It's hard to believe the holidays are here! The local radio station just started playing holiday music 24/7... that's when you know Thanksgiving is right around the corner. And you know what that means: FOOD, FAMILY and FUN!
When I was younger, our family would typically drive down to New Jersey and spend Thanksgiving at my aunt's house. We would have an amazing weekend of eating. Thanksgiving dinner typically consisted of half "American" and half "Chinese" food. Occasionally we would experiment with different food discoveries. One year, I went back and wanted to show of my sushi making skills and tried to make sushi for the whole family. Only, I misread the recipe and added a cup of vinegar to the rice instead of a tablespoon. As a result we had a lot of vinegar flavored rice to use up that weekend!
After Thanksgiving Day, we would get up bright and early and head to the outlet malls for some fun shopping excursions, fighting the insane crowds and cars. We set out in multiple cars, had different meeting times and locations and went off on our own to shop. I'm always impressed that we were able to make this happen and not get lost. After all, this was the era before we all had cell phones!
But the holiday season doesn't necessarily mean we need to spend a ton of money. I'm here today with a few easy DIY Thanksgiving decorating ideas that are fun for the whole family to make. Consider these projects "frugal fun" ways to use up any scraps you have lying around. And, if you're interested in tips to help you stay on budget this holiday season, check out these free financial tools from Personal Capital.
First up: Party Favor Boxes. You can fill them with candy and other treats!
I used the Mama Elephant Gable Boxes and one sheet of 12x12 patterned paper to make these two party favor boxes. It's so easy and fun. I decorated the front with an embossed "thanks" from the Simon Says Stamp Thankful Hearts stamp set and paired that with some scrap patterned paper.
Next, I have place cards. These are so easy to make!
I used the same patterned paper as the paper I used for the gable boxes, cut them into 3.5"W x 4.25"H rectangles and folded them in half. I used the same rectangle die from the Gable Boxes and cut out scraps of orange and green paper. I stamped "Mama" and "Baba" in gold ink using the Mama Elephant Calli Letters stamp set. You could easily just write the names by hand. I finished them with decorative leaf stickers from my ever-growing sticker collection. This pack of 18 clear glitter stickers was only $1 from Hobby Lobby!
Lastly, I made a few napkin rings with my remaining scrap paper.
I punched two circles from the same scrap paper, added the stickers and wrapped a ring around the napkins with the leafy patterned paper I used for the favor boxes and the place cards.
In addition to these projects, there are so many other DIY projects you can make for the holidays. Banners, thankful/gratitude cards, food labels for parties... the key is to have fun and get the whole family involved. It's all about the fun and you don't have to spend a lot of money. Just search the house for different scraps you have lying around and make something creative!
Happy Thanksgiving! Gobble Gobble!
