Anyway, today I had to run errands in the large town near us and that included a trip to JoAnn's Superstore. :) When it first opened last year, I made an excuse to go to the big city once a week - now I am only in the Joanns once a month maybe.
Here are the fabrics I selected to use in my block for the HGTV Christmas Charity Quilt. The red was something I already had - from Wal-Mart. At JoAnns, all fabrics were $1 off a yard which is their next to best deal if you ask me. Only once or twice a year do they go 50% off and that just passed in Jan.
And since they were $1/yard off - I just had to browse a little more to see what else I might "need" :c) Well, Ihad to look at the browns but at first I didn't see any that resembeled CHOCOLATE.......and in fact it wasn't until after I had the cream and green in the pic above cut that I took one more pass thru and then found the perfect "Chocolate Brown Fabric".
So, since I was headed back to the cutting counter, better make it worth the efforts so I picked up several bolts of creams too and got 1/2 yard cuts of each. :) There was around 7 yards of the brown so I got the whole bolt of it thinking it will be the boarders and possible backing of a future string quilt. I can count on one hand the number of times I have walked out of a store with a BOLT :C) and boy is it a happy feeling!
Just where did I get this idea for a string quilt??? To see my inspiration, check out Elaine's post from January 14th. I immediately fell in love with her string blocks with the chocolate brown centers as she shared photos of her first Heartstrings quilt project. I just knew that one day I would have to start string blocks with half light / half dark too! and now I can b/c I found the perfect fabric to get me started! :c)Well my shopping experience didn't end with the fabric. I also couldn't help myself up front of the store at the clearance rack. They had 3 baskets full of rubber stamps all marked $0.97 each! I am rather proud of myself for only selecting 5 stamps though. It was tough but I did maintain some self control. :c) The FQ's were all on sale for $0.99 each and I only bought ONE! Boy was I a good girl or what!!! ...and the book in the photo was only $4 and I thought it would make a great door prize for our next MOPS (Mother's of Preschoolers) meeting on the 20th.
After my trip to Joanns - I stopped by a Christian book store and then to Office Depot. They didn't have what I went for at the office supple store btu I walked aroudn anyway and before I knew it, I had talked myself into buying this: 
I hst noodle swaps every month on the HGTV board and have been wanting one a scale for a very long time but just couldn't justify the $35 cost. Well, today I stood there in the store and started thinking:
...I go to the PO so often - once a week and sometimes more...
...the PO people won't let me ring up each swappers package individually so that if more postage needs to be added I can do so and then retrun them their change before sealing up the envelope...
...and if I had my own scale I could do this at home...and they could each include $1 for me to use or return which would save me money from having to pay it like I have been...
...we had a record number of 25 noodle swappers this month = more packages = longer time to process them at the PO...
...the cost of this scale is the same or cheaper than Valentine's flowers... and the bonus is that I will be able to use it for years and years!!! Where as roses are only nice for a week...
...and although I am getting a double stroller (thanks Dad & Clara) after the twins are born it is gonna be nearly impossible to get to the PO as often with 3 children under 3 years old...
...especially in the early days when they will be eating very often - I can not stand the thought of being in line at the PO and hearing them cry and my milk letting down and I begin leaking all over!!!...
... I don't just want this scale - I NEED this scale!...I MUST BUY IT!...
...calling David at work to justify it all to him and see what he says...
...he's not at his desk so I left a voice mail telling him not to buy me anything for Valentines, that I bought it myself and will tell him all about it tonight ;c)...
:c) He just laughed at me when I showed it to him and thought it was cute that I was all excited about buying a postal scale. Lucky him, got off easy for Valentines and LUCKY ME - got exactly what I wanted and needed!!!
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Great justification to buy the scale. I especially like the line about how long it will last compared to roses. I think I've used this line before when I wanted something other than flowers. Enjoy the scale.
ReplyDeletePS - can' t you also purchase postage from the USPS on-line? Do it that way and all you have to do is drop off your packages at the PO.