Tag Archives: craft

Fun Holiday Gifts and Crafts for Toddlers

If you are trying to navigate the holiday season on a tight budget this year, you are not alone. Many people, parents of toddlers included, are looking for ways to make merry for less. Whether your desire to cut back on spending is motivated by necessity or simply a desire to live a little more simply, here are some ideas that you might want to use this year. For your toddler, here are a few ideas. One thing that you can do is to round up any old, broken crayons that are lying around. Home made “crazy crayons”, made from pieces … Continue reading →

St. Patrick’s Day Fun for Kids

Today my kindergartner blasted out of her classroom and raced down the school hallway with what looked like a rainbow colored contrail floating behind her. As she jumped into my arms I realized that the blaze of color was in fact a handful of paper streamers. “Nice tail,” I quipped. “It’s not a tail,” my daughter responded repositioning the streamers so I could see them better. “It’s a St. Patrick’s Day rainbow and I’m the pot of gold at the end of it.” Of course! What was I thinking? A paper plate with a bunch of streamers attached to it … Continue reading →

Free Puppets

If you have been hanging in there with me through the last few days, you know that I have been exploring some frugal gifts for the holidays. We talked about putting together a nice puppet playhouse for nothing. Now, of course, we will need some puppets to go with the puppet playhouse. There are several ways to make puppets for free using common items that you already have around the house. When you make your puppets, they will have more of an impact if you choose a theme. You can choose a fantasy fairy tale theme and make a prince, … Continue reading →

How to Make Your Own Dry Shampoo

Interested in trying a dry shampoo? You don’t have to shell out big bucks if you’ve got a well-stocked kitchen and medicine cabinet. I bet you’ve already got everything you need on hand. The quickest, simplest dry shampoo recipe I found? Take a little corn starch — yes, the stuff used in cooking to thicken sauces — and work it into your hair. Start at the roots and scalp, where hair tends to be the oiliest. Scrub it around as if you were using shampoo in the shower, then brush or comb it out. The corn starch will soak up … Continue reading →

Almost Free Gifts You Can Make Now

Get started early on your holiday gift shopping with the following ideas that will cost you next to nothing! It never fails that the gifts you get at the last minute are the ones that cost the most. But, you know what? I bet you can put some nice gifts together right now probably without leaving your home! Let’s get started. Stockpile basket Gifts You can make a whole array of great basket gifts using your stockpile of items that you got very cheaply or even for free. Think about it and about what you already have. You can do … Continue reading →

Money Saving Decor Projects

Sure it would be nice to have a showroom of a home, complete with the finest accessories and decor, but hey, that just isn’t reality, or is it? I’ve come across some cool projects that we can do ourselves. For a hour or less and a little pocket change, we can wind up with stunning pieces to accessorize our homes. For some reason, I wanted to focus on home craft projects that involve glass. I think this is because my recycling bin always seems to be overflowing with glass jars and bottles. Why not turn all of that glass into … Continue reading →

Clever Ideas Around the Home & Yard

Sometimes you have a problem around your home that can be fixed with just a little bit of ingenuity. How many times have we lived with an issue or paid for an expensive solution while wishing for something better? Well, most families are pretty smart and creative about coming up with great ideas. For example, in a previous blog I posted about How I heard that you could use your solar pathway lights for indoor lighting in the case of losing power. There is a magazine that we get called Living The Country Life. (livingthecountrylife.com). It is a magazine devoted … Continue reading →

Create Your Own Background Paper

Creating your own background paper is a really simple way to get what you want from your scrapbooking supplies. It isn’t hard nor is it expensive, and often times can save you time and money. There is nothing better than the feeling of a completed coordinated layout, and with the ability to create your own background paper, you can achieve that effect anytime you find yourself without what you need. Here are a few ways to create your own background paper: Inks You can use a brayer or the ink pad by itself to add ink in different patterns or … Continue reading →

Saving on Craft Supplies

Many of us dabble in crafts of various types at some time. It is a great creative outlet for many. However, a lot of crafter’s do it all the time, and realize it can get expensive depending on what you actually do. There are always ways to cut costs and save for various craft mediums, but if I knew of some places to go to make it even better and guarantee you a savings every time, would you want to know? I’m one of those “all the time” crafters with my scrapbooking. I do dabble in some other craft mediums, … Continue reading →

Home Repair and Maintenance Tips

You can’t go wrong when you review these tips that solve common household repair and maintenance problems. From hiding furniture scratches to applying caulk as a pro would, we have got you covered. Hide Those Furniture Scratches If you have a few furniture scratches that you want to hide, here is an easy solution that doesn’t involve refurbishing the entire piece. First, soak the area of the wood that has a scratch. You can do this using a wet cloth. The soaking allows the wood to open. Select a Crayola crayon in a color that is a close match to … Continue reading →