Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Gettin' down 'n dirty at the Dollar Tree Party!

Where do you go, when you're supposedly living paycheck to paycheck, struggling and living the hard life, just so you can 'buy a little goody' when it's FINALLY payday?  For those of you who frequent the forum at Scrapbook.com, you'll know what that's about.   Hahaha.  Seriously, tho, the 'buy a little goody' is what cracked me up.   I've pimp-slapped people for saying things half as stupid as that- but, I digress.

Many of you already know that the Dollar Tree is one of my favorite places to shop.  It's one of the happiest places on earth.  Happiest because everything costs one dollar, not because you have to fight the dirty and/or crazy people who are pushing past you to get to the frozen food section.  I try to throw up my hands and say, "I'm not here for the paper thin dollar steaks!"  But they never ever listen.

Yes, you have to look past all the crap- but there are many surprising nice or useful things within that mass of humanity!

Tonight, I'd like to show you some of the most useful finds from the Dee-Tee, as I call it.

First, the flexible chopping mats.  These are terrific.  Two of these little dears in one package.  That makes them fifty cents each.  Before I got my non-stick craft sheet, I was using these with my Distress Inks.  And also as a cutting board, when I used my Exacto knife.  I still keep these on my table- they're just the right size, and you don't worry if you screw them up-  so they're also great to have around in case you have a few guests who want to play, too.  Each person gets a cutting/gluing/inking mat!


And see?  They must've known what I had in mind, too- even the packaging says 'Crafts.'  Useful!

Next up is another one of my favorite Dee-Tee crafting supplies!  The twine!



This twine is incredible- it's soft, it's off-white, it's a dollar.  You can use it to add a great vintage touch to something- as an accent or to tie on a few charms.  You can also make a little pool of Distress Stain on your mat, mist the twine with a little water- and rub the twine in it- and SURPRISE!  Custom colored twine!  420 feet of twine.  That's 128m, for you people who live in those classy places.  Glad it's printed in big-ass letters on the package, or my metric-challenged trailer park soul couldn't have told you.

There's more in the way of supplies at the Dee-Tee, but there's also great, cheap storage options, too!  For the next few options, I had to push eight of a woman's ten kids out of the way- they were lined up and blocking the entire damn aisle.

First up, these nicely plain glass vases- perfect for a slowly expanding collection of paper tapes!


Pretty, too, huh?

Now this next thing- I must also credit the Scrapbooks Etc magazine out right now- which featured this same damn thing.  But, they didn't mention that you could buy these retro sugar jars at the Dollar Tree- and I've been using these jars to stash stuff in, ever since one walked out of the Waffle House with me. For real.  It just followed me home on its own two feet.


Here, it holds a big handful of orphaned ribbon.  By that, I mean scraps or ribbons without spools.  This is their little support group.  They meet in a sugar jar and wait to be used.

Here's an empty (except for one string I put in, to demonstrate) jar that I'm going to fill with twine- as I'm always using it, and it'll be nice to have it right on my worktable but out of harm's way.  The Scrapbooks Etc. magazine shows these filled with Baker's Twine.  What will be the next hot thing once this Baker's Twine craze winds down a little bit?



The last thing I have to show you tonight is this great little easel- perfect to display a nifty card or rather thin mini-book!



Not good at using your imagination?  What kind of crafter are you?  Why are you HERE?  Alright, alright, here- I'll put that card I made last week on it, so you can get the full effect.


That's sexy, isn't it?

So, there you have it- the very first DOWN WITH THE DEE-TEE ROUND UP at The Kory K. SCRAPiVERSE.  There'll be more.  Cuz you can't keep my ass out of that place.  DOLLAR POWER!  Okay, Daddy gonna take a Benadryl and call it a night.  Sleep tight, my hookahs!




11 comments:

  1. Very good review of things you bought. You crack me up, pushing people out of the way to get to your stuff. I like how you described the ribbons as orphans. lol.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hahaha, that's what they seem like! All alone in the world, without a spool to call home!

      -k

      Delete
  2. I LOVE Dollar Tree!!! :D I got tons of my scrapbook room storage there, including all my little embellishment vase fishbowl thingys. :D GREAT idea for the flexible mats, I'd never thought of that, and I've been wanting one of those craft mats. May have to make a Dollar Tree stop!

    I have to tell you, the best entertainment in the world is going to the Dollar Tree on 23rd and Penn at lunchtime. It's a perfect mix of crackheads, OCU students and state workers such as myself on their lunch breaks and in a hurry. Every single time I've made a stop there, hilarity ensues. There is ALWAYS a lady with 10 kids, a crackhead spouting nonsense, inept cashiers and I always walk out shaking my head in disbelief, but laughing because I can't believe what I've heard/seen. Good times!!! :D

    I will also try very hard to follow your good advice and not spend my entire paycheck on craft supplies, no matter how compelled I am, LOL. ;) If that crazy woman growing up in the depression had that much to do with her buying habits, then what does it say about 80s kids like me? Greed is good, LMAO. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. THAT is the DT that I was AT! But in the evening, there's less students, no state workers- and all crackheads and ladies with ten kids.

      One of the best parts- and I'm surprised I didn't write about it- was when I was walking in- there was a lady with five kids standing right inside the shop, blocking access IN the doors- and a scary crackhead lookin guy was right in front of me, trying to get in- they were standing right inside the door, seemingly oblivious that they were totally blocking the entrance. The guy pulls the door open and starts SHOUTING! "GET OUT OF WAY! COMIN THRU! WHY DONT YOU BLOCK THE DOOR A LITTLE BIT MORE? THINK YOU THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO WANT IN THE DOLLAR TREE?!"

      So, I thought it- he shouted it!

      -kory

      Delete
    2. holy moly! I think he would scare me too.

      Delete
  3. Another Brilliant Post Kory!!!! Oh how I wish you lived in the UK. You'd crack me up and be a much needed breathe of fresh air. Love the sexy easel. I always knew they were, but it's great that someone has the balls to say so. Like you I have a 'proper' craft mat and the cheaper nonstick mats. I use mine for when I paint. It's not as easy to clean off as inks are. So I save my nice one for distress inks only. We don't have the Dollar Tree in the UK (does that come as a shocking revelation?) but we do have Pound Shops (quelle surprise!). Love seeing the not-officially-craft-stuff that I can buy there. Having seen your post, I'm itching to go and ferret round one.

    Enjoy the rest of the week. Payday, I'm sure, can't come round quick enough :)

    Pxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I swear- I'm gonna visit you one day, if only to go to a Pound Shop!!!

      -k

      Delete
    2. Anytime my friend - you'll be treated like royalty haha xx

      Delete
  4. Why can I never ever find anything like this at my DT? Not fair!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. My Dollar Tree stinks! The only things it has that you've ever mentioned are the frozen foods and dirty people. I walked up and down every aisle. Twice. And I really searched for some hidden treasure, but found nothing. I guess I'll just put the few dollars I would've spent towards my boys' education or something. After all, I've just recently heard that it's important to save for retirement and stuff. Who woulda thunk it!

    ReplyDelete