[jyl]

If I'm going to use it a lot, enough to have a personal feeling for it, I'll pay up for good stuff.

Like, my saucepans are heavy French copper, 10 or 12 pieces. We bought them in France for a lot less than they'd be today, before the euro and copper went up and not from Sur La Table. I think they'd be $300-400 each today.

But when I can, I'll buy it used. I don't mind secondhand, wear, or scrounging to save money.

And I love it when you get something for cheap that is great. My 12" sauté pan is an old KitchenAid, $150 new but I got it at a flea market for $15. Anodized aluminium lined with stainless steel. I use Wenol's and polish that surface until it is slicker than any non-stick pan.

I won't pay for a brand if the product doesn't back it up. I wouldn't buy $150 Henckels knives, not when you can buy a $35 Victorinox Forschner that can be sharpened to 15 degrees and scarily sharp. But I'd pay $300 for a handmade Japanese knife, because those are worth it.