Kitchen cuties

I normally feel a range of emotions when I (or we) make a big-ticket purchase: appliances (a ref and a washing machine, for example), furniture (dining table, sofa), soft furnishings (custom-made Roman shades...sigh, how I love our chocolate brown Roman shades!). There's happiness and relief, that we can check one thing off our list--and finally don't have to eat breakfast standing up because we actually have something to sit on. A bit of anxiety, because our wallets are so much lighter. (I'm a one-time-payment kind of gal. For some reason, I much prefer paying for things upfront, rather than in installments.) Pride and gratefulness, that I could actually afford to buy these things.

But when I buy stuff that I need for the house, and they're cheap and oh-so-adorable, the only emotion I feel is glee! The latest item that has brought me such pleasure:

A sweetheart of a potholder! Found this in Landmark, and if I remember right, it was less then P40 or P50. I had been meaning to buy a potholder because, given that I'm so clumsy, I don't trust myself to take things out of the oven with a kitchen towel. I also found this cutie:

At P29.75, I couldn't resist buying two!

But I was giddiest when I scored some fabulous placemats from Robinsons Department Store, bearing a very familiar print:

Marimekko at RDS? OK, so at P49.75 a placemat, this probably ain't the real deal, but I really couldn't resist! I originally intended to buy just two, after picking up some sensible black placemats. (Chargers would have been more elegant, but our everyday plates are square...and chargers are much pricier!) But the salesperson informed me that there were just four of these babies left, so I hoarded them! We use them every day; they sit beneath our plates as we eat breakfast. It's been nearly two months and they still make me smile. Such a cheery way to start the day!