The Non-Consumer Advocate

Should Brand Matter?

by Katy on July 28, 2010 · 32 comments

Yesterday’s Non-Consumer Mish-Mash column received a thought provoking reply to my mention that the 50¢ tank top I picked up at a garage sale was Old Navy brand.

“Why can’t it just be a great black tank top? Why does it have to be Old Navy?”

The reader went to on to write that:

“Because it sounds like we are buying these by BRAND and not because we like them. How does OLD NAVY black tank top describe a tank top any better? How does describing coffee mugs or underwear change how it looks by mentioning the brand name?”

This comment did not surprise me because the same commenter had earlier questioned why the brand of my garbage picked Crate and Barrel Christmas mugs mattered? I had not addressed the question at the time, (lord knows what what going on in my day when I published that piece) but the question had certainly been ruminating with me.

Does brand matter, or is it a completely irrelevant detail?

I think the answer is both yes and no. Brand is not important in terms of status. But some brands are better made than others, and certain brands are more cleverly designed. In the best case scenario, these two occurrences collide.

Take for example Garnet Hill, which one of my favorite brands. Garnet Hill is a mostly catalog based business that sells expensive clothing, housewares and kid stuff; but their star products is their bedding. Oh my God, the bedding! It’s extremely high quality and the graphics are fantastic. When I garbage picked a flannel duvet cover in their classic clouds pattern I was over the moon. Had that same duvet cover been a Target brand, I would have been less likely to bring it home and put the work into mending all the tears.

So yes, brand mattered in this case.

When I picked up the 50¢ Old Navy tank top at a garage sale, my thinking was not along the lines of “Wowie-zowie, it’s Old Navy!” but more along the lines of “This tank top looks functional. I already have a blue one that I also bought for 50¢ at a garage sale last summer, so I know it’ll work for me.”

And no, brand did not matter in this case.

In an ideal world, all consumer goods would be high quality and equally worthy, but such is not the case. Some brands are simply better than others, while stores like Target run the gamut from poor to fantastic quality. (My mother swears by their towels for her rental cottages.)

I describe myself as a “Non-Consumer” but that doesn’t mean that I am immune to brand awareness. It is simply more satisfying to score a $2 pair of Goodwill Levi’s instead of Wal Mart brand. I am not looking to fill my home with designer goods, instead I look for high quality goods that will not fall apart before they should. And if I can get three of four seasons out of that tank top, then I’ll feel pretty good.

How do you weigh in on this issue? Is favoring some brands more than others bowing down to Madison Avenue? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Non-Consumer Mish-Mash

by Katy on July 27, 2010 · 15 comments

It’s time again for Non-Consumer Mis-Mash, where I write a little bit about this and a little bit about that.

Bag Those Germs!

I read a Consumer Reports blog post last week about the connection between reusable grocery bags and e.coli. Apparently, the American Chemistry Council is trying to convince consumers people that their totes are a hotbag of dangerous germs. Luckily, there was a suggested solution, which was:

“It’s a good idea to wash them occasionally.”

I’d been meaning to do this for awhile, so I threw my hodge podge of bags into the wash and then pegged them onto the clothesline.

Wow. That was hard.

Why Julius Rock Rocks my World

My husband has slowly transformed himself from a baseball superfan to a soccer fanatic, which meant that cable TV snuck into our house for the World Cup. Of course, World Cup soccer ended weeks ago, yet that invasive cable has yet to leave our home. I would love to blame everyone else, but I’m just as bad as the male contingency, watching my daily allotment, (any maybe someone else’s) of Mad Men, Entourage, Design Star and just about just about anything that HGTV deigns to offer.

The one TV show that we all seem to love is Everybody Hates Chris.

I don’t know why the boys love the show, but I’m a not-so-secret follower of the wisdom according to Julius Rock, the frugalest man on television. Sure, his cheapism is part of the funny that is Chris Rock’s childhood recollections, but the man holds a special spot in my heart.

Some of my favorite quotes:

“My father held onto money so tight, George Washington couldn’t breathe.”

“The only time my dad ever brought something new home was when it was old to everybody else.”

“Unplug that clock, boy. You can’t tell time while you sleep. That’s two cents an hour.”

“Why would I spend $20 to get into a club when I can dance at home for free?!”

And my favorite:

“That’s ___________ worth of _____________ you’ve got there!”

For example, 15¢ and spilled milk, or $8 and saran wrap.

And of course, my kids love, love, love to tease me about how similar Julius Rock and I can be.

Which I take as a compliment.

When Trendy and Functional Combine

I am the first to admit that I can be a bit of a snob. I’ve always eschewed trendiness, even in high school when I refused to wear a a pink Alligator shirt or legwarmers. But there’s a recent trend that I suddenly realized is actually functional for us 40 somethings.

And that style is wearing a stretchy tank top under another shirt.

Because the current trend of waistlines that sit under the navel is only cute on teenagers, and I don’t want to live in fear of reaching my arms up and exposing my bloopy tummy. But the addition of a long tank top underneath fixes the whole issue. Which is why when I found a black Old Navy tank top at a garage sale for 50¢ last week, I was happier than one would expect for such a seemingly dull purchase.

Get used to seeing it. That’s 50¢ worth of tank top!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Win a Copy of J.D. Roth’s “Your Money: The Missing Manual”

by Katy on July 25, 2010 · 66 comments

Although I consider myself to be extremely responsible and savvy with the money in my wallet, that doesn’t mean I know diddly-squat about stocks, bonds, mutual funds or Roth IRA’s. But that’s okay. You don’t have to be an expert before dipping your toe into the icy cold water of money management. (Don’t worry, I have a 4013B through my employer, and I’ve been adding to it for years. Although somewhat passively.)

Luckily, there are saviors, like J.D. Roth who have taken the time to educate themselves about personal finance and high end money management. For those who may not know, Roth is a local boy done good who writes the highly successful blog Get Rich Slowly, which addresses just about any monetary issue you can think of. And like many boys done good, he wrote and published a fantastic book, which is called Your Money: The Missing Manual. This deceptively small book deftly boils complicated financial concepts into clear and understandable writing. Not an easy task.

This really is the book I wish I’d read, (and kept to refer to) when I was twenty years old and in my first adult job. (Administrative Assistant at a marketing firm in New York City.) Luckily, it’s still a valuable resource when a gal is working her way through her early forties.

Roth had offered to give me a book to use as a giveaway for Non-Consumer Advocate readers, but I actually found a used copy at Goodwill, which I promptly grabbed despite the $4.99 price tag. (Highway robbery for a thrift shop book in my opinion.)

To enter to win this copy of J.D. Roth’s Your Money: The Missing Manual, just write your best financial tip in the comments section below. I will randomly choose a winner on Wednesday, July 28th at midnight. One entry per person, U.S. residents only.

Good luck!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Be Your Own Boss

by Katy on July 25, 2010 · 25 comments

I have a tendency to get caught up in the stressors of day-to-day life and can let myself get close to the edge. But the one idea that backs me up from the slippery precipice is the notion that I am my own boss. This is true with my blog, my family and my household duties. I don’t have to follow a strict set of rules, I can create my own routines, ethics and guidelines.

Some of the ideas that I’ve been rethinking lately:

I must blog on a daily basis.
I must serve dinner at 6:00. (If we’re hungry at 4:00 P.M., then we eat at 4:00 P.M.!)
I must do the dishes promptly after dinner.
I must go to bed and wake up early.
I must have washboard flat abdominal muscles.
I write about sustainability and simple living, therefor I must get rid of my cars and winnow my belongings down to 100 items.
I must live my life exactly like every else.

I am a 42-year-old woman who gets to make her own rules. I don’t live in an oppressive society and I celebrate the elastic waistband! Occasionally I choose Mad Men over a sink full of dishes and my life would be a million times more inconvenient if my cars went away.

I am my own boss, and I can live the life that feels right to me.

Go ahead and try it, it’s extremely liberating.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Why Buying Used Saves Both Money and Stress

by Katy on July 23, 2010 · 13 comments

This post is a reprint of a previously published piece. I was reminded of it today when a look through the pool’s lost and found failed to come up with my son’s swim shirt. “Oh well,” I thought. At least it was from Goodwill. Enjoy!

sigg2

My ten-year-old son has many great qualities. He’s a gifted artist, funny, a loyal friend and let’s face it — he’s just plain cute. But he’s also the five-star general of thespace cadets. I send him into the bathroom to brush his teeth and he washes his hands; I lay clothes for the day in his lap and he goes to the dresser and complains that there’s nothing to wear.

And yes, he loses things left, right and center.

I’ve lost track of how many jackets and coats he’s gone through this year alone, and we need to have three lunch boxes in order to pack him a daily school lunch.

This is another reason why being part of The Compact, (only buy used) is good money management. A perfect example is his school water bottle, which is a metal Sigg-style affair which I picked up at a rummage sale for 25 cents. It was the perfect kid-size and I didn’t have to worry about any plastic related toxins going into my son. But it stopped coming home last week.

“Honey, where’s your orange water bottle?”

“Huh?”

“You know, the metal one? The one we wrote your name on? The one you take to school every day?”

“What, huh? I dunno.”

A deep rummaging through the school lost-and-found confirmed the never-gonna-see-it-again status of the bottle.

But it’s far from a catastrophe. Sure, my son needs to take some responsibility for his belongings, but that will happen in time. I was famous for leaving my coat at the school playground when I was his age, but I did grow out of that particular trait. (My parents would go a local rummage sale every year and stock up on coats in my size.)

Because I’m spending such small amounts, I don’t have to freak out about the money spent or the replacement cost. And you know what? I already have a 99 cent Goodwill look-alike ready to take its place.

This reasoning expands into other areas as well. Shirt stained beyond redemption? That’s okay, it was 50 cents. Another coat gone AWOL? At least it was from a free pile. These losses can be a major source of financial hardship when spending $15 for shirts and $50 for coats. For me? Not so much.

Not only does The Compact help distance me from a consumer mindset, save me money and simplify my life; it also keeps me from freaking out every time my son loses yet another thing.

Thank you.

Are you a member of The Compact or simply a fan of the gently used? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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The Proof is in the Pudding, AND The Pie

by Katy on July 22, 2010 · 11 comments

The Fred Meyers in the Portland area are running a special on blueberries this week, which at casa Wolk-Stanley means it’s high time for pie time. Add to this my next door neighbor’s invitation to pick the raspberries from her yard, and it would be criminal to ignore the call of flaky crust and juicy berries.

So I pulled my trust Joy of Cooking cookbook off the shelf, and sure enough the pages automatically fell open to the pie section, which was thoroughly crusted with the evidence of past pie times. In fact, I actually had to scratch away at the page to properly read the recipe.

In comparison, here’s the page of spinach recipes:

Yup, absolutely pristine.

Luckily, the berries themselves were beautiful enough to make up for any and all crusty cookbook issues:

And the pie itself was perfection in circular form. You may be asking yourself where the photo is, but it got eaten before any photography could happen. You’re just going to have to take my word for it.

Ahh . . . Pie.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Lazy Days of Summer, or Not

by Katy on July 21, 2010 · 3 comments

I am a big fan of laying around, reading garbage picked magazines, drifting off to sleep and justifying it by labeling it “simple living.” Sadly, my life bears little resemblance to this fantasy world, especially during the summer months. Logically, June, July and August should be all about lazing about and watching the grass grow.

Sadly, my family ramps it up in the summer months. It starts with UK Soccer camps, (which my husband coordinates for the non-profit soccer board) which means that we end up hosting the coaches for a week at a time. (We’ve hosted six different coaches over the past three years.) Then come the swimming lessons, martial arts, lifeguard classes, Japanese tutoring and hosting of Japanese exchange students. Add to that my job, my husband’s job and the boys’ library volunteering, and suddenly the grass is growing without an audience.

But wait . . . wasn’t I supposed to lay around sipping Mai Tais and ordering the island boys to fan me in a counter clockwise direction?!

Luckily, all of these summertime activities are what we want to be doing. I enjoy opening my home up to people from other countries, and I’m looking forward to my older son having a responsible, well paying job as a lifeguard next summer. And if I mourn the loss of laying around doing nothing, there’s always the school year. That’s when my free time abounds with riches. Maybe there’s no island boy involved, but there’s always the oscillating fan. Which has three different settings and has been known to make a mean Mai Tai.

And if you know any differently, I ask you to keep it to yourself.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Paper or Plastic? Win a Reusable Grocery Bag!

by Katy on July 20, 2010 · 81 comments

Portland, Oregon has been working towards banning single use plastic bags for a couple of years now. The effort was derailed by a myriad of other issues, (mayoral sex scandal or economic breakdown anyone?) but it’s made its way back up the issue ladder and is once again moving towards actually happening.

I received this e-mail from the mayor yesterday:

Dear friends,

Last Friday, I made public the City’s draft plan to ban single-use plastic carry-out bags and have stores collect 5-cent charges on paper bags. And over just the past weekend, support for the approach has been on the rise.

First, the Oregonian published an editorial on Saturday supporting our approach. You can read that editorial by clicking on this link: http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/07/time_to_take_aim_at_plastic_ba.html

Then, on Sunday, Fred Meyer Stores announced their plan to stop using single-use plastic carry-out bags in all their Portland stores starting August 1, 2010! I applaud Fred Meyer for their leadership on this issue. Fred Meyer joins other great brands in our region that have made the transition away from plastic and toward paper and reusable bags. Some stores — like Zupan’s Marketplace, Whole Foods and Market of Choice have shifted away from single-use plastic carry-out bags for years. Others, like New Seasons Market, have never offered plastic bags, responding to shoppers’ demands for paper and reusable bags.

And great advocacy organizations like Surfrider Foundation and Environment Oregon continue their grassroots outreach, adding thousands of supporters in the region to their efforts to Ban the Bag. To learn more and get involved, go to: http://www.environmentoregon.org/great-pacific-cleanup/local-efforts/portland

So, to add your voice to the conversation about banning plastic bags in Portland, visit www.mayorsamadams.com/bagban, take a look at the proposed ordinance and Frequently Asked Questions, and leave us a comment. The deadline for public comments is this Friday, July 23.

It’s time for Portland to take action. Portlanders are ready, Portland’s businesses are ready, and the approach is right. Please join me and thousands of your friends and neighbors, and remember to thank those stores that are making the move to ban plastic bags.

Sincerely,

Sam Adams

Mayor, City of Portland

And by the way, kudos to Fred Meyer (Kroger) for not waiting for legislation in order to stop handing out those dratted plastic bags!

In celebration of banning plastic bags in all cities, I will be giving away one reusable grocery bag. This Baggu brand bag was given to me by the Salem Saturday Market in lieu of a speaking fee. It folds into a small pouch, and would easily fit into any purse. To say it’s “as cute as a button” would not be an understatement.

To enter to win this bag, just put your name in the comments section below. I will randomly choose a winner Thursday, July 22nd at midnight. U.S. residents only, please enter only once. Good luck!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out make it do or do without”

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Can You Be in Debt and Happy?

by Katy on July 19, 2010 · 22 comments

I consider myself to be a happy person. I find pleasure in my work, family and home life. I have hobbies and activities that are satisfying, and enough friends to keep loneliness at bay.

Happy.

However, I also have some debt, a consistently messy house and a few items on my to-do list that never float to the top.

Can a person be happy without being 100% on top of the details of her life?

I love Dave Ramsey, and find his writing to be both entertaining and inspirational. It’s filled with reader stories about overcoming debt and general adversity. However, there’s never anyone whose story reads “I was in debt, but happy enough. We got out of debt and continued to be happy.” It’s not exactly a gripping story to skyrocket a book up the bestseller list.

We have some credit debt that is related to our money pit of a house. It’s recently been as high as $16,000, but is currently at $3000+. I throw any and all extra money at The Visa Dudes, and know that it should be gone by mid Autumn. Am I in utter and abject misery because of this debt? No way! I’m not proud about it, but I don’t let it affect how I feel about my life. We still find fun and cheap family activities, (Star Trek in the Park anyone?) and if there’s any deprivation in our lives, I can’t think of what that might be.

I am not employing the laser focus that Dave Ramsey followers are instructed to master. My younger son gets twice weekly private Japanese tutoring, martial arts classes and just finished a week long soccer camp. My older son also did the soccer camp and is now taking a lifeguarding class. I just bought a refurbished MacBook to replace my no-longer-fixable 2005 iBook, and I did some recreational Goodwill shopping yesterday. (Bought a glass juice container, a swimsuit for my older son, a T-shirt for my younger son and a fabric lined basket. The swimsuit was the only purchase that could be categorized as an actual “need.”)

I do continue to line dry my clothing, pack work lunches, steer clear of the first run theaters and even played host family to the British soccer coaches who came to town to teach in those camps. (Which gave us a sizable discount.)

Of course, my happiness despite debt would be a different story if I weren’t gainfully employed, were unable to make the monthly Visa payments or on the verge of having our electricity/phone service/car insurance cut off. I know that my debt is soon to be distant memory.

Life is never going to be 100% perfect, but I’m not going to let that rain on my parade.

Do you feel like your happiness is completely dependent on your financial status? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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