Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Collective haul

This covers the last few weeks. On November 16th, one of the local stores was doing a fundraiser for Project Smyles (a nonprofit run through the library), so of course I had to go. I stopped at another store, and since it was Wednesday, their home decor was 20% off.
Everything I bought was on clearance or on sale. The pig is for a friend. The bird bowl was for myself, but I might end up sending it out for a swap. The pumpkin was on clearance for half off, I paid about $5 for it. I really brought it up to see how much it was, originally it was $10 something which I thought was a bit high, especially since the ones that were twice that size were only $14, but whatever, I've been wanting one of these for awhile anyway. The reindeer is for my brother. The santa was supposed to light up, but once I bought the 3 batteries it required (for $7), I found out why it was on clearance, it doesn't work. The roly poly santa and the white one are for my mother. I bought the snowflakes for swaps.
Here's the store doing the fundraiser
 They are a fair trade store, and always have lots of neat stuff. One of the pens has a llama on it, it's for the same friend as the pig above. I bought the pen with the lady on it and the doll for a swap. The doll actually provides income so women can provide menstrual pad kits for girls in Nepal. The lizard is for a friend.
The next day I went to Walmart and the mall for necessities, I also had to check out TJ Maxx.
 
 I needed black pants, jeans, boots and some knee high socks.
The jeans and boots are put away until I need them for my jobs so I don't wear them out before then. I also needed some more fleece lined leggings for home. Sadly, this pear was too small so I had to convince my mom to go on Saturday to trade them out. Turns out this style just kinda sucks, I guess it's low rise, and just slides right off my but when I bend down, it's a good thing I wasn't planning on wearing them outside.
I picked up the black pants at Younkers, because I needed them for an event on Saturday night. I swear they fit fine in the store. When I went to put them on Saturday night they were a little large. They are a stretchy material. Since I didn't want to bother with trading them out, I just pinned them together at the back with a safety pin.
 I also went through the clearance aisle.
I picked up the photo banner for future swaps as well as the fall potholder set and the pins. The owl bowl was $1. I was ecstatic (cause I totally need more owls). I picked up the hedgehog towel for a friend. I also picked up a few more Christmas stickers.
Here's TJ Maxx
They had a ton of stuff out for Christmas and were still putting things out. It was very different than the one table they had for Halloween. The set of washi was on a table of gifts for $5 and under, there's 8 rolls, so it was cheaper than going to the dollar tree. I picked up the tissue paper for $1. I picked up the pistachio nougat for Christmas, but ate it myself, so good. I want to go back for more, but it was about $3. I bought the chocolate for my dad. The bookmarks and note pad set are for swaps. I just picked up the candy because they were $1 each.
The next Tuesday, I went to Hobby Lobby, because I needed tape again.
 The paper studio stuff was 50% off, I only picked up the three sheets of stickers. The Mambu Sticks were in the clearance and I have been eyeing them for awhile. I plan to use them in a flip book. I misplaced my hole punch in the move and Walmart was out of them when I went the week before. Of course after I bought this, I found my hole punch. I'm not sure if I'll take it back or not. The Christmas stuff was also 50% off, I only picked up the tags. The stocking stickers were in the clearance section.
November 26th was Small Business Saturday, so my mom and I headed downtown. I found this huge gnome guy at one store
 I don't know how much he is, but I'm sure he's out of my price range. He was probably about 4 feet tall, his coat was so soft, and he bounced kinda like a bobble head.
I also found this cute block:
 I bought a couple ornaments, but did not get a picture of them.
Today, I went to Dollar Tree and Target, I was going to go to Walmart for one thing, but I talked myself out of it. I needed wrapping paper and chocolate. I feel I'm done shopping for Christmas now.
 I feel I mostly picked up chocolate. I had cartwheel savings for the two Ghiradelli packages.
I picked up the multi pack because I had the savings and I wanted to try the eggnog square. It's pretty good, I wish they had a whole pack of them. I probably shouldn't have picked up the other Ghiradelli package, but I had the cartwheel, and I know I can find someone to give it to. I love the Merci chocolates, funny thing, this package was cheaper than the same thing in their regular chocolate section. I was going to go to Walmart for this 'champagne' bottle of chocolate, but it was cheaper at Target, so I guess it was good I didn't. I always have to get a bag of Dove peppermint bark every season, though last season it took me forever to eat them. I picked up the Ritter multi pack because they are so good and I'd never seen this before. I picked up the champagne and cabernet truffles for my brother. I had to pick up these really cute bottles of Nutella, they were only $1.
I also visited the dollar spot
 I've been seeing people haul these melted snowmen sticky notes and was so glad to have found them. I'm still looking for the 'snow globe' stickers. I'd also seen people pick up these gift tags that are also pockets. I picked up the blank cards to make cards. I figured I'd use the ribbon on a flip book. I picked up the paper clips for a swap. I love these tags. I had seen a packed of cards with the truck on it, but I don't need more cards.
Next was Dollar Tree
 I love that dollar tree has so many interesting foods, and if I don't like them, I'm not gonna feel bad about taking them to work cause I only spent a dollar. These Minees cookies are new to me, they are sandwich cookies with different flavored fillings. I had a cartwheel to get some of these cookies at Target but knew I could get them at Dollar Tree. I picked up the mug for a swap. I've seen people haul these butter cookies and I'm curious how they compare to the others. Of course I had to pick up some gummies. The peanut clusters are for a swap. The almond roca and white Twix are for me.
 I saw these lace headbands and thought I could cut off the elastic and just use the lace. I've been wanting one of these pumpkins for awhile. I picked up the two hats for a couple of my snowmen that looked sad without hats. I just liked the tree ornament, turns out it was only 50 cents. I had to pick up this set of nesting boxes cause of the owl. I've seen people getting these snowflakes and wanted to use them on a flip book. I picked up the potholders for a swap.
We finally got new stickers, of course not the tiny puffy ones I've been wanting. I saw these big sheets in people's videos and knew I'd pick up one of each if I found them. I picked up another emoji pen, this guy's sad. Those are two headed highlighter pens I just wanted to try out. I've been looking for these rosette stickers. I love this frog, he might by my favorite purchase. He's actually a toothbrush holder, but I plan to use him for pens. They had a set of a toothbrush holder, soap dispenser and soap holder, but I only picked up this guy. I don't need more frogs, but I love finding them.

My mother called this afternoon saying she took out all her Santa ornaments and it just felt wrong to decorate without me, even though I had already told her I didn't want to help. I know she actually called because it's hard to decorate with my father. He's legally blind, so he just can't help much. Plus, she bought a 9 foot tree a few years ago. I almost went over to their place to help, even though I know they'll annoy me and then I'll be upset for a few days. I'm not gonna do it. I need this day away from her and people.

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Hodgepodge Vol 286

Hodgepodge is back. Head on over to Joyce's blog to see other people's answers.


1. Let's all think happy thoughts...share one of yours here. I borrowed the original Gone in 60 Seconds from the library the other day, I'm excited to watch it.

2. There's a Chinese proverb that says, "If you want happiness for an hour take a nap, if you want happiness for a day-go fishing...." What say you? If you want happiness for a day Learn to craft. That's what I did all day, and it was pretty satisfying.


3. Where do you go to decompress from the world around you? Mostly I just stay at home and turn on some music or watch a movie.

4. What song never fails to make you happy? How about Two Lanes of Freedom by Tim McGraw
Sorry, couldn't find an official music video, so you get the live version

5. Wednesday is National Fast Food Day. Should that be a thing? Apparently it is, so tell us what's the last 'fast food' you consumed? If you were putting together your own version of a 'happy meal' what would you include? I love that. I'm not sure it should be a thing, but I would love a reason to get fast food (I'm trying to be good and not spend money on stuff I don't need). I went to Wendy's a few weeks ago, and got their grilled chicken. I can't decide between grilled chicken or a cheeseburger. So either grilled chicken from Wendy's or a Whopper with cheese from Burger King, with fries from McDonald's and Cherry Coke made with grenadine instead of from the bottle.

6. In a few sentences tell us why you blog. For me. I don't know how many people actually read my blogs, but I like showing what I've bought and I really like showcasing my art.

7. List seven things you're feeling especially grateful for today. 1. That I have enough money to buy stuff I don't need. 2. That I have a nice job (or actually jobs) to provide me with that money. 3. That I don't have to work on Thanksgiving or Black Friday and I still get paid. 4. That I have a job. 5. That I have good friends. 6. That I'm good enough in health to stand for long hours. 7. That the day is over with. (publishing this Tuesday night)
That turned out very job/money centered, I didn't mean for that to happen but I just got back from one of my jobs tonight and was thinking about next week.

8. Insert your own random thought here. I'm not ready for cold weather or December or Christmas. I'm not ready for the end of the year. I'm tired, I don't really have a random thought. I'm just ready for bed.

Tuesday, November 08, 2016

12 Days of Christmas Swap

It's time for Chaotic Goddess's 12 Days of Christmas Swap. I was thinking the other day, it was about time to sign up for this.
I love this swap. Basically you put together 12 gifts that your partner will open the 12 days before Christmas ending on Christmas. I've done this swap 3 or 4 times, and it's so much fun. You get to meet someone new, get and give gifts. If you know me I love giving things to people.
Sign-ups start: November 7th, 2016
Sign-ups end: November 14th, 2016
Packages ship by: December 3rd, 2016
Start opening on: December 13th, 2016

If you want to see what I have received for last year, what I sent and received for 2014, and what I sent and received for 2013, check those posts out.

And, go sign up. It will be a blast.

More stuff!!

Because I don't have enough. Hobby Lobby had Christmas at 50% off last week and since I didn't know if that would continue on this week. I went over.
buttons, felt trees, felt owls, reindeer napkin rings, paper pad, duct tape, washi, socks, gel pens
I ended up finding a few things. I've been going through button withdrawal lately, so I picked up a bag of their buttons, I used a 40% off coupon on it, I got it for $3.59. I seem to be on a tree kick for the Christmas this year, so I picked up these felt cut out trees for $1.49. I also picked up these cute felt owls for $1.99, I wanted to pick them up before when Christmas was 40% off but thought I might not use them. I picked up a set of four reindeer napkin rings for my brother for $7.96. I thought I might make a Christmas or winter flip book, so I chose the paper pad that seemed least Christmasy, there's a really cute page with trees that would make a great cover page, for $3.49. I found the wildlife duct tape in the clearance aisle for $1.79. I'd seen this in people's videos and at JoAnns, so I was really excited to find it. The washi was Christmas, so I got that for $1.99. I really liked these socks and when I went to put them on the other day, I found they are over the knee, not knee high socks, they were $2.04. I just picked up the pens because they are gel pens, they're Superman gel pens, I just wanted the gel pens, they were $1.79 each.
When I got home I couldn't wait to go through my button bag. These are my favorites:
 I LOVE the fox one. I feel I should do something with the reindeer. I've already altered a paperclip with the two pilgrims. I love those red blobby things, they look like caterpillars to me.
Saturday afternoon, I had to work, and we had a book sale going on at the library, so of course I went on my break. I picked up a couple movies: Identity and the newer Gone in 60 Seconds. I got those for a total of $4.
Monday, it was pay $1, and take all you want, so I ended up with this stack:
 The Year the World Went Mad by Allen Churchill, The Oxford History of the American People by Samuel Eliot Morison, Real Boys by William Pollack, Torture Team by Philippe Sands, Inside People by Judy Kessler, Sex and Sensibility by Jean H. Hagstrum, Eyewitness to America edited by David Colbert, The Fountain of Age by Betty Friedan, One Nation edited by LIFE Magazine, America's Heritage by Gary DeMar and Titanic by Dr. Robert D. Ballard. UGH!! I do not need more books. I got stuck in the history and social sciences sections.
Today, I went shopping to see if places had any fall/Halloween stuff and what they had for Christmas. I went backwards from my usual route and hit all my stores backwards. I skipped Hobby Lobby because I was just there on Saturday, even though I wanted to do a thorough search of the clearance section and see what fall/Halloween was marked down to.
I did end up going to JoAnn's, I never go there anymore, I rarely find anything to buy. Today, was different:
I picked up three packs of napkins for my mother for $1.19 each. The sign said fall/Halloween was only 50% off but when I went to pay, they rung up as 66% off. I picked up almost one of every Darice sticker book they had. I'll probably hold on to them until next year. I also found the Trolls sticker book that everyone has been hauling from Dollar Tree because I know my Dollar Tree will not get it. It was priced $1.49, but rang up $1.11
I went to Walmart, but couldn't find anything I wanted to spend my money on.
Next up was Target. Normally, I hit the dollar spot and the clearance sections at Target. Last week I went online to see their Christmas selection, so I knew I'd be visiting it, so I added the 5% off ornaments to my Cartwheel savings.
monster ornaments, washi, Raphael, planner stickers, erasers, page flags, labels, erasers.
 I love these monster ornaments, and I picked up the fuzzy brown guy as well. Most of their ornament section was $3.00. I picked up the reindeer and tree washi in the Christmas section for $2 each. The two plaid washi are from the dollar spot, they were $1 each. The Raphael keychain was in their Christmas section, I couldn't pass him up, he's my favorite. The planner stickers were also from the dollar spot, they were $3, the back sheet is planner stickers, the middle package is 3 pages of washi flags, and the front package is page flags and three magnetic bookmarks. I picked up a bag of penguin erasers for friend mail for $1. I've been seeing people pick up these cute little page flags, so I was really surprised to find them at my Target dollar spot, I picked up a package of $1, they were smaller than I expected, but they are soo cute! The labels were on clearance for ten cents, they are copper foiled, I thought I could use them whenever, not just fall. The Rudolph erasers were also from the dollar spot, they were also $1. I have a little of a Rudolph theme going on.
And since at least one picture must be blurry, here it is. Why does it always look so clear when I find it, and not when I get it on the computer.
Anyways, last stop was Dollar Tree.
stickers, glitter tape, solar turkey, cupcake liners, glitter tape, gift tags, moisture eliminator, sequins
I picked up the gift tag book to use on gifts, there are a lot of cute designs, I could always cut them out and use the pictures. I've seen people hauling this glitter tape, the last glitter tape I picked up from the Dollar Tree had a lot of fallout. I've heard this does not, I guess if it does, I'll just pass on to someone else. I wanted this guy last year when I saw them, but of course there were all out. I'm not sure he actually works, but I don't have a lot of natural light in my apartment, I'm planning to take him to work. I thought I'd try my hand at rosettes, I really wanted some primary color ones, but none of those at the dollar tree, so I got these. There are mini green ones and regular sized red ones. I love these gift tags, I saw them on Missy's channel and loved what she had said about them. These are folded in half, so you can easily cut the front off and do something with them, so I got two. I had seen someone haul these moisture eliminator things, she said they worked very well, so I picked up a couple to try out. I picked up the sequins cause they were big and I thought I'd try to do something with them.
mugs, snickers, caramels, truffles, cider, gummy bears
I thought this was a cute mug, it's got Woodstock sleeping in his nest, on the other side is a sign that says "Do not disturb", the other one says Chocolate is always the answer. I've already signed up for one Christmas swap, and I'm signing up for another on. The Snickers is for me. The box of caramels is for my dad, the mint truffles my mother and I'm sure I can find someone to give the other truffles to. I love this sparkling cider, it's so good, so I picked up four. I really wanted to get a whole box, but I had to walk home with them. The gummy bears were also for me.
I was going to go to Burger King for lunch, but since I spent $25 at Dollar Tree, I wasn't allowed to.

I have this box that I kept putting all my Christmas gifts/supplies stuff in. It is officially full, so I'm not allowed to buy anything else until I find out who my partners are for my swaps and then I still have to look through my stuff first. Let's see if I can do that.

Tuesday, November 01, 2016

October RAK

One of my FB groups is called Random RAK. Basically we send each other gifts every month. Here's what I received for October:
 jack-o-lantern doilies, rhinestone pumpkin stickers, fall box, washi, candle, towel, modgepodge, paper clips, buttons and snowmen
I love these doilies, they will be going away with my Halloween stuff, as will the rhinestone pumpkin stickers. I used the box, towel and candle in another swap. I love them, but I don't really have a place for the box. I'm not allowed to have candles (cause I leave them burning and forget about them, plus I'm not a big fan of smelly things), and I don't decorate for Halloween, so I thought I'd send the towel on. I will use the mod podge, one can never have enough of that. I'm sure I will use the paper clips in swaps, I don't really use paper clips, but they are fun to share. And one can never have enough buttons.
I love the snowmen
She said she made them out of socks and rice. I'm not sure if I told her I collect snowmen, but I did tell her I don't like holiday specific items. She said these I can have out all winter, which is the reason I collect snowmen. I just don't like to decorate for a holiday and then have to take it down right after the holiday is over. I love that she created something for me. I love the buttons and just everything about them. They will be staying with me for years to come.

Dollar Tree, Target, Walmart haul


 I went shopping last Thursday. I was going to go on Tuesday, but the weather was crappy, Wednesday I felt crappy, so on Thursday I made myself go. Here's what I got:
 I started out at a local celebration store. I see in other people's hauls about what cool stuff they got at party stores. This one was sad, everything was either really expensive or didn't have a price at all.
Next up was Dollar Tree:
 stocking, ornaments, toys, food, stickers, cards
I love this Star Wars stocking, sadly the person I was going to give it to doesn't celebrate Christmas, so I'll have to figure out something else to do with it. I bought the owl and snowman ornament for me, but I'll probably end up sending them out in swaps. I bought the bumbles from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer clay mation show for me and a friend. I bought the stickers for easy cards. It was about lunchtime when I made it to the Dollar Tree, so I bought the Indulgent trail mix and the peanut butter snickers because I was hungry. When I looked at my receipt later, I realized the peanut butter snickers were actually only $0.88. I bought the holiday cards because I think it's nicer than sending Christmas cards. If my friends don't celebrate Christmas, it's not rude to them. The minions taffy, 100 grand bars and the almond snickers were for Halloween goody bags for friends.
Next stop was Target:
 candy, pens, cards, sticky notes, erasers
Again, I bought the Lindt, Jordan almonds and the gummy bears for my Halloween goody bags. Sadly, the gummy bears bag had some slits cut into it, so they were not gummy. They were only $0.99, so I didn't feel too bad throwing them away, I just wish I had inspected the bag more carefully before buying it. The pens were for my goody bags, the blue one is for me. I always pick up cards in the dollar spot. I picked up two sets of those tiny Hello ones and ended up putting them in my Halloween goody bags along with the spider erasers. And, I can't pass up sticky notes.
Last stop was Walmart:
 I saw this ornament in their Christmas section. I believe it's supposed to be a bird in a cage, but none of them had eyes or beaks. It looks like a lump of beads with some feathers on the back.
I love this tree. I'm hoping to make something like this with paper strips. It'd be easier if I had Christmas/winter washi, but I don't.
Here's what I bought:
 stickers, tape, googly eyes, shipping labels, washi, push pins, tags, project life cards
Part of the reason I went shopping was because I needed alpha stickers, and while I really wanted to go to Hobby Lobby because they were having their 50% off blowout Paper Studio sale, I knew I wouldn't be able to walk away with just alpha stickers, so I picked up a few at Walmart. I also picked up some more Halloween stickers. The minion stickers and the "smiley" face guys were in the clearance section. I picked up the googly eyes because I could use them all year long, and then I promptly lost them after I took this photo. I wanted to use them the other day, but I have no idea where they are. I wanted this box of push pins, paper clips and binder clips since I saw it with their back to school stuff, but wasn't going to pay $5 for it, so when it was only $1 in the clearance, I totally bought it. I needed the shipping labels because I reuse a lot of my envelopes. I picked up the tags because they were $0.75, and the project life because they were $1, but rang up $0.75. I did find a few $1 paper packs, but the patterns were not something I'd use, so I passed on those. I did pick up these two washi. I'm not a huge pink person, but if you look at my washi, you'd think I was. I believe I have about 10 rolls of pinkish washi, whether it's solid or patterned, I don't know why I'm so drawn to pink washi.
ornaments, envelopes, food, t-shirt, towels.
I couldn't pass up this set of 6 owl ornaments for $1.98, or the other one. I also needed bubble mailers, which I believe the better deal is Dollar Tree. This was a set of 5 for $4 something. I've seen people haul these from Dollar Tree where they get 2 in a package for $1. I also needed some more of these flour sack dish towels, I just didn't know where to get them. I happened to turn down the right aisle at Walmart and found them, they were $4 something. The food is for my goody bags and of course I had to buy the Halloween t-shirt for $5.50. It's not solely Halloween, it has an owl clutching a scroll with keys and gold accents. I could probably wear this year round.

I really want to go shopping today to see what exciting deals stores are having on Halloween stuff, but I bought all the Halloween stuff I wanted when it wasn't on sale. Normally, I don't do a lot with Halloween, but seeing everyone's neat Halloween projects got me into it. I had a very hard time creating things though, I just wasn't that inspired. I have gathered all my Halloween art stuff in an envelope for next year, so I don't have this problem again. I'm going to attempt to not have this issue for Christmas.
I always tell myself I'm saving so much money by buying things on sale or clearance when the reality is, I wouldn't buy most of this stuff at full price, so I'm really not saving money. I don't know why I'm having such a hard time lately using my self-control.