September Acres

We're on the downhill slide of our No Spend February .  Just a few more days and we'll be done.  Does this mean we'll go out and buy all those things we wanted to buy but said 'no' to during the last month?  Not hardly.  To be honest, I'll keep these frugal habits for a few more weeks since I'm kind of in the no spending mode. We've done fairly well this month and haven't spent on anything that was not really necessary, have used much of what's in the pantry and have saved a bit more than usual. It's really easy to put off purchases that are purely wants when you make an effort. And that's really the purpose of a no spend month, in my opinion.  When more thought is put into a purchase,  I usually come to the conclusion that while I may want something I certainly don't need it.  Sometimes I only want it for a little while. America Saves Week  starts on Monday and is the perfect ending to our no spend month.  I'll share some ...

We have graduated from Pottery Barn Kids to Pottery Barn Teen around here.  LM loves perusing the catalogs and when it was time to get new bedding she chose it from PB Teen.  The newest PB Teen catalog is full of fun inspiration like the little jars below.  I didn't see that they were for sale in the catalog but I knew I could make my own version of them for little or no money. Pottery Barn Teen I used a jar I had on hand along with chalkboard and craft paint.  I painted the inside of the jar with white craft paint and the lid with Martha Stewart's 'pool' craft paint. I painted a square in the front with the chalkboard paint.  After letting the paint dry I was ready to use this little container on LM's desk. I only made one of these but I think it turned out so cute that I'll make a few more.  I had all of the supplies on hand so I spent no money on this.  I'm linking up to Frugal Friday at the Shabby Nest & Weekend Blogg...

can be turned into really neat accessories.  I was at Restoration Hardware not too long ago and stumbled upon a really neat idea for old paperbacks.  I could have purchased the books for $29 but decided, like I often do, that  "I can do that for alot less." So I headed to a thrift store in town for some old books.  Jackpot! I tore the covers off (I actually had a hard time doing that, it seemed so wrong) and was left with just the insides.  I used kitchen twine (the same stuff I tie turkey's legs together with) to tie the book together - three in a stack. After I tied them together with the twine I 'dirtied' them up with some brown ink. And that's what I ended up with.  Remember they were $29 for a set of three at the store.  The twine was heavier but I had the kitchen twine so I decided to go with that.  And it was a really quick project. So, instead of $29 I spent $3!  Not too bad.  And I like the look alot.  Right no...

By the name you may have thought this post was about drinks but it's about tables. Coffee or cocktail tables. I always thought a coffee table was rectangular and a cocktail table was square but apparently the name is used interchangeably . Any low, long table can be considered a coffee, or cocktail table. Our new'ish coffee/cocktail table is a huge square one. I thought it was a cocktail table but I guess I can call it what I want. It is very large, a bit more than twice the size of our old one. When my husband brought it in the house I almost fell over. We got it from my friend J and it didn't look nearly as big in her house. I was really unsure if we would be able to make it work in our room. After much moving and rearranging of the furniture we found just the right space for it and it looks great. Before LM was born my coffee table was always 'staged'. When she was born I cleared it off in order to make room for all the baby books I needed to reference every m...

It's that time of year when we can enjoy some meals outside. Not too cold or too hot (as will soon be the case here in Arizona). I set a pretty table for breakfast tomorrow so we can enjoy our breakfast on the patio. And I did it all using things I already had. :) My mom made the quilt that I keep on this table. I love the colors in it - they're so cheerful. I cut some branches from a bush out front and put them in one of my faux mercury glass jars. I love the look - and it's a quick, frugal way to add some greenery to any table. A basket full of muffins wrapped in a crisp white napkin. (I took all the food in for the night after I snapped these pics.) The little bird hanging on the spoon of the jelly jar was given to me by my mom's cousin. It's actually supposed to hang on a branch but I love how it looks with the jar. We have had this wrought iron table for 14 years. We got it right before we were married. It has been through 2 moves - one across the country - a...

I was trying to think of something quick and fun for an Easter gift (something that wasn't candy, although this is close). I was also thinking of something fun for LM to do that was not terribly expensive. So I came up with colored sugar in a jar. We've all seen the colored sand they have at fairs and festivals - they sell a jar and then you fill it with whatever sand you want. Kids love it. Instead of sand I thought of sugar which can be used later (I love consumable gifts). I save jars whenever I can. These little ones come from mushrooms but you could use anything - even buy some fun shapes if you want. I put about 1/4 cup of sugar in a bowl with 5-6 drops of food coloring and started stirring. The drops kind of turn into clumps so there's some mashing involved too. When it's mixed to a color you like and pour the sugar in the jar. This is the parts the kids love! The pink sugar is actually some colored sugar that I had alot of. I added a cute tag and it's a g...

Image from bhg.com Decorating is fun. Sometimes necessary. But let's face it, decorating can do a job on your finances. A big purchase (that rug you're dying to have, for example) can turn your budget upside down. We always try to pay cash for any remodel or renovation project we do. At the most we will stretch it over 1-2 months. Nothing's worse than financing those new silk drapes and deciding 3 months later that you hate them. AND that they haven't been paid for yet. This is not a lecture on finances. It's an idea on how to make your decorating dreams come true without risking your retirement. For most of us a big remodel -kitchen, bath, new floors, etc. will be thought out well in advance and probably saved for over some length of time. But it's the little things that can add up and break the bank without a plan. Something like an impromptu trip to Target or Ikea. I have found that at the beginning of a new season there's a slight possibility that I...

Yes, it's that time again. Time to think of teacher's gifts for Valentine's Day. I was in Staples the other day and was perusing their $1 area. I saw small clipboards for $1 each and pads of lined paper for the clipboards for $1 for a 2 pack. Then the light bulb went off! I could decorated the clipboards and use them as teacher gifts. $1.50 for each gift (I don't count the decorations in the cost since I am using paper, ribbons, stickers, etc that I already have-but if you need to buy other things I would add that into the cost.) I gathered all my supplies: Clipboards and pads of paper Mod Podge (I love this stuff!) & foam brush Paper cutter Scrapbooking paper, stickers, ribbon I cut the scrapbook paper to the size of the clipboard (6"X 9" in this case). I brushed the mod podge on the clipboard and placed the paper on top. I then brushed more mod podge on top of the paper. Then I added stickers and paper shapes and mod podged on top of that. I just k...

It's time for Frugal Friday again. Okay, so it's Saturday but better late than never, right? I wanted to share my frugal February idea. This is the 3rd year in a row that we have had a 'no spend' February. I got the idea somewhere on line but don't remember where. The basic premise is that we spend no money in February. Yes, we still buy groceries, although I do tweak the budget down a bit, and any other truly necessary things (like medicine if one of us is sick). But we don't buy anything else - no clothes (we can all make it through the month for sure), no sporting goods, no toys, no gifts, no going out to eat, no home decor (this is sometimes painful for me), no hair cuts. Not much of anything, really. My husband & I still get our 'allowance' each week. I even put back a truly hilarious card (that would be perfect for a friend who just got out of the hospital) when I was at CVS yesterday (waiting for a prescription). It was only $1.99 but it was...

I am not a fan of the containers laundry detergent and other cleaners come in so I figured I would put my Oxy clean in something besides the plastic tub I brought it home in. Something frugal that I already owned. I was happy to see that I had an empty pickle jar - a big one. I cleaned it out and removed the label. I found some fun paint in my vast supply of paint. I found a chipboard number which I traced on to the jar and then painted over. Voila! The above pictured jar. It is bright and cheerful when I open the cabinet to do my laundry. And it was free... Join Wendy @ The Shabby Nest for Frugal Friday. Melissa is hosting an Under $10 Under one hour party . Check it out!

Last weekend we headed out to Dillards to find sheets for our new bed. No luck on the sheets but check out this lovely cake stand I found tucked away on the 70% off rack. I fell in love with it when I saw it and I was more in love with the price :$5.79! There were lots of great deals on that rack. We also scored a large white stoneware platter for $9.00. Make sure you check out those racks in the corners at the end of the season. Bargains abound and it reinforces my motto: You never need to pay full price for anything! Head over to the Shabby Nest for Frugal Friday.

I recently made this for my friend M for her birthday. It turned out so cute that I had to share. And since she has opened it already I won't be spoiling any surprises. I bought the wooden M at Walmart and painted it white. Used Modge-Podge to put the scrapbook paper on and embellished it with some ribbon and scrapbooking accessories. I think it is the perfect size to put at a desk although I am sure there are tons of other uses, that's just what was in my head. M loved her 'M' and said it was reminiscent of the big M that Mary Richards had in her apartment on the 'Mary Tyler Moore Show'. Remember that? Check out more fun ideas at the Shabby Nest today for Frugal Friday and Just a Girl for Show and Share day.

...without spending a fortune. Below is our newest piece of 'artwork'. Our frugal artwork. I love how her jacket matches the chair. Poster- $5 in the clearance section at Michael's. Frame $29 @ Michael's with one of their coupons. (you have to love those coupons!) So for $34 (plus tax) we have a very neat picture hanging in our family room. And I only had to put the poster into the frame! A time saver as well as a money saver. Check out Wendy's Frugal Friday for more fun, frugal ideas.

Today Life as Mom asked 'What do you do to save money?' I've said it before and I'll say it again (and again): the biggest change we have made regarding money has been to pay cash for our groceries . I am constantly amazed how much difference one little thing makes. I take out a budgeted amount every two weeks for groceries. When it's gone, it's gone. Simple as that. When I first started this I knew how much to take out since I had been using my debit care since forever to buy groceries. I took the total $$ I spent the year before and divided it by 26 (every 2 weeks) and took out that amount to start. I have actually started budgeting LESS than when we started because I was spending less. When I started this cash system I also was taking the $$ out weekly but found it was going to be easier to stock up on deals if I had a little extra; if I spent more this week I would spend less next - because I had enough food and because I had less money left. I als...

I posted some photos of my living room a while back. I realized how blah and boring it looks. I appreciate the suggestions I was given. One of them was 'paint'. We had the walls painted a couple years ago so I really didn't want to do it again just yet so I had to figure what else I could do to get some color in there. I thought about painting a canvas red to match the chair ( below). After talking to my sister she suggested dipping cool whip containers in paint to make the circles and an idea was born. I bought the 3 canvases (20" X 20") at Michaels at 50% off - the three cost $21. I got a quart of paint at Lowe's ($12 - Martha Stewart's Cranberry something or the other). The blue paint was a sample size of Olympic that someone didn't buy -$1. Cool whip container and little round container I had in the kitchen - free. Fleur de lis printed off computer, traced on canvas and painted - free. So for $34 I got this new look. Very David Bro...

It's never too late to practice some frugal ideas. I love Frugal Fridays w/ Life as Mom . She always has fabulous tips and you will find tips from other bloggers there, too. With so many people either getting hours/commissions cut or out of a job all together sharing frugal ideas can be really helpful. Just one great idea can change your outlook on your financial life. It really can. So pop over to her website and check out her great ideas as well as others'. I may have mentioned this before, maybe not. But I think the one thing that has made a difference for us is paying cash at the grocery store. Not a check or debit card but cold, hard cash. Each payday I take 2 weeks worth of my budgeted grocery money out of the bank and put it in an envelope labeled 'groceries'. I just use an envelope I get from the bank (free) but you can get all kinds of fancy envelopes if you so desire. I used to take out a week at a time but decided taking two weeks out worked bette...

As summer vacation winds down here (only 2 weeks left until school starts!) and vacation budgets have been spent, I am always looking for some fun, frugal ideas to keep Little Miss busy and entertained. After racking my brain (well, it wasn't that bad) I have come up with some ideas to keep the peace for the next 2 weeks. I have printed out a few of our summer pictures, brought out the colored paper (scraps) and will help LM work on her very own Summer of 2009 scrapbook. Most of us have tons of construction paper, scrapbook paper scraps, markers, stickers, crayons, etc that are just dying to be used so this is the perfect way to 'use what you have' while keeping your kids busy as well as doing something productive. Even the littlest of kids can get in on this one with help from mom or an older sibling. Another 'crafty' idea is to take your summer magazines and let the kids tear them up & make a collage about their summer vacation. Take pictures of them with the...