conjunction with nappy sacks (cheap ones from Bodycare shop - about 89p for 300!), Unfortunately DS2 now goes through nappies like there's no tomorrow so we use it along with a bin - saves having to go out to the big bin every 5 minutes LOL

Gwenick · 04/04/2005 21:11

DS1's bed is FULL of soft toys - he loves them to bits!

mirashark · 04/04/2005 23:47

This thread is funny - I have just started my list for first baby and am a total newcomer to the world of babies. I am not a great one for shopping at all but even I was being drawn in and had a mental picture of my house slowly filling up with large plastic objects. the pram thing is sooo confusing though - can someone just list exactly what I need to get in that department? prams pushchairs carseats strollers ARGHH!

colditzmum · 04/04/2005 23:52

We got by with a pushchair that laid flat, ant one of those cositoe things to pad it a bit. As for a car seat, we do not have a car, so we borrowed one.

Chandra · 05/04/2005 04:17

Shirts for under 9m, they look cute in the hanger but they are a disaster in a chld who can't keep his back straight.

Talcum, baby bath and any other Johnsons baby's products.

Soft toys and electronic toys that won't stop singing and flashing are my personal hate.

Hazellnut · 05/04/2005 10:12

Agree with Fruitful - DD is still in newborn clothes at 10 weeks (having grown through smaller sizes !!) - also, am going to buy a light weight stroller once DD big enough but do not regret buying M&P pramette as has been great with dd being so small and it being winter. Ditto babybath - good as dd so small (mind you think it only cost £9).

My biggest waste of money was the aromotherapy kit I bought to help me have a pain relief free natural labour - after 3 days of induction, I had a ceasarian !! Luckily was able to give kit to a friend !! Also, molton brown baby stuff - was seduced by idea of dd having some posh toiletries in hospital and stubbornly used the moisturiser for a week until giving up and agreeing olive oil is far far superior !! Also seemed to have an obssession with buying blankets when pregnant and then got given some more once dd born so now awash with all sorts of blankets and is now spring !!

Best buy would have to be microwave steriliser - dd never got hang of bf so has been used since day one. Also baby gym once dd got the point of it she loves it !

Evesmama · 05/04/2005 10:16

nappy wrapper..poooooooo!

MissChief · 05/04/2005 10:20

sometimes, our hugely expensive house!
feels rather a burden, may have depreciated a little since we bought and we've just spent a fortune on doing it up! fingers crossed pays off over next few yrs as I plot our escape out of home counties!

MissChief · 05/04/2005 10:21

aah - just realised meant to be product - supposed house fits of sorts..

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