DIY Project Inspiration

So, I was looking at some of the products available for sale from the. and I thought, as I so often do, "I could make that."

And I bet you could make it too--or some really cool spinoff of it.

Take a look at the picture under the cut and suggest ideas for other objects that would work for this framed object art.

Tutorial: DIY Garland

I am an incorrigible fabric collector. I can't help it--there's just something about fabric that speaks to me. If you're like me, you have boxes or bags of fabric scraps.

I've got little bits left over from past projects, too small to ever be part of a new sewing project themselves. I've got remnants I picked up at JoAnn with no plan in mind. I've got old clothes that don't fit, or aren't in style anymore. I have an entire shelf just about full of fabric.

Here's a project that uses bits and scraps from old projects to create a decorative garland. I used fall colors for mine, but your color scheme is really only limited by your available fabric.

Rental-friendly Wallpaper

Apartment Therapy has done it again, locating a new way to cover your wall even if you can't paint or put up wallpaper. And, if you're savvy about it, it shouldn't even cost too terribly much. I'm thinking about doing this in our hallway, or possibly in my craft room.

Pumpkin Village

So, Mr. Scrimp and I don't really do much for Halloween. I grew up in a no-Halloween family, and while Mr. Scrimp has many happy trick-or-treating memories, he's not super devoted to it. We go to a party with some friends, but that's it.

I do, however, love pumpkins. I love them uncarved. I love them carved. I love them painted. I love their seeds, and I love them in soup and pie. There is pretty much nothing about pumpkins that I don't love, in fact.

Which is why I thought this idea on ohdeedoh was so cool (picture after the cut)

Recipe: Thai Chicken

Gosh, it's been a while since I posted a new recipe!

I don't know how authentically Thai this recipe actually is--my mom made it when I was a kid and called it Thai chicken, so Thai chicken I call it.

Mr. Scrimp and I are both big fans of it, I can tell you that much. It's hot and spicy and will warm you up on a chilly fall day.

25 Cheap, Healthy Foods

In this economy, believe me, I know how hard it can be to buy healthy, unprocessed food when the pre-made stuff is so handy and cheap. I read the sales flyers in the newspaper every week and then sigh over the fact that nobody ever seems to have magical piles of coupons for fruits and vegetables, and that if I want to emulate all those coupon-shopping blogs that manage to get $75 worth of groceries for five dollars and a few scissors-blisters, I have to compromise on what I eat.

So, I was really happy to find this article on SparkPeople that lists 25 healthy foods that you can buy inexpensively. Almost all of them meet my criteria for defining unprocessed foods (I don't count freezing or canning as "processing" for the purposes of that particular discussion), and the only other thing I disagree with is the favoring of low-fat or nonfat dairy products over full-fat or 2%.

What else do you buy that's cheap and healthy?

Alphabet Wall

This would make such a cool decoration for a child's bedroom or playroom, or, with a darker set of colors (ebony, mahogany, gold, etc.) even in an office or library.

Alphabet Wall!

Check out a time for everything for more photos and a description of how she did it!