I hate wasting money with a passion! And although I live a frugal lifestyle and even blog about it, I sometimes (not very often) find myself either at the till or coming home with stuff I know I should not be buying. Learn from my mistakes and don’t let it happen to you.
Christmas Shopping for Onesies
I’m not one to leave things like this for last minute. In fact, I start my real planning for Christmas in July! Now and again I find myself rushing out last minute to pick up things just before Christmas and I hate it! I like to be at home laughing at others out there in the mad rush when they should have done their shopping earlier.
On this occasion though, I was laughing at myself. What was I even thinking? I decided last minute that I would get my nieces onesies as one of their Christmas gifts. Well, instead of driving around too much, I headed for a massive shopping mall that had lots of stores all decked out in inviting red, green, and other festive decorations. The problem was, after walking around a lot, seeing onesies and writing down the prices of the ones I liked and which stores had them, I got way too tired to even bother going back. So when I happened upon the next Marks and Spencers store, I spotted some cute onesies that were soft, fluffy and beautifully packaged. I bought them. Now I regret doing that because if I had shopped around (online) first, I would have got them for one-third of the price by just going directly to the store that had them. If I had shopped around on Amazon I would have found them much cheaper. In fact, if I had bought it online I would have earned some money back from Honey. Next time I’ll be more careful. Has tiredness ever caused you to just give up and take anything, not thinking seriously about the cost?
Angel Cologne (fake)
My favourite fragrance in the whole world is Angel. Do you know it? No matter how nice something else smells, I always find myself going back to Angel. Have a look at these two bottles and tell me what you notice.
Yes, one is much bigger than the other, correct. Well, read on and I’ll tell you my dilemma. I am used to the fact that this thing is quite expensive. I am used to paying £50 for the smaller bottle. Sometimes I even purchase the set which comes beautifully packaged in a purse, with a body lotion and body wash. At other times, when funds are low, I’ve just gone for a refill in the original bottle I have from the Perfume Shop. Imagine how lucky I thought I was recently when I found this big bottle of Angel, for only £20! I bought two.
A few days later when I opened one and gave it a sniff I noticed that it didn’t quite smell right! It had a faint smell of the original but that was it. I even noticed that when I went out, no one complimented me on my perfume! That was strange, as I had been with strangers on a course that day. Not only did I not get any compliments, but when I got home, I noticed that my clothes didn’t smell like Angel. That’s when I examined both bottles. The difference I noticed was that the writing on the smaller one said Eau De Parfum while the large bottle said Eau De Toilette!
A quick ‘Googling’ of that gave me my lesson for the year, as far as fragrances were concerned. Do you know the difference? Try googling ‘what’s the difference between Eau De Parfum and Eau De Toilette’ and see what you see. I’ve learnt my lesson and I hope you have too. Don’t buy Eau De Toilette if you can afford Eau De Parfum.
EE Max Plus Phone Plan
I am not going to bore you with the whole epistle that this turned out to be! So here is the shortened version: I went into the EE phone store to inform them that as my son’s phone contract had ended and he was now overseas, I didn’t want them to carry on charging me the monthly fee. The attendant chatted with me and enquired about whether my son had gone somewhere nice. When I mentioned Australia, I could see his ears perk right up! Anyway, he convinced me that EE sold phone contracts that would work in Australia. My son wanted a phone contract that would work in Australia, so, after ringing him and allowing the attendant to speak to him. I took out the contract. Well, two months later, he was still not able to use the phone except if he got to use wifi. And I was charged. Can you imagine the frustration with him not having use of the contract and telling me about it daily? I would try to get to EE on the phone but they did nothing! When I eventually went to the EE store they found out, much to my disgust, that it was their fault as they had not turned on the International service on the contract. I told them of my disgust, stopped my direct debit payments, and lodged a formal complaint. It really does pay to complain. I have since got an apology and my money back.
Brown Boots
This one is a fifty-fifty. Let me explain. A month or so ago, I was in Florida and was about to visit friends in Connecticut. One of the friends I had not seen in about 11 or 12 years! So I planned a little surprise for our meetup: a trip to New York to be a part of the audience and see the talk show The View. I got tickets online and planned my outfit, with excitement. When I checked the weather forecast, however, it sounded like it was going to be chilly with a chance of showers. Oh no! I only had shoes suited for the Florida weather which was blazing hot. I made the hasty decision to get some boots to wear with my outfit. I already had about 3 pairs of black boots already so I decided to go with brown.
This purchase cost me $79 which I regret spending because
- they were not very comfortable and left a burnlike scar on my foot
- Walking around in New York in them after the show wasn’t fun so I ended up having to buy a comfy pair of slippers
- The weather folk got it wrong and it was a bright sunny day, which made me look odd wearing boots.
- They were quite heavy and added to my suitcase being overweight when it was time for me to return (more about that in another post)
Don’t ask me what the solution to this is. I suppose it is to wear whatever shoes I have and to stay out of the rain. They will come in handy here in cold, wet England with some thick socks to avoid that scar again.
Online Course
For several reasons, I don’t want to publicise the name of this course (yet). One of the reasons is that I think I am entitled to a refund and I don’t want to mess up my chances. My word of warning is that you should not be pressured into buying an online course until you have had the chance to speak to at least one person who can vouch that it is actually good and worth your investment.
When I bought the blogging course that taught me all the basics of blogging from scratch, I was really impressed with how effective it was. You can take my word for it that this is an excellent course and worth its weight in gold. The one course that I took last year that helped me to start making money off my blog was also very good. In fact, I’ve made several sales just by referring that course to others and they too have found it to be exactly what they needed. In my opinion, it is the best affiliate marketing course.
I can feel the frustration on that phone contract gone wrong! Had an awesome read, thanks!
Frustration is actually an understatement! It was dire! I’m so glad it is over!
Ha ha ha we all make regrettable purchases sometimes. Buying fake perfume definitely doesn’t pay off. It never smells the same. And sometimes it’s just better to wait to get a better deal.
And the seldom chance that I do wear perfume, I have to use the Eau De Toilette. Other wise the full strength gives me a massive headache.
PS. I also have a pair of brown boots bought last minute. I have worn them once in the long time that I’ve had them. 😉
I love reading these types of lists from people. I regret buying so many things this year! My income increased so I felt a little bit more comfortable with my spending, which is such a bad thing!
I know Alexis. It is such a temptation to up our consumption of goods and services when we have more disposable income. We just have to be conscious and watch the spend. Thanks for stopping by.
I almost never buy online courses and I always Google everything before buying.
I really hate to be scammed…
We all have purchases that we regret. Perfumes are especially tricky…they never smell the same on everyone.
Marina/www.marinablueeyes.com
Ah, buyer’s remorse! I’m trying to think of something I regret buying this year, and it’s the Chanel perfume that I thought smelled good in the store! It actually gives me a headache!
I’m sorry to hear about your perfume. I think we’ve all had things we’ve bought online that seemed to be a good deal and ended up being fake and from China. Great post!
I think we have all gave in to buying things we regret this past year! I can relate to you in that there were things i really should have passed on. I have also noticed there are so many online courses that claim to teach you how to blog or how to make money and I often ask myself if they are real. You are right in that we have to do more research before we buy.
Let us resolve to make sure that next year we do better. That’s a sign that we are learning from our mistakes.
Ugh, so frustrating! I had a pair of boots like that, and regretted purchasing them for the same reason. You need to get the weather right and I always get schvitzy on my legs when I feel they are being restricted… Too bad about the online course though! I’ve been thinking about paying for one for my Pinterest growth in the new year.
Oh if I could hug you, I would! I KNOW the EDP EDT dilemma because I am a fellow victim!
Because of what I call error shopping, I try to be more cautious these days.
This is a cool list! I need to make a list too! Comcast is my regret!
I couldn’t even begin to tell you the things I regret buying this year, but then again I usually don’t make large purchases they’re just little things! And I love the Angel perfume also, I could probably never afford it though LOL
I hate how much scammers are out there! I hate buying these online course because most of them are nothing special!
I had to reread your last paragraph about the Blogging class haha! I thought you were saying that about the blogging class. Now Im interested to see which it was!
Ha ha. One day I will reveal all. I’m still hoping to get at least some of my money back, lol
Oh it is true about the difference between Eau De Parfum and Eau De Toilette. They are definitely not interchangeable.
. We tend to buy a few things with all our heart but it doesn’t match our expectation. Its so disheartening.
Footwear ranks very high on the purchases I usually regret. There are quite a few pairs that I have not used as they were not comfortable.
I ALWAYS worry about buying an online course. They always promise a specific outcome and I feel Like nothing should ever be promised so diligently!
So many people reflect on what they did right in a year, it’s refreshing to see someone post some regrets. We all have those too. I think the one that would make me the most upset is the phone thing. The rest you can somewhat salvage (hopefully).
I totally wish I could say I didn’t relate to this post, but unfortunately I do. There are definitely times that I buy things only to regret it in the not so distant future!
Ugh, I can totally relate when it comes to infuriating phone companies- I no longer trust any phone service provider because of it! All in all, seems like a pretty minimal year in terms of regrets! Here’s to laughing about the frustrating purchases and (hopefully) making fewer of them next year!
Thanks and I hope you keep your money only for sane purchases too.
I can feel the frustration through your words! Buying fakes always hurts! Haha
Oh Jolecia!
This is a great piece. I love hearing about things people wish hey hadn’t gotten. It is often so much more helpful than mere recommendations on what to buy.
❤️
Wow, good for you shopping around first! I likely would have been disappointed in myself too, bad I done all that walking around. That’s a good idea, though, like it a lot.
I am always wary of those online courses, there’s no way to know if it’s worth it upfront!
I regret joining SPRINT. I did not do it on purpose. My son did and then said I could get on his plan. They are horrible!