Updo for Wreaths

Good Morning "Thrifties"!

I know we are all about Christmas decorated out by now but it's never to late to think about next year especially as the stores being to increase the mark downs on their Christmas decorations. We know Christmas will be coming again next year and as smart thrifty people we don't want to pay full price unless absolutely necessary! LOL!

One of the things that could use an "updo" is our wreaths. A quick way to do that is to tie a Christmas sign or hang another type of decoration on it. You can see what I'm talking about in the pictures. The green berry wreath is one of the oldest ones I have but I can't seem to let it go so this year I added a pair of tartan ice skates to it. The wreath with the reindeer is actually a sign you would hang on the door by itself but I thought it would be too plain so I tied it to this "cheap" plain wreath. Add a ribbon and ta da you have an "updo." The lighted wreath on our front door has a big metal red and white polka dot "M" on it. Again all you have to do is tie your "updo" on with some green florist wire and add a pretty ribbon.

So when the Christmas discounts begin to rise don't forget to look about some things you could tie on your wreaths next year. Who knows your wreath may look better than it ever has. Just a thought. There are so many cute tree decorations that you could tie them all around your wreaths too.

I hope ya'll are ready for tomorrow! With all the preparations done now hopefully we can relax and enjoy ourselves. Merry Christmas to each of you!!

Cute Christmas Signs

Hello Christmas Friends!

I wouldn't have believed it but Hobby Lobby, Target and Joann's aren't the only places with cute Christmas decorations. Believe it or not Tractor Supply has Christmas decorations. I went there to get some bird seed and passed by shelves loaded with Christmas things.

These two little signs are just a few examples. They are painted with my favorite words...Peace and Joy. Don't we all want peace and joy? Well, this is the season for celebrating the One who brought peace and joy to us. Jesus is the reason for the season. I may leave these signs out all year long as a reminder of two of the gifts Jesus has given to the world.

Oh, by the way Tractor Supply had their Christmas stuff marked down 40% too. These little signs were only $4.19 each. So don't leave Tractor Supply off your list of places to stop by and shop. They have a lot of clothes, bird feeders and books as well as the regular farm supplies.

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas! Enjoy your family and friends but most of all celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!!

Christmas Add Ons

Hi Christmas friends!

Aren't we all getting in the spirit of Christmas whether that's shopping or songs on the radio? So we might as well enjoy this wonderful time of the year. After all it's not about the gifts or the goodies we eat or the parties we attend. It's about God showing His great grace and mercy to all people by sending His Son to us.

Well as the title of this post says we are going to talk about Christmas add ons. Maybe you don't understand what I mean by that but I'm going to show you. Really it's very easy and these little Christmas touches can dress things up.

The pictures at the top show where I have added a Christmas ornament to the knob that turns the lamp on. One of the other lamps has a little wreath hooked on the knob and the other one has a small door hanger on it. Just a little touch and your lamps get into the Christmas spirit.

We've all got a few extra cute ornaments we could showcase on the lamps that might not be seen as well on the tree. Plus you get to see them every time you turn the lamp off and on.

I hope you all have a great weekend and remember to breathe and stay "Thrifty" too!!

Party Fluff

Hey y'all!
How's everyone doing this week? How's the Christmas shopping coming along? We know that in addition to all the normal laundry, grocery shopping and house cleaning we can't forget to mark our a little fun time. "Girls just gotta have fun!"

These cute little napkins and cups are simply over the top. In the picture I also included the name of the woman who creates these cuties. She sets up at Christmas Village every year which is where I found this party fluff. It's all about the details in whatever we are doing that make things special.

Enjoy your week and remember to "Stay Thrifty" this week!!

Seasonal Sips

Hello to y'all!

Everybody in our little town wants Trader Joe's to come and set up their store but so far they haven't. But there are still a couple of stores within 17 miles or so. Trader Joe's carries some really neat stuff at a good price. If you haven't visited their store it is a real treat even if you don't buy anything.

A lot of the time we get so interested in getting their food items we miss the sips they have. When I was there yesterday I found their Winter Wassail, Peppermint Hot Chocolate and Salted Carmel Hot Chocolate. Thrifty Honey really likes hot chocolate so he is all set to celebrate Christmas with these two festive sips.

These would make great Christmas gifts too. You could add a mug or maybe a cute dish towel. The cost isn't bad. The Salted Carmel hot chocolate was $3.99. The Peppermint hot chocolate was $4.99 and the Winter Wassail was $3.99.

Sometimes even coffee drinkers like a cup of hot chocolate on cold winter days. I hope you all are getting into the Christmas spirit and finishing your shopping early so you can take some time to have a cup of your favorite sip and put your feet up.

Have a blessed weekend and "Stay Thrifty."

Hall Updo for $55.00

                                       Thrifty Honey covering the red!      

                 

                                               The new blue!

Hello Friends!

I hope you all are having a wonderful week. We all survived Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. LOL!

While we didn't participate in anything but the food part of this three fold event Thrifty Honey was busy painting our hall. We had painted it from "ugly" to a subdued red about 12 years ago so it was due an update. This color is Commodore from Sherwin Williams.

Although there was a lot of cutting in because of all the doors it only took him about six hour for the cut in and painting the rest of the walls two times. Now we aren't really fans of blue but this color looks kind of like something off the pages of a Ralph Lauren ad.

Paint is always a reasonable remodel option and Thrifty Honey is an excellent painter. (Thanks Honey!)

Well, there is still time for an updo at your house before Christmas. You all have a great rest of the week and stay "Thrifty."

Christmas Tree Garland

Happy Day to everyone!

I hope you all are getting ready to gobble, gobble tomorrow. Maybe you have your turkey basted and ready to put in the oven. Maybe you are making your dressing and all the good sides that go with the turkey. Whatever you are doing to get ready for Thanksgiving... Christmas is coming.

The way it looks in the retail stores it's already here. I don't like it when we go right from Halloween straight by Thanksgiving to Christmas but nevertheless it happens. The other day when I was in Target I found this box of white bottle brush Christmas trees made into a cute little garland.

Oh, the things you could do with this garland. You could intertwine it with some greenery and hang it over a window or door frame. You could attached it to a fresh pine wreath and add some Christmas balls. It would look really good hanging from the mantle. For $12.99 you can let your creativity loose with all kinds of places to use this little decoration.

I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving with family and friends and remember to stay "Thrifty" while you shop because "Black Friday" is just three days away!!

A Little Useful Christmas Decor

Good Morning to everyone!

It's been a while since I have posted anything but this morning while I was in Walmart I ventured over into the Christmas decorations. Listen: It's not good for a loose cannon to be in this department with no time restraints. Normally when I shop at "Wally World" I just run in, get groceries and run out. 

But today I had way too much time on my hands. I strolled up and down the aisles and I saw lots of cute things. Then I landed in the baking area and justified getting a few Christmas items. One of the things I got was a pack of red and green striped plastic straws.

Those straws reminded me I had a cute little pottery jar I had put straws in before so decided why not spend $1.98 and brighten up the kitchen counter where there isn't much space. Now mind you we haven't decorated for Christmas yet but everywhere you go the music is on and the decorations are as thick as fleas on a dog. No way you can stay in there very long and not come out singing Have a Holly Jolly Christmas. LOL!!

Now when I got home and gathered up everything to make this little holiday cheer it only took a minute. If you have a small vase or a mason jar you could use it. Any red or green ribbon would work to tie around your straw holder. The best thing about this decoration is you can use it... no waste. 

I hope ya'll stay "Thrifty" this week and in the weeks to come. 

Easy Peasy Super Easy Dessert

Happy Saturday to everyone!

Have you ever panicked when you needed to come up with a simple quick dessert? Maybe you have company coming over for a spur of the moment visit and coffee with dessert would do the trick. But you don't have the time or the ingredients to make much of anything.

Here's a well kept secret at our house. Fudge pie. Listen... who in their right mind doesn't like all things chocolate? I've tried a lot of fudge pie recipes but this one from an old cookbook put together by the phone company years ago makes a no fail always pleasing pie!

Everybody has butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs and cocoa on hand. The only other things you will need are a little can of Carnation Evaporated milk and a pie crust. Super simple recipe to follow and quick to make.

Enjoy your day. Celebrate with a fudge pie and stay thrifty!!!

Coffee Filters

Happy thrifty day to ya'll!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you are staying cool. I think you could fry an egg on our sidewalk. As you can see we are going to talk about coffee filters. A lot of the time we think about things for one use only. This picture is from an article in an old Real Simple magazine.

You can see they have used filters to separate mugs or bowls. This might be helpful when you are packing to move or you have too many and need to store them. What about using filters for popcorn? You could keep a stack of them handy to separate popcorn and not have to mess up a whole bunch of bowls.

They have used them to make a little sachet for baking soda to put in your fridge or closet. This article also indicates coffee filters are better for cleaning windows or mirrors because they don't leave lint on the clean surface. Now who would have thought of that?

You may have other ideas for them too. You never know where you will get useful information. It doesn't always have to be on the internet. LOL!

Well, that's the news from Thrifty Sissy today! Ya'll have a blessed week and remember to stay thrifty!!!

Thrifty Magazines

Happy Summer days to you all!

Today's thrifty post is about one of the most expensive things we still enjoy... Magazines! Before Pinterest was born and I still worked one of the treats I gave myself was getting a magazine at the grocery store every week. Of course that was before I became a Thrifty Sissy. LOL!

When you can look on line with Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook it's hard to justify paying $5.00 and up for a magazine filled with advertisements. So I don't because of that, plus I had rather spend my money else where.

I go to the library pretty much every week and I have seen the rack of magazines they have. I've never really wanted to spend time there thumbing through magazines when I like to have a cup of coffee with them at home in my favorite chair.

But just the other day I asked if you could check them out and to my surprise they said yes. Oh my word! That just made my day. I gathered up the five you were allowed to check out at one time and rushed home to get my cup of Joe and settle in to enjoy.

If I happen to see something of interest I just get out my phone and snap a picture of it. Listen it doesn't get any better than this. This will definitely get the "Thrifty Award" of the year. While you can't check out the most recent magazine who cares. You can get them later but you can still go home with five magazines.

Needless to say I'm happier than a pig in slop. LOL! If you are a magazine lover go on down to the library and get some to enjoy this week. Remember to" stay thrifty" and enjoy your week!!

Safety Tip for Girls!

Hello Friends,

I'm glad you stopped by today because I have a safety tip for just us girls.

When we get to the grocery store or Target or really anywhere they have a shopping cart we have to think safety. All of us carry a purse and when we get our cart the first thing we do is open up the child's seat and plop our purse in it. That's all good and well but when we begin to focus on our grocery list we can forget about our purse.

If we really get distracted with a bargain rack we might even walk away from our cart and our purse without even thinking about somebody taking it. First of all we need to make sure our purse is zipped or snapped closed to keep someone from grabbing our wallet right out of it.

As we are getting our cart and reaching for one of those sanitizing wipes to get the cooties off the handle we need to grab the little child's seat belt and buckle our purse to the cart. It only takes a minute to avert any potential disaster.

Its' sad to have to think about someone taking something that doesn't belong to them but it happens way too many times. It's even a good idea to leave our purse buckled onto the cart until we have put our purchases in the car and are ready to return the cart to the cart storage area.

A theft can happen in the store but also in the parking lot when you have your head stuck inside the trunk trying to get everything loaded in.

I hope this will help someone. It only takes a minute to do this and we don't even want to think about all the mess that comes with the loss of our purse.

Have a wonderful "Thrifty" week and remember to buckle up in the car and in the cart!!!

Whitestone Delight Pie

Hey friends,

If you are looking for a new recipe for an upcoming event this is it. This Whitestone Delight Pie has it all. Naturally it has cream cheese, cool whip and butter. Of course it has a lot of calories but doesn't everything that taste really good? Plus this recipe makes two pies one for now and another for later. LOL!

Okay here's the recipe ingredients:

2 - deep dish pie crusts- baked
1- stick of butter
1- cups pecans, chopped
2 -cups coconut, grated
8 oz cream cheese, softened
14 oz. sweetened condensed milk
16 oz. cool whip
6 oz. caramel topping
6 oz. chocolate syrup

Directions:
Melt the butter in a skillet and sauté coconut and pecans until lightly browned. Cool. In mixing bowl beat cream cheese and milk until smooth, continue beating as you add the cool whip. Pour 1/4 of the cream cheese filling into each pie sheet. Top with 1/4 of the coconut/pecan mixture. Drizzle well with caramel syrup. Repeat layers. Wrap pie in foil and place in freezer for at least 4-8 hours.

To serve: Remove pies from freezer about 15 minutes before serving. Cut the pie into 8 wedges. Drizzle chocolate syrup over pies. Add additional caramel syrup if desired.

This pie recipe came from the Whitestone Country Inn located in Kingston Tennessee. About six years ago I visited this wonderful place and they served this pie and also gave us the recipe. The pie doesn't take all that long to make and it's over the top yummy.

I hope you all enjoy this sweet treat! Have a blessed week and stay "Thrifty."

Easter Bunny Refresh

Good morning to everyone!

I hope all is well at your house. We have enjoyed a few days of sunshine and at our house we are so happy to see the sun.

Today's post is about a refresh. You all know I am a Goodwill Dump shopper and the last time I was there I found a grapevine bunny with some little white berry picks and a worn out burlap ribbon on it. I was very excited because I have looked at those in years past and never wanted to spend the dollars one. But this bunny was $.27. Now that's a bargain if I ever saw one.

So here we are headed toward Easter next month and it's time to get busy on this bunny. LOL!  I already had some left over ribbon to make a fresh bow for it. About 3 or 4 minutes of adjusting the berry picks then glue the bow on the neck and this bunny has a refresh.

I got the ribbon at Michael's last year when it was 80% off. I thought it was so cute and I just knew I would have some place to use it. Don't pass up an after season sale because next year you will be glad you have a few things to add to your current decorations. Ribbon is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to refresh anything. You can tie it around a lamp or wrap it around your table napkins for added interest.

I thank all of you "thrifty" folks for dropping by. Have a blessed week and enjoy the sunshine!

Spring Tablescape

Good Afternoon to all Thrifties!

It has been a long haul for me these last few weeks because my computer had the bellyache two different times. Living without a computer in this day and time is aggravating. But nevertheless I still have all the hair in my head.  LOL...Trying to do things on your phone that you are used to doing on the computer is a lot harder than I thought it would be. With that being said that's why I haven't posted anything lately but hopefully it's fixed now!

Well, on with the post for today. Spring, oh how we are longing for it. The trees and flowers are beginning to bloom and so we know it's on the way. But there has still been a lot of rain and cold temperatures so I decided to dress up the kitchen table with some happy spring stuff.

Now that's what I'm talking about! Flowers and polka dots....lots of them. I even found my little ceramic chicks to add to this tablescape. It doesn't have to be fancy or cost a whole bunch of money to add something fresh and colorful to your kitchen.

So maybe you can take a few minutes to look through your stash and find some flowers. You never know what will work until you try it. Listen it only has to make you smile not the rest of the world. Even if it's gloomy and yucky outside your house can still put on a big smile for you.

I hope you day is over the top and remember keep it Thrifty!!!

Bedroom Wall Updo

Hi Thrifty Folks!

I hope you all are ready for the weekend. Sometimes it seems like it take a whole month for it to get from Monday to Friday but it's finally here.

I wanted to share a little updo with you all. You know you can walk right by things because you see them everyday and don't pay any attention to them. Well, this bedroom wall is 15 feet wide and the couch is only about 6 feet long so you can see it could easily get swallowed up.

All I had hanging on the wall was a picture and even though it was not a small one it looked too small for the wall. Now it's easy to run out and buy something cute at Home Goods or Target to add to that wall but this Thrifty Sissy decided to shop the house.

On one of the other walls there were two planter sconces. That's when the thrifty idea hit me. Why not move those fellas to each side of the picture and take up some of the wall space. So Thrifty Honey helped with his measuring tape so they did not get all crooked and uneven.

Now the wall doesn't look like there's a monkey sitting on the back of an elephant with just a picture hanging on it. LOL. I hope you all have a glorious weekend and why not shop your house for a quick thrifty update!!

Bulletin Board

Hi Everyone!

I hope you all have had a wonderful week. The temperatures have all of us huddled up trying to stay warm. But spring is just around the corner.

Today I want to share my new bulletin board. This is a true thrifty creation with the help of Thrifty Honey.

This past summer I got this 36x32 picture frame at a yard sale for $1.00. I had this idea in my mind but it took some time to get it all together. I couldn't decide what color to paint the frame. It was a yucky brown and I knew that wasn't going to look very exciting. So a few weeks ago I wandered through the paint aisle looking and looking. Then there it was...the sparkling gold glitter. What a bright cheery look that would give that old brown frame.

Next thing up was what do you put inside the frame to use to pin your ideas and pictures on. I thought about cardboard but it was too flimsy. I thought about covering it with fabric. But I let that idea go into the trash. Yesterday when I was visiting Hobby Lobby they had some sort of white board in the frame department. I don't know what to call it but it was only $5.99 and it was white so I brought it home. The best thing about that white board was it fit in the frame with a little help from Thrifty Honey.

So total cost for this project was $13.00. $6.00 paint. $6.00 white board. $1.00 for the frame. Plus hugs and kisses for the Honeys help!! Now this bulletin board is 36X32 and most of the stores charge anywhere from $30-$60 for one that size. Besides that... would they even have one with a gold glitter frame... LOL..

Well, thanks for stopping by and have a great "Thrifty" weekend!!

Anticipating Spring

Happy Friday to Everyone!

Since the new year started it seems all there has been is rain and dreary cloudy days. But we know God is watering the earth for the coming springtime to thrill us with His beauty.

So with that being said when I saw this wooden bird cage, silk fern and sweet little bird at the Goodwill dump I couldn't resist it. When I got home I thought this would make a good decoration for the top of the bookcase in my sewing room.

When I see that little bird making its nest in the fern it causes a smile and renews hope within me on these dreary days. It really doesn't take much to create some new little design. It could be simply moving things around on a bookcase or coffee table. You could change up some pictures. Maybe if you are feeling really energetic you could put a new paint color on the wall.

When we are surrounded by the things that make us smile our home will always be filled with the joy of our heart. Besides this joy it always makes my heart sing when I only spent $1.80 for cute little creation.

I hope each of you have a wonderful weekend and stay "Thrifty."

Grocery App

Fabulous Friday to you all!!

Thanks for stopping by on this chilly January morning. It's a good day to find out some helpful information. There is an app called Grocery Pal. You can download it for free. It has several options that could help you with your grocery shopping. Here's a picture of the app.

When you open up the app there is a place to put your grocery list so you don't have to try to keep up with a piece of paper. If you are like me I forget to bring the paper with me but when it's in your phone...well, we always have it with us.

Most of the area stores are listed and when you click on them it has things divided by departments.  When you click on the department it will bring up the specials for the week. I especially like the Publix ad that will tell you what the BOGO's are. Since we quit taking the Sunday paper with all the grocery ads in it I use this to see what's available to help with my plan for the week.

It also has a coupon button where you can download those too. As "thrifties" we have to use everything and anything to make our money go further. One thing I will tell you is a lot of the stores listed on this app don't keep their info updated as well as Publix does. They are always on top of their sale items.

I hope this will be of some help to you. Have a wonderful weekend and stay "Thrifty."

Delightful Desert

Happy New Year Thrifties!!

I hope you all had a wonderful New Year celebration whether it was calm or loud. It's always good to have a reason to celebrate and have a day off from the normal schedule.

I was thinking about sharing a terrific recipe with you all. It's quick and easy. I found this in Paula Dean's cookbook years ago. It's called Symphony Brownies. This is one of those recipes you can be ready to make up in a hurry.

Other than a box of the cheapest brownie mix you can get it's the big Symphony candy bars that send it to another level. Now who would have thought to put candy bars in brownies. But nevertheless they are over the top. So here's a copy of the recipe for you all.

I added a couple of pictures so you could see the process. You don't break up the candy bars. You just lay them on top of half the brownie mix and cover them with the remaining batter. When they are finished baking let them cool before cutting. Here's another tip. I use a pizza cutter to slice them. Who would have thought about that? Nice clean cuts!!

So take a few minutes and bake yourself a New Year's treat and remember to stay "Thrifty."