National Splurge Day: What items are worth the extra cash

It's National Splurge Day! While it is important it is to save money, here are eleven items which are worth spending a little extra. 

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Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor/Staff
Customers, many buying holiday and Christmas presents, shop at Tyson's Corner Mall, on December 6, 2013 in Tyson's Corner, VA. While it is important it is to save money, don't be afraid to splurge on a few things once in a while.

Just a reminder: National Splurge Day is June 18!

Oh, you've never heard of it? Maybe that's because it was invented from whole-cloth in 1994 by Adrienne Sioux Koopersmith, a lady who describes herself as "America's premier eventologist." Though there are no Hallmark cards for it, there's nothing stopping us from treating this like it's a real thing, so we will!

As a deal site, we'll admit that the idea of wanton spending sends a shiver down our frugal, money-saving spines. But maybe, just maybe, we can spin this faux-liday into something that fits both the urge to splurge and the cravings for savings. Therefore, here's a list of items that you can feel OK spending more money on, because they're worth it! (Of course, you should still be looking for a deal on these higher-quality options; this is DealNews, after all!)

Now as that guy from that cancelled sitcom about parks and recreations would say, "TREAT YO' SELF!" (And while you're at it, check out our list of the most outrageous splurges we've ever listed, too.)

The Aeron Chair by Herman Miller

Aeron chairs have won endless praise for their design and ergonomics, but praise never comes cheap. Starting at $679, these seats are way more expensive than the ones you'll find at Office Depot or Staples. However, since you're probably sitting in it for at least 40 hours a week, shouldn't you get something that's designed to pamper your butt? Ok, bad choice of imagery, but you get what we're saying, right? Included in the premium price is also a full 12-year warranty, so you won't have to spend money on a new chair again anytime soon — unlike the cash you'd likely dole out to replace a bargain bin chair every couple of years, when it breaks.

Bed Linens

In 2013, the average American spent roughly 8.7 hours per day sleeping, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. So, if you're buying scratchy, stiff sheets, your skin is touching them for roughly 3,176 hours every year. When it comes to bedding, treat yourself like a king (or twin, or queen, or California king) because there's a noticeable difference between budget, 200-thread-count sheets and luxury, Egyptian Cotton sheets. Ever wonder why a hotel bed feels so much more comfortable than yours does? Good bedding!

Cosmetics

The point of makeup is to enhance a person's beauty in an inconspicuous way. Cheaper cosmetics are less likely to look natural and will probably cake up later in the day and become a conspicuous way of de-hancing your beauty. Better quality cosmetics are far more likely to work with the conditions of your skin and make you look good, but they'll cost a bit more. (Note: We're not sure the same rules apply to clown makeup, as we didn't want to get close enough to one to ask.)

Toilet Paper

We'd assume that the last place anyone would want to rub scratchy paper would be their, er, fundament, yet so many people continue to buy the cheap stuff, just to save some dollar bills. (We don't mean to implying there are people use dollar bills to ... wait, you know what, we'll stop talking about this.) Anyway. Yes, it may last a little longer per roll, but why not treat your delicate parts a little more delicately? Honestly, it's hard to even call this one a "splurge", since it's so easy to save money on the "good stuff."

Razors and Razor Blades

When scraping a sharpened piece of metal across your skin, shouldn't you want the best piece of sharpened metal you can get, instead of something made by a company that spent the least on its manufacture? Personally, we've never gotten anything better than a shredded back face when using a disposable blade. Unless you're doing some Game Of Thrones dark magic and need to constantly spill blood, we'd say that it's worth your comfort to spend a bit more for a quality razor or shaver to get a better shave. Now, we're not advocating for any specific brand, so buy whatever you can find a deal on. Just stop buying the blades that are sold by bulk in a bag.

Tattoos

When you realize how expensive a tattoo can be, you might be tempted to look for the cheapest artist you can find. But nothing says "regret" like blurry, poorly-done permanent skin art. Splurge a little and you can mitigate the chances of getting a tattoo that will look terrible. A good artist means your memorial tat will actually look like your newborn baby girl and less like Winston Churchill.

Major Home Improvement

"Pfft! How hard could it be to build a deck?" Answer: Very. DIY is great, but sometimes it pays to pay a professional to get it done faster and better than you ever could. Sure, you might save some money, but do you have the time, skill, and patience to get it done right? Something that might take you a month of Sundays to build might take a professional just a single afternoon. So unless DIY is "your thing," avoid catastrophe and hire a pro instead.

Clothing and Shoes

Nine times out of 10, clothing is more expensive because more care and better quality materials were used in making it. We're not saying you should always buy super-high-end, one-of-a-kind designer items, but you can often benefit from a better fit and longer life if you're willing to pay more. This is a handy rule of thumb for all apparel, including shoes. How many times have you bought a cheap shirt from Old Navy, just to have it fall apart within the year, when a similar shirt from J.Crew could have held together longer? Too many. Stop doing that! (After you invest in better pieces, make sure to read up on how to make clothing last longer.)

New Multiplayer Video Games

We've often said that you can get deep discounts on video games if you simply wait a couple months to buy a game, rather than buying it on release day. However, we will amend our advice for one reason: Multiplayer. If you like playing in giant frag-fests online, then you'll want to jump on a game as soon as they're released, as the online multiplayer community is a constantly-shifting entity, usually centered around only the latest titles. If you wait a couple months to get a deal on a game, you could find yourself being the only Spartan on the map, stealing a flag from yourself, because everyone else has moved on to the next game. Thankfully, many game preorders see discounts or include other perks (exclusive downloadable content or gift cards), so it's not exactly like you're paying retail, anyway.

Camping Tents

In another example of price reflecting a product's quality, the extra cost usually means that the maker of a good-quality tent invested not only in better materials, but in a better design as well. You'll appreciate this extra design savvy when you're not struggling to set it up, or when you remain dry, warm, and bug-free during rainy, windy, or humid nights. (Though, if you want to keep that stuff out, how much of an "outdoorsman" are you, really?) Learn more about the features to shop for with our tent buying guide.

Movies at the Theater

Whether it's a huge action movie or a comedy, there's something to be said for paying the extra money to go see a screening of a new-release film. If it's an action flick, the big, big, big screen really showcases the explosions (as well as Charlize Theron's bad-ass-ery); if it's a comedy, then a room full of chuckling strangers might get you laughing at jokes that just don't seem as funny when you're watching alone. You're paying a premium to have an experience, and that's always worth a bit more money. Of course, that "experience" you pay for could turn out to be a kid talking on his phone and kicking your chair throughout the entire film. Either way, we'll allow you to watch documentaries and those arty films with subtitles at home.

As you can see, most of the items on which you should splurge are amenities that make your life better in some way, offering added comfort that's worth a bit more. You might also have noticed that conspicuously missing from the list are any technology items! That's because most tech is so disposable these days, and even if you splurge for a high-end model that performs extremely well, you're very likely going to want to replace it in a year or two anyway when new models come out. So why over-pay?

This article first appeared on DealNews.

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