Learn How to Dry Flowers and Make Valentine’s Memories Last

This is a guest post by Freeshipping.org’s Go Frugal Blog, where money-saving experts share frugal living tips and ideas.

Receiving a Valentine’s Day bouquet never grows old. As time wears on, however, there’s nothing quite so sad as tossing out that floral memory.

If you know how to dry flowers, however, that special bouquet needn’t end up at the county dump or in your compost bin. The process is simple and can be achieved by air drying or using a microwave. Here’s how.

6 Inspiring Homemade Host/Hostess Gift Ideas

The Thanksgiving dinner preparation freak outs and nuttiness officially began yesterday when the turkeys came out of the freezer to begin thawing. Understandably, everyone has been talking about holiday dinner prep, sharing recipes, and it seems that everyone is just a little on edge; but that’s just how the holidays go, right? I have also been very fortunate to talk to a few people on Twitter about how they’re keeping their stress levels low, just two days before Thanksgiving, and it got me thinking about holiday dinners and our traditions.

Admittedly, I do not cook for the holidays. In fact, I do not cook very much at all. I am one of those special people who just didn’t come equipped with the cooking or baking genes. I have no idea what I am doing in the kitchen and my partner’s (not so irrational) fear of …

Quick How To: Cereal Box Pencil Case

Now that the kids have been back in school for a few weeks, you’re probably seeing all the nice, new, clean school supplies that were bought for the school year wear down a little throughout the daily wear and tear they get from being lugged around school, home and friend’s houses.

Check out this awesome and quick how-to from Craftzine on how to upcycle cereal boxes and turn them into cool pencil cases. No more carrying around broken, dirty or dysfunctional pencil cases and everyone will want to know how you did this.

You will need:

Cereal box
Pencil
Scissors
Ruler
Clear tape
Hook and loop fastener
Scoring tools (butter knife, bent paper clip, etc.)

The how-to is only 5 easy steps. You can download the pencil case template PDF or head on over to Craftzine for the entire …

Make a Fabulous Chandelier Out of Paper Clips

I cannot believe that these chandeliers are made of just paper clips, but they are and they are amazing! Want to know how to make them for that special sanctuary in your home? The supplies can be bought at the Dollar Store and all you need is 3 picture hanging kits ($3) and 6 boxes of paper clips ($6).

I often find myself going to get all of the things I’ll need to get my crafty goodness going, but once I get everything home and out in front of me, I seem to freeze and not know what to do first or have this very deep fear of messing something up horribly. So if you’re like me in that respect, check out the ReDesign Technologies Etsy shop, where you can pick up instructions …

Want to Upcycle Old Books? Check Out This Crafty Headboard

For the first six years I was out in the world on my own, I never had a real bed. I used to sleep on a single mattress on the floor and just before my partner and I invested in a real bed, which was very recently, we slept on a mattress that had a futon mattress stacked on top of it to raise it up a bit and pretend we had some sort of normal bed. To say the least, I know how important it is to have a headboard to truly make your bedroom your sanctuary and turn your house, apartment or even just a room into a home. And what’s a home without some personal style?

Check out this super awesome …

A New Use for Your Old Holiday Cards

St. Jude’s Ranch for Children creates new chances, choices and hope for children and families who have been abused, abandoned and neglected. Their mission is to break the cycle of child abuse and have been fortunate enough to provide help and hope to children and families who need their services the most.

Over thirty years ago, St. Jude’s Ranch for Children thought up a great idea, the Recycled Card Program, as a way to thank their donors by turning the previous year’s holiday cards into new cards for the upcoming season. The children at St. Jude’s participate in making new cards by removing the front portion of the old cards and attaching a new back made of recycled paper. These cards are then sold with proceeds going back to the Ranch.

This is an awesome …