Easy Holiday Fudge-Thrifty Gifty #12

For those of you who really only have about an hour to dedicate to whipping up a holiday treat...this EASY holiday fudge is for you!

INGREDIENTS (to make one batch of fudge):

•1 can sweetened condensed milk
•1 package of semi-sweet chocolate chips (12 oz)
•A package of candy or a couple candy bars
 (m&m's, peppermints, heath bar, reese's peanut butter cups, etc.)
•Saucepan
•Spatula
•Can Opener
•Round cake pan
•Saran wrap
•Crisco or non-stick baking spray

DIRECTIONS:

•Grease a round cake pan
•In a saucepan, add 1 can of sweetened condensed milk and 1 package of semi-sweet chocolate chips.
•On medium heat, stir consistently until all ingredients are well melted and mixed.
•While the ingredients are melting on the stove, rinse out milk can and cover with saran wrap. Grease the covered can with Crisco and place in the middle of the greased round cake pan. 
This will create a wreath shape when the fudge is removed!

•Pour the melted ingredients into the round cake pan and around the milk can that is in the center.
•Add crushed candy to the top of your fudge and place immediately into the refrigerator to cool for at least four hours.
•Cut up and enjoy!

IDEAS:

•This holiday treat is great as gifts for teachers as you and your child can make it together!
•Plate up some cookies and add a few sweet fudgie treats to the platter and give to a neighbor or friend!
•Pop out of the mold and serve on a beautiful dish with a knife and let guests enjoy their own personal sized samples.
 

Gifts in a Jar, Thrifty Gifty #11

Time is passing quickly and Christmas is around the corner! Uh oh, do you still have people that you wanted to give gifts to??? Here is a great solution to your dilemma. This is such a fun idea and it does not take a lot of time. You will be assembling the ingredients for a wonderful, yummy treat but you will not be cooking it. You will provide directions on how to complete the "treat" whenever the recipient would like to. You can make several of these "gifts in a jar" at one time and have them ready to give to friends at a moment's notice. This is a great gift to make and have on hand just in case someone stops over and gives you a little something. Then you have something very nice to reciprocate with. I have been making these little gifts for a long time. You can vary the recipes from year to year and always have something new and fun to give. These gifts are fun for all ages.

Supplies:

Mason jar with lid

Nice small piece of fabric

Gift tag or label (see our other post on how to make recycled gift tags - http://allaboutbeinginspired.blogspot.com/2010/12/thrifty-gifty-8-gift-tags-recycled-from.html

Ribbon or raffia

Rubber band

Kitchen supplies - bowls for mixing, measuring cups and spoons, spoons for stirring

Recipe for a Gift in a Jar and those particular ingredients

Directions:

1.Find a great recipe you like for your Gift in a Jar. Here is a great link I found for some awesome recipes. There are so many, I am sure you will love them.

http://www.allfreecrafts.com/giftinajar/index.shtml

2. Gather your ingredients and mix all together according to the recipe.

3. Follow the recipe and layer the ingredients correctly.

4. Print out the recipe directions for the recipient of your gift so they know how to make whatever you are giving them (hot cocoa, cake, cookies, soup,etc.) and attach to the gift tag or label.

5. Close the jar with the lid. Use the small piece of fabric and cut a square or circle about 3 inches larger than the lid of your jar. Use pinking shears if you have them so your fabric does not fray.

6. Center the fabric on the jar lid and use a rubber band to secure around the neck of the jar.

7. Tie a piece of ribbon or raffia around the rubber band so it looks pretty.

8. You can make a nice label for your jar stating what the treat will be.

For example: Yummy Peppermint Hot Cocoa

These make very nice gifts for teachers, bus drivers, friends and family. I would love hear your comments on these ideas. Let us know what you made!

Presence-Thrifty Gifty #10

This thrifty gifty is the thriftiest gifty yet! It will also make the biggest impact on the receiver! So what is this wonderful gift??? Presence! What, did you spell this word wrong? Is it supposed to be "presents?", you ask. NO! Presence, that is how it is spelled. Okay, so what is "presence?" 

I was giving this a lot of thought. What is the spirit of Christmas? It was God's gift to us, the gift of His son, Jesus. It was the "presence" of a newborn baby that came to this earth as a gift to us for our salvation. It was Jesus' "presence" on earth during his short lifetime that taught us how to live. It was His "presence" on the cross that enabled us to have eternal life. God gave us a lot of "presence" didn't He?

So how can we emulate Him during this season and give "presence" to our loved ones? We can give them "presence!"

Our presence is so important to those we love. What good is a present if we are not "present" when we give it? The ability to share our time with others is much more valuable to them than sending a gift their way. So here are ways you can share your time with others and it won't cost you a dime.  

The gift of yourself is always more valuable than anything else we can give.

1. Visit your family. Spend time with your parents, your siblings, your neices or nephews, your dear friends. It doesn't have to be a long time but the fact that you stopped by to say Hello will mean the world to them. Have a cup or tea or coffee and chat a little. You will be the bright spot in their day!

2. Offer a ride to someone in need. Is there an elderly person that cannot drive themself to the doctors or to go shopping? Take some time out of your day to serve them. They will not forget your kindness. That is the kind of "presence" that means a lot!

3. Make cookies with a child or take them to the movies or to the park. The gift of your time will send a message to them that they are important to you.

4. Create a "date night" for your spouse or significant other. Make it special: cook dinner or pack a "picnic" and enjoy your time together in your home or somewhere else you enjoy.

5. Spend a day together with someone special. Go to the park, take a walk, window shop in fun places like New Hope, Pa or even the Mall.

6. Look through old pictures with your Mom or Dad or Grandma or Grandpa. It might be a wonderful trip through memory lane, helping them remember those special people they loved and lost.

7. Call a friend who is far away and spend some time chatting on the phone. Don't unload the dishwasher or do your chores while you are talking, just sit and talk and listen. Don't multitask! Give them your full attention! It will be a more meaningful conversation.

8. Visit someone in the nursing home. If you don't have a loved one in a nursing home, then lucky you. There are many people who are in nursing homes that never receive visitors. If you have a well-behaved dog, call ahead and see if they allow you to bring your dog to see the residents. I used to do that with my dog, Stash, and everyone loved when I brought him. In fact, Stash seemed to "know" that he had to be really well-behaved and he was so much fun to have there because it made it easy to start conversation with the people there.

9. Share your talents! Can you play piano or another instrument? You don't have to be a superstar to share the gifts God gave you. Ask a nursing home if you can come and play some music for the residents of a nursing home. When my daughters were young, they were learning to play piano. We would call ahead and tell the staff that we would like to play piano for the residents and they would play. Yes, they made plenty of mistakes, but no one cared or knew. They just enjoyed the music, they sang and clapped and had a nice day.

10. Make dinner for someone. There are many people that can benefit from this! There isn't anyone I know that wouldn't enjoy a homemade dinner brought to them. Young busy moms, shut-ins, busy grandmoms and grandpas, working people, college students, you name it, they would all appreciate a homecooked dinner. Just make twice as much as your would for your own family and it isn't much more work.

11. Invite someone over. So what if your house is a mess ( as mine usually is, since I am always busy running here or there.) If you wait until your house is perfect, you will never have anyone over! True friends love you for who you are, not how your house looks!

12. Offer to babysit or "adult sit." Those who care for others need a break and your "presence" to them will offer them relief and a time to relax.

13. Share your talents (yes, this was so important I had to mention it again!) Are you a good decorator or organizer? Help someone with these tasks. Whatever you are good at can be used to help others. Maybe you are good at home repairs (or maybe the man in your life is!) Many people wish they had help with this.

14. Help someone clean. Most people can do this. Fall leaves make a mess, is there someone that still needs help picking up these things in their yard? How about cleaning a room for someone or helping them clean their floors or bathrooms?

Okay, so I think you get my jist. These are sacrifices we can make as gifts to others. We can teach our children to be sacrificial to others, too. These gifts do not cost a lot of money but they mean more than anything you can buy because it is the gift of YOU! The gift of your "presence." My final thought on all of this comes from Matthew 25: 35-40 in the bible:

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thristy and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prision and go to visit you? The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

Alphabet Photography-Thrifty Gifty #9

This past Saturday I had the privilege of going into New York City with my mom and dad, with whom I went to Bryant Park, Chelsea Market and the Martha Stewart Craft Show (more details to come in an upcoming post about the MS Craft Show). Before I left, I was thinking about some very special people in my life who I would like to make a gift for, one of them including my son, Charlie!

I was scouring web sites and creative magazines when I stumbled upon something that I felt I could easily do on a trip to the Big Apple. My mom and I began shooting pictures of architecture, subway signs, pipes on scaffolding, and old paper plates lying in the streets that resembled Alphabet letters.

The Letter "O" found looking through part of a building.

The Letter "S" found on a mat.

The Letter "N" found on a subway sign.

 I uploaded them onto my computer, opened them up on Photoshop, altered them a bit by adjusting size to a standard photo size: 4"x 6", changed the color image to grayscale and played with the brightness/contrast.

Assemble the letters to create a name or a word, order prints on shutterfly or your favorite online photo site and frame for a beautifully, thoughtful gift!

This Thrifty-Gifty requires a camera, an image altering computer program, a little bit of a creative eye and a beautiful frame for gifting.

BE INSPIRED!

Thrifty Gifty #8, Gift tags recycled from old cards

Well, that time of year is almost here! The one where you have lots of gifts to give and have to remember who's gift is who's! A good way to set each person's gift apart is to create easy, recycled gift tags. I like to save all the beautiful cards I receive each year but then I wonder what to do with them. So I came up with the idea of using the cards and transforming them into beautiful gift tags. So here are my thoughts on making these nice and useful items.

Materials:

Old cards

Glitter

Scissors

Glue

Hole punch

String or thin ribbon

Directions:

1. Sort through your cards and pick ones that can be cut into smaller "tags" and still look well.

(Sometimes you can make more than one tag from a card.)

2. Cut Rectangular shapes (or any shape you really like) from the card with the artistic part of the card in a nice place on the tag.

3. You can cut the corners off of one side of the tag to make it in the shape of a "tag" if you wish.

4. Punch a hole in the top of the tag.

5. Cut a lenth of string or ribbon about 6 or 7 inches. Knot the two loose ends together.
6. Put the folded end of the ribbon or string through the hole and bring the knotted end through the loop and pull so the tag is secured to the ribbon.

7. Glitter small areas of the tags to make them really "pop."

8. Write your message on the back of the tag to the recipient.

You can use these tags as part of your gift or box up several of them to give as a gift to someone so they have some nice tags to use for their gifts.

Some other thoughts: You can also use copies of old photos, beautiful scrapbooking paper(heavier weight,) or copies of old postcards ( you can shrink the size at a copy store) for more tag ideas. The idea is to have fun and be creative! Please share any pictures of what you have made using some of these ideas or any new ideas you have!

Be inspired! Clare

Making a Candle Wrap-Thrifty Gifty #7

This little Thrifty-Gifty holiday project is super simple! If you can cut and paste, you can make it! I was able to put this gift together for under $3.00! Read on to find out more....

First you will need to find a beautiful candle. I found these unscented candles at the Christmas Tree Shop for $1.50 a piece. I had a coupon so it was well worth the buy! Use a candle that is dripless for safety reasons and never leave a candle unattended for fire hazard reasons.

 In terms of paper, I was looking for pieces with a holiday feel. The key to making these lovely candle wraps is layering papers. If you look at the image above, you will see a piece of corrugated paper (the one with the ridges) and I used it as my base layer. The fun, patterned pieces below I used to layer on top of the base and then chose to add detail with the glittery fun paper seen above.

Other materials you will need include a paper cutter, scissors and double-sided tape. Glue will not be a good choice for this project because it gets too stiff when it dries, whereas tape is flexible for when you wrap the layered papers around the candle. 

 I also found these cute little embellishments, which I have tied on with raffia around the base of the candle. See top of page for image using these embellishments.

Here is my layered wrap all set and ready to be put onto the candle. I measured the corrugated base layer at 3" high, the patterned holiday tree paper at 2" high, the green glittery paper at 3/4" high and the gold glittery paper at 1/4 of an inch high. All were cut to 10" long as this will vary depending on the width of your candle.

Use double-sided tape for applying all of your layers as well as for gluing your wrap to the candle.

Remember these wraps can be made for any season or birthday. Just simply switch out the theme papers to accommodate the celebration! These are wonderful table place markers for your holiday tablescape or can be given as gifts for teachers, babysitters, hairdressers and friends! They are super easy to make in mass quantity and will deliver a smile every time!

BE INSPIRED!

Fruit Filled-Thrifty Gifty #6

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday! After dinner at my in-law's house I noticed what would make another awesome "Thrifty Gifty"...a fruit filled jar of clementines! Clementines are so seasonal and delicious! The best part of this is that you can usually find them on sale at your local market or grocery store. I was at Shop Rite this morning and a whole crate of them were on sale for $4.99. Shop your local Goodwill for jars and turn up the most unique vessels for piling up these colorful treats!

You can easily put this lovely hostess gift together for under $10.00! I would love to receive something of this nature from a friend! It is healthy, delicious, makes a lovely centerpiece and adds a festive splash of color to anyone's tablescape or countertop!

Make this gift extra special by wrapping it in clear cellophane with a knot of raffia at the top! Add a gift tag and voila!

Remember that clementines aren't your end all...there are so many beautiful seasonal fruits like pears, lemons, pomegranates and apples that would fill any jar with holiday bliss!

BE INSPIRED!

Candle Centerpiece-Thrifty Gifty #5

The holidays are rapidly approaching and if you are like me, you may tend to grab a pencil and paper and start making lists of the people you want to give gifts to. For many on my list, I like to give a handmade item because when you make a handmade item, it speaks to the heart of the recipient telling them that you spent that extra special moment thinking about them personally. The thrifty gifty that I am going to tell you how to make today is a great hostess gift for Thanksgiving or a wonderful Christmas gift for one that you love.

The candle centerpiece shown above is a simple, practical and beautiful handmade item that can be created in any size and on any budget. It can be filled with a beautiful berry garland shown above or stashed with sand and seashells for the beach lover. The great thing about this thrifty gifty is it's ability to be personalized for that special someone as you can fill the base with almost anything you can imagine.

The key to this creation is to make sure that you purchase a candle that burns into itself. A drippy candle is not a good option because the hot wax will melt onto whatever decoration you may have in the base of the jar.

Finding jars is easy and doable on any budget. Pier 1 Imports always has amazing glass containers as does HomeGoods if you are looking for something unique and one-of-a-kind. Find a lightly scented candle at Michaels or AC Moore and the filler for your jar at a local arts and crafts store or a HomeGoods/Marshalls/Walmart/Target-type of place. This thrifty gifty can be put together with a one-stop shop or you can shop around for unique one-of-a-kind pieces and compile them all together. Either way, you will be creating something extraordinary.

Dim the lights, put on some dinner music, light your new candle centerpiece and BE INSPIRED!

Easy Homemade Granola-Thrifty Gifty #4

For a most delicious and healthy "Thrifty Gifty" idea, you can't go wrong with this yummy homemade granola! Whip up a batch or two and put a few scoopfuls into a mason or ball jar with a crafty label and voila! You will be the hit of any breakfast table or ice cream social as you can use this yummy treat over yogurt or ice cream. I personally even like to eat it by the handful!

Here is the secret recipe...that's not so secret anymore!!!

• one 18 oz container of Old Fashioned Oats
• pecans, walnuts, almonds, and/or pumpkin seeds added in accordance to your liking
  (I usually stick to a 2:1 ratio of oats to nuts.)

• Melt 1/2 lb (2 sticks) of butter and add to the mixture of oats and nuts.
• Add 1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil to the mixture as well.

• Drizzle in some vanilla and REAL maple syrup to taste.
• Add a dash of salt.
• Bake at 250 for 2 hours
• Toss every 20 minutes
• If you would like to add chopped prunes, apricots or craisins, add during the last 10 minutes
  (to prevent the fruit from getting hard enough to crack a tooth!)

Enjoy and BE INSPIRED!

Thrifty Gifties - Just in time for the Holidays!

Keep checking back with us for thrifty ideas to use as gifts for the holidays for the people you love. We all know that the economy is causing us to tighten our belts a bit but we still want to express our love for them and NOTHING SAYS LOVE more than something you made with your own hands. So get your hands ready...here come the ideas!

Decorated Soap-Thrifty Gifty #1

Here is a great idea that everyone seems to love. These make great gifts for the hostess or as a stocking stuffer. You can make a set of them, one for each season, as a beautiful gift. Grab a box of soap, any nice soap you like and get out your scrapbooking papers, glue, stickers, scissors, tape, rubber stamps and pads, ribbon and glitter. Now get creative!

1. Wrap the box of soap with nice paper.

2. Wrap the covered soap with ribbon in a nice pattern and tape in place using double-sided tape.

3. Decorate the box with stickers for specific themes or seasons.

4. Add glitter for some extra glitz!

Here are a few extra ideas to customize your soaps: Use Letter rubber stamps to personalize the soap, like a monogram. You can also use small cutouts from paper punches to add dimension. Use small dimensional flowers or leaves to make these soaps really special.

Don't forget to get your kids in on the action! This is something they can make for all of their special people - grandparents, bus drivers, lunch ladies, girl scout leaders, teachers, etc.

***Let us know what you think about this idea and send us a picture of what you did. We will try to post your creations!