August 2026

August, 2026

If you’ve been to Elsie Bell’s in the past, you know we go all out for the holidays. Part of this is because I spent about 15 years of my life as Special Events Manager for the Recreation Department of Wellington FL and part of it is because we all like the holidays.

Remember those excuses when you come into our store at the end of this month and see Halloween celebrated all over the place. Kyndra will again be working her magic over the counter with orange and black spooky-themed garlands and the rest of us will be trying to outdo each other as we bring in new, seasonal items. As for me, I seek out unusual Halloween merchandise all year long, traversing several states in the process, and August is the longest I can wait to show it off.

The “Christmas in July” booth will still be up as we overdid it buying red-and-green this year. We are constantly re-stocking that booth in order to get the number of holiday tubs in our back room down to a reasonable number.

Don’t be surprised if a little bit of Thanksgiving shows up, too. Pilgrims, Native Americans, turkeys, Indian corn (or should I say Native American corn?), dried flowers, harvest angels – all are working together to make your Thanksgiving table the talk of the town.

n Deborah Welky Miles, owner

Contact

816-832-8711

© 2025. All rights reserved.

Location

1101 South Crysler Avenue
Independence, MO 64052