One thing to remember specifically with high quality leather boots is to keep up with the maintenance. I personally have a pair of iron rangers I use for work so they've gotten a lot of use and if I slack off it will not work out in the long run.

One metric I use to decide if a price is right is to divide the expected lifetime of the thing by the cost. $800 Nick's vs $70 Converse: 20+ years (with proper care) vs 2 years (maybe?), So cost/yr is $40 vs $35 which makes the initial gut punch price much less painful but the remaining question is if you trust yourself to put in the effort to properly take care of the boots in a way you (or I for that matter) would care for a pair of Converse

Canada is massive and most of it isn’t right at the border, though.

My Hanwag tatra 2 have been in use since 2016 and still hold up, they are resoleable too

Buy the absolute best you can afford.. but NEVER pay full price. Wait for a big sale. Use discount codes.

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You need to specify your country of residence if you want any help

I live in mid Michigan. Canadian border is only an hour away. Hey, maybe vacation somewhere there’s a red wing store leave your suitcase, empty and fill it with boots

Small American brands always cost the moon here. I would try CanadaWest, which are out of Manitoba or Viberg out of Victoria, BC. CanadaWest is is what I would go with myself if they made my size (women's aren't wide enough, men's don't go small enough), very popular with my fellow farmers.

I got some Hanwag boots two years ago and they are holding up nicely.

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Drive to the US find the closest red wings store by several pairs then drive back

honestly even if I break even with $200 shoes that last 4 years, its going to be a comfortable 4 years. $50 shoes last half the year well and half the year like trash.

Modern shoes have a life in distance not time. Over mikes the foam compresses until it no longer supports. Running shoes are 300-500 miles of running. Hiking boots are 1000 miles. People tend to wear these types of shoes long after the synthetics in the sole have stopped doing it’s job.

Largely this.

You've touched on a few of my favorite little aphorisms.

Buy nice, or buy twice.

Always spend good money for anything that comes between you and the earth. Buy good tires, good sheets, and good shoes.

Another one for me is:

If you want something, buy the cheapest version of it you can find, and if you use it enough to break that, then go buy the expensive version.

​

In short, I try to just say no to buying things. But when I do buy something, I buy the best quality I can find.

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I have a pair of boots that I had custom made for my feet. They cost me $800. They are the best shoes I have ever owned, They are going on 4 years, and will likely go for another decade. Well, well worth the money spent. If I get 15 years out of them, that's $53 per year. I spend more than that on impulse buys at registers.

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For tools it's always been buy the cheapest version then buy the BIFL option if it breaks. If a cheap version is all you need to do the work you're going to do with it, it's no point going with the expensive version. It probably applies pretty well to most items.

I have a Riccar upright sweeper for my high pile and carpet. I have 2 pets and this is a beast of a sweeper. I also have Miele for my hard surfaces.

Both are BiFL in my opinion. The cost is high upfront, but they will both outlive me. Plus as someone with allergies and pets I love a sweeper with an actual bag. Less allergens flying around when you empty it.

As I’m writing this I’m realizing by sweeper, you might mean like a rake and not a vacuum. If that’s the case, ignore the weird regional word preferences.

Took me years to learn that for certain items (especially footware), the bifl option is the frugal option. I spent years going through crappy $30-50 trainers and boots at the rate of about a pair every year. Then one year, I decided to treat myself and got a $200 pair and they lasted over 8 years... doing the math that's significantly cheaper per year than I was paying before.

My general rule is buy as high end as you can afford for anything that goes between you and the ground (so footwear, car tires, furniture, socks, etc.) and you'll be a happy camper.

I have a down comforter from The Company Store and it’s incredible.

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Good for you then

That's just me, I wouldn't use the gas. Where I live is where gas is always at the highest price in the nation and to fill up my vehicle would cost $60. And then I'd have to buy gas again somewhere on the return trip.

Right now there are 4 different ads on Craigslist in my area for Speed Queen washers. One is a matched set of washer and electric dryer for $770.

Another is a washer in "excellent condition" for $500.

Just sayin...

Thank you!

Yep, metal with wood or plastic wrapped around is fine. The common move today is to mold a single piece plastic handle and connect it with one very small nut, and the plastic is so soft it wears a larger hole round the nut and the handle comes right off. Think that burn was bad on your hand? Try the whole kettle upended over your body as the handle snaps off one year into its life.