Did any of you hit up any day after Christmas sales yesterday? For the first time in 5? 7? 10? {I don’t know!!} years I decided to go see if there was anything worth buying.
Actually, I had high hopes of coming home with 125 feet of artificial garland so I could decorate the wooden beams with it next year. But sadly, there is none to be had.
Well, actually there was some garland to be had, but it was so plasticky {is that even a word?} and fake looking I didn’t even bother flipping over any price tags to see if it was a deal or not.
There were plenty of people with overloaded carts though, that’s for sure. Maybe I’ve turned into a curmudgeon.
Or maybe we’ve simplified our lives so much that all I see know is next year’s thrift store donations.
Bah humbug!
I did see some candy cane pens and mini erasers though… And that made me smile. Remember what a big deal those were in elementary school?
I didn’t see any Lisa Frank stickers though… I might have bought some of those, if they were scratch and sniff. 😉 Did you collect stickers when you were a kid?
Stickers, mini erasers, and cabbage patch dolls. Those were the days.
Can someone please tell me what is so special about Manuka honey. And why does this tiny jar cost $22.99?
After Home Goods we wandered over to Target. I think I’ve been to Target like 2 times in the last 6 years. It’s amazing what a different perspective you have on a particular store when it’s not part of your normal routine.
You see things that maybe other people don’t.
Like why are all the aisles so wide now? Are you a Target shopper? Have you noticed that too?
At first I wondered if it was because more people are buying online these days and so the store itself doesn’t have as much variety {or excess?} than it used to.
And then we walked past the beauty aisle and I told the HH I bet the enormous distance between shelves was probably due to shoplifting.
He didn’t know. But why else would there be SO MUCH room between products?
It was weird.
And are the days of stores with four aisles of granola bars gone now? {If so, hooray for that!}
After about 10 minutes the HH had had enough of me and my sense of wonderment {HA HA HA} and wanted to go buy some bananas at Market Basket.
And man oh man you would have thought the guy had hit the lottery because he found a cart with a few loaves of discounted bread and just HAD to have them.
It was hilarious.
He scored a deal on bread, and I bought a box of discounted Christmas cards for next year so we both went home happy. Sort of. I think I would have rather stayed home and had two hours of my time back to be honest.
Bread and cards, that was our big haul from the Christmas clearance sales. How about YOU? Did you venture out? Did you buy anything exciting? Do tell.
Have a great weekend everyone, enjoy these last few days of gluttony, New Years Day is right around the corner and you all know what that means.
~Mavis
Janie says
Hi Mavis ,
Piperclassics.com might have garland.
Janie
Tammy says
I don’t think it is curmudgeonly to not want to buy things that were manufactured solely for the purpose of making people buy things. I haven’t even looked at Christmas items at Hobby Lobby or Target for several years. Most of it is so poorly made it’s a waste of money.
Yesterday I declared it was a pajama day and then my daughter was mildly upset that I actually got dressed and worked around the house. I couldn’t just sit all day, I guess. She had a cozy, lazy pajama day though!
Brianna says
Beekeeper here and Manuka honey makes me roll my eyes. Basically it is honey produced only from the Manuka tea tree found only in New Zealand and some parts of Australia. The nectar flow is only 6 weeks or so, so the bees can get the pollen and nectar from the tree only during that time. They harvest the honey and send it to a 3rd party to get it tested and graded. The higher the MGO (methylgyoxal) number the more expensive because that indicates the amount of beneficial compounds for healing, wellness, antioxidants, etc. It also has a UMF number that basically tells how fresh the honey is, shelf life, authenticity, and potency (MGO). Basically, beekeepers in New Zealand have developed a grading system and regulated it themselves to sell more honey worldwide. In the US and many countries there is no regulation in the honey industry other than a claim of origin and not to feed it to infants under 1 year of age. The honey industry is corrupt in the market. For example, there is no regulation that says what percent of ‘local honey’ is needed to be declared local honey. Nobody tests the pollen in the honey to make sure it is from the country or origin. Organic honey is a lie as my bees and many bees forage in areas that may be sprayed, have trash, etc. We do ban honey from China and a few other countries as an import, but they send it to a country we allow imports from and it makes it into our honey market. All honey has no expiration (it lasts forever), has healing properties (wounds, skin, etc), has beneficial enzymes, etc. Manuka honey has just marketed it like the supplement industry and it is not regulated. Any interesting honey note, honey from rhododendrons produces psychedelic honey and was used in ancient times and will fetch a premium for those properties. The honey business is unregulated and is dirty. There was a documentary a few years ago about it, but I don’t remember the name.
Tina says
This is really interesting. Thanks for the perspective. I have read that about organic honey.
Anyway, on a personal note, I take/eat Manuka honey when I am sick and have always had good results. I have found it works well for coughs and sore throats. Bought mine at Trader Joe’s. YMMV.
Margo says
Thank you for that info. Whenever possible I buy from a beekeeper near us who sells at the farmers market. I might now buy exclusively from her.
Sue in SoCal says
Great info and so interesting! Thank you! I always wondered about the “local” labels in Walmart and other big stores. Local to where? is always my question.
Lori says
Very interesting. I’m a beekeeper also. I had never heard of that Manuka Honey. That’s for the information, very informative. I guess your never to old to learn.
wendy panozzo says
The older I get the less I want to buy! Yes everything is just junk now and meant to be thrown away. I rarely go to Target and never step foot in a Walmart. I would have been excited for the bread though!
Kim says
I did go to Target because I was out of wrapping paper – now I’m set for a couple of years. I also stop at our local gardening center as they always have 50% off everything and I like to pick up Fiskar gardening tools there. They make great gifts all year long.
Paula says
I totally agree with not wanting to shop. I don’t really need anything for my holiday decorating, I save wrapping paper and bows each year. If I need more gift wrap, I just save the packings from Amazon orders. I reuse my decorations each year. The only place that I may buy a “new” decoration would be a thrift shop. I volunteer at an animal charity thrift shop. I look around as I dust and organize the shelves. I may go out and check out a local consignment shop this week. We have been invited to our neighbor’s for New Year’s Eve. I would like a fancy sweater. Side note: We go to bed early and never go out on New Year’s Eve. We are trying to figure out if it would be okay to leave a 10 pm. (or, if it would be rude?)
Tamara says
Anytime my HH and I are ready to leave early we tell the hosts in a lighthearted manner it is past time for us old folks to have their jammies on, what a wonderful time we had, thank you for inviting us, etc . . . and we leave. If anyone has ever thought ill of us it has never gotten back to us.
When our children were little we stayed home New Year’s Eve and had a campfire, hot dogs, s’mores and sparklers. Now we do the same with the grands. You can start late afternoon and be done by the little ones’ bedtime.
Paula says
Thank you!
J in OH-IO says
Hi Mavis- in your previous post I noticed the Bissel Swivel sweeper and I remember you bought a Shark sweeper several years ago. Did the Shark sweeper stay at a previous house or did you not like how it worked? Your thoughts on the Bissel sweeper. My sweeper is on it’s last (Panasonic from 2001-ish) and I will need a new sweeper that has good suction for lots of dog hair so any recommendations? I will want one with a crevice tool, too. Thanks!
Mavis Butterfield says
It got left behind. I like the Bissell we have now. It sucks really, really well and I like the crevice tool too. I think we paid $110 for it. I would buy it again.
HollyG says
We did order and pick up four boxes of LED C9 bulbs at 75% off. They ended up being $6.75 for 25 bulbs rather than $27.00. We want to replace the incandescent bulbs with more energy efficient LEDs but they’re pretty expensive normally. Hubby prefers the ‘screw in individually’ bulbs so that we don’t feel the need to toss out the whole string when 1/3 stop working. The pre-strung strands don’t seem to like the Oregon rain.
Linda says
I go to friend who is beekeeper for honey, so no worry about my honey. I was given four new rolls of gift wrap paper, so no worry about paper for years. This is the first year I have not been out shopping after Christmas. I would buy something if I did, but I have no desire for some reason.
suzanne says
I need to replace a few lg size plastic Xmas bags as they are beyond redemption after 5 years of loyal service. I think I’ll spend that money on fabric and follow Mel’s tute instead. My 8 year old Granddaughter can help sew them up. Win win!
Mavis Butterfield says
Mel has the best tutorials! https://www.onehundreddollarsamonth.com/sewing-instructions-for-reusable-fabric-gift-bags/
Virginia says
That’s a sure sign you’re getting old, when the thing you get most excited about is food. And, yep, I’ve been part of that club for a while. Ha!
Sue says
No after-Christmas shopping here. I don’t want more stuff–I want LESS. And I’d rather have decorations that say Winter, not just Christmas.
Brianna, thank you for the fascinating inside info on honey. I buy mine from a town beekeeper and love the taste.
If we are talking vacuums I’d like to put in a good word for my corded stick Shark Rocket HV370. Does a great job on my hardwood & tile floors, and my low-pile Orientals. My days of dragging cannisters behind me are OVER!
Emily says
I stopped by our local bookstore to pickup the gift card I ordered for myself during their 20% off gift card sale and promptly used part of it on their holiday clearance section. Checked two couples off next year’s Christmas shopping list with 2 puzzles for $16 from my giftcard. I’m feeling very satisfied with my shopping.
Mel says
This would not fall under the category of cost cutting, but do the garlands have to be greenery? We have a garland made of red glass beads that’s beautiful. I’m sure there are other variations.
If you do want ones that look like greenery, I did buy one off Amazon that I like. It has a mix of faux greenery, so it looks more realistic, and it’s prelit, and the lights have a built in timer. It was about $35 for 6′ or so, but that was a few weeks ago.
Mavis Butterfield says
Since I haven’t found anything I like, I might do dried (skinny) tree branches with twinkle lights. We’ll see.
Lily says
No after Christmas shopping here except for local grocery store. They did have some holiday stuff still on the shelves. I bought fairy lights and was pleasantly surprised they were half off at checkout (sale price wasn’t shown on shelf. Also some Hanukkah gelt because hey…. milk chocolate on sale! So fresh fruits and veg, chocolate coins and fairy lights. True one stop shopping
Tracy says
Over the years, I have become a pretty organized Christmas shopper and buy, wrap and store as I go through the year. I try to have it all wrapped up by mid-November and I usually pull it off. Honestly, I leave the house as infrequently as possible from December 1 through mid-January. I love being home, do almost everything online, and I work so hard during gardening season, that I really take this whole “winter is the season of rest” seriously. You couldn’t dynamite me out of the house just for “after Christmas sales”! I have a short list of inside organization projects already identified for January and February and a bunch of recipes I want to try, too. (I love winter…)
Lori says
Hi Mavis, we ventured out today, Hubby and I. He was so excited he found his chocolate covered cherries. You would have thought he hit the lottery. He bought 4 boxes. Like he really needs all 4. I found nothing I needed or wanted.
Sue S. says
We went to Barnes and noble with a gift card and the line was loooong. I don’t have the patience for after Christmas sales and I don’t really need anything more. Thanks for the comment about your vacuum cleaner Sue. Why do there have to be so many choices??? The fewer choices I have to make, the happier I am.
Joanne Cosh says
I was able to buy some ingredient for Jamaica black rum cake. Half price. I was ver excited!!
Cathy D says
I did not go out I need nothing bad enough to fight the crowds. I haven’t been to target in many years. We are eating Christmas left overs and I will make bread tomorrow.
Slowly taking down christmas and staying tucked in at home.
Jean C says
The only thing I know about manuka honey (other than it’s expensive) is its healing properties. I gave some to an elderly relative who had a skin tear that simply wouldn’t heal. Manuka honey healed it. Maybe a happy coincidence – but she swore by it
Christy says
I shopped but for things I will use throughout the year. Half price ziploc bags with snowflakes on them…the garden green beans wont care what the bag they are stored in looks like. I don’t! Also got paper plates that can be used all year. Clorox wipes half off for my sister with kids in school and germs. Candy…for snacking, once unwrapped the candy looks and tastes the same as what I would 2x for in the coming months. Tissues half off because it is in a holiday box. I did buy gift tags because I am out.
Lorraine says
I had a clinic appointment the day after Christmas so I stopped at dollar tree. I hate wrapping things and I had used all of my gift bags and tissue. Everything was half off so I’m all set for next year. Picked up some cookie tins too so I’m all set for next year.
chelsea says
That is very interesting about the size of the Target aisle… the only thing I can think of is that the carts are so big now. Even with those large aisles you can barely fit two going opposite directions.