Thursday, April 14, 2011

New Hunting Grounds: Pier 1

Target and TJ Maxx top my list of places I constantly haunt for fabulous clearance items but I'm ready to make an addition to my reprotoire: Pier 1. I've always loved Pier 1 but I am well aware that I can't be going up in there all the time, buying things full-price so I tend to steer clear.


Well, yesterday I decided to take some "me time" before picking up my daughter and I had a P1 gift card in tow. Much to my surprise, I was able to stretch that $20 pretty far!


Here is my P1 Haul:

Red tags make me happy : D

Candle sticks Orig: $3, Marked: $1.48
I bought them out and they will be used to make pretty things

Orig: $35 Marked: $8.68

Bright frame will be used to spice up my
space @ work. O: $14 M: $3.48
Lavender air freshener: O: $5 but
Lavender is the scent of the month,
therefore 20% off!


There were so many deals to choose from beyond what I bought. It was hard to choose but I didn't want to spend much more than my gift card (I went little over $6 beyond the GC). 


Here's a taste of what I'm going to be keeping an eye on...

Floral Coffee Cups w/Stand



Floral Measuring Cups

Watermelon Serving Bowl
This family is OBSESSED w/watermelon!

Indv Watermelon Bowl
Yes, I realize how corny these are!

These are just a few things I loved during my visit, among a trillion more. I chatted up the guy who rung me up and he said things get marked down all the time as new merch gets brought in and this summer they are getting a TON more inventory. Happy Shopping!





Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Creative/Reusable Gift Wrap

One of the lovely ladies I follow, Morgan, wrote this blog post: Frugal Gift Giving about her obsession of wrapping gifts uniquely and making the appearance just as special as what is inside. I couldn't agree with her more! Along with making gifts look fun and fancy I also like to make the gift wrap reusable.

More recently I find myself staking out cute boxes, containers or reusable gift bags or shopping bags to save for a special gift to fit inside. The last gift I had the pleasure of giving was for a dear friend's baby shower...

I got K some necessities from her registry (hangers,
pacifiers, etc) along with a necklace with her child and
little one on the way's initials. The necklace is from:
Etsy: Elemental Workshop

As you can see I wrapped all the odds and ends in tissue
paper and I put the necklace on a little tag.

I created and added this bright bow for a little more
oomph as well as to hide the necklace.

I thought about myself and other moms I know, always clamoring for storage options, so I decided to find a colorful bin to put everything in. I found this rainbow hearts bin at Target on clearance and everything happened to 'just fit'. I think it turned out very cute, bright, and cheery. 



Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Birthday Gift

This is one of the finished products that came from all of those thrift store frames I bought. I ended up giving this to my best friend, Jill, for her 25th Birthday. It just-so-happens that Jill is purchasing her first home and plans to make one of her guest rooms into a themed Victoria's Secret "Pink" room. She said she plans on putting this piece on display there.


My trusty little sanding block.
I find I can grip these best when working on little things.
I believe it is a medium grade grit.

There she is, ready for her makeover.

I just LOVE this color!

I got cheap but cute, round push pins at Wal Mart and
painted them them the same color as the frame.

I also got poster board at Wal Mart.
I had to trim it a bit, then used E6000 to glue it in place.
*This picture was taken at night, not the best -sorry!
P.S. I will be posting my other creations shortly. One needs to be fixed and the other still needs to have accessories attached so it can be hung.