Even though it’s January, there are still quite a few stores that have Christmas items left that have been deeply discounted. Some items are Christmas specific but there’s a lot of items you can buy and use for other occasions. Of course, if you celebrate Christmas, items like wrapping paper and Christmas ornaments are always great things to stock up on, that won’t go bad, and are easy to store.
I visited Wal-Mart, Target, Gordmans, Ross and Michaels on Thursday and while the stock was dwindling, there were still many bargains to be found. The particular Target I shopped at didn’t have any wrapping supplies or ornaments left but I did find a couple of things that had been put on the shelves, mixed with the regular priced “like” items.
Candles will keep from year to year. I love these Christmas candles but I would never have bought them at full price which was $7.99. I found these at Gordmans for $1.99 each and bought ten of them. They are in good condition, the packaging is still intact and they will be easy to store away in a cabinet till next year.
Ok, I know that if you own a pet, it’s probably the smartest and cutest animal ever, but…..a treat is a treat. They don’t care if it’s in the shape of a candy cane or red and green. If you regularly buy your pet treats or toys, go for the discounted Christmas ones. I found these (for my grand-dog) at Gordmans marked from $5.99 t0 $1.49 and I can guarantee you, he was a happy dog. The pet stores should still have some good deals.
Wal-Mart had a lot of these candles, in different scents, marked from $3.97 to 99 cents. Now I’m kind of particular to scents and will usually opt for the more expensive candles because some of the cheaper ones just (to me), smell bad. *I will say the vanilla scented candles the Dollar Tree sells are cheap and smell good and I do burn those all the time. This candle is “vanilla cookie” and I’m burning it right now and it smells delicious! You can give these as gifts year round, use them yourself, or save them as gifts for next year.
Here’s an example of “Christmas” that doesn’t necessarily look Christmas. The red glitter heart was 97 cents but marked down to 24 cents. The black and white curly bow was $1.47 but marked down to 36 cents. So neither one of these items were expensive to start with but I’d much rather pay the lesser price. I bought both of these at Wal-Mart and I’ll use the heart for Valentine’s Day and the black and white bow will look great on any present I wrap this year.
Again, none of these items were that expensive to start with but when you buy a lot of even inexpensive items, they add up. I didn’t “need” any of these but I will use them and save money in the long run. The red and green nut cups (from Wal-Mart marked from $2.88 to 72 cents) will make great condiment holders for summer barbecues. I had already bought some of these glittery candle holders in red and silver (used the silver on New Year’s Eve and I’ll make a romantic table for Valentine’s dinner with the red)….so I went back to Gordmans and bought them in pink, purple and blue. (On sale for 49 cents each). These will make great birthday or hostess gifts. Even if you don’t have a Gordmans in your area, these are examples of Christmas clearance items that don’t look like Christmas, which you can find at other stores. And I always look for Christmas wrap that doesn’t look like Christmas. Gold, silver, solid reds or greens can be used throughout the year. This red wrap (from Gordmans) was 49 cents, which I’ll probably use to wrap Valentine goodies in.
This is one of those flameless candles, which I found at Target, marked from $9.99 to $2.98. And like I said earlier, the Target store I shopped at had their Christmas clearance pretty much gone, but there are items seriously marked down, back on the “regular” shelves. I found this on the aisle with their regular priced candles. This will make a great Christmas or hostess present in December.
I love coffee! When Christmas items go on clearance, I check out all the stores for coffees in seasonal flavors and packaging and buy as much as I can find….it’s super cheap and still good!
I found these Christmas picks and shredded paper at Michael’s for 39 cents and 59 cents. The picks can be used for any party you have throughout the year and the shredded paper will be great for Easter baskets or gift bags. Again, nothing “earth shattering” but why not pay less for something you will probably be shopping for sometime this year?
I found all this ribbon at Michaels. They were originally priced $3.99 but marked down to 50 cents. They had tons of ribbon and none of these look like Christmas ribbon. Love the animal print.
I found this bowl, platter and charger at Wal-Mart. They were all originally 98 cents but marked down to 24 cents. The bowl and platter are perfect for summer barbecues, Easter gatherings, or any other type of get together you might have. I like stocking up on items like these and then when we go to a party, I can leave the dish with the hostess. And whenever I find chargers on sale, I buy them. I will say that last year we bought green chargers at Wal-Mart for the 24 cents but then they got marked down to 10 cents each and we bought over 50…..I use them for underneath my plants and this year I used them for cookie platters that I gave to friends.
If you have the room, stock up on wrapping paper, boxes, tissue paper, name tags and ribbon for next Christmas. There’s a huge difference in paying full price versus getting the same item for 50 to 75% (or more) off. Check out the toys too….I bought our grandson’s birthday presents for later this year at 50% off, which made it more budget friendly to buy bigger items than I might otherwise have.
Regardless of which holiday has just passed, if you stock up on items like paper products or any similar items like we mentioned, you’ll save a ton of money when you buy them at clearance prices and save you some time when you already have them in stock. And just like we showed, you can find a lot of holiday items you can use for other occasions.