Pier 1 Holiday Haul

Recently I decided to do a little Christmas shopping.  There is so much awesome stuff out there to shop for/at that it isn't always easy to settle on a purchase.  However, a favorite go to place for me is Pier 1 - especially at Christmas.  Keep in mind, this is not a sponsored post.  Pier 1 has no idea that I'm writing this post, nor did they provide any of the items I'm going to show you.  These purchases are mine.  I used my money and made the decisions on what to buy (with a little help from the Fam).

First off, did I mention how cool the store is decorated? I love all the festive, colorful bits and bobs that are strategically placed throughout the store.  I want to just wrap myself in a soft, fuzzy blanket, nestle into my sofa, and watching faery lights blink on and off for hours.

And, of course, what Christmas tree would be complete without ornaments?  Many folks theme-up their trees, but we just throw all our ornaments on that we've collected through the years.  It is now getting to the point where we're going to have to put up 2 Christmas trees every year.

I just love their displays, though.  Santas, snow folks, and  many, many others galore.  So, let's start with the purchases...

Craft Store Haul

The Fam and I recently headed to the craft store to purchase a couple of things.  However, our "couple of things" quickly multiplied.  Do you experience this interesting problem? Step into a craft store intending to spend a few dollars, but you walk out spending at least $50.  So, I thought I would share a few purchases we made.

The first thing I bought was some of these wooden signs.  They were $1.50 each, and my plan is to put them in the corners of the bulletin boards of my office to make my office a bit more festive.

These gift boxes were also $1.50 (for a package of two).  I thought they were decorative enough to use throughout the year for little gifts.

I bought this night light for $8.99.  My sister picked out a Santa Claus one last month, but I wanted the snowman.  Of course, Dawn got her way.  This time, I got my way.

I bought a roll of wrapping paper.  I bought this because it was decorative enough to use any time of the year, and generic enough to use for both guys and gals. This cost a total of $1.50.

Calendars! Yes! I needed calendars.  And at 90 cents each, how can I go wrong? One is for Dawn and the other is for Mum, but I plan to use one of them for a blogging calendar.

 I LOVE these babies.  They're compact mirrors - one size magnified.  When I do photo shoots, I like to give little compacts to those I'm photographing.  I needed to rejuvenate my supplies, so I bought a few more.  At only $1.50 each, how can I not?

We use an artificial tree.  While an artificial tree has its perks, it doesn't have that great pine scent that contributes to the Christmas mood.  So, we bought these pine scented Scentsicles.  They hang from the branches (we hang them deep in the branch by the trunk, so they're invisible) and the tree smells like the real thing.  It cost us $3.99 but I believe we got them on sale.

I bought a couple of these big, metal plates for Mum.  She loves baking to begin with, but at Christmas time... She goes crazy.  So, I bought her these plates for $2.99 so she can use them for the neighbor's goody plates.

Of course, we head to purchase a couple of holiday decorations.  This one has a prized place in the living room and cost $12.99.

This one we bought for $12.99 also, and it sits on the dresser in Mum's bedroom.  It adds a little flash of festiveness to her otherwise dull bedroom (yes, Mum knows her bedroom decor is dull).

The craft store we did our haul from was Michael's.  The haul post is not sponsored by Michaels.  It just happens to be our go-to craft store.