Tag Archives: Easy

Inexpensive Balloon or Decoration Party Weights

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Make your own table decoration weights. Image courtesy of http://www.awesomeevent.com/blog/category/cheap-balloon-weight-centerpieces/

Make your own table decoration weights. Image courtesy of http://www.awesomeevent.com/blog/category/cheap-balloon-weight-centerpieces/

With every party, aesthetics is important.Yet, paramount to most party planning – is cost. Each table should be decorated with a theme of colors and/or genre.Whether it is a Hawaiian Luau or a graduation party – an overall theme should exist.

Part of each table decoration often includes balloons or other lightweight decorations that need some kind of weight to keep them in place. Sure, you can purchase those balloon weights at your dollar store. But as the table count goes up, so does the cost.

Being the frugal gal, I thought of several ways to hold down the graduation caps for an upcoming graduation party. With 10+ tables to dress, I needed to consider what would travel easy and look good – even if the caps were lifted by curious guests.

Light Bulb Moment

For previous parties I’ve made my own weights using Plaster of Paris in a variety of containers: decorative Chinese food boxes, decorator cups, mini flower pots, etc. For this event, having to deal with the mess of preparing the mix along with the added drying time, just didn’t appeal to me.

This is when it struck – why not fill balloons with play sand or better yet – the more inexpensive counterpart – salt? It worked like a charm. It cost only $1.50 per 11 weights and it took less than an hour of working the salt into the balloons.

Since these were not going to be seen in generally, it was the easiest and most inexpensive solution.

Three items are needed to make balloon or table decoration weights. The cost for 11 weights: $1.50. Image courtesy of Debbie Morrow, all rights reserved.

Three items are needed to make balloon or table decoration weights. The cost for 11 weights: $1.50. Image courtesy of Debbie Morrow, all rights reserved.

Here’s what you’ll need: Continue reading →

DIY Unique Costumes

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Image and directions of the Composer Bust Statues can be found at http://www.instructables.com/id/Composer-Bust-Statue-Costumes/

Image and directions of the Composer Bust Statues can be found at http://www.instructables.com/id/Composer-Bust-Statue-Costumes/

Some people get really disturbed when they go to a Halloween party and find others dressed in the same costume. Although I look at it as: the-more-the-merrier, others might not feel the same.

So here’s a few unique ideas that I’ve NEVER seen before today.

Image of Homemade Bath Pouf courtesy of Carleyy at Instructables.

Image of Homemade Bath Pouf courtesy of Carleyy at Instructables.

Directions for the Human Scrubby can be found at the Instructables page called Homemade Bath Pouf Costume.

Smile for the Camera!

How would you like to find a camera case for this one? Image courtesy of tylercard at Instructables.

How would you like to find a camera case for this one? Image courtesy of tylercard at Instructables.

I wonder if any students can get extra credit for their photography class by actually becoming the camera? Either way, the costume can be found at Instructables and is called the Fully Functional Camera Costume.

Be a Thirst Quencher

You'll never get thirsty with the Box of Wine Costume. Image courtesy of Carlyy at Instructables.

You’ll never get thirsty with the Box of Wine Costume. Image courtesy of Carlyy at Instructables.

At least this wine spigot costume girl never leaves her friends high and dry. On the Instructables page called a Box of Wine Costume, there is an actual contest being held for anyone who makes the costume, takes a picture of themselves, and then posts with comments. Just don’t tell your friends if you want to be the only wine box at the party.

Do you have any unusual costumes you’d like to share? Send your photos and/or instructions of how you did it and I’ll post them – giving you the credit. Thanks!

A 5 Minute Pumpkin Project

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Pumpkin Projects Everywhere

In less than 5 minutes, you can transform your toilet paper rolls into a pumpkin patch. Photo courtesy of Debbie Morrow.

I ran across this pumpkin DIY project at The Frugal Girls, Spoonful and a ton of blogs like Chocolate on my Cranium. With each of the sites I ran across, they used fabric to cover the toilet paper. But I thought: If I were a guest and needed some TP, would I be so willing to rip and pull apart a fabric-covered one? Well, if I were desperate, I guess the answer would be yes.

Yet, I thought it was the best to use something that could be ripped away like the tissue on those single toilet paper rolls. It would allow easy access without leaving any guilt for our in-need guests.

Better yet, I’ve brought the cost down to about 40 cents per pumpkin(minus the toilet paper).

My 5 Minute Pumpkin Toilet Paper Project

You’ll need:

Silk leaves, a few napkins and a piece of brown bag dress up toilet paper in harvest fashion.

A roll of toilet paper

2 orange paper napkins

1 brown paper lunch bag

A few silk leaves off a vine or floral arrangement

Tape/Scissors

1)      Open the napkin up fully.  Push the corner of the napkin into the top hole of the toilet paper. Pull the napkin around(leaving creases for “pumpkin” lines) and tuck the rest of the top in and follow with the bottom. Adjust the creases if need be. The toilet paper roll should be halfway covered. Add a piece of tape inside the roll to secure the first napkin.

2)      Open the second napkin fully and repeat from where the first napkin stopped, tucking in the same around and tucking into the bottom. Adjust the creases and add a piece of tape to secure the napkin to the inside of the roll.

3)      Cut a 4 -5” x  5” piece from the brown bag. Roll it like a scroll. If it doesn’t stay rolled, add a small piece of tape to secure. Push it into the top hole and cut the top of the “stem” at an angle.

4)      Pull off a few leaves from a silk flower arrangement or vine (most of us crafty people have a dozen hanging around in the basement) and then push the stem into the top hole and position the leaves until it is aesthetically pleasing.

If you are having trouble visualizing my steps, please visit the other links that give step-by-step photos and replace the fabric in their directions with the napkins in mine.

Quick and Easy Tombstones

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The tombstone to the left is used with the white over-spray. The right is not. Photo courtesy of Debbie Morrow, all rights reserved.

Even in the tightest schedules, these little tombstones are quick and easy to make.

You’ll need: 

Thrown-to-the-curb cabinet doors or wood

Black, gray or brown spray paint

White spray paint

A windy day or a fan

Glow-in-the-Dark paint or neon colors

Epitaphs

1)      If your cabinet door is black, gray or even brown, you can skip step 1. For those with other colors, spray down the front of the wood pieces or doors. If the backs are going to be readily visible, spray the backs as well. Let dry.

2)      When it is a windy day or within reach of a fan, sparsely spray the white around the edges and slightly over the middle of the boards. You don’t want the white to cover any area entirely. If you’ve over sprayed, get the darker color out and sparsely spray over to correct.

3)      Pencil in where the letters of your epitaph words will be, then go over it with the neon or glow paint. Let dry.

 *Remember the crummier looking the cabinets and wood, the better. It will paint with a more aged look.

A Quick and Easy Fall DIY Prop

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See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil

Wise pumpkin greeters. Photo courtesy of Debbie Morrow.

Inspired by the classic monkeys that see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil, this pumpkin trio is incredibly easy to make.

You’ll need:

3 plastic pumpkins

6 skeleton hands (a dollar store find)

1 set of Christmas lights

A hot glue gun and sticks

A cutting tool such as a drill or handsaw

1)      Cut approximately a half-dollar sized hole into    the center bottom of each pumpkin.

2)      Hot glue a set of skeleton hands over the eyes, the ears, and the mouth. Let cool.

3)      Push the set of lights (with the cord plug at the bottom) through the bottom, the middle and through the top.

Learning Another Way to Create is EXCITING!

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I never cease to be amazed at other people’s DIY projects. Although I tend to lean toward scary creations myself, I truly get excited when someone else shows me another way for me to create.

I’ve been interested in creating with vacuum forms and I’ve seen a few DIY projects that used homemade ones, but they seemed either too pricey for me to put together or too complicated.

Now this homemade vacuum form project from hhbproduction is right up my alley. It’s simple and most of the items I already have at home. Best yet, it looks like it works incredible well.