What's worth the splurge in our book

HALLIE EPHRON: Confession: I drink day-old coffee. Warmed up with a ton of milk I cannot tell the difference between it and fresh-brewed.

Confession: Most expensive wines are wasted on me. Foodie that I am, I cannot tell the difference between an $7 bottle of what Rumpole called Chateau Thames Embankment and a $50 bottle of limited production red zin. I do draw the line at Two Buck Chuck.

Vodka. The cheap stuff tastes fine, and besides, I usually drown it in fruit juice and load it with ice. 

There are exceptions to this. Chocolate for instance. Yes, I can tell the difference between Nestles and Hersheys and Ghiradelli, but the real way to my heart is through Burdicks, a chocolatier in Harvard Square. 

And sheets. Luxury matters when it comes to sheets. After all, you spend more than a third of your life in them. (And a third of your monthly income ON them.)

So what, in your book, are luxuries worth paying for? And what are you just as happy going with day-old and bargain brand?

LUCY BURDETTE: Food of course! though I'm talking about ingredients that I cook with rather than expensive dinners out. It sticks in my craw to pay too much for a fancy meal when I prefer something homey. 

Ever since I've had to watch my sodium intake, I've been on the lookout for products that add enough flavor to make up for the missing salt. Here are a few that I gladly splurge on: Kozlik's Amazing Maple mustard, The Backyard Food Company's Wholly Jalapeno (candied jalapenos,) maple syrup, Villa Manodori organic balsamic vinegar (no comparison to supermarket stuff--it's thick and sweet and delicious.) Oh, and I order my pasta from Eataly (again, no comparison.) 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I love that balsamic vinegar, Lucy! We have it, too. Ah, wine, yeah, I can tell, usually. And there's nothing like fabulous red wine. It's an entirely different experience.  I can't drink the truly cheap stuff--I get a headache instantly.  Cheap vodka, too, my body knows right away.  And rebels.

And yes, sheets. No scratchy sheets. 

And: shoes. Bad quality shoes really hurt, and that's a trade-off that's not worth it. So I have good shoes. 

But I have t-shirts from the Gap and JCrew, perfectly fine. I do think you can tell quality in clothing, and beautiful design and construction and fabric, but there's the point where it can't actually be any better and you're paying for just a label.  

Oh, a good hotel. Definitely. A bad hotel is terrifying.  

I have splurged on Jo Malone Grapefruit shower gel. And Wolford tights. Ridiculously expensive, but they truly are indestructible. 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Hank, we have a legendary family story about my mother booking a super cheap hotel outside of DC when she and one of my aunts were coming to visit the family. You have to picture two well dressed, very respectable ladies of a certain age, with luggage. Their taxi let them out at a ratty motel between a shabby strip mall and a liquor store (this was before you could look online and see dozens of pictures of the place prior to making reservations.) The receptionist looks like a drug seller. There are sketchy people hanging around the lounge. They get to their room - and it's awful. The sheets are dirty and the bed isn't made! There's lipstick on the water glass! They realize the room usually rents by the hour, not the day.

They called my brother and sat on their luggage, with the door locked and chained, until he came to rescue them.

So I agree - good hotels. 

I'm also a wine person. You really don't have to spend a fortune for a good bottle - there's a place I go to in Portland that has a fantastic selection and very well-informed staffers. I've walked out with a box of bottles all under $10 and loved every one. 

Not so much of a splurge as a necessity: I only buy name brand dishwasher detergent (actually pods), dishwashing liquid and trash bags. The cheap stuff simply costs more in the end because you have to use so much of it (or your garbage spills in the kitchen floor when you're taking the bag out!

The luxury I've spent the most on over the past seven years? Good colleges for my kids. Youngest is sending in her applications by the end of this month. Keep your fingers crossed!

LUCY BURDETTE: I forgot what might be the most important thing--buying books in real bookstores! I want them around forever, so it's totally worth a few extra dollars to me.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Oh, I agree about the food and wine. And like Lucy, I don't mean eating out food (although a very occasional splurge on a REALLY good restaurant I consider one of life's big treats.) But I will spend the money on good quality ingredients, and I can tell the difference between cheap and more expensive wine. 

Good quality tea is on my list--I buy loose leaf from an online company. Sheets and towels, yes. I hate cheap towels even more than cheap sheets!

On the less glam side, I have to add good toilet paper and good paper towels!

INGRID THOFT: Travel is a big category for me in terms of choosing to pay a premium.  For example, I always pay more for a non-stop flight.  Ultimately, it saves time, aggravation, and even money if you end up stranded in Chicago in the dead of winter and have to spend the night in a hotel (a hotel for which the airline won’t reimburse you—“Act of God” and all that.)  

I’ll pay a lot to avoid taking red eye flights, which I absolutely hate because I never sleep and end up feeling cruddy for at least a day after arrival.  

When I’m not traveling, I spend money on meals in Seattle’s fabulous restaurants.  Given my general disinterest in cooking, I’m more than happy to pay someone else to work magic with their fancy ingredients!

HANK: Oh, you are so right, Ingrid. Non-stop, upgrades, extra leg room, priority boarding. Must have. And red eyes? Not any more! They seem like an efficient thing, but they are actually the opposite.

JENN McKINLAY: Ingrid, I'm with you on the non-stop flights. And I agree with everyone about soft sheets - a must! I'm not an informed wine drinker but I will pay extra for a really good beer. And coffee. I pay dearly for good coffee from Cartel Coffee Lab, because it's also about profit sharing with the farmers, which is pretty cool. 

Julia, I haven't hit the college costs yet, but I have paid a small fortune for the hooligans to try every sport, instrument, art, and robotics class under the sun, which is quite a luxury when you tally the cost. And lastly, theater tickets. I will pay a small fortune for the good seats to a show I really want to see. I've discovered that rows three to seven in the center are the sweet spot for me and I refuse to sit anywhere else. 

RHYS BOWEN:I love to travel. We take a trip to Europe every summer, but we hardly ever stay at luxurious hotels (although we did last year!) In fact I enjoy renting an apartment or cottage and sitting on my balcony with my morning croissant. 

My indispensable luxury these days is flying business or first. I can tolerate coach for two hours, but even then I like to be in economy plus at the front, but cross country or across the Atlantic and I think the ability to stretch out is worth every penny. 

I don't need very fancy hotels (and sometimes the publisher puts us in ridiculously boutique places with antiques or weird paintings on the walls) but I do need clean, safe, comfortable. I love Marriott beds! In fact I loved them so much that I bought one. 

Occasionally I enjoy a good meal out, but more often than not I am disappointed and we leave muttering that we could have cooked it better at home. 

John does the shopping and splurges on crab legs, lobster tails or rack of lamb, all of which are very nice.(but perplexing as he will drive miles to save fifty cents on some vegetable!  

I enjoy a good bottle of wine, but truthfully I can't tell the difference between $14 and $40! 

Luxury clothes? Not so much. I love snagging a favorite brand in a sale. And like Jenn, it is a huge treat for me to go to the theater or opera or ballet. 

HALLIE: So what about everyone else out there? What's splurges are worth taking? Santa might be listening...