Crafting Away Today: Votive Place Cards

Frugal Family Fun has a pretty and simple place card idea here.

Hers are done in a Thanksgiving theme but these could easily be made in different colors and used for Christmas or New Year's celebration meals, as well!

I love that this is something the kids could help with! These could also double as favors or small gifts for guests to be able to take home and enjoy. You can choose your votive holders and make them as simple or fancy as you would like!

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Crafting Away Today: Quick and easy Child's Apron!

Dollar Store Crafts has a great post about how to make a really cute child's apron from a dish towel and potholder! You could use your imagination and come up with all kinds of combinations of towels and potholders to make different looks!

These look super easy and only cost $2 to make! Our baby girl is a bit young for this yet, but I'm thinking of nieces on our gift list this year that would be just the right size for these! Need a quick and easy gift for a first or second birthday party? What about a fun Christmas gift or stocking stuffer? This would be perfect!

Check out this great idea here!

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Crafting Away Today - Transform your vases with yarn!

I spotted this idea in one of my magazines and decided to look into it more.

Right now, all of my vases are packed away in the boxes that we're hoping to leave unopened until after the next move. I thought this was a great idea to transform even my regular drinking glasses into vases as I need them over the next couple of months! You could also use this idea to transform your ordinary vases for whatever the season may be. The Christmas colors at our house are blue and silver so wrapping a vase with yarn in those colors would make a great centerpiece for the dining room table.

As I was looking at this idea more, it's also something that would be very easy to make as a fun and unique gift. Walmart has several clear vases to choose from, some only $1 each!

And you wouldn't have to stop with vases, either. What about candle holders (making sure your yarn won't end up too close to the flame, of course)? Or tin can pencil holders?

Check out a great tutorial on how to make these yarn vases here.

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50% off Great Photo Gifts!

SeeHere has all of their photo gifts on sale - 50% off for two days only!

You could get a personalized photo calendar for just $9.99! This would be a great gift idea for a family member. I'm planning to order one full of pictures of the kids and I for my husband to hang up at work.

Head over here on 11/22 or 11/23 to check it out!

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Frugal Gift of the Day: Snowman Candy Bars!

I think that has to be one of the cutest ideas, if not the cutest, I have seen this year. What a fun way to give something as simple as a candy bar! If your gift giving budget is tight this year, this would be an idea to try! Especially if you can keep your eye out for a great sale on chocolate bars! Or, as the post says, you can could use microwave popcorn or theatre candy boxes!

Check out the tutorial to make these cute little guys over at It's Been a Hard Day's Night.

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Crafting Away Today: Fleece Blankets

Be keeping your eyes out for some great sales on fleece. Right before Christmas, last year, JoAnn's had all their fleece on sale for just $2.99 a yard! All of the fleece - even the patterned bolts! I'm really hoping they do this again.

If you can get it at a good price, tying fleece blankets is a great frugal gift idea. They're easy to personalize by choosing fleece patterns that fit the person on your list. You can make them any size you like - I made a HUGE one for my honey that is fun for two to snuggle under! I also made two small ones for our two little ones. They love to cuddle up with these warm, soft blankets.

And the best part of all is - these make up in a snap! I've made a whole blanket while watching a movie!

A Big Cup of Tea has a great picture tutorial here.

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Crafting Away Today - Fabric Notebook Covers

I have to say that I love the Skip to My Lou blog. She has such great tutorial and I always feel so inspired looking at the ideas she has to offer!

Today's post is no different than usual - these fabric notebook covers should make up in a snap and would make great gifts for anyone! They fit the Steno notebooks you can find for $1 @ Walmart. As a gift you could make one fabric cover and wrap it along with a couple of the notebooks. When one notebook is full, just switch the cover to the next one.

These would be great for students, moms, teachers, co-workers, friends... you name it! It's always more fun to write in something that's pretty to look at! Change your fabric choices and you could make some masculine covers for the boys and men on your gift list, too.

Skip to My Lou offers the pattern for download for just $1.99 here.

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Awesome FREE Christmas ebook!

Head over to Homeschool Freebie of the Day to download your free "Christmas Cookie Plate Project" ebook. I just saved mine to my computer and checked it out and this is a great little book!

In the ebook, Sheri outlines all the steps to making great Christmas cookie plates for family and friends this holiday season! She has a time table for making the different cookies over the period of a couple of weeks and then putting the plates together at the end. Sheri even includes a grocery shopping list!

Even if you don't plan to make a bunch of cookie plates, there are a bunch of yummy-looking recipes in this ebook to save for later.

And remember, it's Free to download - but only for today!

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Frugal Gift of the Day: Handmade Playdough Kits!

Life with Ella & Lucie has an excellent post here on how to easily make inexpensive playdough kits. These would make great gift ideas! What a fun stocking stuffer this Christmas! Or, what about a party favor for your little one's next birthday?

If you didn't want to make your own playdough, you could buy the containers to include in your kits instead. Target has three mini cans of playdough for under $1.50.

You could also get cookie cutters that leave imprints (like these) to make the kits even more fun.

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Crafting Away Today - Fabric Fortune Cookies

These "cookies" are too cute of an idea not to pass along! They look like they make up easily and would make a fun hostess gift this holiday season! What a special way to give a message to someone! Or, just set them out on your coffee table for a great conversation piece!

Check out the great tutorial over at Brassy Apples.

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Today's Frugal Gift Idea: Next-to-free ideas!

Mom's Frugal has a post with lots of ideas for celebrating Christmas when your budget is next-to-nothing. There are thoughts on cards, decorations, stocking stuffers, gifts, etc.. You may not be able to use all of the ideas but there might be a few worth keeping in mind!

The Prudent Homemaker also has a post with frugal gift ideas. I haven't had a chance to check out the whole list yet but look forward to doing so! I have a lot of my Christmas shopping done for this year but am already trying to keep my eyes out for ideas for birthday gifts throughout next year. Surely you know some young boy (or maybe not so young?) who would like a marshmellow shooter!

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Crafting Away Today - Portable High Chair

I am LOVING this idea! Our baby girl is super active already, wanting to get into everything within reach. I just know that she isn't going to be like her big brother who sat quietly in chairs from the start. This "chair" is a great idea to keep in the car to have on hand when needed. Not everyone has an extra booster or high chair at their house so this will come in really handy!

Thanks to Handmade by Jill for the inspiration of this portable high chair!

This would make a great gift, too, for a new mom!

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Crafting Away Today - Cute Dollhouse purse

Frugal Family Fun has so many great creative, fun, and easy craft ideas to share! I'm loving her latest post - Fabric Dollhouse!

The little purse is such a cute idea! It doesn't look hard to make at all and would be a great thing to take along when out and about for your little girl to pretend with. I'll have to keep it in mind for when our Baby Girl is a bit older.

I'm thinking that you could also make this into a garage and have your little boy store his cars inside. Or what about a little store with groceries inside? The possibilities are really endless!

If you have the time and inclination, this could make a fun Christmas gift for some little girl on your list.

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Today's Frugal Gift to Give: Fun and Cheap!

Tip Junkie has a great post here listing 24 really cute, easy and inexpensive gift ideas worth checking out. Most of these would be great to make with your kids for friends, school teachers, Sunday School teachers, the mail man, you name it! It's fun just to look through the list and read the little poems - they'll bring a smile to your face!

One of my favorites was the bag of Jolly Ranchers pictured above. The note says: "Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas!"

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Muffin Tin Monday Gift Idea!

As I posted here and here, I've started planning Muffin meals for Bubba lately. It's a really fun way to serve meals to him and helps him eat more of his food!

I got to thinking that this could make a great, creative gift for other moms of toddlers (between my family and my husband's, we have a few!). I know of a few moms who really struggle with getting their kiddos to eat well.

So, I thought - What about buying some muffin tins in fun shapes and colors and including a booklet of different muffin tin meal ideas! Her Cup Overfloweth has a ton of ideas you might use!

Also, here are some fun muffin tin options from Amazon (I think the silicone ones are perfect for this idea with all the fun colors you can get!):

* Green Christmas tree tin for $9.50

*Blue tin for $9.99

* Same tin in orange for $9.99

* Green Flower tin for $9.99

* Blue Star tin for $9.99
* Red heart tin for $9.99

* Orange leaf and pumpkin tin for $9.99

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Crafting Away Today: Adapt a bit - these are really cute!

Okay, so I know that these are decorated for halloween but with a little bit of imagination, I think they can easily be changed to fit either Thanksgiving or Christmas! What a CUTE little gift idea for coworkers, friends, teachers, neighbors! Get your kids involved and personalize them as you choose! Change the stickers and tissue paper, fill them with holiday chocolotes and candies (maybe the Martha Stewart Dove chocolates I told you about here) and you have a sweet little gift!

Check out April's great tutorial here (you'll have to scroll down a bit to find the post)!

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Crafting Away Today: Handmade Coasters

These coasters would make the perfect Christmas, wedding, or homewarming gift! They look super quick to make up and would cost next to nothing! Tie them up with a pretty bow like shown and you're all set!

Check out the great tutorial here.

Thanks, Skip to my Lou!

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Today's Frugal Gift to Give - Make a Felt Lunchbag set

Okay, does it get any cuter than this?

I've been looking into things to make with felt - it's so easy to work with! - and this looks like a really fun project. It could make a great gift for a toddler to play with (after they get to point where "pretend food" is obvious, of course)!

Skip to my Lou has the tutorial for the lunchbag set here.

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Crafting Away Today: Fun Kitchen Towels

What a fun, easy, and QUICK project these would be!

Dollar Store Crafts, a blog I stumbled upon and am already completely hooked on, has more info on how to make them here. Be sure to look around her blog a bit more - I love all the quick and easy ideas using materials you can get so reasonably.

These would make great gifts or use them to decorate your own kitchen!

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Today's Frugal Gift to Give - M&M'S® Gift Jar Cookie Mix

I don't know about you, but I love M&Ms. Especially the peanut ones but, really, any kind will do! So, I think that today's frugal gift idea is a great one! I also love easy baking - with this mix, just a few wet ingredients are needed and viola: delicious cookies!

Again, this gift is something that you can make several of at the same time. You can leave the jars undecorated or cover the lids with fabric tied with a ribbon. Make several that look alike or personalize each jar individually! Give these for Christmas gifts (I got a brownie jar mix as a Sunday School teacher one year and loved it!), housewarming gifts, for college students, new moms...you name it!

Get the M&M® Cookie Mix recipe pictured above here.

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