radley bags
my sister is on her second mortgage. she needs to be 3 feet taller, just so she can be up to her neck in debt, yet she and her husband spend money like it's going out of fashion. they went to disneyland last year, spending over £3k, despite the fact her husband had just lost his job and their house was in jeopardy. they're also going to vegas next year.
what really pisses on my chips, though, is her love of radley handbags. she spends an absolute fortune on them, but only ever uses one bag. they're no better than my plain black handbag, which i got for a whole £1 from a charity shop, they just have someone else's name on them. oh, and a stupid little leather dog label.
they sit in the wardrobe until she gets bored and sells them on ebay, always at a great loss.
seriously, what's the point of that?
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:23, 33 replies)

Glad someone else gets pissed about this.
Mrs Monkey got bought a fake Louis Vitton bag for a giggle by her mates. It's fucking hideous.
However, she showed me the real version on the web and it's exactly the same but costs 6 grand! Who in their right mind pays 6 grand for a handbag? Especially one that looks like it was designed by a hyperactive fuckwit with a dayglo marker fetish.
(Bad Monkey hasn't had an abusive gaz since, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:28, closed)

6 grand!?
fuck, that's just ridiculous! my sister bought her 10-year-old daughter a radley purse for christmas.
she's a kid, get a grip!
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:33, closed)

Radley handbags...
are the handbag equivalent of shellsuits!
(Lip Up Fatty Fatty Reggae still loves BBQ food on, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:35, closed)

they're bloody stupid

( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:38, closed)

My mum is the same with Kipling bags.
A bit cheaper but she's got loads of them.


I only have one.
( girlinthehole, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:37, closed)

i had one radley bag
that my sis gave me when she tired of it. it mysteriously got ruined when i went paintballing...
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:38, closed)

Haha!
Did you keep your paint balls in it?
( girlinthehole, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:45, closed)

no
it "fell" under the back wheels of my mate's jeep, conveniently landing in a puddle of water and very sticky clay-based mud.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:46, closed)

; )

( girlinthehole, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:52, closed)

still
its nice to see he's not just doing cakes now
(unclestinky, Sat 2 Oct 2010, 3:14, closed)

Bleh!
If I were a cow, I would ashamed to have my body turned into one of these over-priced pieces of tat after my death. I have never understood the need to spend a month's wages on a tasteless cruddy bag like that (but my Gears of War shoulder-bag, that's entirely different.)
(Draco Rattus ate all the pies on, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:52, closed)

I'm with you there.
Money seems to be easy come easy go for some, while others struggle just to get by. Sickening really.
(Vinnie Strokes Got bummed on, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 20:56, closed)

Oh.
I own a Radley (well, two), two Pradas (for price of one Louis Vuitton - money waster, eh?), one Bridge, and a Chanel. In addition to lots of cheapies.

My cat pissed on the Chanel. She is now dead.

;-)
( fluffymitten NAN, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:05, closed)

if you can afford them, fair enough
my problem is that my sister is deeply in the red, yet she still wastes money she hasn't got on things she doesn't need
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:19, closed)

Do your parents have her in their will?
And are your parents rich?

And are they really, really old, or both motor cross EXTREEEEEME!!! daredevils?

Because its only a looming payout that has me thinking people would act like your sister.
(lemonadegame, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:56, closed)

no
both careful, in their 60's and working class. no inheritance for her.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 17:34, closed)

i have a friend much the same
it gets really annoying to hear the whining about how little money they've got yet they always seem to have something new that they 'just had to buy'. You don't just have to buy anything if you haven't got the means to pay for it.
( fluffymitten NAN, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 12:18, closed)

I bought a Radley bag recently
for £1.25 in a charity shop. Why pay more?
( Herb Alpert's Taxi Driver I have very beautiful lips, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:32, closed)

if you can find them for that price
by all means, buy them
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:33, closed)

Too right!
I love charity shop finds. I used to run one in Birkenhead. Best job I ever had. I still have stuff I got from there now. 15 years later!
( Herb Alpert's Taxi Driver I have very beautiful lips, Thu 30 Sep 2010, 22:57, closed)

st. john's road in crosby is the best
there are about 5 of them down there, got a great leather jacket a few years back for £3.50
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 17:42, closed)

Same reason you buy shiny glitterballs with money you need for other things, perhaps?
Because it's her money and therefore up to her what she spends it on and she likes handbags. Perhaps you are narked because you have to buy your handbags from a charity shop and your sister doesn't?

You sound a little jealous to me.
( Wicca'd Witch needs ideas for a new sig on..., Fri 1 Oct 2010, 0:45, closed)

Except...
It's not her money, it's someone else's money that Smash Monkey's sister has borrowed and, by the sounds of things, either won't repay or will borrow more money to repay.

I get the impression that SM wouldn't mind her dear sister spunking her money up the wall, IF IT WAS HER MONEY. But it isn't, so she does mind.
(Sir Itchalot has a very self-referential signature, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 9:51, closed)

^this in its entirety

( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 14:33, closed)

Solidarity sister ...
I too have a wastrel for a sister. She earns great money, never drives a car more than two years old (novated lease thingy), buys (probably fake) designer shit. She doesn't actually own a single asset and is at least 3 years salary in the red.

She laughs at me driving a 3 year old economical family car (which we own) and living in a modest suburban house (which we own a goodly percentage of).

She's not dumb. Far from it. She is just financially illiterate and addicted to Shiny Things. So again ... solidarity.
(Que?, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 4:57, closed)

The obvious reaction to people behaving like this is to condemn,
but I'm not so sure who is actually the stupid one.

My younger brother (married, 2 kids) is immacualtely organised, his finances are always carefully planned, and he has never had a penny of unplanned debt.

My older brother (married, 2 kids) is a disaster of up to the hilt credit cards, new cars and motorbikes, overdafts, expensive trips away and irresponsible shopping trips.

I can't really say who is the happiest - the younger brother puts just as much effort into keeping things shipshape as the older one does fending off creditors. The older one has been to way more places, and done a lot more than the younger one.

Some might say enjoying yourself now is a perfectly valid lifestyle. If you're canny enough to get away with it, it's not automatically stupid.

Meantime I (married, 2 kids) sit somewhere in the middle. Yawn.
( Not Pineapple anymore, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 8:38, closed)

fair point, well made
I have debts (shiny baubles being a weakness) but I also have the means to pay for things, just don't want to pay for them at the moment. So, I could be well behaved and pay off the debt and stop buying handbags for the next cat to piss in, or just have a bit of a laugh and hope I get a hefty idiot tax refund on Friday.
( fluffymitten NAN, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 12:22, closed)

i wouldn't mind so much
if her spending made her happy, but it doesn't. it stresses her out beyond belief, she's on blood pressure medication and sleeps badly due to worry. she thinks i should be miserable because i have very little, but everything i have, i saved for and own outright.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 17:36, closed)

It's all a question of priority...
Almost nobody seems to see that what you do with your money is entirely an issue of personal priority.

There is almost nothing beyond housing, basic food & clothing and taxes that you have to pay for. After that it's the value you place on things.

Some people place a high value on looking the part and being seen to be successful, fashionable or whatever and will pay whatever it costs for that even if that is debt which will be expensive in the long run. Others prefer to be more secure but pay the price in driving a more basic car or not changing their wardrobe every three months.

We fall fairly well down the "safe" end of the scale, living in a perfectly sufficient house we own 90% of rather than a palace with a crippling mortgage, driving a perfectly adequate 6 year old car etc. However I would never dispute anyone else's lifestyle choice if they realise there is a choice to make. A Gucci bag may be more important to you than an extra few quid a week on your pension in 30 years time but you should realise you are making that choice, both for yourself and for your kids.

I have made my choice but if I fall terminally ill tomorrow perhaps I will regret it. Had I gone the other way and then lost our home to repossession I know I would have regretted that.

I hope you are both happy with your respective choices.
( Ugi , it's a game of give and cake, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 12:51, closed)

i think it stems from our childhood
we were rather poor, so could not have all the little luxuries we wanted. she now wants them all, even if it means risking her home to get them. it's just not worth it.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 17:40, closed)

If those bags are being sold at a huge loss
It'd be a good idea to win a few auctions and then sell them on for a profit.
(ParaSitius is an Optimistic Pessimist, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 13:26, closed)

Sex and the fucking city
has a lot to bloody answer for. I don't seem to remember women pawing over expensive shoes and designer labels half as much before this became popular.

I like the show but i don't try to emulate the characters or crave the latest handbag. By all means if you've got the cash spend it on the fancy stuff, i know i would, but don't live beyond your means for the sake of a bloody label.

There was an article in one of those trashy magazines that pointed out that people are choosing to rack up the credit cards, overdrafts and loans then declare themselves bankrupt out of choice because they debt just goes away. i despair....
(phe, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 13:39, closed)

exactly
my brother declared himself bankrupt 5 years ago. the moral of his story: don't spunk your not inconsiderable wages on cocaine the day before you KNOW there will be a drug test at work.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 1 Oct 2010, 17:38, closed)