Buy Me!

After a bit of a late start to the day, I spent the entire morning wandering various shops in an attempt to get things we require.

First stop was a new one - Mr Price Home has moved and we thought we'd stop in. When we turned the corner and saw how absolutely huge the place was our mouths dropped open collectively. We spent nearly 2 hours wandering around before coming home with ONLY what I'd gone there to get (good girl, I am). Funny though, in spite of the hugeness there were a couple of things I had hoped to find that were in short supply, like plain-colour duvet cover sets. Everything's printed and pimped these days.

Next up was a kid drop-off at Toys 'R Us while I got post, then a peruse of HiFi Corp before it was on to Fruit & Veg City (via a clothing and a second-hand goods shop). Got the essentials at F&V, and from there it was Pick 'n Pay for groceries. Also just got the essentials.

I'm starting to feel glad I'm not a shopaholic. 5 shops, all crying out "buy me!" - so many nifty and nice things trying to grab your attention and get you to splash the plastic at the tills. It's all too easy to go into shopping overdrive and come home both loaded and bankrupt.

But I've wised up to quality and cost. I know when they slap on a price tag of a few thousand on a veneered-wood chipboard item, that I could make it for a whole lot less, in exactly the colour and style and size I want - and probably out of solid wood too. When they go asking for a couple hundred for a duvet cover, I bear in mind that I know where to get fabric - cheap. And that I own both a sewing machine and an overlocker. Same thing with curtains and cushions. What costs R200 in the shops I've made for R50 or less before.

Today I managed to resist all the buy-me's. Got what we need, nothing more. I'm actually pretty chuffed.