Halloween On A Shoe String - Decoration

From fancy dress to decorations, Halloween can end up costing a small fortune. But follow my five decoration top tips and have yourself some thrifty thrills.

1.  A bit of fake cobweb goes a long way....

Hang in your windows or drape around pictures on your walls. This simple decoration costs around £1 per packet, or you can even use cotton wool for a similar effect. To finish the look just add a handful of creepy critters.

2.  Create spooky lighting in your home. Cluster chunky candles together, use jam jars to hold tea lights or place tall candles in wine bottles, leaving the wax to melt down the bottle.

3.  Pumpkins are one of the most iconic images of Halloween. And the good news is, they're really cheap! Get creative carving faces or words. Or why not save on all that mess and try a non-carve pumpkin design? I like kindredspiritmommy's fantastic ideas, including a decoupaged pumpkin. All you need is some Halloween paper and some pva glue. Simple!

4.  One of the easiest ways to add some Halloween horror to your home is with card. Cut out pictures of ghosts or owls and stick to the walls. Try out this free bat garland from brasspaperclip - a beautiful batty addition to your decor.

5. For those who prefer to be a little more chic than freak, stick to a simple colour scheme throughout your home - black and silver or black and purple are popular choices.

Recent Thrifty Puchases

I spend most Sunday's browsing car boot sales, I check out the charity shops at least once a week and I try as much as possible to peruse flea markets and street markets.

As a result, our house is filling up nicely with quirky pieces, I'm finding many items to upcycle and gift to friends and family, and after summer I shall be launching into a new business venture concerning all things Thrifty. Watch this space....

Some of my recent purchases include:

Pretty plates - £2

Picnic hamper - £5

Old map - £1.50

Gorgeous lace doilies - £4 for 12

Adidas bag - £1

Selection of glassware - £1.80

Wooden cutlery tray - £1

 

Handmade 2012: Father's Day Present Ideas

With Father's Day just around the corner, I've been thinking of present ideas that my little one and I can make for the various dad figures in our lives. In my experience, a handmade present is always more gratefully received on such occasions as it shows more thought has gone into personalising the day. So if you're stuck for thrifty inspiration, look no further!

Earlier this year I made several superhero outfits for some of my son's friends. Why not adapt this idea and sew a cape on a tee shirt for your dad.

Simply cut your chosen fabric to size, pin on to the tee shirt, and then sew into place. You could even use fabric pens/paints to design a Superdad motif on the front. He'll love running around the garden pretending to be a superhero. You could even buy him a new pair of pants and make him wear them over his trousers!

Or why not upcycle some cufflinks? For my friend Jim's birthday recently I bought a pair of basic cufflinks fastenings and personalised them. I used a glue gun to attach scrabble tiles of his initials to each cufflink. But Lego pieces, buttons or old coins would work equally well. Poundland are currently selling cufflinks for £1 so this would be a very cheap but lovely gift for the dad in your life.

Another easy present idea would be to make them a cork notice board, using cork's from wine bottles. When I made mine a few years ago I collected corks over about two months, but I've now realised you can buy the corks from home brewing shops and online.

All that is needed is to buy a large-ish photo frame and a piece of card to fit in it. Then glue the corks onto the card. Maybe attach a photo of the two of you with a pin, as a nice finishing touch.

For a lovely handmade present from the little ones, get arty. My son has just made some Jackson Pollock inspired photo frames for friends of his. Using plain wooden photo frames, he splattered different coloured paints over them. I think the frames cost £1.20 for a pack of three from Ikea. This technique would also work well to decorate a 'man box' for dad's, to keep their odds and ends in. S.C.R.A.P blog has some useful tips for this.

Photo taken from S.C.R.AP. blog

I would love to hear about any more 'man' present ideas you've had. Drop me an email at Thrift-Queen@hotmail.co.uk or Tweet me @QueenThrift and have fun making!

Handmade 2012: Magnetic Reminder Pegs

I am forever making lists, and wanted somewhere pretty to keep them. Thus, I decided to make a batch (one to keep, some to gift) of these Magnetic Reminder Pegs.

The up-cycled pegs look pretty and are very cheap and simple to make. I started with some basic wooden clothes pegs, which I bought for 99p from Wilkinsons.

I then painted them in my chosen colours, using tester pot paints. Many moons ago, when I was into making greeting cards, I bought a few packs of rub on alphabets [similar to the ones pictured below] from Hobbycraft. These came in handy for creating the words on each peg.

Rub on alphabet

Then all that was left to do was add a magnet to the back. I like to use a sticky magnetic strip that can be cut to size. And Bob's your uncle (well actually he's my dad). Thrifty, beautiful and cheap - my favourite formula!

Handmade 2012: Bunting

I love bunting. Perfect for garden parties, presents for little one's, and we even have it strung up in our bedroom. Plus, it is a fabulously thirfty way to use up scraps of fabric and brightens up any space.

bedroom bunting

My top tip? Don't be too bothered about getting the triangles all the same size, it'll make it look too uniformed. Just judge it as you go.

Apt Apple's

Before we moved from Derbyshire to Surrey, my son and I made a teacher's apple inspired thank you hankie present.

I bought some cheap plain men's handkerchief's and turned them into a lovely thrifty teacher's gift using a simple stamp technique. It would also work well with tablecloths, or tea towels.

• Slice an apple in half and blot away excess moisture with a paper towel. 
• Use a paint brush to apply red fabric paint to one apple half and firmly press onto fabric. 
• For the stem, we dipped the wooden end of a thin paintbrush in green paint and made a small dash above the print. 
• To finish, lay newspaper over the top of your hankie and iron to seal the fabric paint.

This thrifty project got me thinking about other crafts I could use apples for.

Making budget busting apple tea light holders couldn't be easier:

• Center a tea candle on top of an apple. 
• Trace around the candle with a utility knife, inserting the knife only as deep as the candle is tall. Cut the circle into sections and scoop out the pieces using a metal spoon. 
• Insert a tea candle and light. 

(NB: It is best to use firm apples like Red Delicious, Granny Smith or Fuji.)

But my personal favourite? Home made apple cider. Perfect for those long winter evenings or hot summer days.

The Ingredients
1 litre of apple juice (I have been known to use apple cider as a boozey replacement!)
60ml rum
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 cinnamon sticks
3 tsp brown sugar
1 apple (for garnish)

The Method
Heat the apple juice, rum, sugar and spices over a medium heat, stirring often. Once it's hot, pour into glasses of mugs and garnish with a sliced up apple.

Handmade 2012: Monster Bookmarks

I'm moving house next week, and in packing up my books, I found a copy of 'The Island'. Although a thoroughly good read, it isn't actually my book! I borrowed it from my sister in law at least a year ago and had obviously failed to return it (sorry Megan).

As an apology I made her a cute little monster bookmark. I simply cut off the corner of an envelope, raided my son's craft box and decorated! Simple, thrifty and a fun craft for all ages.

Handmade 2012: Playdough

 

A friend of mine (well he's my very good friend's hubby) has been really poorly of late. In and out of hospital (over Christmas and new year), with problem after problem, and now bored at home in recovery. So what better present to make for him but playdough? Thrifty and fun!

I followed a very simple budget busting recipe that was handed down from my mum:

Mix a cup of boiling water with half a cup of salt and 2 tbsp of cooking oil. Give in a good stir then add 2 cups of plain flour, a drop of food colouring. Knead and then leave to cool.

For presentation purposes, I sprayed an empty cat food box black. I also decided to decorate the empty jam jars. Since I had made three different colours of playdough, (blue, yellow and red) I figured I'd stick to this theme and attached three of my son's old plastic cookie cutters to the jam jar lids, in corresponding colours. The result? A lovely (yet inexpensive) present to help pass the time on the road to recovery.

Have Yourself A Very Thrifty Christmas: Stockings

PANIC NOT! It's not too late for a few cheap stocking fillers to be purchased. I personally think no stocking is complete without a bag of chocolate coins and a satsuma. But for those of you who are looking for more adventurous, yet thrifty inspiration, there are some great websites who are still accepting guaranteed Christmas delivery.

 
Stocking-fillers.co.uk sell an amazing variety of cheap Christmas gifts and Christmas essentials. They have price brackets as low as £1 and under, perfect if you have kids, or even for the 'big kids' in your life! Their last order date is 4pm on Thursday 22nd December.

For those of you looking for more class, less tack, a couple of years ago, The Guardian compiled a list of the best Christmas gifts for less than £5. I would also recommend Find Me A Gift who have a very good 'Secret Santa' section. They also are accepting orders until 4pm on Thursday 22nd December.

Or why not get truely thrifty and make your own stockings? This step by step Guide is even suitable for sewing novices.

Have Yourself A Very Thrifty Christmas: Decorations

Looking to save money this Christmas? Look no further thanks to the Thrift-Queen's thrifty Christmas tips, starting with decorating.

When decorating your house, it's important to remember less is more. It is easy to get caught up in the spirit of Christmas and end up having to live in a glitter-tastic, sparkling frenzied house. But equally, decorating doesn't have to be elaborate or expensive to look fabulous. Some people like to decorate the whole house - inside and out - whilst others decorate one room or only the tree. Whatever your preference, avoid the wrath of the recession and get thrifty. Below are my top three thrifty tips to achieve a beautiful, yet inexpensive, festive home.

• Be Natural: Add some free natural cheer to your home. Use ivy to wind round your banisters or drape over the mantelpiece. Pine cones make excellent Christmas tree decorations. For a more elegant look, they can be sprayed silver or gold. Or why not fill a bowl with them as a simple table centre piece. Tree branches arranged in a tall vase can look stunning as a decoration or as a Christmas tree alternative. Add colour and hang some pretty baubles on them.
• Get Kid Creative: If you have young children in your family, encourage them to help with decorating the house. Make paper-chains, use empty toilet rolls to make fairies and cut snowflakes out of paper. You could even let them loose with a can of fake snow to spray window. Disney's Family Craft website is an excellent source for cheap and easy Christmas decoration ideas. My favourite is Santa's list, with a twist; using a painted thread spool (see below.)

•  Make Existing Decor Seasonal: At Christmas I like to make other things in my house look festive. I decorate candles and mirrors with tartan ribbon, and add candy canes to fruit bowls or scatter them on my dressing table. Instead of a table runner, I alternate candles and either pine cones or nuts in a line. It makes the table look festive yet elegant. When I bake, I make Christmas shaped cookies and display them on a cake stand in the kitchen. The key aspect of this thrifty method of decorating is to use what you have and dress it up with either garland, ribbon, pretty beads or some other Christmassy items.