Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video, we discuss 10 cheap, low-budget items that are absolutely worth their money.
One, a bottle of Saint Hilaire Blanquette De Limoux, it costs about $12-$15.
I know it is a mouthful but bear with me.
Remember when we shot the video on Is it worth it, Dom Perignon champagne?
It was basically a $150 champagne bottle and you can watch the details here.
In the comment, a viewer shared with us his favorite budget alternative which is the Saint
Hilaire Blanquette De Limoux from France and so I tried it and it's a really amazing sparkling
wine that tastes pretty much like a champagne but it only costs $12-$15.
Now you might wonder, isn't it just a cheap knockoff?
Now, usually you will argue against knockoffs an fakes; actually, Benedictine monks in the
abbey of Saint Hilaire invented this sparkling wine over 450 years ago which was a hundred
years earlier than champagne.
Obviously, even though they were first, champagne did a much better marketing and today, it
is much more well known and much more expensive but that is good for you because you can get
a quality sparkling wine at a fraction of the cost.
Of all the sparkling wines I have tasted, the Saint Hilaire Blanquette De Limoux is
really a great price to value ratio and best of all, it all comes in vintages which means
in specific years so you get a top-notch quality but different every time.
We have the links to all these products to our i-depth guide on the website here.
The second cheap item worth its money is bar soap.
Most people use shower gels today which is also cheap, it is basically just soap with
water and so the cost per use is much higher with bar soap.
A regular bar of soap will cost you anywhere between $2-$3 and maybe $20-$25 but even the
lower priced models are oftentimes very good in quality, they have good fats like cocoa
butter and shea butter and so I suggest you take a look at ingredients first.
You can find bigger bars or smaller bars; one soap that I have been using over and over
again is the l'occitane verbena soap, it comes in a 3 1/2 or 100-gram piece and it cost about
$14 in the US.
It smells of lemongrass, it is very nice for your skin and I personally love it.
Usually, a bar lasts our entire family for half a year.
The third inexpensive item worth its money is the Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen.
It costs about $15 and if you remember, we recently did a video on IS IT WORTH IT?
The Montblanc fountain pen.
Now Montblanc is very well-known and you can easily spend over a thousand dollars.
A lot of people complains that "Well, that's crazy!"
So with the Pilot Metropolitan, you get a quality made in Japan pen that is very balanced,
with a nice ink flow, and a nice nib in its price range, and it won't break the bank and
anyone can afford it.
You can also personalize it in many different colors including very popular black and silver
colors, it also comes in two nib sizes; M for medium and F for fine and while M is the
standard nib size in the fountain pen world, F is really fine in this case, even the fine
in other brands I think and if you're used to writing with a rollerball or a ballpoint
pen that will be a good transitional pen for you.
The fourth cheap item you want to invest in is a pair of really quality scissors such
as these Kai N5210.
In my experience, a good pair of scissors is highly underrated.
Personally, I get lots of packages when I design things, I have to cut fabrics and leather
and so a good pair of scissors is always on my desk.
In the past, I would use those scotch titanium blades which you can get in three packs for
five or six dollars at Costco and they did the job, but once I had the Kai N5210, it
was all different.
They really cut consistently better with less effort and they really just stay sharp for
a long time.
I've had it for over a year, I cut a lot with it, and it's still great.
It's so good you can even cut the chicken bones with it and any other kind of meat in
the kitchen which is really not something you can usually do with a pair of scissors.
The fifth inexpensive item you want to invest in is shoelaces because they're very inexpensive
but it can really change the entire look of your shoe.
As you know, buying new shoes, especially quality shoes, is very expensive, so if a
new pair of shoes is not on a table for you right now, consider shoelaces.
You can get them in 15 or 20 different colors we have boot laces as well as shoelaces that
are round and flat in quality waxed cotton and as you can see, on the same shoe, you
create an entirely different look.
Best of all, the look is versatile even if you have just one or two pairs of quality
shoes and maybe four or even ten shoelaces, you can immediately create 10 or 20 different
looks.
If you want tolearn more about shoelaces, how to lace them, how to tie your shoes, and
how to style them, please check out our other videos and if you're interested in quality
laces, check them out in our shop right here.
The sixth budget item that's really worth its money is this knife from Rada.
It's a serrated knife and I bought it three years ago at an antique show in Brimfield.
At first, it seemed too cheap, it was a new knife for just five dollars, made in the USA,
and I figured how good can it really be?
Because I was used to Japanese knives and German Wusthof knives, after using it for
a little bit, turns out it's a really excellent knife.
Originally, it's called a tomato knife and you can slice Tomatoes excellently with it,
but it also works for steak, it has a flexible blade and because of that, you can cut melons,
anything with a curve, any kinds of vegetables, apples, fruits, it's just a wonderful all-purpose
knife and I strongly suggest to get it because it only costs about seven dollars shipped
with Amazon Prime.
Isn't that a deal?
Radda also offers a range of other inexpensive knives which are comparable to Ikea but much
better in quality.
The seventh item worth its money is a tailor's ham.
It cost about twelve bucks and it's a little pillow filled with sawdust.
It's much stiffer than a regular pillow that you may have on your couch, on your bed, and
it's used to iron trousers or jackets, especially all the round parts which wouldn't quite work
on a flat iron table, If you want to learn how to use this tailor's ham, please check
out our in-depth ironing series where I show you how to iron shirts, pants, as well as
suits and jackets.
By the way, if you're into ironing and you want quality creases in your shirt on your
pants or anywhere else, I suggeste to get a clapper because it really helps to get perfect
results.
It's a simple piece of oak wood that has no sap and no rough edges and if you buy it online,
it cost about $25 but you can easily make it yourself.
The eigth inexpensive item I've been using for years is the Nivea sensitive shave balm.
As you might know, I'm really into shaving and we create an in-depth shaving guide here.
I tested over 300 products and one item that I come back to over and over again is the
Nivea sensitive shaving balm, it costs between 5 and 8 bucks, it's widely available in drugstores
all over the world, as well as online on places like Amazon.
Works for all skin types, it smells good, it leaves a smooth result, and I've been using
it for so long that I can safely say it doesn't harm your skin or is aggressive in any way.
The ninth cheap item that is totally worth its money is red boat fish sauce.
People who like Thai food or Vietnamese food are very much familiar with fish sauce but
it can also be used in any kind of other cuisines such as American, French, or European cuisine.
It has this characteristic umami flavor which you can also find in meat, tomatoes, mushrooms,
and many other parts.
It's that fifth sense of taste that we, in the Western world, are not so familiar with
but it's very prevalent in places like Japan.
Whenever they serve dishes to people that contain fish sauce ,they're always like "mmm
this is so good."
"wow how did you get this flavor?" and they can never tell it's fish sauce but they always
really like it a lot because it's flavorful, strong, but not fishy at all.
You don't have to overdo it, a spot or two is enough to really boost the flavor of the
dishes you create.
Another thing I also use a lot is better than bouillon.
Basically, it's reduced broth or stock that you can keep in your fridge.
It's very easy to use and you can concentrate the broth in the way you would like, so you
can have a very strong flavor or light flavor.
It comes in many different varieties such as chicken, beef, vegetable, mushroom, or
fish, and so you can create nice bouillabaisse for example or other fish stews very easily
without having to cook out any bones.
Last but not least, the tenth item you should invest in is Gentleman's Gazette ebooks.
Right now, we're giving away three of them for free.
I mean, what's better than free right?
So it's over 200 pages of in-depth content about classic men's style such as black tie
guides, white tie guides, or how to wear and combine shoes with socks and pants.
Head over to our shop now, add it to your cart and of course, if you want to buy something
else we're honored, but you don't have to.
Simply download them, enjoy them, and tell us what you think, maybe even leave a review,
really appreciate it, thank you.
In today's video, I am wearing a more casual outfit with a navy blue cardigan combined
with a red and blue checked shirt with a knit tie in navy and light blue and because of
that it contrasts the navy cardigan.
depending on how I move with the light you'll see the color changes and it's a wonderful
two-tone effect that you only get from Fort Belvedere silk knit ties which I designed
which you can find in our shop here.
my slacks are winter white wool flannels which are heavy but perfect for winter and they
provide enough contrast to the dark top part of my outfit they've pleats because I have
big thighs as well as cuffs and the shoes I'm wearing with them are dark brown with
red contrasting shoelaces from our shop again it's an entirely different look than if those
shoes had maybe brown shoelaces.
I'd have a look together with burgundy and off-white cotton socks that are over the calf
from Fort Belvedere because they pick up the red in the shoelaces and in the shirt but
also the off-white color of the pants I'm also wearing a rose gold pinky ring with a
light blue stone that picks up the blue tones in my outfit if you enjoyed this video you'll
probably also like to see our 12 expensive items worth their money or 18 items every
gentleman should have here.