I don’t know if it’s just me … but decorating a tree is stressful and a lot of work … I felt like I was planning my wedding all over again. What theme should I go with .. what colours … style of tree … the ornaments … it’s just mind boggling. Our place is pretty tiny and couldn’t fit a tree in and therefore didn’t have one up for the past two years … it didn’t feel like Christmas … not at all. Where am I gonna find a tree that’s going to fit in our tiny house and the hubby suggested getting a half tree. Why didn’t he bring up that idea 2 years ago and more importantly why didn’t I think of it. I found an awesome half tree at Rona for $80, it was a little skinny but at least it was 7 1/2′ tall.
Here’s our tree:
I decided to go RUSTIC, so that it goes with the theme of our home. Every single ornament on this tree is from Homesense, I was going 2-3 times a week and sometimes twice a day. I got insider scoop that they were getting shipment everyday! I had to check out the new merchandise as it comes in. It was an obsession … more like determined to Christmas-ify our house. So I got the theme … now on to the ornaments. What kind of ornaments will make our tree look rustic … the colours … OMG … the dilemma!! I pretty much bought everything in sight that looked appealing to me and to other customers too! I would park up my cart to the side .. maybe 3-4′ away .. so it’s not taking up space in the aisle or block the view from merchandise and I would glance at my cart every so often and at my second glance … a lady actually went into my cart to grab my sh*t! WTF?!? I politely said, “uuummm… that’s mine.” “Ooohh … sorry … those ornaments are so nice … thought someone didn’t want it and left it behind … hahaha” was what she said. Surprisingly, this incident didn’t only happen to me … I noticed the same thing happen to another lady. The lesson of this story is: Keep your cart close … pretend it’s your baby in that stroller … you never know who could be lurking around and take your baby!
The burlap and twig wrap thing is from Michael’s. The twig wrap thing was actually a wreath that I tore apart which half of it ended up on the floor. I’d like to know how on earth twigs can bend like that and into a wreath without breaking them!!
Some of the ornament selection:
I felt really bad for the cashier that had to deal with my return as I had probably about 20 receipts and the lady had to go through them all. As I was called up next to be served, the cashier had a wonderful welcoming smile on her face which slowly turned upside down as she saw my cart full of bags … a clear indication of returns. She was extremely upbeat and really nice, I apologized in advance for the big return … I tried to keep the ornaments organized by receipt … it was just not possible. I actually laid everything out on my floor sectioned by receipt, so that when it was time to return it, it would be easier for the cashier. But that didn’t happen, I ended up mixing everything and grouped the ornament by shape and colour … it was like a sea of ornaments.
My favourite thing in our home besides our tree is our Snowman (see below picture). Isn’t he just so cute?!? From Homesense obviously. I actually had to think twice about purchasing it … if that’s hard to believe. Just wanted to take a quick look in Homesense and check out what they had for the Holidays and ran into this little guy and thought “wow, you’re cute … I wanna take you home with me” and heard my hubby’s voice “we don’t need it, go home”, strangest thing because he wasn’t with me. He’s learned throughout the years not to come on my trips to Homesense or any kind of shopping … well except for food. So I left the Snowman where he was and continued on my stroll around the store … I still couldn’t get the Snowman out of my mind and decided to go back, get him, pay and get the hell out before I purchase something else I don’t need. Best purchase ever! On my way out, a lady came up to me (looked like she just came in) asked where the Snowman was because she’s been searching for it everywhere. I had to give her the bad news and said I only noticed the one which I bought and suggested she walk around the store in case it was displayed elsewhere besides the Christmas section. The lesson of this story is: JUST BUY IT! You can always return it (just be aware of the return policy), in the event you change your mind or it just doesn’t work. We’ve all been in a situation where you did a good thing by not spending money on something you didn’t need. I did good … I didn’t need it … then you get home … you start thinking about that pair of shoes, coat or a snowman … and you’re thinking … maybe I should’ve grabbed it … I could wear it with so many things … it’s super comfy … the snowman is like a new addition to the family … I made the biggest mistake of my life … I should have bought it. Your decision is made … I’m going to buy it … not right now it’s 2am. Then the inevitable happens … you’re all excited to go get that pair of shoes, that coat or snowman because you carefully thought about it and you’re not just buying it out of impulse. So you finally get to the store only to find out it’s not there … not at any location … how heartbreaking is that?!? I learned the hard way and don’t ever want to be in that situation again … that story deserves it’s own blog post … if I ever decide to tell it … it’s been a slow healing process and I’m getting way off topic … let’s get back to Christmas!
Here’s what the rest of our home looks like:
I’m actually disappointed with Homesense’s selection of stockings and holders. Other than that everything else was amazing!! Maybe I was too late into the season and missed out? Anyway, I had to go to Michael’s on Saturday to return raffia which i was going to use instead of the twigs and it was crazy busy. What was going on? There’s definitely some kind of sale going down right now … all their Christmas decor was already at 50% off … what more of a promotion could there be with over a month to go until Christmas? Well it was an additional 25% off on all sale product … which can be applied to the already 50% off on their Christmas stuff. Found our stockings and the holder for it and a little something for our door.
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