If you are willing to take care of them, most of the canvas tents are going to last you a life time. But if not, or you don't want the weight or the hassle, I've heard really good things about the REI tents, for light weight and durability.

I freaking love Okabashi. I have worn through many pairs, but they last far longer than any flip flop sandal should.

To put it in perspective I can walk through a pair of standard flip flops in two months. It takes me at least a full year of daily wear to kill okabashis. That's the shortest time I've worn through them, on city streets, walking seven miles on average a day. I usually own a pair and a back up pair.

Which ever kind you'll wear. Just like sewing your own clothes, knitting your own garments means you have much more control of what type of wool you use for each project.

I'm going to add my two cents as a knitter. If you want something for casual use, merinos going to be ok, but how the merinos spun is going to make a big difference. That's going to be hard to tell if you don't go with a know quality brand, and I wouldn't trust amazon for that. Merino's going to be softer, and it may pill easier, as it has a high micron count (is a thinner fiber).

If you are looking for day in day out out door wear, and you have a high itch tolerance for the places where the sweater may touch your skin (wrists and neck), a rougher wool may be a better option. Be aware that this type of sweater may actually smell a bit sheepy, it's not a bad smell and is mostly the lanolin still present in the wool, which is a good thing.

Most new sweaters not from specialty retailers are not going to fit this description, as the export market doesn't support it. Even the made in Ireland sweaters are mostly high micron count imported Australian and new Zealand wool from what I understand.

Either way a good quality wool sweater is a great investment, and should be viewed as such. Taking good care of it by hand washing and laying flat to dry, and only washing when the garment really needs it. Many sweater knitters I know only wash their hand knits once a season, even in cold climates where they are being worn frequently.

my boyfriend has large feet, and his Vans and Adias were dying in six months. He got some redwings (the shoes) and he likes them so far. If you have a wide foot they might be a good way to go, as (I think) offer different widths in their shoes, unlike most brands these days.

Do you have the same model or are most of the motors on them solid?

Wow. That's just crazy. I want find a repair person near me to give a once over. I use it hard.

I upgraded to the 6qt (refurbished cause I'm cheap) and it's already saved me what I spent on it in bread. I never want to bake without the thing. I keep think of getting the grain grinder for it, but I'm worried I'll burn out the motor.

If it can handle bread crumbs that's my kind of mini blender. I'll have to look for one of these

What do you mainly use it for?

Thanks for the warning! I love my kitchen aid mixer, but you're not the only bad review I've heard for their other products.

I love my rowenta, I have the one that has all the tiny holes for micro steam. It has a couple issues, but nothing that I can really complain about for the price.