Blogging From A to Z - 2018 - W is for

Welcome to the letter W in the A to Z Challenge for 2018.  I am making my way through the alphabet as seen in Michaels Arts and Crafts.  Today is W for Wedding and my favorite, Washi Tape.

First is weddings.  Michaels has a pretty good selection of do-it-yourself wedding ideas.

Beginning with the Save the Date notifications

and the invitations.

Celebrate it is the brand for a lot of these things.  They even have fancy seals and sealing wax to prettify the invites.

There are fun things for the bridesmaids and the pre-wedding parties.

We don't have wedding dresses but the garter and tiara can be found.  David Tutera is the brand for these things.  I am not planning any weddings so I am not sure if he is a special maker or not.

The flower girl's basket is there as well as the ring bearer's pillow.

Cake cutting tools as well as props for picture taking and other decorations.

Candles and other things to make the day special.

Bubbles to blow

And finally, the thank you cards.  

I can't see spending a ton of money on something that I can do myself.  If I was planning a wedding, I would try to do as much as I could to make it simple and easy.  After all, it's not supposed to be about the things, it's supposed to be about the love, right?  

Speaking of love, the next W is for Washi tape.  Washi tape, for those who may not know, is decorative tape that you can use in all different kinds of ways.  They come in all different colors and styles and themes.

Some have words on them and some are just plain.

This was a huge sale as these tubes normally are $15!  Plus my employee discount - SCORE!

As you can see, this is another thing that Michaels has a large selection of.  

Ummm, this is my collection.  I'm not sure how many I have (I'm afraid to count), but these rolls cover my table top which is about 3 feet by 2 feet.  I think I'm in love with washi.      

I use these in my scrapbooking projects and to decorate the envelopes that coordinate with the cards I make, to name a few things but there are books on the subject of Washi tape and what you can do with it.  

Have I covered weddings and washi tape enough for you?  Are you surprised by the amount of things you can get at Michaels?  3 letters left.  Make sure to stop by the other W participants and come back tomorrow for X!

(Note:  I decided I should add a disclaimer to these posts because I certainly don't want to give the idea that I am being paid by Michaels to do this or that they are furnishing me with material.  All pictures used in this blog series were taken by me at local Michaels stores, or are my personal pictures and every Michaels store may not have everything shown.)

Blogging From A to Z - 2018 - V is for

Welcome to the letter V in the A to Z Challenge for 2018.  Winding my way through the alphabet inside Michaels Arts and Crafts store.  V is for Vases.

You saw how many flowers there were in my post for the letter "F" so you would think that there would be vases for them, right?

Well there are!

Lots of different sizes and shapes but most of them are clear glass.  

Some even look like they could hold candy or other decorations on a table. 

Tall ones.

Ones that look like martini glasses.  This picture is deceiving.  This glass is WAY too big to be a martini glass unless you were sharing that martini with about 3 other people.

Same with this champagne glass.

And this wine glass looking one could hold half a bottle of wine at least.

Long rectangle ones.

Short and stubby ones.

A few that are colored.

And some that are more suited for terrariums.  Interestingly, I saw an ad for these and they had twinkle lights in them.  That's a neat idea I think.

Another V is good old Velcro.

Lastly, there are the Everyday Value items.  Near the front of the store, usually close to the Q-Line is a row of things that are classified as Everyday Value items.  These are things like small rolls of ribbon, pads of paper, a pack of plain white chalk, some rubber stamps, small bottles of glitter glue, things that are usually between $1 and $3.  As the sign says (well you could see it if I took a big enough picture but trust me, it says) no coupons or other discounts apply to the Everyday Value items.   There are Everyday Value items located all throughout the store. 

These glue guns and bags of glue are Everyday Value items.  

So are these rolling carts and the big gallon jugs of glue.  

There were several times a customer who was so excited to get this cart ($30 in our store) or a parent with a gallon of glue ($30 for clear and $18 for white) for their child to make slime had coupons for 50% off a regular priced item and I had to disappoint them and tell them it was an Everyday Value item therefore the coupons would not work.  Sometimes they would buy it anyway and sometimes it would end up in the "go backs."  There were a few customers who would complain that it wasn't marked clearly enough but there was usually a sign by the item and it is clearly written on the coupons.  Occasionally if the parent had brought up the clear glue that was $30 I would tell them that the white was cheaper but that's about the best I could do.       

Four days left in our A to Z.  Are you still with me?  

(Note:  I decided I should add a disclaimer to these posts because I certainly don't want to give the idea that I am being paid by Michaels to do this or that they are furnishing me with material.  All pictures used in this blog series were taken by me at local Michaels stores, or are my personal pictures and every Michaels store may not have everything shown.)

Blogging From A to Z - 2018 - U is for

Welcome to the letter U in the A to Z Challenge for 2018.  I'm traveling through the alphabet at Michaels Arts and Crafts store.  Today is U for Unique and Unusual.

Just walking through the store the other day I came upon several things that would qualify (I think) as unique and unusual.  First, there was this display just sitting in the middle of the walkway.  I'm not sure if it was the beginning of a new display or just a place to sit and rest for a minute.  The way it was just by itself in the aisle made it seem a little weird.  (No offense to Michaels merchandising team, just my opinion).

Here's a close up of the stool/end table?  I guess you could use it for either, depending on how big you are.  They are made of metal.  

Mother's Day is coming soon if your mom is a gardener.  These tools are pretty.

Something new since I left are these ceramic stone kits.  They come in all different patterns.  Maybe there is one that would look good around my fairy garden?  

This was new to me too.  They are called Diamond Dotz and it is a form of needlework, although you are using tiny dots instead of thread.  You use a special tool to pick up the Dotz and put them in the picture.  The end result kind of like needlepoint.  I didn't read the whole instructions so I don't know what you can do with them when you're done or if you have to put some sealant or something over it so the beads don't fall off.    

Cute kittens

These are cool new ways to charge your phones and other electronic devices.  Hidden inside is a charger which you can charge at home and then carry this with you to charge your phone on the go.  What will they think of next? 

In the kids section there are some unusual and pretty cool animals:

Another one of the kid crazes like the slime thing are Squishies.

I asked several kids what the attraction was about these things and all they could say was "They're squishy."  Apparently they have to have a certain type of squishability to be the most sought after.  

One of the moms said maybe they were like the adult stress balls?  I don't know but for $13 and up I think I'd try to find something else for my kid to sit and squeeze.  I watched one girl squeeze every single one we had on display and tell her dad that none were the "right" kind.  At least they don't involve tons of glue and glitter and aren't messy!   

These are called Morphs and apparently they can morph from a blob of goo into an animal.  

Gotta have a unicorn!

These styrofoam heads are kinda creepy just sitting on the shelf like this don't you think?

And we can't forget the masks.  

Another U is Unfinished wood.  There are a ton of different things you can get and paint or stain to your own liking.  Birdhouses and castles.

Serving trays.

Frames and boxes, words and letters.

Shelves and other art.

Unique and unusual enough to qualify for this letter?  Ever use unfinished wood to make your own home decor?  Interested in trying Diamond Dotz?  Need a squishy for stress relief?  Love to hear about it.  Once again I suggest you visit the other U-blogs for today and come back tomorrow for the letter V.




(Note:  I decided I should add a disclaimer to these posts because I certainly don't want to give the idea that I am being paid by Michaels to do this or that they are furnishing me with material.  All pictures used in this blog series were taken by me at local Michaels stores, or are my personal pictures and every Michaels store may not have everything shown.)