I have a favorite pair of shorts for lounging around in. They are blue, thin cotton. I got them from Ross for $10… about 11 years ago.
It startled me to realize how long I’d had them. At the time, I figured they’d wear out in a year or so, but I planned on getting plenty of use out of them.
A decade past before the first real sign of wear: the drawstring broke. That was only after I tugged a little too hard trying to get the knot undone. They’re a little baggy now, but no less comfortable. And I could probably thread another length of string through them if I wanted to bother.
It just always strikes me as funny, how some of the cheapest things turn out to be so ridiculously durable. For example, Tim and I found that Slurpee cups are dishwasher safe. So we were able to keep our much-vaunted sets of holographic cups. (You know you want a Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen cup. Don’t lie.)
Have you guys ever found something to have surprising staying power/durability?
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I bought plain cotton briefs from Victoria's secret when they had a good sale. 10 years and a pregnancy later I am still using a couple pairs. A little faded but not at all stretched out.
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I am wearing some flip-flops that I bought at Rite Aid when Abby was 2 years old. Abby will be 31 in August. Granted, they didn't get a lot of use during my 17 years in Alaska. But still….I'm amazed how well they're holding up after all this time.
A winter coat I bought in Anchorage lasted me for at least 25 years — no designer label, I just bought it in a mid-price department store called Lamonts.
A London Fog coat has lasted me for almost 20 years. It's starting to fray around the cuffs and pockets, alas.
I make iced tea in a plastic pitcher my sister gave me 29 years ago.
My mom gave me a small wooden clothes-drying rack 30 years ago. I'm still using it.
I'm wearing the Ani diFranco T-shirts that Abby bought at an Ani concert when she was maybe 17 years old.
I don't know how old my clock-radio is, but it's the kind that had the numbers on little cards that flip over. I'm going to guess 1970s vintage. I don't know how much use it got before I bought it — but I paid 99 cents at the St. Vincent de Paul thrift shop in early 2005. It still wakes me up the same way an expensive alarm clock would.
Hey, this is fun. Who else is an illegitimus frugalis???
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There are so many cheap and relatively cheap things I've bought over the years that I'm still using, it's amazing.
I have a blue, green and white striped casual top I bought at least 15 years ago that's still going strong. I know I spent less than $10 for it.
A free standing towel holder from the 60's ($4) that I got at a flea market 25 years ago is just as handy today as it's ever been.
The Hoover Elite 350 vacuum cleaner I gave my mom for Christmas 22 years ago is still doing a good job now that I've inherited it.
The gooseneck lamp on the desk next to my computer is 28 years old. The lamp on top of the bookcase across the room is almost as old.
The list goes on and on.
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We are using my grandmother's dresser. It was free. (My cousin had left it outside in the rain. Its not an antique, its just really old.)
I had a pair of sandals that I wore all the time that were bought for me for $20 when I was 12. They finally broke when I was 34. I wish I could find that exact same style.
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My Mazda–17 years and counting! (Of course the fact I don't drive much helps–it's still got under 100k in miles on it…)
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