what. a. score.

I finally made it to a few after-Christmas sales yesterday. This wasn't possible while we were in Oregon because: 1) we were house-bound for several days because of all the snow, 2) if we had been able to make it to any stores, we would have had to schlep anything we bought back to L.A., and 3) before that, we would've had to haul it from where we had to leave the car, which was anywhere from 1/4 to 3/4 of a mile from the house, uphill through 2 feet of snow, just to get it into the house where we could pack it into some sort of borrowed suitcase. Waaay too much work for my taste. So I decided to wait until I got home. All of about an hour after I got home, but hey -- that stuff had already been on sale for 3 days, and it wasn't getting any more plentiful.

And boy, howdy! did I score:


Ikea ornaments -big silver gems, hanging crystals & antique-y looking mirrors.


Ikea string lights - again, gem shaped.


Ikea "chandeliers" - you wrap the string lights around them.

Yes, this is mostly stuff that I was coveting in a previous post. Best part: every single piece was 99 cents!! Yes, really. OMFG. If I knew where we were doing the reception I would go back and get more. As it is, I just grabbed what I think is a reasonable amount -- I can always get other co-ordinating stuff if we need more. But I know that we will have some tables to decorate, a candy buffet that'll need fancy bits, and the pretty lights will work anywhere. I'm not expecting to have much more decor stuff to buy, other than candles & flowers. And those can definitely wait until I know what the venue will be.

Speaking of the candy buffet, I found these at Target:

50% off = $25 for the pair.

My intention here is to buy things that Mr. UB & I will be able to use in our home. Even on a small budget, I don't relish the thought of buying a bunch of stuff that's going to be useless after 1 party. So all of the ornaments and lights will go on our future Christmas trees, and the candy buffet things will end up as candle holders or vases. The chandeliers ... I may have to get creative. (And even if I can't think of anything, I can probably get over a $5 "waste.") Maybe all the beds in our house (once we have a house, and more than one bed) will have those cool mosquito net canopies? Or our kid will have the biggest mobile in the history of cribs.

More on the Oregon snow drama is coming soon -- I have lots of photos to go through.