Nature Inspired Decorating

February 25, 2016December 29, 2017 / Frugal Fish / Leave a comment

What do you do when you want to decorate for a holiday, but have few decorations?

Let nature inspire you!

Plate pattern resembles bare trees.

When I look outside, there is not much green showing yet. The trees have just started to bud. The pattern on these plates reminds me of the trees before the leaves sprout. I pulled out the green glass bowl for its color, and on the other side of my china cabinet is a wooden bowl.

This green bud vase reminds me of a new plant shooting through the soil.

Of course, I am going to stick some Shamrocks up around the house. The string of green and white lights was not long enough to go around the outside of my big window. I made two swags and let the remainder of the lights hang down the sides. It looks like a curtain from the outside. I love the bud vase and the touch of green it adds to my windowsill.

Many can create decorations using tree branches that fell this winter. They are like sculpture in the house.

DIY St. Patrick’s Day Wreath

February 23, 2016December 29, 2017 / Frugal Fish / Leave a comment

While shopping at Joann’s, I was looking at a pair of over-the-knee, striped, St. Patrick’s Day socks, with black lace trim, and asked my husband,

“Do you think I could pull these off?”

“Green is not your color,” he wisely replied.

I kept looking through the rest of the Shamrock themed decorations and found a wreath I really liked made of wooden cut-out hearts and decorated with Shamrocks. I looked at it closer and realized they were stickers!

They wanted $25.00 for a wooden wreath with stickers!

I had a wooden wreath, made with heart-shaped pieces, in my garage. I decided I would just make my own. Only, I didn’t have any stickers. I got out my St. Patrick’s Day decorations and found these.

Shamrock cupcake papers and picks.

I cut a heart shape out of one of the cupcake papers and glued it to the top heart in the wreath. After removing the plastic picks, I glued the Shamrocks and Lucky stickers on to my wreath. I ended up with the same wreath for free!

DIY St. Patrick’s Day wreath.

When you look at it from the street, you cannot tell it is just a wooden wreath with stickers!

Look around your home before you buy a new decoration. You just might have what you need to make it yourself.

The Dark Side of Blogging

February 18, 2016January 12, 2018 / Frugal Fish / 3 Comments

Two of my friends have started blogging here at WordPress.com. I enjoy reading their posts, but blogging is so much more than writing.

There are several things to consider before you commit yourself to this treadmill:

Do you write every day? I am talking about a page or two in a journal, not a paragraph in a diary. I post 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to my first blog, and twice a week, to this blog. (I’ve kept a journal since I was 13.)
Do you want to write or are you hoping for fame? There are 665,000,000 blogs on WordPress alone and other platforms for blogging.
Do you want to write for yourself or for others? Affiliate marketing seems the way to make millions. The sad thing is, once a blog gets on that carousel, they have to write posts with their opinion about the affiliate’s products. Two blogs I used to love, sometimes sit in my email unread because of the posts that are just about products. I used to read them faithfully.
Is this something you see yourself doing 25 years from now? The raw truth is you can write for years and not receive any recognition or income. I am in year #7.
Do you mind having a target on your forehead? Yesterday, there was another attempt to hack into one of my email addresses. I cannot tell you how often I have changed my passwords. Once they get through, you have to change passwords on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and any other service you use.
Do you like using all the social media services? There are several more services suggested for frugalfish.org. I haven’t had the time, and I honestly wonder how everyone keeps up with all of them.
Do you like to read boring stuff, like a users manual? Technology changes all the time. You will be making decisions about your blog in all areas.
How about taking classes? Are you fluent in HTML, SEO, CSS, and others? I’m not! I’ve taken five classes, and have two reference books: “WordPress for Dummies,” and “Search Engine Optimization for Dummies.” I had to take two HTML classes to understand both of these books.
Are you willing to pay for the rest of your life? I seriously considered dropping this blog and concentrating on my other blog. The only problem is my domain name is out there and linked to this blog. If I don’t continue paying for it, someone else can purchase it and post whatever they want. They could ruin my reputation. Your most important asset is your name and reputation. Protect it.
How comfortable are you talking to strangers? You will be writing to strangers and they do not know you. Many will not “get you.” Which leads to…
Negative, hateful comments, criticisms, and insults. How thick is your skin? Some bloggers post the negative comments and then defend them. I choose not to publish them. I am not here to debate, I am here to give you ideas to save money and live without debt.
Do you have a large group of friends who also blog? I don’t. Most of my friends didn’t even know what a blog was when I started! Many blogs have several comments because they have a group of friends and they comment on each other’s blogs.
How comfortable are you talking about personal topics? We share parts of our lives: the good, the bad, and the ugly. I stick to sharing the good things, although, I try to update a post when it fails.
Do you like reading emails? You can receive notifications when someone: comments on your post, likes your post, likes your comments, and there is a daily post to help you improve your blog.
What if your post goes viral? Then you have to worry about the next post. Will you be able to keep your audience? You may have to spend some money…like buying a domain name if you do not have one. Some who have gone viral have had to change their email addresses and shut off notifications.
Whatever service you sign up for you will be paying for from now on. I purchased a website for one of my blogs. I used part an inheritance to pay for it. When it came time to renew, we happened to have a large windfall. When it came due again, my husband was unemployed. I went back to just having a blog, but now I have to pay a small fee for my domain name to be mapped back to the blog where it all started.
How are your spelling and grammar? Every day I review a page from the book, “The Elements of Style,” by William Strunk, Jr. This grammar book gives the principal requirements of plain English style. It is more than knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there! (Note: Spellcheck can be as bad as autocorrect on your phone!)

Blogging is more than just sharing your awesome thoughts.

It’s a huge commitment. Sometimes, I wish I had just sent my posts to “The Penny Hoarder.” They pay for posts.

(You can also share your awesome thoughts in comments on other blogs.)

This is where it all started.

DIY Queen Costume

February 16, 2016January 12, 2018 / Frugal Fish / 1 Comment

Did you see me get my Grammy last night?
Oh, wait…I received my award a few weeks ago…
…but it wasn’t a Grammy.

Our church holds a Volunteer Banquet to feed, thank, and generally spoil all the volunteers. There is a catered meal, games, prizes, and “Star Awards” given to the volunteer of the year in several categories:

“In appreciation for rising to the challenge of commitment, demonstrating an attitude of excellence and sacrificing beyond expectation.”

The theme this year was “Star Wars.” I decided to go as Luke Skywalker’s mom. I have so much in common with her:
• We both have a son named Luke.
• We both have a daughter: hers is Leia and mine is Laura.
• We both married younger men.

I didn’t want to wear black clothes, with the white face makeup of Queen Amidala; and since she died in childbirth, I decided to go as the pregnant version.

The actress in the movie who played Queen Amidala wore velvet a lot. I got out the maxi dress I wore to senior prom because it had velvet on it. The dress is pink, with a wine-colored, velvet inlay and attached capelet overlay. I had to remake it a bit.

I took the cameo off of the front and replaced it with a rhinestone embellishment from my little black dress. That pin had a hole in the center. I folded over several layers of wine-colored tulle and used it to fill in the hole.

Then I made a floor length cape to go over it. I took a velour throw and hemmed one edge. The satin ribbon belt from one of my bridesmaid’s dresses made a good tie. The throw was wine colored, and the ribbon was pink.

I put a “bump-it” in my hair and combed the hair over it. I secured it in the back with a jeweled barrette and put my tiara from a Queen contest on in front. I wore crystal earrings and a crystal, beaded necklace.

Since Luke’s mom in the movie died after giving birth, I pinned some binding to a small pillow to make a baby bump. I wrapped the binding around the front and tied it.

I was all set to win the costume contest because most people said they were not going in costume. We could go in costume, wear a “Star Wars” t-shirt, or wear street clothes. (They jokingly said the only ones in costume were under the age of 40!)

I didn’t win.

Then our family won the award in the music ministry category and I had to go up on the platform…in my prom dress, looking pregnant, for pictures! David was a big help. In the first picture, he pointed to the pillow. Luckily, they took another one!

When it comes to making costumes, you do not have to rent them. Sometimes the most comfortable ones are hiding in a storage tote, or trunk, in the attic.

Queen Costume and the Star Award we won that night.

DIY Last Minute Valentine’s Day Ideas

February 11, 2016January 12, 2018 / Frugal Fish / Leave a comment

Losing heart over what to do for Valentine’s Day?

Do you need…

Diamonds? No!
Reservations at the most expensive place in town? No!
A flight to Paris? No!
A dozen red roses? No!
25 lb. box of chocolates? No!
A night in a ritzy hotel? No!

The most treasured gifts are gifts from the heart:

Recreate your first date.
Write a love letter.
Make a list of all the things you love about them.

If you would rather cook, here a few ideas from us:

“Make Your Valentine Homemade Chocolates”
“A Loaf of Bread, A Jug of Wine, and Thou” “Everyday Cocoa Brownies”

You don’t even have to spend money on decorations!

“No-Sew Valentine’s Day Table Runner”

Everyone understands a message from the heart.

My Valentine’s Day table runner.

A Gift from the Heart

February 9, 2016January 12, 2018 / Frugal Fish / Leave a comment

We returned my husband’s Christmas present last weekend. I told him I was not going to buy him another present because he just returns them! The Christmas before I bought him a Blu-Ray player and he returned it. (He got laid off a week after Christmas and decided we would need the money more than the gift.)

Now I am trying to decide what to do about Valentine’s Day. Then I thought of the perfect gift. I am going to do something that he enjoys and I abhor!

I will sit through some ball game.

It’s not that I haven’t been to ball games before, but I didn’t have much choice. I went to two St. Louis Cardinals games because the tickets were part of the perks for attending a lumberman’s convention.

I sat through a million volleyball, baseball, basketball, and football games because my kids were playing. I usually took something to do because it was only interesting when I was watching my child.

I was smart enough not to offer this gift until after the Super Bowl. That sucker takes all afternoon and evening. I also wanted to give him this gift before baseball season starts. Those games go on for hours and hours and hours and hours!

The point is…

Choose something your Valentine loves, that you don’t. (I think they call that sacrificial giving.)

P.S. “Hey, Babe, this is your card!”

Something New

February 4, 2016January 12, 2018 / Frugal Fish / 1 Comment

We all like to have something new in our homes. We walk by that piece of furniture, or lamp, and pause because it freshens up our space. Most of us do not have the funds to buy something new every month.

That is why I love decorating for the seasons and every holiday. I get out the decorations and there is something “new” to look at.

I like creating vignettes around the house when I decorate. Creating a vignette is not difficult; you only need a theme or something the pieces all have in common.

These items all have a rough texture. I cross-stitched the Valentine many years ago and didn’t put it in the frame until this year. I have had the frame for many years, too.

I wanted this lantern behind my front door and chose two other items with a touch of black in them. The china cup was brought back from China when my friends picked up their new daughter, Grace. (Chinese New Year is February 8th this year.)

These items are all made out of wood. Grace’s mom was my daughter’s preschool teacher and she made the heart for her for Christmas.

My theme was Valentine's and Snowmen this year. I tried to put both in all of my vignette. This "kiss" is actually a pin!

My theme was Valentine’s and Snowmen this year. I tried to put both in all of my vignettes. This “kiss” is actually a pin!

I have decorations made by friends, my children, and this year my granddaughter. She gave us the worm last year.

Preschool teachers are so crafty. This snowman was made the the teacher of our youngest son.

Preschool teachers are so crafty. This snowman was made by the teacher of our youngest son for Christmas. My daughter made the tiny snowman pin in Girl Scouts.

Another Girls Scouts craft.

Frosted pine cones made a good substitute for snow around the base of my snake plant.

Sometimes the best vignette consists of a lot of smaller items like cookie cutters and glass heart-shaped pieces.

I added a few glass heart-shaped pieces to my snowmen salt and pepper shakers and napkin holder igloo.

I can hear you saying, “But, I don’t have any Valentine decorations or kid’s crafts.” Just be creative with the colors: red, pink, cranberry, and white.

A red ribbon around a planter; a Kansas City Chiefs throw; and a quilt folded to expose the red blocks all serve as Valentine decorations.

You can also just set out red, white, and pink candles.

Make a Valentine vignette and enjoy something new.

Flame-less Tea Lights

February 2, 2016January 24, 2018 / Frugal Fish / Leave a comment

Frugality is important to me, but safety is even more important!

When I was in high school, our family had a house fire that destroyed the upstairs. I lost everything. I don’t mess around with fire.

Once there was smoke in the laundry room and I called the fire department. One of the young guys gave me a hard time because there was no longer smoke and they couldn’t find any fire.

The fire chief jumped down his throat. He growled, “If you lived through the kind of fire she lived through you would call at the first sign of smoke, too.”

Then they moved the dryer vent and saw the burned insulation.

$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $

I love candlelight, but you cannot leave the room when a candle is burning. That is why I love flame-less candles!

When I decorated for Valentine’s Day, I got out two small lamps that used tea lights. I was able to put them in my china cabinet because of the flame-less tea lights. I could never do that with a regular tea light. It is especially pretty at night.