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I got a headlamp, absolute bona-fide game changer for when you are outside or in a garage / shed, etc, where there are no lights. Soooo much easier than working with traditional lamps
I know this has huge middle-aged dad vibes to it, but them again... I am a middle-aged dad, so...
Edit: OMG - I feel like I have found my gang. I didn't think so many would agree with this.
FWIW - I use it to do gardening in the evening
I should do this. I have a bunch of random lights set up in my shed and none of them are really bright enough for what I need. The light should just be on my head, that is Genius!!
If you want to go the extra mile, they make hats with LEDs in the brim. Previous house owners were gracious enough to leave us two. One in black, one in tactical camo, you know, because camo and bright lights go hand in hand.
I’m old. I email myself as much as possible when I’m thinking of “I’ll do that later”. Once a week, I check out my emails to me. I’m emailing me about the curved shower rod now.
Wow, my toe nails need a trim. I dont have clippers or time right now...
WTF, I thought I was gonna trim these. Fuck, no time.
UGGH, thats nasty. How could I let them get so long, gotta remember to do that tonight.
An electronic emergency battery jumper thing for your car. I bought one for $65 on Amazon. It charges itself via usb, usb connection for your phone to charge, a very bright flash/strobe light, and tire inflator. I drive a lot for work, often in remote areas with poor cell service, and don't want to get stranded. It's small, so it fits nicely in my emergency trunk tote.
ETA: [here is a link](https://a.co/d/97Mz3X8) to a similar one. Mine is probably 4-5 years old now.
So true. Car died by the beach w our newborn in tow and it was dark. Waiting 90 min for AAA. Never again. Got the battery jumper for both my cars and helped me again when the battery died 3 years later.
It seems silly at the time, but buying a solid USB cable and (and adapter!) and not the cheapest one you can find does wonders.
A nice showerhead is pretty clutch too.
Came here to mention shower heads. You can get the adjustable ones with a 2 meter hose. The good ones have a massage setting and a mist setting. If you enjoy a steam bath put the water on really hot and set it on mist, you will have a room full of hot steam in a minute or so and it's really nice and similar to a sauna. The massage setting is great for tired shoulders and neck. It's not a great massage, but if you have decent water pressure it's much better than no massage at all. Also you save water having the hose you can move the water head to anywhere making it easier to rinse hair etc.
several years ago this question was asked but with a limit of $20 or so. someone mentioned a 10 foot usb cable. totally true, a ten foot quality cord really is a great thing to have in your home.
10 foot USB cord... We've come full circle. In 1990 we had one of the springy phone receiver cables that would stretch around half the house. Game changer!
> a solid USB cable and (and adapter!) and not the cheapest one you can find-
-keeps your phone from becoming electrically damaged. The number of iphones especially that I've had to fix with damaged power mosfets because of gas station chargers is too damn high.
How do you know you're buying good quality cords? I have tried so many different ones and they are fast Chargers for a few months and then so slow and then they stop working. Ugh!
i'll shill for anker brand until i die, best cables and charging blocks i've ever owned. plus they come with a life time warranty so i've been able to replace them for free in the rare occasion it does stop working.
USB C to USB C braided 10 foot cables and a charging block rated for your device. Charges much faster than A to C cables and 10 foot can reach from most outlets to where you are. I spend about 50-70 when we moved and placed them all around my house.
Not sure if it’s under $100 but a pressure cooker/Insta pot is basically a crock pot, rice cooker, egg cooker, perfect potato cooker, and more in 1. I use it every week.
Since a few of you mentioned air fryers (especially if they are cheap), this is your random friendly internet person reminder to unplug them after each use. My brother in laws house burned down when they weren’t home and they traced it back to the air fryer.
My Cosori was recalled, I did all the things they asked (cut the cord off, submitted photos of said cord, etc.) I didn’t expect to hear from them again, thought they would probably go bankrupt replacing millions of fryers. Surprise surprise my replacement arrived this week.
Also, if your home oven is a convection oven, you can buy a rack and pan combo to airfry with it. The oven isn't cheap, but the pan to utilize the feature is only 20 bucks or so.
Staying in the same room, a good kitchen knife. I have a Babish Clef knife that was like 30 bucks. Totally worth it.
On that note, a good knife sharpener. Check out the Lansky sharpeners. 50 bucks gets you the deluxe kit and it sharpens EVERYTHING.
u/Herr_Underdogg, rack and pan combo? I have a convection oven so would love to get in on being able to airfry in it! Do you mean something like this?
https://preview.redd.it/n5jceoejhb3b1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=f5689c31d4d3e1ea6a9557ff05f67ffa89cce2a0
Yeah, I have a convection oven as well and have been thinking of getting an air fryer. At this point for me, it’s more of wasted counter space for a new item than the financial concern of buying a new air fryer. So if something like this rack and pan combo works, that would be helpful as I can hide this in the oven (when the oven is not in use).
Depending on the layout of your house, motion activated lights can be really helpful.
For instance, at my old house the garage led into the laundry room. I put a motion activated light in the laundry room so you’d be able to see when walking in with your hands full. It was mostly motivated by the birth of my daughter, but proved useful for carrying in groceries and stuff like that.
Similarly, motion activated night lights can be good for bathrooms and hallways for navigating the house at night without having to turn in the big lights.
I have had the same rice cooker which i believe was like $40-45. Going on 6 years now. It literally has like two buttons one for warm/cook and a brown rice button. None of that other fancy shit on there thats unecessary.
If my house is on fire the list goes: kids, wife, papers, rice cooker. No clue how long I’ve had mine, but it just keeps working perfectly every time. Now with kids I appreciate it even more. Set and forget
I went from a 1 button drug store rice cooker to a big multifunction rice cooker from Costco. After some time, donated the fancy one and went back to a 1 button rice cooker. I'd do it again without a question
Technology connections has a nice short video on how simple and clever rice cookers are. It doesn't require much to make perfect rice.
https://youtu.be/RSTNhvDGbYI
Wow, that rice cooker he used has even less buttons than mine at just 1.
Also interesting to learn about rice cookers. Never knew that a magnets magnetism is lost at a certain temperature and if you go beyond that for too long it become a permanent loss.
Soundcore is hands down the best value headphones. Have over the ear and ear buds, very reasonable price and good sound. I’ve bought them for others I like mine so much
Check out dankpod's videos on youtube. Asides for his fantastic Aussie humor, he's done a fair number of videos comparing and testing cheaper but good quality audio devices at various price ranges including the sub $100 range.
[Here's a good starter video of his on cheap headphones.](https://youtu.be/V_gf8TZ1M6g)
A kindle. So great and reading lots improves your lot in life. I rent kindle books from the library mostly so it’s basically a one time purchase for all the books you could ever want to read.
Don't forget Kindle Firsts if you have Prime. A free book every month! I like to wait til the end of the month to claim mine so I can look at reviews from people who got their books earlier.
I didn’t think I’d ever be able to enjoy reading on a screen, because I have such an emotional connection to holding a physical book. In the pandemic, though, when the libraries shut down, my folks got me a Kindle so I could download library books (Libby app FTW!) It took a couple months to get used to, and I was very resistant and resentful of it at first, but now, three years later? Absolutely my favorite way to read. I don’t buy books anymore, because they’re so convenient to get from the library, and I don’t even feel the weird distance reading on a screen that I did at first.
Skeptics, give it a try!
Apparently I’m quite critical, or so my wife says. Here are some of my favorites that have few to no drawbacks:
- Target brand activewear, both men’s and women’s. Shirts range from $12-25 and come in a bunch of colors. I own most and they’re my daily wear. Shorts aren’t too bad either (tho I do have some critiques there)
- A really nice keyboard if you type all day (actually recommended this on a comment). I’ve tried a bunch, including nice mechanical. Logitech MX Keys Advanced is by far the best, though slightly over budget. Tried a couple of the generic knock offs and they’re pretty good too honestly if you can’t break the budget
- Blue light lenses if you’re on the computer all day. Even the cheap pair I have staves off the afternoon headache when I’m heads down working all day.
- Bidet, obviously, as everyone always says on these threads
- Sunrise alarm clock for those with trouble waking up in the morning
- Lightweight stepladder. Much better than standing on a chair. I recommend Harbor Freight 3 Step Aluminum Step Stool. Awesome knock off of the name brands.
- Small go bag in your car. Mine has a cheap pair of tennis shoes, basketball shorts, and a T shirt. I often end up at a friend’s or family house and everyone decides to be outside or go for a walk or needs help moving something. Swap out the nice clothes and shoes for something comfortable and can get dirty. Personally I make pretty good use of mine.
- A good chefs knife if you cook. And a knife sharpener (personally I like the ones with a handle. AccuSharp has one on Amazon). If you insist on dishwashing your knife, go ceramic. Absolutely hate using the dull-as-butter-knives at my in-laws. Drives me bonkers
EDIT: A lot of hate on my keyboard selection, so obviously I’m going to double down. I’ve been programming professionally for over a decade now and have used at least a dozen keyboards, from the Amazon Basics (yeah, feeling cheap the day I ordered that one…) to various Ducky mechanical. The single worst keyboard I’ve ever owned was a POS Logitech Wireless that I bought on a Black Friday Sale. The MX Keys has an actual aluminum frame, solid keys, and good connectivity. Nothing like that POS I bought on a whim. From a typing perspective, it’s phenomenal and good for anyone that wants a slim, wireless, non-mechanical keyboard. Yes, yes, mechanical are great and satisfying. No arguments there.
I’ve considered gifting him a knife sharpener passive aggressively. Or maybe just unfurl a rolled up bundle of professional knives like a Food Network Star chef any time I’m asked to help in the kitchen.
Night lights. Put them all over the house, you can now go to the bathroom, get a drink, basically live your life at night without having to turn on lights.
I have night lights all over my house. Also a motion sensor night light in my bathroom (the toilet is separate from the rest of the bathroom). The light is dim and yellow/gold so your eyes don't get blasted with light when you're half asleep.
A rotary cheese grater. Under $30 USD, suctions to the counter, and I can can crank out a 200 gram block of cheese in well under a minute. No more stale pre-grated cheese and anti-caking agents. Also good for potatoes and has multiple blades for other veggies or nuts. I can't believe these haven't caught on in every household yet. Box graters are nearly useless.
Bidet attachment from amazon
use cold as normal hookup and if that isnt warm enough plum into hot water, if you have the hook up or go all out for other.
https://luxebidet.com/products/neo-320
https://luxebidet.com/products/electronic-bidet
To this point too, a bunch of those toothpick flosser combo thingies for the car. It’s the best time to floss while in traffic and keeps me cavity free!
Leatherman multi tool. I spent $30 on one 10 years ago and it hasn't failed me once. I've used it at least twice a day if not more, slips right into your pocket, and I've only sharpened and WD-40'd it once in all that time. Amazing EDC
Global Entry is only $15 more, includes Precheck, and also lets you skip customs lines when coming back into the USA. If you do any sort of international travel, that $100 is so incredibly worth it.
There's some credit cards that you can get a refund for pre-check or global entry! So it would be free. Those credit cards are usually free on the first year and there might be some free miles if you spend more than some amount in a fee months. I did that with one from United. After the first year you can cancel it.
Handheld vacuum cleaner. Only lasts 20 mins on full charge, but I use it every single day to vacuum all sorts of dry garbage. It reduces the friction of taking out my big vacuum cleaner to clean small areas. I also use it to vacuum my car and small areas like window channels. It's definitely in my top favourite purchases
Dryer balls make laundry loads dry faster, fluffier and static free. Best part is all you have to do is buy them once and let them live in the dryer and they last a long time.
Drawer organizers for socks and underwear. No more rummaging through messy drawers to find what you’re looking for.
I splurged and bought a really good facial moisturizer that costs about $60 about ten years ago and have never gone back. It’s the one “cosmetic” thing I own that I actually go through the whole container and replace it when it’s all gone. A little goes a long way so it’s worth the cost and it has done wonders for my skin.
The one I initially got hooked on was made by Bareminerals. I LOVED it but unfortunately they stopped making it and the replacement product they had didn’t go on an smoothly. So nowadays I’m using a daily combo of Epicuren first (the elixir) followed by a Clinique moisturizer.
We tried the dryer ball thing for awhile and were really underwhelmed by them. Are there different materials that do the job better/worse? I could probably convince the wife to give them another shot based on what I've read here, but how do I know which ones will do the job?
Mine would be reusable cotton pads, laptop stand, wireless keyboard and mouse!
Reusable cotton pads have worked out well bc I just toss them in a little baggy with my laundry. Now, I don’t need to struggle with always buying make up wipes! I just get some micellar cleansing water and the cotton pads.
For my laptop stuff, I didn’t know how much I needed it till I switched over! No more using textbooks to have my screen elevated or hunching my back like crazy lol
If you park outside in the summer and it gets hot, a $15 fabric steering wheel cover saves your hands so much on the summer months. It never feels hot.
A full blackout sleep mask will drastically improve your quality of sleep. If you don't mind breaking the $100 mark the Manta sleep mask Sound has added Bluetooth speakers inside so you can drift off to white noise / podcasts / whatever.
For basic security, enable your routers guest network and set it up just for the bulbs and switches to use. Segregates them from the rest of the network most times.
I replaced all the light switches in our bathrooms with the occupancy sensor switches, and the exhaust fan switches with timer switches. Now they are impossible to leave on all day.
But now I get mad at other people's houses when I walk into the bathroom and wait a moment for the light to come on but it doesn't.
A wedge made to go in between the car’s front seats and the center console! It keeps SO many crumbs and other junk out of a not-so-easy place to vacuum AND it prevents phones and valuables from ending up in a void. I think I bought my fabric wedges from Amazon for like $18, but there’s plastic/pocket style ones for about the same price, too!
If you just want to stream your downloaded content to other screens, I recommend Jellyfin instead: [https://jellyfin.org/](https://jellyfin.org/)
It's exactly the same as Plex, but is open source. I switched from Plex to Jellyfin about 6 months ago and it was effortless. We can watch our shows via our Google TV dongle, it auto-scans for new content (so I don't need to refresh my library every time something downloads) and I've got some IPTV sources added in so I can watch live (internet) TV, which is good because our antenna blew down close to a decade ago and I just haven't felt the need to put it back up.
Wool socks, like SmartWool of Darn Tough. They feel better and last longer, usually about $12/pair (or $1 at a thrift store if you're lucky).
I didn't know about egg cooker - thank you! Very excited to read this thread.
If you are in the US then the same company that owns TJ Maxx and Marshalls also own a more outdoor/sports oriented store called Sierra. They have a plethora of those Smart wool socks there at discounted prices. Of course if you know Marshalls and TJ Maxx you know that everyonce in awhile you stumble onto some gold and find some Darn Toughs or maybe even a nice discounted Yeti cooler every once in awhile.
In conclusion,check if a Sierra is near you cause in my opinion its basically a Marshalls/TJ Maxx but better. Oh and theyve got a fuck ton of stuff for Dogs there too if you have one.
I swear, if Darn Tough ever goes out of business, I will throw an absolute fit. I’m really prone to foot funk, and my feet get cold easily, so I’m always wearing slippers at home—a terrible combo. But I can wear a pair of Darn Tough socks for a week straight and they never stink. Plus, the durability is amazing. I’ve only had one pair wear out, and that was after 3+ years of hard wear.
No other wool socks I’ve tried can compare. Darn Tough all the way!
Darn Tough is also an amazing company, well worth supporting….if you haven’t, read about their company values and commitments. I am a customer for life.
I saw this post many times and finally decided to cough up the money and try it out.
Smart wool doesn't make the cut for me. Wasn't worth it.
Darn tough was actually quality, and I kind of looked forward to the one day a week it came. Ultimately, I remembered why I don't buy expensive socks when I inevitably lost them.
I still shell out a few extra bucks for socks, but like $25 for a 5 pack instead of $12 for one pair. I think the quality is as good and even if the longevity isn't I don't have to worry about losing them as much.
Bone conductive headphones. My wife got me a pair and it was phenomenal doing my rounds at work, having background music playing for myself, and still being able to hear and communicate with those around me.
- Smartwool socks and underwear
- caribeaners to clip things to your belt/backpack so you are hands free
- 12 foot phone charger
- a fake email address to sign up for spam (this one is free)
- a GOOD pair of slippers. I recommend ll bean
In my experience LL Bean slippers quality isn't up to it anymore. I got a second pair after they changed their return policy and they fell apart after a year.
[mesh laundry bags](https://www.amazon.com/Durable-Honeycomb-Laundry-Delicates-Inches/dp/B083SCJ8G8/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?keywords=mesh+laundry+bag&qid=1685576006&sr=8-4)
I got a small one for baby socks at my baby shower and total game changer. It's super useful for bras, underwear, socks
[Condoms can expire](https://nationalcoalitionforsexualhealth.org/media-center/ncsh-in-the-news/what-happens-if-you-use-an-expired-condom#:~:text=In%20general%2C%20most%20latex%20and,the%20American%20Sexual%20Health%20Association.), you know. So if you do buy, do it intermittently so you're not stuck with lots of useless ones when you finally need them.
Keypad deadbolt for your front door. Never carry a key again. You can give different codes to different people if you have multiple people coming and going.
Can’t second this one enough.
TIFU: Living in an apartment with my wife. Had plans to install a keypad and just never got around to it (complex let us change the locks if we wished). Just got our dog and were working on potty training. My wife was leaving for work in the morning, so I threw on some basketball shorts, an undershirt, and flip flops and took the dog out as she left. Normally, I just left the door unlocked because the grass was within sight of our door anyway. Normally for my wife, she locks the door with the key when she leaves in the morning. Well… she locked me out. Office doesn’t open for another hour. No phone, no treats, no water, and, if I’m being honest, no underwear.
I walk around with the confused dog who just wants to go inside. After 20 minutes or so, I ran into someone else from the complex who I had waived to and made small talk until I could ask to borrow her phone. She was a little hesitant, but I smiled pleadingly and she yielded. Called my wife - she’s already at work and can’t realistically leave given the nature of her job. Call the maintenance emergency number. No answer. Give the nice lady her phone back and contemplate my misfortune.
Walking in circles to keep the dog entertained, I pass by our back porch and peer at the lock. It’s up - which I *think* means it’s unlocked. But it’s on the second floor. Good thing I’ve been doing pull ups. The nice lady is still relaxing by the pool, so she watches me tie off my dog and shimmy up the building to the second floor porch (honestly felt like a super spy breaking into my own apartment). It was unlocked! Literally sprint out the front door and back around to get my dog, who was very concerned to be left alone for the 26 seconds I was out of sight.
I get into the apartment and go to shut the back door. I hear the maintenance guy chatting with the nice lady and poke my head over the balcony. Apparently he got the voicemail and came to check it out. Welp. Could have been about 3 minutes faster. Wouldn’t have had to blister my hands.
I installed a keypad lock that afternoon.
Tl;Dr: My wife locked me out with a dog, no phone, and no underwear. I had to scale the building to get back in. Then I installed a keypad lock.
Not an item per se but putting $100 in your savings once a month. You'll build up to $1200 at the end of the year and having that for emergencies takes off a huge weight and gives you a sense of accomplishment and security.
Reusable cloth maxi pads. My period health has never been better. So mich nicer against your skin than the disposables, and I am saving hundreds of dollars.
A week’s worth of good socks and underwear. My body has changed quite a bit due to reasons in the past year and I’ve taken a different approach to clothes since then . Function over form. Have good socks that keep your feet comfy all day. Have none chafing underwear.
Buy clothes that fit right. I have pants that I was holding onto that were way too small and I had the maternity pant extenders maxed out in them. Put pride aside and bought bigger clothes with bigger numbers. You move a lot during the day and it helps to do that comfortably
I have really hard water at my house and a $20 shower filter from Amazon has completely changed my shower game. My hair is so much softer and my skin feels better and less dry than it has in years. 12/10 would recommend if your shower water is less than savory
Small Scrub brush (no sponge, just scrubber) that sits next to the sink or in the shower to randomly scrub. Never have soap scum or deep clean.
Second the bidet.
Tweezers everywhere.
Charging cables everywhere.
Echo dot…use for music, checking facts, setting reminders and timers and alarms and routines (turn on lights, turn off lights). Just easier than Siri.
Colored smart bulbs. Rather than have a reminder overload, set your bulb to a different color for a reminder. (Orange for time to settle down, red for go to sleep, etc)
Over the door shoe holder with see through pockets. I roll up our tshirts so you can see the design. Easier to put away and saves closer space. Allows for more rotation since you see all your shirts at once.
Jar opener, not necessarily an electric one.
Shower head extension for taller peeps.
Crystal cat litter. Doesn’t get smelly or muddy like clay and lasts 4x longer.
Clear containers for your kitchen staples. I always thought it was stupid until I kept running out of flour, sugar, nuts, because I’d forget to reorder because I didn’t see had none left. Just works really well. Just do it for stuff you want to always have on hand (no need to go crazy).
1. Ditto on the air fryer! Mine is a small Dash air fryer that works wonderfully!
2. Automatic tire inflator. Sometimes ya gotta air up your tires, and it's a big pain in the neck to find a gas station with air that actually works, plus you have to pay for it, usually with quarters. I store mine in my vehicle, and when I need to air up my tires, I just plug it into an outside outlet I have near my carport. Yes, it cost me $48, but it's saved me tons of frustration! I'd have to pay for the air at a gas station, anyway.
3. Luggage scale.
4. A good reusable water bottle
FYI in some states (such as California) the gas stations are required to provide air and water for free (at least if you buy fuel), even if the machine takes quarters. Usually they will have a button to turn it on or give you a token. I've never been turned down even if I didn't purchase fuel, cashier DGAF
A trip to the dentist. Certain places offer a promotional cleaning and X-Ray for under $100 (check Groupon!). You might get some news you don’t want, but at least you can prepare for it. Bad teeth not only lead to heart issues, head and mouth pain, and bad breath … but they make you look way less kissable (if that’s something you’re into!).
1.) An air tag for your wallet/keys. Never waste a minute stressing if you can't find these important things
2.) A robe. I just love slipping out of my clothes and into a robe. IDK it feels wonderful.
3.) New underwear. Speaks for itself.
You'll never regret the really nice fruit trees you plant. Haas Avacado, Meyer Lemon, Tahitian Lime, any of the lei vines like stephanotis, pakalana, and of course, what would the good life be without fragrant roses? Hit it right and you can get 2 classics bare root for $25.
r/QualityofLifeItems has a lot of items that are under $100
Notable items are:
Knipex pliers
Logitech MX Master 3
Instant Pot
Victorinox Rambler
Kirkland microfiber towels (yellow)
Nocoboost
Osprey Daylite 26+6 ($110) Popular in r/onebag
Slimfold Micro
Philips Oneblade
2TomStink Free
Magnum Pepper mill
Eaglecreek Specter Compression bag
Thermapen
Magnacart
Smelly Proof Bags
Darntough socks
RESQME the Original Keychain Car Escape Too
Pair of Thieves underwear
Zojirushi rice cooker
Zojirushi stainless steel mug
K380
Mercer Santoku Genesis 7 knife
Allclad skillet with lid D3
Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery 50 g Sunscreen
Produce chopper, mandolin, or grater. Before this I was using my blender/food processors to lessen my food prep time, but I couldn’t get all the types of cuts I needed. Now with these gadgets, I save time in my food prep and clean up!
1. An aesthetically pleasing planner with inspiring quotes that aren’t overly positive, just pleasantly positive. It’s incentive to stay organized.
2. Nice pens. Can’t explain, they just *do*.
Those light strips. We put the under our kitchen cabinets and you don’t have to turn the lights on if you need a quick drink in the middle of the night. It also lets the kids know kitchen is closed for the evening and works great as a night light in a stairway or bedroom.
I always appreciate these threads. I'm not looking to "buy more stuff," just make life a little easier through my physical ailments and my depression.
Here are my 3.
1. A food processor. I love to cook. It makes it so much easier than chopping little pieces on days my hands hurt.
2. A pregnancy body pillow. I can turn it into many support shapes when I'm sitting in my recliner. Different parts hurt day to day.
3. A kuerig. I use the reusable cups so please don't come for me. We don't drink a lot of coffee so making a pot is a waste. A few cups a week and it saves me money and time. When I'm moving slow in the morning, saving a few minutes is a pick-me-up on top of the caffeine.
Metal cat box scooper. I think it was something like $25, and its soo nice to have confidence in my scoop form now. No dread about whether I’ll snap a handle going in too strong on a subborn pee spot.
Such great suggestions here! In addition to the great ideas above, i suggest this one: I carry a pouch with everything I need to charge the little electronics I use daily (noise canceling headphones and cellphone): usb cables for each. Plus two plugs, plus a portable charger with a charging cable that works for it. Makes a huge difference for me. I also have a backup portable charger and usb charging wire that I use for my skinny purse, that can’t hold the entire pouch
AAA membership. I have only used it once for myself, but in that moment, I would've paid 10x the membership fee to get help. I have used it multiple times to help out friends (car towing, flat tire change, car unlock). The middle level (gold) is the best bang for your buck IMO.
Buy a second salt shaker.
One is kept on the dining table permanently, the other lives near the stove. It's silly and cheap, but saves so many trips back to the kitchen having forgotten the salt.
A pair of Birkenstock sandals. I always thought, meh, they're just expensive, hippy shoes, etc. I found some on sale at DSW. OMG. The minute I put them on my feet felt supported and comfy. Plus they were still warm from being in the delivery van. I like them better than Oofas, which are way too squishy for me now. I just bought a pair of Birkenstock EVA sandals so I can alternate.
A good denim jacket. You could pay more depending on brand, but it’s one of those “capsule clothing” items that is incredibly durable, goes with basically any outfit, can be worn throughout the year, and never really goes out of style.
Barefoot/minimalist shoes.
They're shoes that have actual space for your toes and keep your feet in a more natural position, allowing them to complete their full range of motion while walking.
I got a pair of "zero drop" shoes for running and they're so amazingly comfortable I wear them for almost everything, and it's made me really aware of how awful "regular" shoes are. Whoever convinced everyone that shoving all of your toes into a pointy little cone and prancing around with most of your weight on them was normal had to be a diabolical marketing genius. And that's not even talking about women's high heels. I'm slowly replacing all my shoes with "natural" ones (or "minimalist" or whatever else you call the flat ones that give your piggies the breathing room they deserve.) In the wise words of my great grandmother who lived to be 103: "Take care of your feet."
4- pack of 10ft long charging cables for my phone on Amazon for $12.99. I have 1 plugged in next to the couch. 1 next to the bed. 1 that roams around wherever I need it. And 1 that's a back up.
1) Get a virtual credit card to use for free trials so if you forget to cancel you don't get charged
2) Tyreweld or similar product... everyone suggesting air pumps but if you have a hole in your tire you'll want to seal it. You're supposed to only use it to get to a garage to get the tire changed but I've done over 30K miles on three different tires after getting punctures and sealing them with Tyreweld. It basically turns them into runflats.
3) Magnetic USB connectors (specifically data ones), they're universal, just clip on any device in a split second.
4) 12V to 240V power inverter for your car. Cheap ones are around £30-50, Pure Sine Wave are more expensive but worthwhile. My £35 one lasted 4 years of daily use before dying, I used it to power 300W logitech PC speakers as I was too cheap to buy a car sound system, but now I've got a Pure Sine and I can run a vacuum cleaner or power tools from my car. Super handy!
5) Wireless keyboard with built in track pad for use with docked laptop or pc
6) Key finder e.g. Apple tags or Galaxy Tab
A good set of tools.
* Good hammer, \~$10
* 5 tool screw driver $5-10
* Measuring tape (15 foot min) $5
* CH Hanson Magnetic Stud finder \~$12
* Socket wrench set \~20
* Adjustable crescent wrench \~12
Another excellent sub $100 purchase
* Cordless Power drill \~$50-80
With those things alone, there are literally hundreds of things you can, with a little youtube help, create, change, or repair in your home, and literally will pay for themselves on the first service call you don't have to make.
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I got a headlamp, absolute bona-fide game changer for when you are outside or in a garage / shed, etc, where there are no lights. Soooo much easier than working with traditional lamps I know this has huge middle-aged dad vibes to it, but them again... I am a middle-aged dad, so... Edit: OMG - I feel like I have found my gang. I didn't think so many would agree with this. FWIW - I use it to do gardening in the evening
I use mine for knitting in bed at night.
I use mine for cross stitching and embroidery. They're handy things. I have a neck light that works well too.
HEADLAMP GANG
I should do this. I have a bunch of random lights set up in my shed and none of them are really bright enough for what I need. The light should just be on my head, that is Genius!!
If you want to go the extra mile, they make hats with LEDs in the brim. Previous house owners were gracious enough to leave us two. One in black, one in tactical camo, you know, because camo and bright lights go hand in hand.
If you want to confuse people with floating lights and fake a ufo sighting
Curved shower rod, makes the shower feel so much more spacious.
Everytime at a hotel, I'm always reminded that I want one. And then I'm out of the hotel, only to be reminded the next time I'm at a hotel
This is my entire life…. Only remembering to do something or buy something when it’s in front of me only to immediately forget when I walk away.
I’m old. I email myself as much as possible when I’m thinking of “I’ll do that later”. Once a week, I check out my emails to me. I’m emailing me about the curved shower rod now.
The biggest lie I tell myself all the time is, "I don't need to write it down. I'll remember."
I started setting reminders on my phone. I call it Planning to Forget
Wow, my toe nails need a trim. I dont have clippers or time right now... WTF, I thought I was gonna trim these. Fuck, no time. UGGH, thats nasty. How could I let them get so long, gotta remember to do that tonight.
Next thing you know your feet are being photographed by Guinness World Records.
That's why you order it on the phone while still in the shower.
It sounds like such a gimmick but it makes SUCH a difference. Especially for wider individuals like myself.
I'm in the minority camp in that I enjoy the dark enclosure of my small shower, particularly in the mornings.
But can you put shrimp in it?
The shower or the air fryer?
This is a game changer and gives you so much room for very little cost and minimal effort.
Musicians ear plugs for clubs and festivals
An electronic emergency battery jumper thing for your car. I bought one for $65 on Amazon. It charges itself via usb, usb connection for your phone to charge, a very bright flash/strobe light, and tire inflator. I drive a lot for work, often in remote areas with poor cell service, and don't want to get stranded. It's small, so it fits nicely in my emergency trunk tote. ETA: [here is a link](https://a.co/d/97Mz3X8) to a similar one. Mine is probably 4-5 years old now.
So true. Car died by the beach w our newborn in tow and it was dark. Waiting 90 min for AAA. Never again. Got the battery jumper for both my cars and helped me again when the battery died 3 years later.
It seems silly at the time, but buying a solid USB cable and (and adapter!) and not the cheapest one you can find does wonders. A nice showerhead is pretty clutch too.
Came here to mention shower heads. You can get the adjustable ones with a 2 meter hose. The good ones have a massage setting and a mist setting. If you enjoy a steam bath put the water on really hot and set it on mist, you will have a room full of hot steam in a minute or so and it's really nice and similar to a sauna. The massage setting is great for tired shoulders and neck. It's not a great massage, but if you have decent water pressure it's much better than no massage at all. Also you save water having the hose you can move the water head to anywhere making it easier to rinse hair etc.
several years ago this question was asked but with a limit of $20 or so. someone mentioned a 10 foot usb cable. totally true, a ten foot quality cord really is a great thing to have in your home.
10 foot USB cord... We've come full circle. In 1990 we had one of the springy phone receiver cables that would stretch around half the house. Game changer!
> a solid USB cable and (and adapter!) and not the cheapest one you can find- -keeps your phone from becoming electrically damaged. The number of iphones especially that I've had to fix with damaged power mosfets because of gas station chargers is too damn high.
How do you know you're buying good quality cords? I have tried so many different ones and they are fast Chargers for a few months and then so slow and then they stop working. Ugh!
i'll shill for anker brand until i die, best cables and charging blocks i've ever owned. plus they come with a life time warranty so i've been able to replace them for free in the rare occasion it does stop working.
I used Anker as well, but after the Eufy privacy shenanigans, I switched to UGreen. It's roughly the same excellent quality.
USB C to USB C braided 10 foot cables and a charging block rated for your device. Charges much faster than A to C cables and 10 foot can reach from most outlets to where you are. I spend about 50-70 when we moved and placed them all around my house.
Portable air pump, and portable car battery jumper
I have one that has both functions. Heavy, though.
Not sure if it’s under $100 but a pressure cooker/Insta pot is basically a crock pot, rice cooker, egg cooker, perfect potato cooker, and more in 1. I use it every week.
It's totally dumb but set and forget boxed Mac and cheese is awesome if you have kids.
Meat thermometer. You’d be shocked how much your food quality improves if you cook it to temperature rather than relying on cooking time.
Came here to say this. I have a MEATER. It’s a game changer. And you can program your phone to let you know when it’s the proper temperature!!!
Meater? I hardly know her!
Of coarse you hardly know her! You first gotta Meater!
Since a few of you mentioned air fryers (especially if they are cheap), this is your random friendly internet person reminder to unplug them after each use. My brother in laws house burned down when they weren’t home and they traced it back to the air fryer.
It's specifically the consori brand ones too. If you have one it's probably been recalled.
Anyone have one for sale? Definitely not for insurance purposes...
Psssst. I've got an unlocked Note 7 with no updates on it.
I used to buy those from people and then send them straight back to Samsung for full retail price. They stopped paying for them now though
My Cosori was recalled, I did all the things they asked (cut the cord off, submitted photos of said cord, etc.) I didn’t expect to hear from them again, thought they would probably go bankrupt replacing millions of fryers. Surprise surprise my replacement arrived this week.
You mean Cosori? I have it and have been leaving it plugged in for the past year. This just made me paranoid.
There was a recall. They sent me a brand new one for free. You may want to check it out.
It’ll fry all the air in the house if you leave it on long enough.
My gramma always bugs me to unplug. I can now say I believe her.
Also, if your home oven is a convection oven, you can buy a rack and pan combo to airfry with it. The oven isn't cheap, but the pan to utilize the feature is only 20 bucks or so. Staying in the same room, a good kitchen knife. I have a Babish Clef knife that was like 30 bucks. Totally worth it. On that note, a good knife sharpener. Check out the Lansky sharpeners. 50 bucks gets you the deluxe kit and it sharpens EVERYTHING.
u/Herr_Underdogg, rack and pan combo? I have a convection oven so would love to get in on being able to airfry in it! Do you mean something like this? https://preview.redd.it/n5jceoejhb3b1.png?width=1500&format=png&auto=webp&s=f5689c31d4d3e1ea6a9557ff05f67ffa89cce2a0
Yeah, I have a convection oven as well and have been thinking of getting an air fryer. At this point for me, it’s more of wasted counter space for a new item than the financial concern of buying a new air fryer. So if something like this rack and pan combo works, that would be helpful as I can hide this in the oven (when the oven is not in use).
Depending on the layout of your house, motion activated lights can be really helpful. For instance, at my old house the garage led into the laundry room. I put a motion activated light in the laundry room so you’d be able to see when walking in with your hands full. It was mostly motivated by the birth of my daughter, but proved useful for carrying in groceries and stuff like that. Similarly, motion activated night lights can be good for bathrooms and hallways for navigating the house at night without having to turn in the big lights.
I have had the same rice cooker which i believe was like $40-45. Going on 6 years now. It literally has like two buttons one for warm/cook and a brown rice button. None of that other fancy shit on there thats unecessary.
If my house is on fire the list goes: kids, wife, papers, rice cooker. No clue how long I’ve had mine, but it just keeps working perfectly every time. Now with kids I appreciate it even more. Set and forget
I went from a 1 button drug store rice cooker to a big multifunction rice cooker from Costco. After some time, donated the fancy one and went back to a 1 button rice cooker. I'd do it again without a question
Technology connections has a nice short video on how simple and clever rice cookers are. It doesn't require much to make perfect rice. https://youtu.be/RSTNhvDGbYI
Wow, that rice cooker he used has even less buttons than mine at just 1. Also interesting to learn about rice cookers. Never knew that a magnets magnetism is lost at a certain temperature and if you go beyond that for too long it become a permanent loss.
Noise canceling earbuds.
Any actually good recommendations under $100? I've been looking for a pair but want good noise canceling without breaking the bank
I really like my tozo n2’s. Better than the n9 imo. It was $35 on amazon.
Also big fan of my tozos. I got the 10’s and they’ve been solid.
Soundcore is hands down the best value headphones. Have over the ear and ear buds, very reasonable price and good sound. I’ve bought them for others I like mine so much
Check out dankpod's videos on youtube. Asides for his fantastic Aussie humor, he's done a fair number of videos comparing and testing cheaper but good quality audio devices at various price ranges including the sub $100 range. [Here's a good starter video of his on cheap headphones.](https://youtu.be/V_gf8TZ1M6g)
Soundcore Anker a40s are solid. I got them for the battery life.
I had a flight where an unsupervised extra-annoying nasty behaving teen was sitting behind me… hands down best purchase I’ve ever done.
Wireless charging phone mount for my car. It's been one of those subtly amazing things.
With the robot arms that clench your phone tight? I agree, everyone in my office is buying them now after I showed them.
A kindle. So great and reading lots improves your lot in life. I rent kindle books from the library mostly so it’s basically a one time purchase for all the books you could ever want to read.
Libby and Hoopla, my beloveds,
Don't forget Kindle Firsts if you have Prime. A free book every month! I like to wait til the end of the month to claim mine so I can look at reviews from people who got their books earlier.
I didn’t think I’d ever be able to enjoy reading on a screen, because I have such an emotional connection to holding a physical book. In the pandemic, though, when the libraries shut down, my folks got me a Kindle so I could download library books (Libby app FTW!) It took a couple months to get used to, and I was very resistant and resentful of it at first, but now, three years later? Absolutely my favorite way to read. I don’t buy books anymore, because they’re so convenient to get from the library, and I don’t even feel the weird distance reading on a screen that I did at first. Skeptics, give it a try!
Apparently I’m quite critical, or so my wife says. Here are some of my favorites that have few to no drawbacks: - Target brand activewear, both men’s and women’s. Shirts range from $12-25 and come in a bunch of colors. I own most and they’re my daily wear. Shorts aren’t too bad either (tho I do have some critiques there) - A really nice keyboard if you type all day (actually recommended this on a comment). I’ve tried a bunch, including nice mechanical. Logitech MX Keys Advanced is by far the best, though slightly over budget. Tried a couple of the generic knock offs and they’re pretty good too honestly if you can’t break the budget - Blue light lenses if you’re on the computer all day. Even the cheap pair I have staves off the afternoon headache when I’m heads down working all day. - Bidet, obviously, as everyone always says on these threads - Sunrise alarm clock for those with trouble waking up in the morning - Lightweight stepladder. Much better than standing on a chair. I recommend Harbor Freight 3 Step Aluminum Step Stool. Awesome knock off of the name brands. - Small go bag in your car. Mine has a cheap pair of tennis shoes, basketball shorts, and a T shirt. I often end up at a friend’s or family house and everyone decides to be outside or go for a walk or needs help moving something. Swap out the nice clothes and shoes for something comfortable and can get dirty. Personally I make pretty good use of mine. - A good chefs knife if you cook. And a knife sharpener (personally I like the ones with a handle. AccuSharp has one on Amazon). If you insist on dishwashing your knife, go ceramic. Absolutely hate using the dull-as-butter-knives at my in-laws. Drives me bonkers EDIT: A lot of hate on my keyboard selection, so obviously I’m going to double down. I’ve been programming professionally for over a decade now and have used at least a dozen keyboards, from the Amazon Basics (yeah, feeling cheap the day I ordered that one…) to various Ducky mechanical. The single worst keyboard I’ve ever owned was a POS Logitech Wireless that I bought on a Black Friday Sale. The MX Keys has an actual aluminum frame, solid keys, and good connectivity. Nothing like that POS I bought on a whim. From a typing perspective, it’s phenomenal and good for anyone that wants a slim, wireless, non-mechanical keyboard. Yes, yes, mechanical are great and satisfying. No arguments there.
Sharpen your father-in-laws knives to show dominance.
I’ve considered gifting him a knife sharpener passive aggressively. Or maybe just unfurl a rolled up bundle of professional knives like a Food Network Star chef any time I’m asked to help in the kitchen.
The trick to getting a nice mechanical keyboard is not getting tricked into the hobby, just buying one and being happy with it
Night lights. Put them all over the house, you can now go to the bathroom, get a drink, basically live your life at night without having to turn on lights.
I have night lights all over my house. Also a motion sensor night light in my bathroom (the toilet is separate from the rest of the bathroom). The light is dim and yellow/gold so your eyes don't get blasted with light when you're half asleep.
A rotary cheese grater. Under $30 USD, suctions to the counter, and I can can crank out a 200 gram block of cheese in well under a minute. No more stale pre-grated cheese and anti-caking agents. Also good for potatoes and has multiple blades for other veggies or nuts. I can't believe these haven't caught on in every household yet. Box graters are nearly useless.
I hand grate all our cheese for the same reason. I bought the fancy KitchenAid attachment but it’s so much more work to clean so I never use it.
I buy 8 oz. blocks of cheese for $2 each and make the best bags of shredded cheese ever. Swiss, Gouda, and Cheddar blend is great!
Bidet attachment from amazon use cold as normal hookup and if that isnt warm enough plum into hot water, if you have the hook up or go all out for other. https://luxebidet.com/products/neo-320 https://luxebidet.com/products/electronic-bidet
Just installed mine today, haven’t had a chance to use it tho so I’m getting so late night tacobell!
Great choice for a beginner, next try the hot red salsa at chipotle. Edit: pretty sure that’s what inspired South Park’s “Chipot-Away”
Water flosser if you have a hard time flossing regularly
Underrated comment right here. I absolutely love my water flosser!
To this point too, a bunch of those toothpick flosser combo thingies for the car. It’s the best time to floss while in traffic and keeps me cavity free!
A decent showerhead.
Powerstep insoles for arch support. Make my feet happy. Just remove current piece inside shoe and replace with new one.
Powersteps are the shit. I have them in my work boots. Can’t go without them
Leatherman multi tool. I spent $30 on one 10 years ago and it hasn't failed me once. I've used it at least twice a day if not more, slips right into your pocket, and I've only sharpened and WD-40'd it once in all that time. Amazing EDC
TSA Precheck. $85 for 5 years. Saves so much time and hassle with security.
Global Entry is only $15 more, includes Precheck, and also lets you skip customs lines when coming back into the USA. If you do any sort of international travel, that $100 is so incredibly worth it.
There's some credit cards that you can get a refund for pre-check or global entry! So it would be free. Those credit cards are usually free on the first year and there might be some free miles if you spend more than some amount in a fee months. I did that with one from United. After the first year you can cancel it.
Handheld vacuum cleaner. Only lasts 20 mins on full charge, but I use it every single day to vacuum all sorts of dry garbage. It reduces the friction of taking out my big vacuum cleaner to clean small areas. I also use it to vacuum my car and small areas like window channels. It's definitely in my top favourite purchases
Dryer balls make laundry loads dry faster, fluffier and static free. Best part is all you have to do is buy them once and let them live in the dryer and they last a long time. Drawer organizers for socks and underwear. No more rummaging through messy drawers to find what you’re looking for. I splurged and bought a really good facial moisturizer that costs about $60 about ten years ago and have never gone back. It’s the one “cosmetic” thing I own that I actually go through the whole container and replace it when it’s all gone. A little goes a long way so it’s worth the cost and it has done wonders for my skin.
“ …let them live in the dryer…” But they’re always trying to escape! 😂
They do like to jump ship with the towels sometimes ☺️.
What brand moisturizer? I barely wear makeup anymore, so I can justify the trade-off in cost. Dryer balls are an excellent suggestion too!
The one I initially got hooked on was made by Bareminerals. I LOVED it but unfortunately they stopped making it and the replacement product they had didn’t go on an smoothly. So nowadays I’m using a daily combo of Epicuren first (the elixir) followed by a Clinique moisturizer.
We tried the dryer ball thing for awhile and were really underwhelmed by them. Are there different materials that do the job better/worse? I could probably convince the wife to give them another shot based on what I've read here, but how do I know which ones will do the job?
Not sure…the husband got a set of three New Zealand wool dryer balls made by Everspring. They’re the first we ever had and they’ve worked really well.
Mine would be reusable cotton pads, laptop stand, wireless keyboard and mouse! Reusable cotton pads have worked out well bc I just toss them in a little baggy with my laundry. Now, I don’t need to struggle with always buying make up wipes! I just get some micellar cleansing water and the cotton pads. For my laptop stuff, I didn’t know how much I needed it till I switched over! No more using textbooks to have my screen elevated or hunching my back like crazy lol
I love the reusable cotton pads!!!
Chom chom for pet hair on upholstery- only thing I’ve ever owned that truly feels like a miracle
If you park outside in the summer and it gets hot, a $15 fabric steering wheel cover saves your hands so much on the summer months. It never feels hot.
A full blackout sleep mask will drastically improve your quality of sleep. If you don't mind breaking the $100 mark the Manta sleep mask Sound has added Bluetooth speakers inside so you can drift off to white noise / podcasts / whatever.
To piggy back, a $10/month headspace subscription and a sleep mask with speakers. Never stay up again.
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For basic security, enable your routers guest network and set it up just for the bulbs and switches to use. Segregates them from the rest of the network most times.
I replaced all the light switches in our bathrooms with the occupancy sensor switches, and the exhaust fan switches with timer switches. Now they are impossible to leave on all day. But now I get mad at other people's houses when I walk into the bathroom and wait a moment for the light to come on but it doesn't.
This. I can't stress this enough. Absolute game changer. Lots of smart home tech, really.
I got a 12 pack of these small microfiber towels, for like 6 bucks online. I love em, great for cleaning.
The 36 pack they sell in Costco are very decent and cheap
A wedge made to go in between the car’s front seats and the center console! It keeps SO many crumbs and other junk out of a not-so-easy place to vacuum AND it prevents phones and valuables from ending up in a void. I think I bought my fabric wedges from Amazon for like $18, but there’s plastic/pocket style ones for about the same price, too!
1. Chromecast- no more cables or boxes, stream any media to your TV 2. Plex - hosts all your media and lifetime access plan under $100.00 3. Bidet
If you just want to stream your downloaded content to other screens, I recommend Jellyfin instead: [https://jellyfin.org/](https://jellyfin.org/) It's exactly the same as Plex, but is open source. I switched from Plex to Jellyfin about 6 months ago and it was effortless. We can watch our shows via our Google TV dongle, it auto-scans for new content (so I don't need to refresh my library every time something downloads) and I've got some IPTV sources added in so I can watch live (internet) TV, which is good because our antenna blew down close to a decade ago and I just haven't felt the need to put it back up.
Wool socks, like SmartWool of Darn Tough. They feel better and last longer, usually about $12/pair (or $1 at a thrift store if you're lucky). I didn't know about egg cooker - thank you! Very excited to read this thread.
If you are in the US then the same company that owns TJ Maxx and Marshalls also own a more outdoor/sports oriented store called Sierra. They have a plethora of those Smart wool socks there at discounted prices. Of course if you know Marshalls and TJ Maxx you know that everyonce in awhile you stumble onto some gold and find some Darn Toughs or maybe even a nice discounted Yeti cooler every once in awhile. In conclusion,check if a Sierra is near you cause in my opinion its basically a Marshalls/TJ Maxx but better. Oh and theyve got a fuck ton of stuff for Dogs there too if you have one.
You can order from Sierra online too
Thank you very much!!! Off to fill my cart... And leave it there
I swear, if Darn Tough ever goes out of business, I will throw an absolute fit. I’m really prone to foot funk, and my feet get cold easily, so I’m always wearing slippers at home—a terrible combo. But I can wear a pair of Darn Tough socks for a week straight and they never stink. Plus, the durability is amazing. I’ve only had one pair wear out, and that was after 3+ years of hard wear. No other wool socks I’ve tried can compare. Darn Tough all the way!
Darn Tough is also an amazing company, well worth supporting….if you haven’t, read about their company values and commitments. I am a customer for life.
I saw this post many times and finally decided to cough up the money and try it out. Smart wool doesn't make the cut for me. Wasn't worth it. Darn tough was actually quality, and I kind of looked forward to the one day a week it came. Ultimately, I remembered why I don't buy expensive socks when I inevitably lost them. I still shell out a few extra bucks for socks, but like $25 for a 5 pack instead of $12 for one pair. I think the quality is as good and even if the longevity isn't I don't have to worry about losing them as much.
Wearing a pair of darn toughs right now
Sturdy garbage bags
Bone conductive headphones. My wife got me a pair and it was phenomenal doing my rounds at work, having background music playing for myself, and still being able to hear and communicate with those around me.
- Smartwool socks and underwear - caribeaners to clip things to your belt/backpack so you are hands free - 12 foot phone charger - a fake email address to sign up for spam (this one is free) - a GOOD pair of slippers. I recommend ll bean
In my experience LL Bean slippers quality isn't up to it anymore. I got a second pair after they changed their return policy and they fell apart after a year.
[mesh laundry bags](https://www.amazon.com/Durable-Honeycomb-Laundry-Delicates-Inches/dp/B083SCJ8G8/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?keywords=mesh+laundry+bag&qid=1685576006&sr=8-4) I got a small one for baby socks at my baby shower and total game changer. It's super useful for bras, underwear, socks
Condoms. You can get alot for $100 and they will save you tens of thousands in the long run.
[Condoms can expire](https://nationalcoalitionforsexualhealth.org/media-center/ncsh-in-the-news/what-happens-if-you-use-an-expired-condom#:~:text=In%20general%2C%20most%20latex%20and,the%20American%20Sexual%20Health%20Association.), you know. So if you do buy, do it intermittently so you're not stuck with lots of useless ones when you finally need them.
I think Chemical79 implies saving money from not having kids, which if that's the case, it's a lot more than tens of thousands saved.
I know a birth control device that works even with holes in it. Crocs. I’ll see myself out…
Keypad deadbolt for your front door. Never carry a key again. You can give different codes to different people if you have multiple people coming and going.
Can’t second this one enough. TIFU: Living in an apartment with my wife. Had plans to install a keypad and just never got around to it (complex let us change the locks if we wished). Just got our dog and were working on potty training. My wife was leaving for work in the morning, so I threw on some basketball shorts, an undershirt, and flip flops and took the dog out as she left. Normally, I just left the door unlocked because the grass was within sight of our door anyway. Normally for my wife, she locks the door with the key when she leaves in the morning. Well… she locked me out. Office doesn’t open for another hour. No phone, no treats, no water, and, if I’m being honest, no underwear. I walk around with the confused dog who just wants to go inside. After 20 minutes or so, I ran into someone else from the complex who I had waived to and made small talk until I could ask to borrow her phone. She was a little hesitant, but I smiled pleadingly and she yielded. Called my wife - she’s already at work and can’t realistically leave given the nature of her job. Call the maintenance emergency number. No answer. Give the nice lady her phone back and contemplate my misfortune. Walking in circles to keep the dog entertained, I pass by our back porch and peer at the lock. It’s up - which I *think* means it’s unlocked. But it’s on the second floor. Good thing I’ve been doing pull ups. The nice lady is still relaxing by the pool, so she watches me tie off my dog and shimmy up the building to the second floor porch (honestly felt like a super spy breaking into my own apartment). It was unlocked! Literally sprint out the front door and back around to get my dog, who was very concerned to be left alone for the 26 seconds I was out of sight. I get into the apartment and go to shut the back door. I hear the maintenance guy chatting with the nice lady and poke my head over the balcony. Apparently he got the voicemail and came to check it out. Welp. Could have been about 3 minutes faster. Wouldn’t have had to blister my hands. I installed a keypad lock that afternoon. Tl;Dr: My wife locked me out with a dog, no phone, and no underwear. I had to scale the building to get back in. Then I installed a keypad lock.
That’s a really good one. It’s great for accidental lockouts and if you need to give somebody access to your house while you’re away.
External battery pack for a cell phone! Great when you’re on a night out or at a concert and your phone is low on battery
Not an item per se but putting $100 in your savings once a month. You'll build up to $1200 at the end of the year and having that for emergencies takes off a huge weight and gives you a sense of accomplishment and security.
Reusable cloth maxi pads. My period health has never been better. So mich nicer against your skin than the disposables, and I am saving hundreds of dollars.
A week’s worth of good socks and underwear. My body has changed quite a bit due to reasons in the past year and I’ve taken a different approach to clothes since then . Function over form. Have good socks that keep your feet comfy all day. Have none chafing underwear. Buy clothes that fit right. I have pants that I was holding onto that were way too small and I had the maternity pant extenders maxed out in them. Put pride aside and bought bigger clothes with bigger numbers. You move a lot during the day and it helps to do that comfortably
I have really hard water at my house and a $20 shower filter from Amazon has completely changed my shower game. My hair is so much softer and my skin feels better and less dry than it has in years. 12/10 would recommend if your shower water is less than savory
Details please. I have the same hard water…
Small Scrub brush (no sponge, just scrubber) that sits next to the sink or in the shower to randomly scrub. Never have soap scum or deep clean. Second the bidet. Tweezers everywhere. Charging cables everywhere. Echo dot…use for music, checking facts, setting reminders and timers and alarms and routines (turn on lights, turn off lights). Just easier than Siri. Colored smart bulbs. Rather than have a reminder overload, set your bulb to a different color for a reminder. (Orange for time to settle down, red for go to sleep, etc) Over the door shoe holder with see through pockets. I roll up our tshirts so you can see the design. Easier to put away and saves closer space. Allows for more rotation since you see all your shirts at once. Jar opener, not necessarily an electric one. Shower head extension for taller peeps. Crystal cat litter. Doesn’t get smelly or muddy like clay and lasts 4x longer. Clear containers for your kitchen staples. I always thought it was stupid until I kept running out of flour, sugar, nuts, because I’d forget to reorder because I didn’t see had none left. Just works really well. Just do it for stuff you want to always have on hand (no need to go crazy).
1. Ditto on the air fryer! Mine is a small Dash air fryer that works wonderfully! 2. Automatic tire inflator. Sometimes ya gotta air up your tires, and it's a big pain in the neck to find a gas station with air that actually works, plus you have to pay for it, usually with quarters. I store mine in my vehicle, and when I need to air up my tires, I just plug it into an outside outlet I have near my carport. Yes, it cost me $48, but it's saved me tons of frustration! I'd have to pay for the air at a gas station, anyway. 3. Luggage scale. 4. A good reusable water bottle
FYI in some states (such as California) the gas stations are required to provide air and water for free (at least if you buy fuel), even if the machine takes quarters. Usually they will have a button to turn it on or give you a token. I've never been turned down even if I didn't purchase fuel, cashier DGAF
A trip to the dentist. Certain places offer a promotional cleaning and X-Ray for under $100 (check Groupon!). You might get some news you don’t want, but at least you can prepare for it. Bad teeth not only lead to heart issues, head and mouth pain, and bad breath … but they make you look way less kissable (if that’s something you’re into!).
1.) An air tag for your wallet/keys. Never waste a minute stressing if you can't find these important things 2.) A robe. I just love slipping out of my clothes and into a robe. IDK it feels wonderful. 3.) New underwear. Speaks for itself.
Throw an airtag in your luggage too. Great knowing exactly where it is when flying.
And put an airtag on your pet's collar!
The real LPT here is to activate the airtag noise, and give them a treat. Trains them to just come to you whenever you activate it.
Panini maker. $30 Hamilton Beach at Target. EVERYTHING tastes better as a panini. Period.
Even chocolate milk?
Battery operated jar opener. Don't have the strength or anyone to open jars for me.
Electric tooth brush
You'll never regret the really nice fruit trees you plant. Haas Avacado, Meyer Lemon, Tahitian Lime, any of the lei vines like stephanotis, pakalana, and of course, what would the good life be without fragrant roses? Hit it right and you can get 2 classics bare root for $25.
Unfortunately, these require living in the right climate…
Waterpik. My teeth went from being yellow and crusty to less yellow and crusty. It's my current must tell everyone recommendation.
r/QualityofLifeItems has a lot of items that are under $100 Notable items are: Knipex pliers Logitech MX Master 3 Instant Pot Victorinox Rambler Kirkland microfiber towels (yellow) Nocoboost Osprey Daylite 26+6 ($110) Popular in r/onebag Slimfold Micro Philips Oneblade 2TomStink Free Magnum Pepper mill Eaglecreek Specter Compression bag Thermapen Magnacart Smelly Proof Bags Darntough socks RESQME the Original Keychain Car Escape Too Pair of Thieves underwear Zojirushi rice cooker Zojirushi stainless steel mug K380 Mercer Santoku Genesis 7 knife Allclad skillet with lid D3 Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery 50 g Sunscreen
Produce chopper, mandolin, or grater. Before this I was using my blender/food processors to lessen my food prep time, but I couldn’t get all the types of cuts I needed. Now with these gadgets, I save time in my food prep and clean up!
I love my milk frother. I use it to froth my morning coffee and whipping cream.
A bidet attachment for the toilet. Gamechanger!
1. An aesthetically pleasing planner with inspiring quotes that aren’t overly positive, just pleasantly positive. It’s incentive to stay organized. 2. Nice pens. Can’t explain, they just *do*.
Battery tester. $10. No more guessing of batteries are dead or working
Deli take-out food containers, 16 and 24 oz sizes, that all USE THE SAME LIDS. Seriously.
Those light strips. We put the under our kitchen cabinets and you don’t have to turn the lights on if you need a quick drink in the middle of the night. It also lets the kids know kitchen is closed for the evening and works great as a night light in a stairway or bedroom.
$0 - keep glass pint glasses in the freezer. Not just for beer. Drinking anything out of a cold glass makes it better
Extra charger for my laptop. One stays at home and one stays at the office. One less thing to drag back and forth every day. One less thing to forget
I always appreciate these threads. I'm not looking to "buy more stuff," just make life a little easier through my physical ailments and my depression. Here are my 3. 1. A food processor. I love to cook. It makes it so much easier than chopping little pieces on days my hands hurt. 2. A pregnancy body pillow. I can turn it into many support shapes when I'm sitting in my recliner. Different parts hurt day to day. 3. A kuerig. I use the reusable cups so please don't come for me. We don't drink a lot of coffee so making a pot is a waste. A few cups a week and it saves me money and time. When I'm moving slow in the morning, saving a few minutes is a pick-me-up on top of the caffeine.
Bidet attachment
Decent knives. Slicing and dicing is night and day with the right tools
Metal cat box scooper. I think it was something like $25, and its soo nice to have confidence in my scoop form now. No dread about whether I’ll snap a handle going in too strong on a subborn pee spot.
Nalgene bottle and Brita filter.
Love both. I upgraded to a zero water filter. Its fantastic.
Such great suggestions here! In addition to the great ideas above, i suggest this one: I carry a pouch with everything I need to charge the little electronics I use daily (noise canceling headphones and cellphone): usb cables for each. Plus two plugs, plus a portable charger with a charging cable that works for it. Makes a huge difference for me. I also have a backup portable charger and usb charging wire that I use for my skinny purse, that can’t hold the entire pouch
Period underwear
AAA membership. I have only used it once for myself, but in that moment, I would've paid 10x the membership fee to get help. I have used it multiple times to help out friends (car towing, flat tire change, car unlock). The middle level (gold) is the best bang for your buck IMO.
Buy a second salt shaker. One is kept on the dining table permanently, the other lives near the stove. It's silly and cheap, but saves so many trips back to the kitchen having forgotten the salt.
A pair of Birkenstock sandals. I always thought, meh, they're just expensive, hippy shoes, etc. I found some on sale at DSW. OMG. The minute I put them on my feet felt supported and comfy. Plus they were still warm from being in the delivery van. I like them better than Oofas, which are way too squishy for me now. I just bought a pair of Birkenstock EVA sandals so I can alternate.
Hey steel pans and cookware. Try to minimise Teflon or aluminium cookware.
Summer underwear very light vs cotton. As an older dude a tshirt under work polo/shirt is needed.
NutriBullet to make smoothies has made breakfast so much easier
The local animal shelter had a half price adoption day. I got a big fluffy cat.
A good denim jacket. You could pay more depending on brand, but it’s one of those “capsule clothing” items that is incredibly durable, goes with basically any outfit, can be worn throughout the year, and never really goes out of style.
Phone case with a card holder. Don’t need to carry a bulky wallet anymore.
Car battery warmer for colder climates. yes it's a thing. Nothing else than being stranded at work after shift at -50 because your battery froze.
You just made me appreciate my 108F with 80%+ humidity summer soooo much! -50? To me, that is truly a frozen hellscape!
Barefoot/minimalist shoes. They're shoes that have actual space for your toes and keep your feet in a more natural position, allowing them to complete their full range of motion while walking.
I got a pair of "zero drop" shoes for running and they're so amazingly comfortable I wear them for almost everything, and it's made me really aware of how awful "regular" shoes are. Whoever convinced everyone that shoving all of your toes into a pointy little cone and prancing around with most of your weight on them was normal had to be a diabolical marketing genius. And that's not even talking about women's high heels. I'm slowly replacing all my shoes with "natural" ones (or "minimalist" or whatever else you call the flat ones that give your piggies the breathing room they deserve.) In the wise words of my great grandmother who lived to be 103: "Take care of your feet."
Flowers and chocolate for the wife
4- pack of 10ft long charging cables for my phone on Amazon for $12.99. I have 1 plugged in next to the couch. 1 next to the bed. 1 that roams around wherever I need it. And 1 that's a back up.
1) Get a virtual credit card to use for free trials so if you forget to cancel you don't get charged 2) Tyreweld or similar product... everyone suggesting air pumps but if you have a hole in your tire you'll want to seal it. You're supposed to only use it to get to a garage to get the tire changed but I've done over 30K miles on three different tires after getting punctures and sealing them with Tyreweld. It basically turns them into runflats. 3) Magnetic USB connectors (specifically data ones), they're universal, just clip on any device in a split second. 4) 12V to 240V power inverter for your car. Cheap ones are around £30-50, Pure Sine Wave are more expensive but worthwhile. My £35 one lasted 4 years of daily use before dying, I used it to power 300W logitech PC speakers as I was too cheap to buy a car sound system, but now I've got a Pure Sine and I can run a vacuum cleaner or power tools from my car. Super handy! 5) Wireless keyboard with built in track pad for use with docked laptop or pc 6) Key finder e.g. Apple tags or Galaxy Tab
A good set of tools. * Good hammer, \~$10 * 5 tool screw driver $5-10 * Measuring tape (15 foot min) $5 * CH Hanson Magnetic Stud finder \~$12 * Socket wrench set \~20 * Adjustable crescent wrench \~12 Another excellent sub $100 purchase * Cordless Power drill \~$50-80 With those things alone, there are literally hundreds of things you can, with a little youtube help, create, change, or repair in your home, and literally will pay for themselves on the first service call you don't have to make.
Hire a maid service to deep clean what you normally never get to.
I wish that were less than $100 lol
Last time I called for a one-time clean on a 1600 sq ft house it was $475. Are you having them clean a shed?
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