r/BuyItForLife • • Feb 03 '25

!Canada! Buyitforlife from Canada, what’s your favourite things made in Canada?

1.2k Upvotes

With the now starting trade war between the US and Canada I feel it’s best for us up north to support local more than ever.

One of my favourite clothing brands is Anian from Victoria, BC. I have a few of their shirts and will probably end up getting more.

Edit: Adding some other brands up here that I personally own and love.

Canada West Boots - Made in Winnipeg. Been wearing a pair of Romeos for a couple years now.

Popov Leather - Made in Nelson, BC. have a few of their leather goods, holding up really well.

Meyer - PEI. High quality made in Canada pots and pans, I have their non-stick 12”.

Edit 2: House of Blanks - I have a bunch of their t-shirts, nice heavy weight cotton. Very comfy


r/BuyItForLife • • Feb 03 '25

BIFL Non-USA edition! A list of BIFL not made in the USA

3.1k Upvotes

A timely reminder that this subreddit is obviously very USA-centric with its recommendations as that’s where the majority of users are from. It often leads to people not realising that comparable and/or better items can be found closer to home, easier, cheaper and free of tolls.

I thought it would be a good idea to crowdsource some manufacturers here for non-American users.

This isn't neccesarily items made in those countries as some manufacturers use factories across the world but with a commitment to quality

I can start (I'm kind of UK/Euro centric so it would be great to expand this):

Clothing
Portuguese Flannel - Portugal
Naked and Famous - Canada
Uskees - UK
Yarmouth Oilskins - UK
Carrier Company - UK
Old Town - UK (Closing down)
Farmer's Market - Iceland (may be hard to buy outside of Iceland)
Oni Denim - Japan
Iron Heart - Japan
Barbour - UK
Companion - Spain
NÄZ - Portugal (only women)
Meindl - Germany (they run a high quality fashion brand but are known for great hiking boots)

Outdoor Gear
Fjällräven - Sweden
Rab - UK (offer a very good repair service)
66° North - Iceland
Devold - Norway
Bergans- Norway
Haglöfs - Sweden
Klättermusen - Sweden
Alpkit - UK

Footwear
Solovair - UK
Mayura Boots - Spain
Church's - UK
Loake - UK
Wm. Lennon - UK
Astorflex - Italy

Kitchen/Cookware
Le Cresuet - France
De Buyer - France
Fissler - Germany
WMF - Germany (very wide and variable range but Made in Germany stuff good)
Fiskars - Finland
Duralex - France
Samuel Groves - UK

Appliances/Small appliances
Miele - Germany
Dualit - UK
Moccamaster - Netherlands (Coffee makers)
Zojirushi - Japan
Numatic - UK (vacuum cleaners)
Sebo - Germany (vacuum cleaners)
Ankarsarum - Sweden

Edit - Some excellent feedback. I'll try and work my way through and add what I can! Please note that I will only add stuff that I have experience with but all the comments help with crowd sourcing knowledge.


r/BuyItForLife • • 3h ago

Review This old Electrolux washing machine is still going strong.

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127 Upvotes

This is an Electrolux WH 3550, apparently from the 1990s, and it’s still running!


r/BuyItForLife • • 17h ago

Review Linoto Linen is NOT BIFL

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485 Upvotes

Photos attached. Bought what I thought was a very nice set of heavy thread count all natural linen sheets with the hope they would last longer than my last set of brooks linen sheets which lasted about 3ish years.

I bought these July 7th, 2024 and while worried about the price tag of $469 hopped they would last 7-10 years.

And oh my god I tried. Washed with no fabric softener, washed every two weeks to reduce wear, was careful to not over load, used no dyes or perfumes as I hate them. Rotated how they went on (180 degrees) to even wear. Started ripping after 21 months. Tried to be thrifty, sewed it up. The then more holes, tried linen patches. After 6 patch’s in various places I am giving up. Also last time I am doing linen.

I’m going back to Cotton Perscale. Wish me luck!

TL;DR avoid Linoto and Brooks sheets. They don’t last.

Edit: Yes, yes I did overpay for these sheets. They were advertised as made in country with high quality materials, good to their employees, and eco friendly and I had the disposable income. I thought it would be worth it and it wasn’t, don’t make the same mistake I did 😭.

I bought a new set of cotton perscale sheets and am washing them now and they were a whole $69 from a home goods outlet. I promise everyone I will not overpay for sheets again lol. I am not saying the brand as I will not endorse until I get 6-8 years out of them to post here.


r/BuyItForLife • • 22m ago

Warranty Dehumidifiers... Residential are Junk

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• Upvotes

Man oh man, the amount of dehumidifiers I've gone thru in the past 4-5 years is crazy. Is it just me or are they all just garbage anymore? I've gone thru a Frigidaire, a GE, a Govee, and now laying my Honeywell to bed.

This thing was working well and hard for a while but in under 18 months it finally kicked the bucket and started throwing an E3 error - that the coolant is no longer there.

Worst yet - Honeywell no longer has dehumidifiers so the warranty they offer is "store credit" to replace it with anything BUT a dehumidifier. It is almost comical. I'm hoping to still work thru this with CS for the warranty aspect but it may not play out to my benefit.

Anyhow - anyone got any tips of dehumidifiers they recommend that last longer than 3 years? It's being used in a Pennsylvania basement so there's certainly moisture


r/BuyItForLife • • 2h ago

[Request] Boots that look similar to Doc Martens (especially platform Doc Martens) that can be resoled?

13 Upvotes

I’ve bought my last pair of Doc Martens. I’m beyond sick of getting them broken in good, just to have the soles disintegrate and hurt my back. They hold up for like 2 years before becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

Any good recommendations for quality, resole-able boots that look similar to classic Doc Martens or the platform Doc Martens?


r/BuyItForLife • • 3h ago

Discussion Thermal/Wool clothing - UK based

12 Upvotes

Hi All

Ask someone that is permanently cold and suffer from primary Raynauds; looking for high quality clothing to keep me warm .

I’m looking for indoor and outdoor recommendations in terms of sweaters/jumpers/hoodies/jogging bottoms/ fleeces etc

Many products I see are listed as thermal but mainly polyester/nylon/acrylic

Does anyone have any recommendations? I’m presuming most will say ‘layers’ but where do I get good quality that isn’t a pain to wash? Any recommendations at all?

Should I focus on cashmere/alpaca/merino wool?

Thoughts appreciated


r/BuyItForLife • • 8h ago

[Request] Lawn chairs that look the same but preferably are sturdier

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22 Upvotes

As a 200 pound man, foldable chairs that end up looking like this are not uncommon


r/BuyItForLife • • 4h ago

[Request] Suggestions for socks for work boots? (I walk 10-15k steps daily in steel toe boots)

13 Upvotes

Do not have access to a Costco.

Was looking at Darn tough socks but they are quite expensive and I was looking to get at least 5 pairs of socks (really want 10) so I can have a new pair for every work day.

I’m on my feet all day get about ten to fifteen thousand steps in steel toe 3.5 pound boots.

Been buying new pairs of Hanes socks every month at this point but I feel like I’m just throwing money away cause I get holes right at my Achilles heel/bottom of socks every week constantly lol.

Thanks

EDIT: Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Think I’ll pick up a couple pairs of Darn Tough and try em out!


r/BuyItForLife • • 8h ago

BIFL Skills Disenshittify Amazon: a decluttering/crap detection script

17 Upvotes

I threw together a Tampermonkey script that attempts to guess trust ratings for Amazon items based on the title, brand, and description, such as unknown gibberish brandnames that are random sequences of letters and badly-translated copy full of LLM-generated/SEO language. It also allows sorting by price/count, which I've wanted for years. Check it out and let me know what you think so far and any changes it could use.

Sort by Trust example - Sort by $/Item example


r/BuyItForLife • • 1h ago

Vintage Stainless Steel Slottet Spoon

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5 Upvotes

Anyone who recognises the manufacturer?

I bought it a few years ago in a thrift store.

No logo or indication of a brand name.

Stainless Steel Japan, only.

I love it, and would love to buy more of this type from the same manufacturer, if possible.

I assume that whoever discarded it, did so because of the damage on the handle. It works great.


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

Discussion Why are there are almost zero noise cancelling earbuds that sit flush with or recessed in your ear for sleeping?

593 Upvotes

Most people are side sleepers, and regular ear plugs are worthless. Why are there few if any good options for noise canceling earbuds you can wear to bed?


r/BuyItForLife • • 23h ago

Discussion Is Muji clothing worth the cost?

137 Upvotes

Especially the 100% linen ones, no matter shirts, pants or dresses. Are they worth the price?


r/BuyItForLife • • 10h ago

[Request] Looking for a fully lined wool coat (even merino is too itchy for me)

10 Upvotes

I’m looking for a men's coat with a smooth lining (polyester, silk, Bemberg/cupro, acetate, or similar) and a textured outer like wool, not something slick.

This would be my everyday coat. I work in a cold lab, so I’d be wearing it outside and also keeping it on inside for most of the day.

The catch is that wool is itchy on me. Even the supposedly non-itchy stuff like merino bothers me, so the coat has to be fully lined with something smooth, sleeves included. Bonus if the collar isn’t scratchy against my neck.

To be clear, I’m looking for an actual coat, not a fleece, sweater, vest, etc.

What would you guys recommend?


r/BuyItForLife • • 1h ago

[Request] Small Pressure Washer

• Upvotes

Can someone recommend a small pressure washer for car/motorcycle or bike cleaning?

Doesn't have to be a professional device since the usaged will be limited to once or twice a month.

I'm EU based.


r/BuyItForLife • • 7h ago

Discussion What's a good chair for long crafting sessions?

3 Upvotes

I like making little things and can easily sit there for a few hours without noticing. Lately my lower back has been hurting, and the armrests on my current chair keep getting in the way.

What kind of chair do you guys use? I need decent back support and armrests I can move out of the way.


r/BuyItForLife • • 7h ago

Discussion Anyone been using the same pull-out spice rack for a while?

2 Upvotes

I keep finding reviews that say easy to install and looks great, but not much from people who've used the rack long enough to wear it in. I want to know if it still pulls out easily when it's full of glass jars, especially the ones at the back.

Anyone have the SpaceAid two-tier one? I'd like to hear how it’s doing after regular use. Still smooth, or does it need a little wiggle now and then?

I'm also curious about Rev-A-Shelf. And if you’ve put together a setup with Accuride or Blum slides, I'd be interested in that too.

I'm fine with cleaning things or replacing a part eventually. I just don't want one bad slide to mean buying the whole thing again.

What do you have, and would you buy it again?


r/BuyItForLife • • 1h ago

[Request] Guys please reccomend best travel duffel bags from india

• Upvotes

I went spiralling in websites searching for best travel duffel bags . Honestly I am so confused now.

Please drop the brands which can also ship to India .

I am such a noob in these.

I always fall for marketing for weird brands and I fell for it everytime.

Guys save me


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

Vintage Found on the side of the road with “free” sign on it in 2006. We have logged some serious mileage since then.

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1.1k Upvotes

It had a broken pull-cord. Cost less than $10 to replace. Been running ever since.


r/BuyItForLife • • 19h ago

Discussion Winter jacket (3 in 1)

11 Upvotes

I bought a Columbia jacket (3 in 1) about 30 years ago. The jacket was about C$450 and I was quite happy with it, it always kept me dry and warm. About 20 years into the use the reflective plastic inside started to flake off, so that was it.
Both the shell and fleece insert had two way zippers and zippered air vents under arms. These two features became quite important for me. I am looking for a replacement and I’m not able to find such jacket anywhere.


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

Discussion Used Boos Block for $75. Worth it with these gaps? This is the 18x24x2.25 board.

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137 Upvotes

r/BuyItForLife • • 12h ago

Discussion Pladra Flannels - Mid-Heavy and Heavy Weight.. BIFL Worthy???

0 Upvotes

Looking for some super solid flannels for work. I would like to be able to layer a heavy Henley or regular heavy thermal underneath it, and a vest over it, and be okay working in 30-35 degree temps.

How is the quality and warmth on these flannels? Do they warrant the hefty price tag? I am willing to give one a shot if somebody can vouch.

I am also open to hearing about other brands you really believe in, but am most interested in Pladra at the moment. I do enjoy the LL Bean Chamois and of course a Carhartt Flannel, but I want to try something new this winter, and I am really drawn to what Pladra does with the collars and cuffs.

Let me know, Thanks guys!


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

Vintage My Thinkpad X200 that I use for offline purposes

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139 Upvotes

Like fixing the fact that I'm terrible at trigonometry


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

Discussion Any recommendation for Induction Hob brands?

7 Upvotes

Hello everyone! The old (+26 years) Zanussi Induction Hob in my kitchen has started to have some issues and I'm starting to prepare in case I have to replace It.

Do you know of of any BIFL Induction Hob Brand? Or at least one that'll last me as much as possible. Thank you all in advance!


r/BuyItForLife • • 1d ago

[Request] What’s the speed queen equivalent for a gas range?

43 Upvotes