DIY Gift Tags

Gift tags are like birthday candles and umbrellas, everyone has them but can't find when you need them! And in my case, I can never seem to have "right" ones!!

Well, being that it's so easy to make/cut your own tags, why not just do that when you need them? 

So, here are some examples I've done for this Christmas, but that I'm now (that I saw the light!) planning to use throughout the year!

Find shapes of tags you want to make, or use cookie cutters, jar lids, and just trace them on cardboard (I use recycled boxes from cereal, crackers, or alike!). 

Save and use/upcycle interesting papers you get from all kinds of sources, save scraps of craft paper to make different shapes and size tags for birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, Halloween, Easter, Housewarming, or ANY other gift tag-requiring event!

One other thing I do is save/reuse EVERY ribbon, string, or anything that can be used to wrap/tie gifts! Like below the brown/white rope ribbon was save from something else.

I also save tags from things I buy as templates to duplicate the shapes.  Making your tags makes gifts that much more special I think!  

Merry Christmas and happy gift tag making!!

HomeMade Croutons

These deliciously crunchy & tasty little morsels are made out of old bread, from my own homemade bread, but you can use any bread you have! I'm actually not a big fan of croutons, unless they're homemade! Store-bought croutons are always either too hard or too light and void of substance, to me!

INGREDIENTS:
Half loaf of bread.  Here I used my own homemade bread.  Denser crustier bread works best.
3 Tbsp EVOO
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp onion powder
Salt & pepper to taste

BAKE: 10-12 minutes at 400 degrees

INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat over to 400 degrees.  Line cookie sheet with foil.
Slice bread lengthwise, like you're going to make a sandwich, then into slices at an angle,  and  finally into bite size cubes.

In a bowl just big enough for croutons or in a plastic bag and drizzle croutons with oil while tossing to get a bit of oil on each crouton.  Then sprinkle salt & pepper to taste. And finally sprinkle garlic and onion powder, while tossing.

Spread on single layer on foil-lined cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Check them and see they're to your liking, and if not, bake for another two minutes.  ENJOY!!

Turkey Orzo Soup

Did you save your turkey carcass??
By The Way, there should be another name for carcass when it's used for cooking! I'm just saying.

Hope you did, I ALWAYS do and then we have turkey noodle (orzo) soup all weekend following Thanksgiving! I use orzo because the regular noodles soak up too much liquid and then become super large and soggy.  Using orzo was my later mother-in-law, Carolyn's idea - not mine!

INGREDIENTS:
Turkey carcass (I also use the carcass of store-bought rotisserie chicken)
4 cups chopped celery
4 cups chopped carrots
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 Tbsp dry thyme (or 4 fresh sprigs)
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup green onion, chopped - optional
Tabasco sauce, to taste - optional

MAKES: 10-15 large bowls

INSTRUCTIONS:
In large pot add enough water to cover the carcass.  Gently boil with onions and salt until meat falls off the bone, about 1 hr or so. 

Remove/skim as much of the fat from the top as possible. 
Take out all the bones and let them cool, then remove as much of the meat as possible and put it back in the broth.

Add the celery and carrots and cook another 20 minutes or so until they are tender. While veggies are cooking, cook orzo according to package directions, then add to soup. Taste and adjust seasoning to taste. DONE!!

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: I love adding freshly chopped green onions on top and a few dashes of Tabasco sauce for a bit of kick. ENJOY!!

No-knead Bread, Fast!

Ever been in the mood to make bread but then found out you had to let it "rest" OVERNIGHT!? NO WAY!
 

Crusty exterior with soft light inside, but not to doughy. Great for sandwiches too!

Well, since I'm not the world's best planner when it comes to cooking, do not own (or plan to ever own) a bread machine, this happened to many a times.  Frustrated I set out to find a way to make bread on a whim, and make it without a huge production.

Thus....this simple recipe I perfected after making it only three times!

INGREDIENTS:
3 Cups all purpose flour
1 Tsp Kosher salt
1 1/4-oz envelope RapidRise Highly Active Yeast( I use Fleischmann's)
1 3/4 Cups warm water

REST TIME: 2 hrs
BAKE TIME: 40 mins @ 450 degrees

 MIX all ingredients with a wooden spoon until well combined.  Dough will be sticky.

LET REST for 2 hours in airtight container. I put mine inside my microwave.  It will about double or triple in size. 

KNEAD dough just until bubbles are gone and dough is smooth...about a minute.
At this point you could add flavors like: cheeses, garlic, olives, ect.  This is right before kneading and forming into a loaf. I've only added garlic, but plan to experiment with adding other flavors!

SHAPE into bread shape(s).  You can make one or two loaves. AT THIS POINT, before shaping, you can add other flavors, like pan roasted garlic, kalamata olives, cheeses, ect.

Here I browned some garlic in some EVOO and added it to the dough before baking.

 Here is shaped it into two loaves.

You could also shape into a round shape, as below. To this I added some dried thyme and EVOO right after taking it out of the oven.  Delish!!

 COVER bread loosely with crinkled foil. I crimp the edges of foil to the side of the pan and with a long spoon lift the middle to make a "tent" for  over the bread.  If you skip this you may burn it!

 BAKE  on cookie sheet at 450 for 35 minutes covered, then remove foil and bake 5 more minutes until golden brown.

Result, beautiful and delicious bread with a nice crust and soft inside.  This bread is not so think so you can slice it for sandwiches, or in rounds for crostini! ENJOY!!!

Great Find - Bamboo Glass Top Table

 So, why pay full price for anything when you don't have to?? 
Well, unless you like paying more, here is just one of my great Craigslist finds! Some times it's a thrift store find or garage sale, you name it.

Results....this like new beautiful thing!!

 Below is how this table came to me. No glass and cushions ripped and stained. I paid $30. Everything else though was in great shape and sturdy!

 This glass table above was $15, which is what I used for the bamboo table.  The glass is think and beautiful.

 I recovered the cushions in this beautiful cream material I had for drapes that I had never used. I think it cost me like $2.00!.  I used a 25"x25" piece for each chair.

 I cut off all the excess material and I made sure ALL PLEADS WERE FACING IN THE SAME DIRECTION for more a more smooth look.

The chairs look fantastic in person and recovering them couldn't have been easier and more fun!

Okay, now I'm just going to stare at it a little longer and enjoy the fruits of my labor, because saving money never gets old to me!!!

Last Minute DIY Hallowen Decor

This is EASY & TEMPORARY!!  I am not into all the big ugly "scary" Halloween decorating.  I like just a few tasteful accent pieces that show you're celebrating!  I also hate spending a lot of money on something that is usually so easily made out of pretty much anything around the house!

Here is I wanted to have a pillow with something Halloween but I didn't want to have it permanently attached to the pillow because I would then have to put it away or change the pillow case.

WHAT I DID.....

1. I went online and found a TEMPLATE (on the Images Google tab) of something I liked and printed it out, then cut the shape out.  I found this one HERE under "witch templates".

TIP:  If you do not have a printer, or ink as it happens to me often, you could just tape the paper to your screen and trace the shape right on your screen!  I do that also when the shape is bigger than my paper, so I move the paper around and trace some parts on difference spaces of the paper and then tape the shape later when I cut it.

2. I then spray painted the shape with black paint I have (I always have black, brown, and white spray paint on hand for projects) from my my local Home Depot...they're about $3.50.

 3. Once dried I sprayed the back with spray adhesive and placed on my pillow! The adhesive I used is tacky enough to stay on but you can then just remove it and trash it!

MORE IDEAS:  If you're a crafter like I am, you most likely have a ton of things you can use to make easy and inexpensive, but creative, decorations for any holiday. You can also just spray things (glass jars/bottles/vases, cans, branches, twigs, rocks, ect) in the colors of your holiday or theme!  

Have fun being a Super Frugal Domestic Diva!! :)

Pink Flower Pillow Case

This DIY pillow case was so fun and easy to make!

I bought a throw blanket at Ross for $5.99 and used part on one side for a SOFT pillow for my granddaughter, Maggie. The BACK was made from an old pillow case I had that had the eyelet trim where I put the pink ribbon bow.

HOW TO:

1. Cut varying size circles of the "flower" fabric then layer them on top of each other

2. You can sew a small (about 1.5 inch) straight stitch and pull the thread from both ends to make a bit of gather look and tie the treads. 

3. Once the flower looks good stitch a button in the center.

4. Stitch the flower to the pillow case by strategically stitching the petals in a way that the flower looks fluffy (sewing UNDER other petal to hide the stitching).

5. Sew a ribbon for the stem and cut out some leaves and attach as well.  Here I also added a pink ribbon to correct my not-so-straight seam line!

As you can see the shapes are not perfect and edges were left raw.

 In my case I had to use another back material in order to make to pillows with a soft side. I had these case with the eyelet with worked great!

 The presentation was so cute, just tied with a coordinating ribbon.

DIY Halloween Wreath

This cheerful Halloween wreath was made from a ripped garment bag I got out of the trash. My stepson had thrown it out weeks ago!  The bow was made out of just material I had lying around. 

I could've purchased a ribbon but I always aim to make things out what I have on hand! It's more fun and the results more unique!

 .

 I dab of hot glue inside and on one side of the fold is enough to keep the "flower" together and glue it to the wreath. In my case I had a wire one but you can use anything you can find, in any shape.

 I placed the flowers as evenly as I could. I could've used more, for a fuller look, but it's all I had. I think the final product looks so cute and it really stands out on our door!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Great Finds - DRESSER!

Okay, we've all heard of thrift stores, garage sales, and Craigslist, right? 

 Maybe even finding things on the side of the road or by a dumpster...like when I found my current WHITE DRESSER (below) just sitting next to the big dumpster at my old condo complex!

Dresser found at dumpster. Originally in green with white specks.

 I ran back to our unit and asked my daughter (a teenager then), to come out and help me get it inside. Needless to say she couldn't believe I was asking her to do that..."Mom!!??...someone's going to see us"!!  Don't worry, she's now 28 and embraces the concept!

Well, I LOVE finding great bargains I can re-purpose or sometimes resell at no less than 100% profit, or if I need a new piece of furniture it's a thrill to find something a fraction of the cost, and maybe even something with character and history!

So, next time you need a new piece of furniture, don't forget to look for a bargain first before running to buy something new....and KEEP YOUR MONEY IN THE BANK!!!

Garden from Cuttings

I think it's safe to say that everyone loves a beautiful lush garden, right?

Below a purple Butterfly Bush started from a little branch stuck in ground two homes ago, still thrives.

This is not the best picture but you get the gist. It was planted here to hopefully cover the part of the fence that doesn't look so great. And it eventually did!

Purple Butterfly Bush grown from cutting/clippings

I know for me, gardening is a cure-all medicine.  And growing a garden is not very hard (for little or no money!), provided you have some space. 

The cutting here is on its way to blooming soon

THE STARTED PATCH:  Here my helper grandson  (isn't he the cutest!!?? I love being his "gama"!), waters what I call my 'tarter patch'.  I find a spot where the sun/shade combo is good to get plants started, then I transplant them to a permanent spot.

You never want to start plants where they get too much or not enough sun/shade.

 

If you see here, to my "gardening assistant's" left, the Butterfly Bush is starting to touch the fence

NO SPACE?  NO PROBLEM!  If you don't have ground space, try hanging baskets or potted plants near a sunny window. These tiny wonders can bring life to any space! Like this cute pot, which was stated from...clippings!

 EVERY thing below is the result of splitting, taken from another garden spot, or cuttings.

From left to right: Berries & Cream roses I got as cuttings from my mom's yard. Below that roses is Sweet William that came from seeds scattered by shaking old plants from another area of the garden. In the middle it's Garlic Chives that were split off another area where a bird actually dropped a seed I guess (not taking credit for that, other than I did not pull it out when I first saw it), and last on the right is Mexican Primrose transplanted from the front yard. They didn't always look this good, but once they took - there was no stopping them!

BERRIES & CREAM: Rose bush started by sticking a cutting in the  ground

 Next time you get together with your mom, sister, or friend - exchange cuttings, split plants or share seeds! My friends and family know that I am constantly growing things and will share my bounty with them, or they can share with me! I hope you are enjoying your garden...in or outdoors!

CHEERS TO ALL US SUPER FRUGAL DOMESTIC DIVAS!!!!