Forsyth County families can spend quality time together decorating with what Mother Nature has given us in our own backyards.
The holiday season is in full swing and with all of the gift buying, house decorating and parties that keep us moving and spending, it is hard to remember to take the time to enjoy this time of the year. It does not matter what holiday you celebrate this month or if you do any at all. This is the perfect time to decorate your home, get the kids involved and save money while being festive.
Decorating the yard is something that so many of us are doing right now. The lights are everywhere and they are spectacular. If you have not bought lights yet and still want to brighten up the walkways, trees and your home, head over to Home Depot. Many of the smaller stores are very limited on selection about now and the light sections are getting picked over, but Home Depot seems to still have the best selection. They also have some very large ornaments and yard art displays that you can get.
Bringing the outdoors in is a very cheap and easy way to decorate your home. Send the kids out to the yard to hunt for twigs, pine cones and holly berries. These are all items that many have to pay for at craft stores and we are lucky enough to have them free in our yards and neighborhoods.
Go to Michaels armed with your coupon and buy some spray paint and glitter. If you really want to save money, do two transactions and use two coupons. Spray paint the branches and pine cones to display in your house. You can also roll them in glitter while the paint is wet or lightly paint them with glue and roll them in glitter once they have been painted. Using metallic colors, green, red and other bright colors mixed in the same decorative arrangement will make it look like you spent a lot more than you did on the decor. Place them in a tall vase on the floor, tie them together to make a swag for your wall or cut and shape them to make a wreath with twist ties. You can leave them plain or accent with a ribbon or bow.
Adding small touches like gluing holly berries to pine cones or to the wreathes will add more color to the decorations. Buying these pre-made at craft and home decor stores will cost you several times what it will if you make it yourself and use coupons for your supplies.
Home Depot, Lowes and Ace all sell birdseed in large bags. This is the time of year when the birds really depend on us to help them in our back yards. If we are going to do it, we may as well decorate with the feeders as well. Mix birdseed with honey or peanut butter until the consistency feels and looks like play-doh. Place the mixture in a silicone shaped ice cube or cake molds sold at Bed Bath and Beyond. Freeze it overnight and hang from the trees with colored ribbons or string. You can do this in the shapes of gingerbread men, trees and wreathes. Add cranberries or other berries to get some extra color as well.
The kids can cover pine cones in honey or peanut butter and roll it in birdseed, this is a simple way to make an inexpensive feeder as well. Make several to hang from the trees and the squirrels and birds will thank you.
With all of these garage sales out there offering holiday items, there are bound to be some great deals on Christmas trees and wreathes. Buy them when they are cheap at these sales.
When you have the time, be sure to get in the kitchen with the kids and bake. You can freeze breads and cookies and these make excellent gifts for neighbors and friends. Starting from scratch is the fool proof way and the cheapest way to bake, although it can be more time consuming. Make a day of it and involve the whole family. Start with ideas here.
Paper crafts are fun and easy decorations as well. You can buy colored paper at Michaels and Walmart. Be sure to use the coupons for Michaels. Search the Web for whatever you need patterns for. Whether it is a countdown to Christmas chain, snowflakes or Christmas trees, the ideas and patterns are out there.
This holiday season, decorating your home and spending time with your family is easy and cheap to do if you just take the time to do it. Remember why we love this time of the year. It slows us down, bundles us up and allows us the opportunity to light a fire and relax with the family. Make some memories during this time while making your home festive and beautiful. Of course, saving money while doing so is always a bonus as well.
About this column: Our weekly column is dedicated to giving you great local deals each week that will help your family’s bottom line, and since we do the scouting for you, this allows you to save time as well as money. Let us hear about the deals you've seen. Just add them to the comment box and happy shopping!
Decorating the yard is something that so many of us are doing right now. The lights are everywhere and they are spectacular. If you have not bought lights yet and still want to brighten up the walkways, trees and your home, head over to Home Depot. Many of the smaller stores are very limited on selection about now and the light sections are getting picked over, but Home Depot seems to still have the best selection. They also have some very large ornaments and yard art displays that you can get.
Bringing the outdoors in is a very cheap and easy way to decorate your home. Send the kids out to the yard to hunt for twigs, pine cones and holly berries. These are all items that many have to pay for at craft stores and we are lucky enough to have them free in our yards and neighborhoods.
Go to Michaels armed with your coupon and buy some spray paint and glitter. If you really want to save money, do two transactions and use two coupons. Spray paint the branches and pine cones to display in your house. You can also roll them in glitter while the paint is wet or lightly paint them with glue and roll them in glitter once they have been painted. Using metallic colors, green, red and other bright colors mixed in the same decorative arrangement will make it look like you spent a lot more than you did on the decor. Place them in a tall vase on the floor, tie them together to make a swag for your wall or cut and shape them to make a wreath with twist ties. You can leave them plain or accent with a ribbon or bow.
Adding small touches like gluing holly berries to pine cones or to the wreathes will add more color to the decorations. Buying these pre-made at craft and home decor stores will cost you several times what it will if you make it yourself and use coupons for your supplies.
Home Depot, Lowes and Ace all sell birdseed in large bags. This is the time of year when the birds really depend on us to help them in our back yards. If we are going to do it, we may as well decorate with the feeders as well. Mix birdseed with honey or peanut butter until the consistency feels and looks like play-doh. Place the mixture in a silicone shaped ice cube or cake molds sold at Bed Bath and Beyond. Freeze it overnight and hang from the trees with colored ribbons or string. You can do this in the shapes of gingerbread men, trees and wreathes. Add cranberries or other berries to get some extra color as well.
The kids can cover pine cones in honey or peanut butter and roll it in birdseed, this is a simple way to make an inexpensive feeder as well. Make several to hang from the trees and the squirrels and birds will thank you.
With all of these garage sales out there offering holiday items, there are bound to be some great deals on Christmas trees and wreathes. Buy them when they are cheap at these sales.
When you have the time, be sure to get in the kitchen with the kids and bake. You can freeze breads and cookies and these make excellent gifts for neighbors and friends. Starting from scratch is the fool proof way and the cheapest way to bake, although it can be more time consuming. Make a day of it and involve the whole family. Start with ideas here.
Paper crafts are fun and easy decorations as well. You can buy colored paper at Michaels and Walmart. Be sure to use the coupons for Michaels. Search the Web for whatever you need patterns for. Whether it is a countdown to Christmas chain, snowflakes or Christmas trees, the ideas and patterns are out there.
This holiday season, decorating your home and spending time with your family is easy and cheap to do if you just take the time to do it. Remember why we love this time of the year. It slows us down, bundles us up and allows us the opportunity to light a fire and relax with the family. Make some memories during this time while making your home festive and beautiful. Of course, saving money while doing so is always a bonus as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment