“Don’t grow up, it’s a trap.” We’ve all heard or probably even uttered this phrase at least once in our lives. It’s ironic that, for most of our childhood, we look forward to growing up and having the freedom that being an adult brings: staying up all night, eating all the junk we want and making up our beds whenever we feel like it. But by now, we’ve all realised that being an adult seems like an elaborate scam that’s always too late to get out of and the reality of being a grown-up is not at all like the fantasy we imagined as kids. Being able to eat cereal for dinner hardly seems like a fair tradeoff for owning a car – road tax, MOT, fuel prices and congestion charges all add up.

Still, there are some proud moments we experience that signify the end to the folly of youth and mark a new stage of life – moments we find ourselves performing actions or making purchases that we once thought were limited to our parents or other responsible human beings, such as taking out a mortgage, raising children or paying for our own Netflix. Below, the MR PORTER team share the instances, and purchases, that marked their arrival to adulthood.

Perhaps the most adult thing I’ve done to date – and, let’s be honest, perhaps the most adult thing I will ever accomplish in my lifetime since a mortgage is off the cards for most of my generation – is install a washing machine with nothing but a cheap wrench (I still don’t know where it came from, but my money is on a Christmas cracker) and a poorly-worded instruction manual to assist me. If that sounds impressive, it’s not: installing a washing machine is, as it turns out, a daunting but fairly straightforward process. Still, I think some sort of small reward for my exertion is in order. So, to feel extra grown-up, I’ll be treating myself to some very adult-looking laundry detergent from clothing care expert The Laundress.

This year, my wife and I will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. In the run-up to getting married – and thereby confirming my adulthood – in Scotland, I wrote a monthly column for The Journal, titled the Grumpy Groom (the title was not my choice, but is probably fair). The final column saw MR PORTER readers vote for which suit I should wear at the altar and, happily, the majority plumped for a wonderful Richard James three-piece in a Prince of Wales check. That suit now hangs in my wardrobe, too small for me to fit into but a priceless memento of a halcyon day. A decade, three kids and more than a few extra pounds later, I’d like to buy another special occasion suit, one that will cut a dash, but also speak to the man I have become [ed’s note: still grumpy].

Which item of clothing best represents my coming of age? Not the smart shoes for the job I never got. Nor the suit for the wedding I still haven’t got around to. It’s not even the cap I recently bought to cover the hair that’s increasingly not there. What sums up adulthood for me is a piece that reminds me it’s all a swizz. When you realise your parents were making it up as they went along, and that there’s nothing stopping you from having ice cream for breakfast (other than, in the long term, clogged arteries). And that would be this bright pink hoodie, for the moment when I really should’ve known better, but also when no one can stop me.

A bit of personal news from me: I’m engaged! This is far and away the most adult thing I’ve ever done in my life, and the idea that I’ll be wed in a few months’ time and will get to say things like “my wife and I” makes me feel older than any birthday ever could. To celebrate my newly married life, I’ll be doing away with my teenagerish habit of lounging about the house in old baggy T-shirts and boxer shorts, and upgrading to this equally comfortable but much more considered lyocell pyjama set by god-tier underwear brand CDLP. I’ll still be a slob, of course – just a married one in fancy pyjamas.

I’d heard all the rumours that buying a sofa is one of the most grown-up things a person can do and I can confirm that it is true. As someone who feels no particular need to own a home (my neighbours just spent £25,000 fixing a leaky roof so no, thanks), replacing my mum’s hand-me-down 10-year-old sofa is the closest I’ve come to putting down roots. After getting over the shock of how much furniture costs, I fully embraced the sofa-finding process: ordering swatches, reading reviews on Trustpilot and setting up virtual showroom appointments. I am now the proud owner of a grey Instagram-worthy L-shaped sofa, where I spend approximately 80 per cent of my waking hours. The next phase of my homemaking is getting a throw to keep me cosy and this colourful Southwestern-inspired version by heritage brand Pendleton will do nicely.