Black Friday stay away from me!
I hope all of my United States readers enjoyed Thanksgiving in which ever way they celebrated (or didn't). As someone who worked retail for years, I detest Black Friday with all my little black heart. I think it's ridiculous to kick off the holiday season with greed and malice, I want to kick the person who started this phenomena a kick in the pants. On the flip side-I do understand people's want and need to shop within their budgets (heck my blog is all about this), but when retailers fuel the insanity and then people eat it up, I find it upsetting.
So, I suggest thinking about shopping small! Here are some of my favorite stores that you may find some fun gifts on a budget:
Plasticland: www.shopplasticland.com
Gorey Details www.goreydetails.net
Sweetheart Sinner Creations www.sweetheartsinner.etsy.com
Se7en Deadly www.se7enDeadly.etsy.com
Madame Talbot www.VictorianLowbrow.etsy.com
Sourpuss Clothing www.sourpussclothing.com
Angry, Young and Poor www.angryyoungandpoor.com
Other ideas are to watch out for sales, coupons, etc. by signing up for the stores/designers newsletters/mailing lists or 'like' their Facebook pages so you can jump on the savings.
In my opinion the most important thing is the thought and effort behind a gift, so think about making something for those special loved ones in your life. My most precious items were made by my husband and friends from their owns hands and it shows me how much they love me. :)
Go forth and enjoy the holiday season!
Thanks for reading!
XOXO-Meagan Kyla
Well said! Black Friday makes me lose hope for humanity. :P Wild horses couldn't drag me out shopping on Black Friday. I believe it's the thought that counts with presents. Handmade gifts or ones bought at a unique little shop are the best. :)
ReplyDeleteHahahaha @ the wild horses =D
DeleteYes, I completely agree with you my dear and your take on Black Friday (I want to paint it, paint it, paint it BLACK!) is awesome!
I love the idea of shopping at local shops (if you have any good ones) and especially at Etsy! Support artisans and craftspeople! :)
ReplyDeleteHere! Here! =)
DeleteOh your posts always give me a good chuckle. I too was slave to the wage in retail, but I broke free and am happily unemployed (or at least until I complete school). In Canada we have sales that try to compete with Black Friday, but nothing outstanding. The big box retailers pretty much accept that their customers have flocked south of the border and that a measly 15% off isn't enough to lure them back.
ReplyDeleteMy most hated time working in retail was Christmas, when people were stupid enough to drag their asses in the day before and say "Why don't you have this product in stock? Are you kidding me?" I would just laugh at them and walk away like an asshole.
Yeah, I'm a goofball ;)
DeleteWow, I never thought of this craziness effecting Canada. Since I live in Buffalo and we're so close to Ontario, I'm used to Canadian friends coming down to shop sales, etc. Interesting about the Canadian stores.....
Yes, I agree with you about working retail and Christmas. It made me HATE the holidays and I was very 'bah humbug'. Now I enjoy myself while decking the halls and not wanting to deck customers. Teehee!
I agree that Black Friday is upsetting!
ReplyDeleteI wrote an entire blog post about my point of view on it earlier today. ^v^
Oh I'll have to check it out!
DeleteLike I said on Bane's blog, we HATE, DETEST, LOATH Black Friday and protest it by not shopping at all. Ok, I *did* need coffee after the Thanksgiving feast so we headed out for that and that only. And pizza at our local Mom and Pop shop.
ReplyDeleteWhat upsets me so much about Black Friday is that:
1. it's all about greed and insanity
***2. it's now happening on Thursday!
I can't believe how many stores were open at 8:00 or 9:00 on Thanksgiving Eve! THAT! THAT is insane! That pisses me off to no end. How in the world can you ask someone to work on Thanksgiving? I mean, I get working in bakeries in the morning because I did and the pie and bread orders have to go out. But Target? Walmart? Seriously? Grrrr ... this whole thing makes me sick!
Couldn't agree with you more my dear. It's gotten so insane it's unbelievable!
DeleteWe don't have Black Friday here in Ireland and I have to say that the concept seems completely terrifying! People seem to go to enormous lengths that day, getting up madly early and travelling for miles and miles.
ReplyDeleteIt's baffling. Now I love a good bargain but the scale of Black Friday seems huuuuge. I wouldn't really know though, in fairness!
Be glad you don't know and it is terrifyingly ridiculous ;)
DeleteI agree with you, gifts should not be all about money. It is good to save on things but Black Friday is pretty out of hand in my opinion. The Black Friday thing has been going on in Canada to some extent now in recent years and it's nuts enough here, I can only imagine how things get in the US.
ReplyDeleteI hide in my apartment and watch the chaos on tv, people are INSANE. =/ Ho-ho-ho I'm going to stab you over a Black Friday sale, ugh.
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