Things that are unintentional status symbols.

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04/29/2014 12:20

Subject: Things that are unintentional status symbols.

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Anonymous

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unintentional status symbol - things people own or do that indicate

1. We are not new money. Family heirloom jewelry, expensive items that show wear from many years of use like vintage leather luggage, 10 yr old luxury cars, board seats and club memberships inherited, use of a family vacation home

2. We have enough money to buy what is convenient or popular even if a less expensive alternative of similar quality / utility is available. Name brand fleeces were mentioned. Never cutting coupons, never buying store brands. Not watching sales or eating in season. Basically never going out of your way to check prices and buying what you want. Buying "expensive" name brand clothes and shoes at full price for every day wear not just special occasions. Donating to any charity or cause someone asks for a donation to - like $50 for your neighbor's 5k. Eating lunch out every day.

3. Things that you do unintentionally that indicate that you have plenty of free time (because you have a flexible or part time job by choice, because you have help at home with cooking, cleaning, lawn care, child care). Not because you have time because you make less per hour than it costs you to pay someone else or because you are un/under employed. These choice things may include things like attachment parenting, long maternity leaves, cloth diapering, homemade foods from scratch, elaborate Pinterest projects, elaborate themed parties with crafty decor, a home decorated for each season, walking places you could drive to.

A lot of confusion here because a lot of things rich people do to demonstrate, intentionally or not, their wealth like homemade organic baby foods or wearing shabby but quality clothes are also things poor people do. It's about whether you have a choice. Being poor takes away a lot of choices and takes a lot of time because you can't pay for convenience.

Wearing lulu lemon pants because "they fit me best" and because $100 is nothing to you is a status symbol. Wearing Old Navy yoga pants can go either way. Maybe you're too rich to care what people think and you wear your ON pants to your $40/session Pilates trainer or with your Tory Burch flip flops. Maybe it means ON is all you can afford and you don't work because you can't afford childcare. That's the catch with intentional frugality / shabby chic among the closeted rich - you don't know who is who. Unintentional status symbol is ON yoga pants and an old car on a mom with a 2+ carat engagement ring who sheepishly replies when you admire it "oh thanks, it was my grandmother's".

This right here. Many of the things noted in this thread are things I do, but that's bc I'm broke. It's cheaper to make cloth diapers and baby food than it is to buy disposables and jarred food. I have a flexible job because I'm single and have to be able to pick my kid up from school or stay home with him when he's sick, I can't afford to pay someone to do that for me. I walk because I can't afford to own a car and I buy high quality clothes at thrift stores because they last longer. I've run into people who assume I do these things as a statement or philosophy when really, nope, I'm just trying to keep my shit together.

It amazes me sometimes how many things that our grandmothers and greatgrandmothers did are now back in vogue. Canning, sewing, upcycling, gardening, etc are all status symbols now, when they used to just be chores. It's all about being lucky and privileged enough to have a choice. Trust me, growing and canning tomatoes and thrifting/upcycling things aren't nearly as much fun when you have to do them or go without.

I think it depends on ones family experience. Gardening has always been in our family. My grandparents grew vegetables and fruits, my parents and il laws gardened and we garden. Before that we farmed. Same with the thrifty/upcycling things. It is part of my growing up experience and my children's experience. WE try to fix first, then find it used, then buy high quality new. Sewing stopped with my mom, I have no skill, despite lessons, to do it. DH had a bigger sewing kit than me when we were married (mine was free from a hotel- his was started as a scouting badge thing and fit into a small canning jar). We have all knit and crocheted. It might be an age thing as my parents grew up during the Depression and came of age during the scarcity of WWII. If it is 'back in style", it never went out of style in our family.