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A good farrier. Anyone who has a horse or knows horsefolk know these people can make or break a horse. We finally found one who’s a gem, knows his craft and isn’t horrendously expensive.
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Drugstore.com. Yeah, it’s a bit more expensive than the real thing but I can find stuff on there that my local drugstore doesn’t have—like this flouride rinse my dentist says I have to use due to mineral loss in my teeth. The Listerine stuff is okay (the purple stuff) but this other flouride rinse is 10x better and doesn’t burn my mouth like Listerine does.
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eBay. 'Nuff said.
Mine is AAA as well or better yet, AAA Gold. A fmaily member pays for ours and for the whole family but it has easilly saved us hundreds of dollars over the years above the cost not to mention untold convienence. My wife had a blowout on the Mass Pike last night fact and she called me at home with with kids and then called AAA. She was back at home rather quickly and neither of us even had to do much. My SIL got badly stuck in front of our house a few months ago and one call was all it took. I needed a tow in the middle of nowheresville Florida at 2 am myseld one night and the driver took me and my SUV 93 miles to Gainsville, FL which was my destination and we arrived at the tire shop at 4 am and then he took me to my cousin’s house where I was staying (AAA Gold has 100 mile free towing). The driver told me that the normal cost would be over $500 and I got it for free. If you actually use their discounts, they are everwhere although I usually forget to ask about them in restaurants and other establishments but my cheap uncle never foregts and often saves 10% or more.
Neosporin. My twin girls get a bit of diaper rash from time to time and Neosporin clears it up within 12-24 hours before it gets any worse.
Prilosec. I was in AGONY for years before I discovered this stuff. After a 6 month course of Priolsec I haven’t had acid reflux in over 2 years.
Pedal Magic. After a few weeks of scraped knees and frayed nerves this actually taught my daughter to ride a bike in about 15 minutes.
Getting travel insurance for a trip I guess depends on where you’re going, what you’re doing. But if you do decide to get it, for Og’s sake pay the money out to go with a reputable insurer. I’m in the middle of an exhausting battle with a cheap-ass, low-rent collection of cowboy insurers who are nickel and diming me to death over a missed long haul flight. It is a very bitter experience having to fight for what you are owed for what was an unfortuante experience in the first place. A lesson learned.
[hijack]I’ve always wanted to try these. Do you have any problems with taking off make-up and not disturbing the lashes? How about when you workout and sweat? How long do you go between touch-ups? I have the shortest, blondest eyelashes and usually wear false ones when I go out. Eyelash extensions sound awesome.[/hijack]
I’ve started buying really, really nice shoes. I get so much more wear out of them and they last a lot longer. Same for clothes. If I buy the expensive skirt I really want, I feel great whenever I wear it and it looks nicer much, much longer.
Related to that, a good cobbler is totally worth it. My shoes look brand new.
Ditto on the manicure/pedicure. I love that my acrylic nails don’t chip for over a month and my pedicures last about the same. When I do it myself, I have to repolish at least weekly and I still have chips. Getting it done saves me lots of time and looks nicer.
Gosh, I wish I coudl think of something that didn’t make me sound like a shallow bimbo but that’s all I can think of for now.
Oh, I know. Amazon Prime. Getting free shipping on almost all my orders totally pays for the cost and the two day delivery is great.
High quality sheets. We paid about $120.00 for our one set of 1,000 thread count Egyptian Cotton sheets, and $60.00 for our 600 thread count Pima cotton sheets. Yeah, you can buy sheets for a queen size bed for $35.00, but the good ones are so much better. We will never go back to cheap sheets!
Premium house paint. I’ve tried going the cheap route, but the stuff won’t cover, you need to apply a second coat, it doesn’t last as long. Do it right the first time, that’s my motto.
Also, lawn mowers and gas grills. They cost more initially, but you get considerably more service life out of them.
:::can you tell I’m a homeowner?
Those green bags they sell on the shopping channel that keep your fruits and vegetables fresher longer. Totally worth it. They cost about $20 for 35 bags and I felt a little foolish when I purchased them but I am a total advocate now. I despise waste. I should have done it ages ago. I have a head of lettuce in my fridge almost a month old, as fresh as when I bought it. Brilliant.
Your everyday dishware, not your fancy company stuff, the ones you use everyday, should be something you absolutely love. Why? Because you use and touch them more than almost anything in your home. Yet most people end up buying something that ‘will do’ for everyday and something they adore for company. I think that should be reversed. The things you use everyday, the common place items in your home are the ones that should be beautiful and a pleasure to handle, impeccably and creatively designed etc.
I agree with the good sheets above too, after all you sleep on them every night, spend a little more and enjoy the luxury as you crawl into your bed every evening.
It depends on how fast of a hair grower you are in general. My hair all grows really fast and I get touch ups about every 3 months. You definately have to be more gentle with your eyes but not so much that it disturbs your daily routine. I have dark brown hair so I get black lashes and just dont wear any mascara. If I do I apply it gingerly. Basically just don’t screw with them too much. After a while they’ll gradually start to look like youre wearing fakes that are falling off a little. This is when you need to get touched up. Seriously though, do it. You won’t look back.
I came here to mention Prilosec. I’m halfway through the 14-day OTC course and it’s literally like night and day. I had no idea how bad my acid problems were until they went away!
And I’ll add movers - it always seems like they cost a few hundred bucks more than they should, but MAN, are they worth it.
Name brand printer ink. The cheap stuff flows unevenly, produces rotten work, and gums up the machine.
Saving $5 a cartridge is not worth it.
A-freaking-men. I locked our only set of keys in the car on our honeymoon. To this day (24+ years later) we say that AAA saved our marriage 
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And our sanity last summer, when our car died suddenly, in Canada (AAA and CAA, it seems, have an agreement of some sort to help each others’ customers). We had a working car a half-hour later (the other folks in the same parking lot, driving the same make/model of car, and also from the US, were not so fortunate :().
Other things:
Cell phones. We’re not big users - we throw away many minutes each month - but for coordinating while at theme parks, they’re fantastic. Not to mention when we get “those” kinds of calls from the kids’ school (nasty broken arm) when otherwise we’d have been unreachable. Or when we need to go out. It’s worth the money just for the peace of mind.
Spare freezer: We for many years had a tiny chest freezer. That thing more than paid for itself what with stocking up when things went on sale. Not to mention the ability to make meals ahead and freeze them. Has saved us untold $$ in restaurant meals and full-priced goods. So much so that we’ve upgraded to a larger one.
Another vote for Prilosec.
Cheer for Dark Colors. It’s fairly expensive but it is absolutely worth every penny. Mr. SCL wears cotton scrubs to work - dark greens and blues mostly - and this stuff keeps them looking like new long after other detergents would have them faded and dingy. I use it on my black jeans and shirts, too, and they don’t get rusty or fade.
Netflix. Some Dopers kvetch about it, but I sure don’t.
Earplugs. They let me sleep more, and so now I’m (relatively) sane.
Condoms. Much cheaper than taking care of a human being for 20 years.
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The cars are great. The salesmen are the biggest crooks in the business. :mad:
Really good shoes by a high quality company: Alden, Clarke, and so forth. And don’t buy cheap socks. I suggest Smartwool (yes, even in summer).
Get Coolmax or other quality wicking underwear. Yes, they cost extra- they are worth it.
And I own a couple of items made by Cahart- super tough. Orvis is also a source of quality clothing.
I second norinew about good sheets: get high count 100% cotton. However, you can sometimes get good prices on eBay, Sportsmans Guide, etc.
That being said: eBay.
Knives. Cheap knives can be deadly. Buy top quality and keep them sharp.
Sheets. See previous posts.
A quality massage.
Tools. Skip the Chinese crap and start with Craftsman, then work up from there.
Leatherman “Wave”
Seconded. As much time as you spend sleeping, and as important as sleep is for your body, it’s worth the cost and time it takes to find the one you like best.
Almay Smart Shade foundation – it really does conform to your skin color, and feels as if you’re not wearing makeup. Also doesn’t rub off on clothing. Amazing, for about $10, which is about twice what I used to pay for foundation.
Volvo cars. Safety is worth it. The performance is excellent.
And we paid a private nanny $18/hr to care for our three little boys one evening while we were on vacation, which I thought was outrageous at first. She had all three of them in bed, sleeping, at their normal bedtime, while husband and I had a lovely night out alone. I wanted to bring her home with us.
New Balance 99x running shoes. They’re expensive, but they are the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever worn.
The shoe changes every 2-4 years from model number 990 to 991 to 992 to 999, then back to 990. I’m on at least my third cycle.
Since list price is now a staggering $134.99, I buy in bulk during sales. About a year ago, they were discontinuing the 991s. (I was on my last pair of 4 that I’d bought back in 2002.) I bought four pairs of 991s again (for $75 each), which should take me to 2010. 