$5 Halloween Decor

I know not many people read this blog. I don't update it, so it's pretty easy to pass by. But I thought I'd share with you all today some Halloween decor I made for our "front door area" (we live in an apartment, so technically it's not porch).

It all started with a sign I saw on Pinterest: {Halloween Sign}. I'm not a huge fan of Halloween, but I like the cute,  non-spooky things that are floating around. The sign in the picture is obviously store-bought, but since I'm trying to be frugal and thrifty I decided to make my own! I went to my local Roberts Arts & Crafts store and picked up a piece of ply wood and ribbon. Lucky for me it was 2 for Tuesday, so that meant I could use 2 coupons instead of the usual "40% off your entire purchase!" Score! So, the total was $5 + tax. Not too shabby. I had most of the other supplies I needed, such as paint. For the broom stick I literally just gathered a bunch of sticks, so it was free! I love that word. :)

First things first, I had to weather my wood a little bit. Since it wasn't a solid piece I couldn't do too much with it except hit it with a hammer. I also "stained" my wood using extremely watered down black tempera paint.

The next step: Finding the right shade. This took a little patience. I first tried a brighter color, much like the weird green color that Carter's baby clothes are sporting this year (it's a cute color for girls, but hard to match things to...). Here it is:

Not my best paint job, and definitely not the best color mixture! It literally looked like I painted it with a hi-lighter. Ugh. Try #2 was much more successful. I just added a little more green to my previous paint mixture, and voila!

Next came the words. I wanted the sign to look kind of witchy but still nice. Lucky for me and my Pinterest skills, I found {this tutorial} for transferring printed words onto wood-no Cricut or Silhouette needed! Perfect!

I learned the hard way to not let your paper get too wet. I had to get my board wet and rub off the excess paper, sometimes rubbing off part of the letters. I ended up painting over my printed words, but still totally worth it.

For the edge I used the same painting technique as stenciling- just dipped the tip of my brush in the paint, "dabbed" it on the side of my plastic, and then "dabbed" it on my board. The flash doesn't do my sign justice in this picture--there is a much more gradual look to the edges in real life.

Before I hung the picture on the wall, I gave it a little sanding, so everything looked a little more muted/old.

Hung with 3M hooks

Like I said before, for the broom I just went "stick hunting" with my little girl. I found this awesome road in our apartment complex that doesn't look like it's used much anymore. It's not paved and it's completely lined with trees. The main stick was forked, but my handy and strong husband snapped one side off for me (we don't have a saw). Thanks, babe!

The shorter sticks are put on my broom in layers. I used floral wire from the Dollar Tree to keep them in place and just stopped adding sticks when I ran out of wire. It's not the fullest broom, but it works for our "front door area!" Happy Halloween, everyone!

What frugal decorations have you made this year?

Samples Anyone?

 I'm on a samples kick and I think it's going to last a long time. Sure, they're sample size, but you can't beat free, right? I just scored free diapers at WalMart and Target. Best. Feeling. Ever. So go ahead. Just search for "free samples" at Walmart or "Sample Spot" at Target. You won't be disappointed.

Kid To Kid

Kid to Kid is a franchise selling gently used children's clothing at ridiculously reduced prices. I just bought my little one a swimsuit for $4.50. And it's cute, trendy, and pink--just the way I like her clothes! Check out their website to see if there's a Kid to Kid in your area!

Savers

{picture souce}

I just came across this wonderful thrift store that sells gently used merchandise. Talk about a poor frugal person's heaven! I found 2 cute board books for my little one for only $1.40. Total. They also had tons of cute clothes, shoes, toys, accessories... It's pretty much like TJ Maxx for people with tighter budgets. I'm in love. I'm definitely going there again. Check out their website to see if there's a Savers in your area by {clicking here}.

50% off ERGObaby carrier and Giveaway

Hurry over to babysteals.com for up to 60% off an ERGObaby carrier! This deal is only good for today (4/28/10), so quit your lolly-gagging! Babysteals.com is also offering one lucky winner a FREE ERGOBaby carrier in adorable Petunia Pickle Bottom fabric! Click {here} for details! Giveaway ends May 1, 2011 at 11:59 p.m (MDT).

I've been hunting the internet for a cheap ERGO for months, and I'm SO excited to finally be able to afford one!

Amazon Mom

Have you ever heard of Amazon Mom? It's an amazing program put together on Amazon for all mom's everywhere (I think. I'm actually not sure about Amazon's international policies.). Amazon gives you FREE Prime membership, meaning FREE 2 day shipping on all eligible orders. Also, as a member of Amazon Mom, you get 15% off TONS of baby items. Another perk of Amazon Mom? You can search for "subscribe and save diapers" and receive a box of 200+ diapers for 30% off! For example, I want a box of Pampers Baby Dry Diapers in Size 3. I search for subscribe and save diapers, and there happens to be exactly what I want! I click on it, get the size of box I want (204 count for $40.88), and click on the little bubble off to the right that says "Subscribe and Save: Save 30%." It then lists the Amazon Mom price, which happens to be $28.62. That's 14 cents per diaper! Amazon tells you how much each diaper costs. You don't even have to do the math! Another great thing about Amazon Mom: Everything is delivered right to your door! I am in love.

GREAT Couponing Websites

A friend of mine gave me a little couponing lesson this morning, and I just have to share what I learned! She gave me a list of couponing websites that basically sift through the newspaper and RedPlum ads for you. They do all the hard work and you get to save a TON of money!  I really like Hip2Save, as it gives the ins and outs of certain stores such as Target, Walmart, and RiteAid. GrocerySmarts helps you form a shopping list from deals in your own state. Forums on Pinching Your Pennies let you access the in-store ads the day before they come out. And a local one for Utahns...Utah Deal Diva. There you have it! Three awesome websites that help you save money. Oh the frugality!

Gifts of the Heart

If you're a student in the Provo/Orem, UT area and are looking for some great deals for your family, check out the Gifts of the Heart Exchange. It's a clothing/ random item exchange specifically for student families. My husband and I went and checked it out this weekend and found some great clothes for our little girl. The best part: it's FREE!

According to their website, the next exchange will be April 9, 2011. Mark your calendars!

Another GREAT Find!

Ok, so I've been searching far and wide for a play gym for my little girl. She is getting much bigger now, and she's no longer content to just lay on the floor while I do the dishes. The poor thing is bored! So, I turned to the local classifieds and this is what I found:

Retail value (Fisher-price.com): $70

What I paid: $15

Total savings: $55

Now that is a steal! Granted, we are missing 2 toys, but it's still lots of fun for our little girl. And I wasn't about to pay $70 for a new one. Bleh.

So, tip for all that holiday shopping: Shop the classifieds!

Changes, Changes, Changes!

Okay, I know I haven't posted in a while. I apologize. My frugality all went downhill during our ever-so-long move, and I just haven't had anything to blog about. A quick little update on our housing situation... We started over, moved to an apartment, and bought new furniture. And by "new" I mean "new to us." It was all given to us or bought at a yard sale, with the exception of the couch, dresser, and kitchen table. BUT the couch cost $30, the dresser was on clearance for $100 (originally $240), and the kitchen table is a card table for $50 (chairs included). All in all, our apartment is full of frugality.

Moving on...

Have you ever heard of FuzziBunz? They are a brand of "trendy" and "earth friendly" cloth diapers. We're thinking of using them for our little munchkin (who is taking her sweet time coming out). They have a "one size" diaper that is supposed to last from birth to potty training. I'm a little skeptical of the validity of that claim, but I think we're going to try one out. If you know anyone who uses cloth diapers can you please send them my way? I want to know how cost- and time-effective this really is. Think of all that laundry (and no, we don't have our own washer and dryer)!

Also, speaking of laundry, have you ever tried making your own laundry detergent? My cousin's wife has a super fun cooking blog. Her recipes are so delicious! If I didn't have to watch my blood sugar so much with this pregnancy I'd make the cookies and cream cupcakes. They look so good! You're probably thinking what cooking has to do with laundry. Well, Carole (that's her name) has a recipe for homemade laundry detergent! I am definitely going to try this in the next few weeks. One batch of this stuff makes 5 concentrated gallons (meaning you mix it with water, so it's really 10 gallons!) of laundry detergent and only costs her $2.80 to make! Talk about a money-saver! And for all of you lovely people with high-efficiency washers, Carole says this works in those too (that's the kind of dryer she has)! I'll let you know how my homemade detergent project goes, but since Carole likes it, I think I'll like it too!

Well, that's the frugality from the last month. Hopefully I'll come up with more tips and tricks with the arrival of our little munchkin! Stay tuned!

A First

Well, yesterday I made my first frugal purchase since starting the blog. And I must say, it was quite thrilling! We received a coupon in the mail from JC Penney for $10 off a purchase of $10 or more. Well I jumped right on that! Usually coupons like that say "save $10" in really big print to get you all excited and then they ruin it with "on a purchase of $50 or more." LAME! I don't want to spend $50 to save $10! That's not even a deal! So, JC Penney, I think you're awesome for not doing that.

I went on my way with a goal to not spend more than $10. I was totally successful! I found an adorable pair of maternity shorts--originally $32. What did I pay? $8.13. Yeah. STEAL! The shorts were on sale for $18 - $10 coupon + tax = $8.13. Total savings: $23.87.

Frugal or Bust!