Keep Your Car Clean!

I’ve introduced a new fabric into my shop, Palace Designs. I’ve been using my own Auto Litter Bag in my car for about a year and it comes in really handy. We’re all guilty of having  some form of trash and/or recycling rolling around our cars at some point. Tissues, wrappers, cups, bottles, gum wrappers, etc. can pile up in a hurry! This keeps it out of the seats, off of the floor, and out of door pockets. I empty the trash/recycling every day into the containers on our carport.

I’ve added this new “Go Green” print and below is an example of a finished product. Terribly sorry for the grainy photos! I will be so glad to have my camera back!

New "Go Green" print

If it gets dirty, you just toss these in the washing machine. You could use them as a wetbag in a pinch, but they are not waterproof. I can add snaps to them as well.

This is just one of my efforts to Go Green this year and to encourage others  as well. You can check out all the prints and patterns at my shop here, and Right now you can get 20% off your orders with code: GOGREEN.

If you’re a fan on Facebook, there’s an even better code listed. 🙂

 _______________________________________________

I loop mine around my drive shaft in the center of the car. Use this with caution. You never want to hang your bag where it can hinder your driving ability.

DIY Christmas Ornaments

I store our Christmas ornaments in one of those divided ornament protecting boxes. It turns out it will protect them as long as they don’t fall from a tower of boxes five feet off the ground. Eek! Sooo… I broke the majority of our glass ornaments shortly before we moved when they fell off a tower of storage boxes. Now I’ve got to make some ornaments!

I found these whimsical wooden “frames” at Michael’s ages ago on clearance. I had no idea what I’d do with them at the time but they were around 30 cents each so I couldn’t resist. Using some recycled ribbon from my baby shower and some photos of my favorite guy, I turned these frames into cute ornaments in just minutes.

These were plain wood. I painted them Silver.

Sorry for the grainy pictures. I miss my camera. 😦

I used my heavy duty stapler to staple the photos to the back. Easy Peasy!

I think these turned out pretty darn cute! An idea like this would make great gift tags as well! Personalize presents by making ornaments to use as tags instead of purchasing those sticker labels and such!

Last Minute Thanksgiving Decor

Check out this FREE E-Book with 30 DIY Thanksgiving crafts from Fave Crafts. Print it out or print only the crafts you want to try. Several can be accomplished using supplies you already have!

Redesign some of those boring white dishes with some glass paint and creativity! If you don’t have any, think about picking up some inexpensive ones at a yard sale. You could create some as beautiful as these:

Use toilet paper/paper towel rolls and felt to create cute napkin rings like these:

Use old holiday cards to create a collage with the kids. (Christmas or Thanksgiving) Glue them onto poster board and cut to place mat size. Laminate, and you have your own custom, festive holiday placemats! Think about using photos, decopauge papers, and recycled mail as well!

Disney Family Fun has DIY crafts and printables.  I love these doilies:

And these adorable turkey chair covers:

Laurie at Tip Junkie has also compiled 16 frugal ideas for you here.

 

Sale at Gaiam

Eco-Friendly Cards

Just in time for Christmas card season! Send your Christmas cards in “Green” style this year! Eversave has $50 worth of eco-friendly cards on sale today for $20! Sign up today and get a $2.00 credit! That’s $18 for $50 worth of Christmas Cards, Holiday Party invitations, Birthday Announcements, etc.

• Get ready for the holidays with personalized party invites and photo cards
• Paper Culture, a carbon neutral company, will plant a tree in your honor with every purchase

Fall Wall Art

Our living room is already nature-themed with browns and tans and leaf covered curtains. I still feel that it’s in need of some sprucing up for Fall so I’ve been scouring the house and our storage shed for things in Fall colors. This tutorial is not at all eco-friendly unless you consider that it’s handmade from things I already had and the pumpkins are printed on recycled paper, but it was really easy and inexpensive.

Starting Supplies

These pumpkins are courtesy of Disney Family Fun. Disney Family Fun has some really cute printables throughout the year for personal organization, home decor, crafts for the kids and more. Check it out!

Mix a little

Next I mixed some acrylics. I started out with no plan for this project. I had a blank canvas that has been mocking me and loved the pattern on these pumpkin “doilies.” My fabric way to paint is just to put paint to canvas and see what happens.

I ended up with a wash like this.

Three Pumpkins

And this was the end result…

 

_______________________________________________________________

I apologize for the poor clarity of pictures. My camera is broken and my phone is all I have to work with at the moment.

Reclaimed Wood

Another extremely cool eco-friendly piece featured on The Foundary today is this awesome reclaimed wood lamp! This is only one of the modern creations by Shiner Reclaimed Furniture at The Foundary. They’ve got some other fabulous bargains going on as well!

For those of you who don’t know, The Foundary compiles lots of companies and lots of products at DRASTICALLY discounted prices! Discounts of up to 70% off!

Now for the fun part…… want to make some money? They give you $1.00 for every person that signs up if you refer them! It’s COMPLETELY FREE!  So… save some money on items you’re already purchasing and save even more by referring your friends! Either way, you win!

Fall Arrangement

If you’ve got some milk or juice cartons, don’t throw them out! You can easily create this unique arrangement that will light up your home at this year’s Thanksgiving feast.

Cut your carton to the size that you want using a sharp knife. I love the Fiskars finger tip knife because it’s smile and easy to guide.

After a coat of paint, I have a work in progress:

I cut out a leaf pattern on my center holder and have ideas for trim to go around this arrangment using leaves, acorns, and other outdoor treats the Fall brings to our yard. I will post a final view when the arrangement is complete in time for the holidays. 🙂

 

***CAUTION: Some paints are flammable! If using a flammable paint, it’s best to use an immitation tealight.***

Fall Wreath Idea

I saw this on Tip Junkie, and had to share it with you all! This is one of the cutest darn wreaths I have ever seen! Made from book pages, this would be a perfect recycling project for one of those dusty novels lining your shelves!

A Recycled Arrangement

This adorable arrangement would make a great feature on your tabletop, desk, or side table! Made from recycled plastic bottles, this Green Decor can be personalized with your childrens’ faces! This adorable arrangement is courtesy of Tracie Lampe of Radical Recyks.