Wax Seals :D

I love handwritten letters.  I send mail to my out-of-state friends fairly often.  :)  The finishing touch on them has always been a red wax seal, with the initial "J."  I got interested in wax seals several years ago while active on FPN.  I'd gotten the initial seal from the wedding section of Michaels (about $3.00 with a coupon) and some sealing wax (4 sticks for ~ $3.00 after coupon) since it was the only one I could find locally and within my student budget.

Double hearts seal, red sealing wax, letter, and Triumvir lighter.

Fast forward until now, I own a few more.  Since expanding my collection, I've started to look into custom seals (as well as embossers).  As of late, my love for adding that bit of personal flair to my letters have been rekindled.  

While browsing through Pinterest, I happened upon a person on Etsy (here) who makes custom seals for $20.00 and about $5.00 shipping and about 10 handle colors to choose from (I want purple!).  Now all I've got to figure out is how I want the design... $20.00 and shipping is more than reasonable for a custom seal.

I've also always wanted a seal ring (and figure out how to EDC the wax).  I found this one today:

They had these up for sale in 2011 for $35.00; I wonder if they'll still make 'em... (here) 'cause that's pretty rockin'.

Buddy Burner Find (098/365)

I found some holiday candles at Michaels today.  They're $1.00 and the tins measure roughly 3 inches across and 1.5 inches tall (with the lid; the candles themselves are probably only 1" high).  They smell really great and I think they come in 4 scents.  I only got 3 of the scents because I'm not too fond of the pine one.  :)

I think these would make for great buddy burner containers when I'm done with them since they come with nice lids.  :D  The sizes are just about perfect too.  :)  Joy!

I think I'll stock up on these when the season's over, as they should be considerably marked down, and the deal made even sweeter with a "20% off entire purchase, including sale items" coupon.  :)  Or better yet... perhaps it'll be stuffed into those $2.00 grab bags!  I'll definitely be on the lookout a few days after Christmas.

Michaels Grab Bag (085/365)

I got my very first ever $2.00 Grab Bag from Michaels today.  I was going to get the one filled with Halloween goodies, but I went with this one 'cause my mom likes to put flowers together for the holidays.

For $2.00 and tax, I got a total of 27 different bouquets as you see in the photo above.  The retail price on these would have equaled $110.00 (those little ones in the bottom right corner were marked $3.00 a piece, and I got 20 of those).

Kinda fun.  :)  I may pick up one of those Halloween ones so that I can play with the activities or keep 'em 'round 'til next year for the trick or treaters.  For $2.00, you really can't go wrong.  I've seen some pretty good hauls on YouTube.  My local Michaels doesn't have these often, so it was kinda fun to grab one today.  :D

Paracord Now Available at Michaels!

I was doing my nearly weekly Michaels run the other day and was quite surprised to find paracord in their stock.  It was prominently located at one of the front endcaps in the middle of the store.

The bracelets are priced at $3.99 each, with no tags regarding sizes - you'll just have to try them on and see.  They come in various color combinations, though.  :D  They also carry the buckles priced at $2.50 for a pack of 5.  On to the paracord themselves...

I opted for the maroon this time around.  These 16 foot hanks of paracord are running for $2.49 at my Michaels.  Coupled with a 50% coupon today, it came out to be $1.34 after CA tax.  Not bad for just a small bit of paracord when you want various colors.  +1 for being made in the US!  :D

The company that distributes these are Pepperell.  They seem to have a good amount of colors and accessories available.  I hope that Michaels continues to carry these, but since they do change their stock according to the trends, I'm pretty sure I'll just stock up as their weekly coupons come out.

It seems as though the idea of prepping, EDC, survival, etc. is starting to become a bit trendy.  :)  No worries!  More EDC goodies for me, right?  :D