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99 cents stores, is it really a bargain for junk?
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Jimbo View Drop Down
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Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

 Yeah, wrapping paper's probably an even better bargain, but it'll be a cold day in hell that I actually wrap a gift.
 
I love wrapping gifts. I'm quite good at it too, if I do say so myself.
 
Many years ago I worked in the Customer Service Dept. at the JCPenney store at the local mall. Mainly my job was "Package Pick Up" & helping out in Credit & Layaway. Giftwrap was always considered to be the bailiwick of the women, but I jumped right in there knowing full well I had "the touch". And let me tell you, I wrapped up those things as neat as a pin. Bows & ribbons & all.
 
I always enjoyed hearing the amazed comments from the women customers at how cool it was for a big lunk of a dude like me to do such a nice job gift wrapping. Some of the guys were tempted to razz me for it, but I was bigger than most of them, so they didn't say much.
 
But I loved it. I've even considered doing it part time during the holidays, but I'm too lazy.
 
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Originally posted by Madawee Madawee wrote:

I go to my local Dollar Store to get gift bags and bows. For some reason, my Dollar Store has a gorgeous, not to mention HUGE, selection of these things. Hallmark is 5 times the price in some instances.
Oh, and reading glasses - I get my mom a few pairs. This way, when she loses them for the umpteenth time, it's not a financial loss.
 
I agree.  I keep a supply of gift bags, bows, gift boxes and tissue paper (different colors).  Dollar tree has a nice selection to choose from.  Also at christmas time I get cookie/candy tins from there...alot cheaper than at walmart!  I like dollar tree much better than some of the other $ stores. 
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Originally posted by Jimbo Jimbo wrote:

Originally posted by Thor Thor wrote:

 Yeah, wrapping paper's probably an even better bargain, but it'll be a cold day in hell that I actually wrap a gift.
 
I love wrapping gifts. I'm quite good at it too, if I do say so myself.
 
 
 
 
I guess if I'm going to do something for other people that requires way more time and effort to create, than it takes to have it destroyed by its recipients, I'll cook a meal.
 
 
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People automatically know when they receive a wrapped gift from me. Take your average shirt box. When I wrap it, no matter how careful I am, it usually ends up with about 14 yards of paper and 2 spools of tape!
 
Gift bags were an epiphany for me!
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I do know how to properly wrap a present, but it's far more fun to mess with 'em.
 
Set the gift in the center of some spread out newspaper, bring the corners of the newspaper up to a point above the gift, and just hogtie the whole thing with duct tape.  Looks like a giant fig.
 
Or tape the wrapping paper so much, it's more tape than paper, hermetically sealed. 
 
For those that always shake their boxes like doofuses, including a champagne flute and a hammer, loosely, is always a winner,  for an "extra" gag gift"
 
And, yes, I am type who puts a gift certificate in the midst of a refrigerator box filled with packing popcorn. 
 
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My parents were fond of the wrapped box within a box within a box within a box method.....LOL

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I LOVE the way a professionally wrapped guft looks. I seriously wish I had the talent. But soemthing happens when I'm handed wraping paper, ribbon, scissors...
 
And it isn't pretty.
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The nice thing about the gift wrap area where I worked was that even though it was cramped, they had the wrapping paper on big rolls mounted on these big spools fastened to the wall behind us so we could just roll off exactly what we needed. There was also a metal straight edge for tearing the paper off like on a roll of wax paper or plastic wrap.
 
We also had a roll of string to use for measuring the length around the box being wrapped. You'd just wrap the string around the box providing a litle extra for overlap, then while clamping that point on the string between thumb & forefinger, hold the loose end of it at the edge of the paper then unroll an amount about equal to where you were clamping the string with thumb & finger, then just tear off the piece you were going to use.
 
This is also where I learned the trick of gliding the scissors while holding the blades in one position to make a nice smooth straight cut.
 
I always used minimal tape, too.
 
I could go on & on..... Embarrassed
 
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Jimbo, I used to wander over to the gift wrapping aisle either in Macy's or Lord and Taylor just to watch those magicians at work!! I swear, it was better than a Boradway show for me. Especially around Christmas time - to watch those gift wrappers hands literally a flutter was awe inspiring.
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We FINALLY got a dollar store nearby:  National Dollar Store.  All the other ones I'd seen in my area of San Francisco were called

99 CENTS STORE
                                         and up


And this one really WAS a dollar store. But I saw a sign over the door the other day that due to the economy (I guess they blamed the price of gas), some things would now be $1.29.  So much for that. 

I've gotten a few items, although I don't generally buy any food there, since I figure it's mostly past its expiration date.  But I have gotten things like bungee cords, masking tape, etc. there.
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I don't know about your store, Faith, but the Dollar Trees near me don't sell expired food.  They do, however, sell a lot of non-name brands.  I regularly get these boxes of devil's food cookies that I give out to friends' kids (and eat some myself).  They're just like the Snackwells, but instead of being $2.50 for a box of 12, they're $1.00.
 
Also, they have a lot of spices and flavor extracts (extract of lemon, orange, vanilla), which, elsewhere, cost 3 or 4x as much.  A pound of pasta is 50ยข.  A pound of rice is $1.
 
Big Lots is also a good place.  Their prices vary.  I recently got a pound of pre-cooked vacuum-sealed gnocchi imported from Italy for $1.  Some things there are even cheaper than the Dollar tree.  There used to be one on Mission Street.  I dunno if it's still there.
 
 
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Big Lots is also great for finding regular items with a different 'spin, such as the Hello Kitty Poptarts I found a few months ago.  They were strawberry poptarts with pink frosting and Hello Kitty shaped sprinkles instead of the traditional multicolor jimmies.  I think the box cost a buck.
Let's try not to be boring, mkay?
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Originally posted by Hootman Hootman wrote:

Originally posted by kat kat wrote:

yep.
 
they should call the stores "hey here's a bunch of crap, you're not getting a bargain cuz this stuff is actually worth much, much less than this and we really should be giving it away"


Kat, you must have skipped reading everyone's bargains. 
Approve yeah....
well i just sort of skimmed over them.
but anyway my opinion still stands.
madness fills my heart and soul as if the great divide could swallow me whole
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Originally posted by HollyRock HollyRock wrote:

Big Lots is also great for finding regular items with a different 'spin, such as the Hello Kitty Poptarts I found a few months ago.  They were strawberry poptarts with pink frosting and Hello Kitty shaped sprinkles instead of the traditional multicolor jimmies.  I think the box cost a buck.
 
I think they get items that were test-marketed somewhere, and maybe failed the popularity test.
 
I once got Zatarain's Jambalaya Mix to be used with venison.  And Kellog's Corn Flakes designed for the Arab market (all in that fancy writing they use).  And a can of fried apples.
 
I'll add to this list as they pop into my head.
 
Oh, a jar of some Armenian brand of tomato paste.
 
 
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