Back to School Ad Month

Can you believe it is August 1st already.  School administrators are returning to work, students and their families are fitting in the last family-oriented activities of the summer, school buses are going through their "before school starts" maintenance check, and stores continue to advertise their "back to school" specials on supplies, clothes, shoes, and electronics.

You may remember the crayon series I posted at the start of the 2015-2016 school year.  The bus above is from that series and a subtle way to remind all of us that "it's that time of year!" 

As I shared then, the sight of those beautiful, new boxes of crayons takes me right back to getting ready for school as a child.  Of all of the things that have changed about getting ready to return to school, I am so glad that crayon continue to be listed on most school supply lists (most stores now have these printed and hanging in a folder somewhere around the school supply aisle,) AND the boxes have not significantly changed in appearance for more than 50 years. 

Even if you do not have school age children, grand children or great grand children, it is worth the time to make a quick loop through the school supply department the next time you are in a big box store - you can learn a LOT there about what has stayed unchanged in the educational world and get a glimpse into a world that feels like a foreign land in the span of a three-aisle loop. 

If you are a crafter, sketcher, journaler, post-it user, etc., this is also a great time to stock up on the basics that go with these activities.  Glue sticks, for example, that are $1.89 in January can be found as low as 12 for $3.00 on sale week.  Gridded compositions books, not even findable in January, can be found for fifty cents each or even 6 for $2.50 on coupon week.  Scissors for your purse or car glove box (for you coupon clippers,) pencils with a SOFT white eraser (not the brittle, rock-hard red blobs that leave that lovely pinkish smudge where you once wanted a clean eraser mark) at the non-graphite end, pocket calculators with 12+ functions,  and many more schooly items can be found between now and the start of school in your community - or until they run out (since they will not be re-stocking these items until next July or August.) 

Quick, check your junk drawer, craft shoebox, and catch-all stash to see what you need while it still can be found at the best prices of the year!!!!