July is the perfect time of year to get a head start on your Christmas crafting, shopping

By Insider Staff - Jul 25, 2017 | 0 comments

The Goodwill is a goldmine for Christmas items in July. We found tapes, DVDs and a whole shelf of random knick knacks, all at giveaway prices. JON BODELL / Insider staff

Golden Gese Quilt Shop has plenty of Christmas fabrics in stock so you can get going on that Christmas Quilt early. There are even some examples of finished products in the store. JON BODELL / Insider staff

Marketplace New England has a healthy selection of Christmas tree ornaments to choose from. They even have a tree, fully decorated, set up in the store right now. JON BODELL / Insider staff

We found a whole shelf of Christmas stuff at Caring Gifts, all of which was 50 percent off. JON BODELL / Insider staff

You may not realize it just yet, but this is the absolute perfect time of year to get a jump on your Christmas crafting and decorating.

If you wait until November or (gasp) even December to get going on these things, you’re most likely going to have to battle huge crowds, trudge through a few feet of snow, spend hours looking for a parking spot, pay hefty prices and deal with a picked-through selection. None of those problems exist in late July.

We went around Concord last week in search of as much Christmas stuff as we could find, and after a tough first day in which we didn’t find anything, we ended up being pleasantly surprised at the volume, quality and variety the city had to offer during the middle of summer.

Here’s a sampling of what we found (more online):