I wasn’t going to bother posting about these things because they’re so small, but they just KEPT being so pleasing, which made me keep wanting to recommend them. And I thought it might be nice to recommend things that are in that small impulse-buy category, which is how I bought all of them.
I finally bought this NOPE mug:
I resisted it for a LONG time, because I have TOO MANY MUGS, and this mug is the standard/generic/advertising shape and I hardly ever reach for those, and it seemed like the equivalent of getting a mug with “LOL” or an emoji on it or something—but every single time I saw it, it struck me as appealing and funny. So I finally said “GAH it is only THREE DOLLARS, if I never use it I will just DONATE IT” and I put it in my cart—and I have used it almost every day since. (When it’s not available I generally choose my This Is Going Well mug, shown in this post but no longer available.) My only complaint is that it is printed on only one side.
Next. I found this $7 bowl set when looking for inexpensive bowls for Rob to bring to college: his roommates mentioned they were short on bowls and cups. And certainly, Rob could select and purchase such things himself. But he did not have any opinions, and did not find it fun to decide. And I love shopping, and find it soothing at stressful times such as preparing to take my irreplaceable children back to college during a pandemic. So anyway I was browsing. These are WAY too small for what he needed (I got these cheap/large ceramic cereal bowls for his apartment), but were PERFECT for what I needed, which is bowls that are just the right size to crack two eggs into and pour in a little cream and use a fork to scramble them up, without the egg sloshing over the side. (They claim to be cereal/pasta/soup/ramen bowls but absolutely not. They are cute snack bowls. You could put an appetizer-sized serving of soup in them at most.)
(image from Amazon.com)
The bowls say “Happy Time” on the inside of them, for no reason. Also, I am so charmed by the description, which says those animals are “elk.” But also-also, LOOK AT THE BOX THEY CAME IN:
It is flattish, with a little protective drawer insert that pulls out of the top and has compartments for the bowls. Elizabeth and I gazed at it for a moment, just taking it all in (MORE than $7 must have gone for the shipping and for this box), and then she said reverently “You could use that as a PURSE.”
Speaking of bowls, I finally bought this plastic bowl set even though I no longer have small children in the house:
(image from Target.com)
It’s just, every time I saw the little multicolored stack at Target, I WANTED TO BUY IT. And, as with the Nope Mug, eventually I thought, “IT IS WORTH THREE DOLLARS TO STOP THINKING ABOUT THIS.” And it turns out I use them all the time, and they are so pretty, and I love the way they look in the cabinet, and it is fun to choose which color to use, and each color enhances the other colors.
I also have TOO MANY mugs, and prefer larger mugs, but if neither of these things were true I would be ALL OVER that NOPE mug. A sentiment I relate to *very strongly*.
This was SO PLEASING just to read. Like it enhanced my day.
I love your posts about what little treats you’ve found that give you pleasure. It reminds ME to look for those little things that would bring me the same type of pleasure! Off to Target.com I go…
I have two sets of those little Target bowls. They give me joy and are the perfect size for snacks. IKEA has a similar and also pleasing set, if you ever get to an IKEA. For bowls that bring me joy, I also recommend the Pioneer Woman tiny bowls!
I just broke my favorite tea cup that I’ve used for over 10 years (a red Anthropology Cadiz) and thought “I need to look up that Swistle post about mugs” … thanks for helping me out!
I dithered too long thinking about the This is fine mug and it was gone. SO! I bought a plain mug and paint pens from Target and made my own. And because I don’t hand wash it the message slowly comes off and I get the actual pleasure of writing it again, in cursive or block letters or whatever I want. And I mentally say a little “Thanks, Swistle” for the idea.
We have those same target bowls, and they are excellent. My kids use them daily for their cereal and they hold up great! I also think they are a nice size for an adult snack. :)
I enjoyed reading this so much! Sometimes you just need an inexpensive Target treat for yourself!
I was intrigued that the cute bowl brand name is ‘Lemengtree’ (is it supposed to be Lemontree?) so I searched it. It seems that they also make Fitness Push-Up Stands (no idea) and… bird cage toys. Am not seeing any pattern at all here.
HAPPY TIME. I would use those every day just to see “happy time” when I ate something.
Drooling over the drawer/box/purse! I’m a sucker for a good container. The rainbow set of snack bowls is great too. We have two sets of the same kind of thing from Ikea. Also two similar size bowls
from target with a charming rainbow of fruits and vegetables around the rim. They ARE perfect for kid snacks, or for adult snacks, or for harvesting cherry tomatoes if you didn’t grow as many as you hoped, or for a quick splash of water to throw in the stir fry so it doesn’t burn… they are useful. And cute.
So nice you have someone to appreciate your purchases with! My 12 year old daughter and I are in that phase of shared appreciation for certain things, like the bowl-box-purse. It’s so enjoyable and offsets (a little) the times we are diametrically opposed on certain other things…
The little things are key! I recently had to replace a cracked iPad case, so I got a fun one, and my mother commented on how cheery it is to see around. (I got this one: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YYGFNHT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
I bought those exact same bowls at Target! I got some pretty, snack-sized porcelain bowls from my mom for Christmas and I did not want my nine year old using them and breaking them. Because he wouldn’t mean to break them, but he would. And now it turns out that we all use the cute, brightly colored plastic bowls from Target all the time.
I think I need a NOPE mug.
There are a couple of purchases that are small-ish that have brought me joy lately:
During These Times I started purchasing my own notebooks for work instead of taking the ones supplied by my office. I mean, I go through 1-2 notebooks a year, and it just makes me so happy to have a super-cute notebook every time I have to pull out my notebook to take notes during meetings. LOOK!
https://www.amazon.com/Studio-Oh-Hardcover-Coptic-Bound-Available/dp/B01B8ICVU4/ref=sr_1_20 (Swistle, you should absolutely feel free to replace this link with an affiliate link if such a thing is possible – and then delete this parenthetical so I don’t look too weird.)
And I get a small thrill from, when asked to sanitize upon entering a store, I can say no to their gross, yeasty-smelling sanitizer and brightly chirp “I brought my own!” and pull out a small bottle of a sanitizer that smells like coconut, or mango or lemon. Worth it!
Swistle – i am looking forward to your holiday gift posts for different ages already and I like reading what purchases make the Swistle community happy these days. I was eyeing the Target bowls with the fruit above and will now have to buy them. I second Shawna in that you should get affiliate revenue for comments links – you are doing us a service- is there a way we can make the links affiliate friendly when we post?
I bought the NOPE mug on your earlier recommendation to gift to my friend who had a heart attack this year. I was originally looking for a Not Today mug but 1) my friend never watched Game of Thrones and 2) I’m still mad about the last couple of seasons of GoT & didn’t want to throw any more $$$ in that particular direction. NOPE ended up being the perfect choice to add to her “I’m so glad you’re not dead” care package. Thanks Swistle!
Hahahaha… I’m dying over this review of the little ceramic bowls: “too much colorful but good price”
And then I put them in my cart because I think they are “perfectly colorful and good price” and they will make a great addition to the “Adulting Kit” my grand daughter will receive from me when she moves out on her own in a couple of years (formerly know as a hope chest).