While checking my e-mail this morning I came across this interesting little read at msn.com.

It's all about which items we should and should not splurge on and the whole psychological aspect of buying cheap. The author says mattresses, overcoats and chef's knives deserve a good splurge.

The story goes on to say that the 20 and 30-something set is more likely to go the cheap route than their parents ever did. Look no further than the celebrity of stores like H&M and Forever 21 -- stores that I liken to the Internet and e-mail: "What did we ever do with out them?"

I confess I am a Deal Diva through and through with a mental map of the area's best Marshall's an T.J. Maxx stores to prove it. I love a deal. But if there's one thing I've learned it's never to sacrifice quality for thrift.

Blame it on my grandmother -- the original style maven of my family. This is the woman who ingrained in me the meaning of "quality." As a little girl going shopping with grandma was more like a ritualistic hunt of sorts. She'd pull on fabrics to see if they had the proper give, sniff leather to see if it met her genuine leather smell test (somewhere between the odor of egg and shoe polish), and forbade polyester.

My grandmother inspired me to buy a pair of Via Spiga knee boots the fall of my freshman year in college. Sure they cost about a quarter of my summer earnings that year, but I've still got those calf-skin boots. When I got married, I splurged on Hotel Collection sheets and have never been happier with a $100-plus purchase. And if nothing else is certain in this world, this diva will have a good wrist watch.

This is not to say I'm a baller. I'm not. But these are the things I don't scrimp on: Shoes, Sheets and Watches.

What about you? What items don't you mind spending the big bucks for?

~ Deal Diva Nicole

(art: Associated Press)