Frugal Friday {DIY}

Quick and Easy Cloth Napkin Tutorial

So I have wanted to do this for quite awhile and quite frankly, I don't know why it has taken me so long.  It is one of the easiest projects to do.  

 In an effort to cut costs and waste in our home I wanted to try and cut down on the paper napkin usage.  Paper products like napkins and paper towels are very costly.  I love cloth napkins but they can be expensive to purchase.  So...I was at the store looking at kitchen towels and thought that they would make great napkins...added bonus most of the work,was already done for me.  So I picked up 2 packages of kitchen towels from Winco (of all places) for $3.88/ pkg.  These are very casual for everyday use.  Below are the step by step directions.

1.  Take one towel and cut in half.  These already had nice creases that were easy to follow.

 

2.  Hem the raw edge that you just cut.  This material started to fray almost immediately, so I folded the material over twice to make sure and keep all those lose ends tucked neatly away.  It ended up being just about a 1/2 inch. hem.

3. Then,sew a straight stitch or whatever matches the seams already sown on the towel.

4. The sewn edge.

 

5. From 6 kitchen towels I made in about (40 minutes), 12 napkins that can be washed repeatedly, saving $. Simple, quick, functional, frugal....4 great words for a busy mom!  

 

Cost per napkin $0.64.  I looked on Amazon for cloth napkins.  They ranged from around $10-$25 for 4 and sometimes 12 napkins.  When I did the math,the average cost per napkins was around $2.00 give or take.  Even at Walmart they ranged from $5-$44.  Still averaging around $2 sometimes $3 per napkin! Everytime I am in a store that has kitchen towels, I look to see if they have a set of 3 or 4 (is even better) for around $1 per towel or less.  Next, a solid color that can be used for more formal dinners.  :)

Comeback Sauce...?

 

Ok, so I had never heard of Comeback sauce.....gasp...until a few days ago!! Ok it isn't all that surprising since I am not southern..!  This sauce is claimed to be a Mississippi original.  

Wordless Wednesday...{sort of}

All natural, non-toxic, automatic cabinet cleaner! 

 

Love Dare {day 11}

Love Cherishes

It is a sad thing....when our culture views marriage like a car that when it has too many problems to fix, it is just better to get rid of it and get a new one.  When our relationships experience difficulty, we are urged to dump our spouse and get a "newer model."  Consider a person who's hand get's crushed.  Although it is very painful and will takes months of therapy and time to heal, most of us would not just cut it off, we would endure the pain and put the effort into regaining the function in our hand.  In marriage we are not encouraged to put effort into healing but start over with someone new.   When two people get married they become part of one another.  We would never consider cutting off a part of your body if it got hurt!  We would pay whatever we could afford for the best medical treatment.  

When we hurt our spouse we really are hurting our selves.  Our lives are so intertwined that our spouse can not experience joy or pain without it affecting you.  When when we attack each other we really are attacking our selves.  We need to let love change our hearts and minds and start cherishing our spouse like we would cherish our own bodies.  When they cause us pain or frustration, we should desire to do everything possible to care with the same love and tenderness you would a bodily injury.

"Don't let the culture around you determine the worth of your marriage.  To compare it with something that can be discarded or replaced is to dishonor God's purpose for it.  That would be like amputating a limb. In stead, it should be a picture of love between two imperfect people who choose to love each other regardless."

When we look at our mates, you are looking at a part of yourself.  So treat them well.  Speak highly of them, feed and cherish the love of your life.

Dare #11
"What need does your spouse have that you could meet today?  Can you run an errand? Give a back rub or foot massage? Choose a gesture that says, 'I cherish you' and do it with a smile"

 

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

 

Cupcakes seem to be a very popular these days and those Andie's Mint Cupcakes are one of my most frequently visited dessert posts.  So... I thought I would share another one with you.  I love cinnamon and sugar so how could you go wrong with a Cinnamon/Sugar cupcake!  

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

by Your Cup of Cake

Family Film Sale!

 Family Vision Films is getting a new look!  To celebrate they are having a store wide clearance sale!
I thought I would pass this along for anyone interested.  

What if you owned a Facebook?

Passing along something I just found...have you heard of Zurker?  

What if you owned Facebook shares?  Can you imagine? What if you had invested in google when it was in it's infancy? Well, here comes Zurker a social media platform that gives shares to its owners and users ...that's you!  Pretty clever.  You can read more about how it all works here.

Love Dare {Day 10}

Day 10

Love is Unconditional

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 God demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 
Romans 5:8 

So why do we love our spouses?  We all have our reasons why we love them, but here's a tough questions...what if over the course of years, our spouses stopped being every single one of those things?  All those things we loved about them ceased. 

Love Dare {day 9}

  Day 9

Love Makes Good Impressions

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Greet one another with a kiss of love. 1 Peter 5:14

Well, we have covered quite a lot in just the first 8 days of our love journey.  Today's challenge may seem inconsequential but it does have significance. 

Yummy French Toast

I love French Toast....and this is a favorite recipe here at our house.  Please excuse my photos...I am not a photographer, like so many are.  One of these days..... :)

Wordless Wednesday

Falling Water

 

click picture for more views

 

Tip of The Week

 

Vinegar....Quick Tips

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1.  Vegetables:  Liven up slightly wilted begetables by soaking them in cold water and vinegar.

2.  Flowers:  Add two tbsp of vinegar plus three tbsp of sugar to a quart of warm water to keep fresh cut flowers blooming longer.

When Motherhood Feels Too Hard

Do you ever feel like Motherhood is just too hard?  Are you worn out and exhausted?  Do you need a boost so you can be the mom you really want to be? I love being able to share great resources with you and I have one for you today!  I encourage you to watch the trailer to get an idea of what this is all about.

I am so excited to announce a brand new ebook, by Kellie at Generation Cedar.  She is a mother of nine and has a heart for moms.  

Are you a Queen?

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"The one's who teach the next generation are the ones who decide who will rule the world and how it will be governed.  Who rocks the cradle in our culture today?  Public schools, government caretakers, strangers....There are very few women left who understand the extreme importance of their role as wives and mothers-and as daughters and grandmothers...Holding a child on your lap, reading out loud, extending your hand to the elderly, listening to someone who needs a sympathetic ear--these things add up as we work to build a culture of kindness, beauty, strength, and wisdom.  Do you want to rule the world? Start ruling your homes!"- Jennie Chancey from Queen of the Home

 

Homeschool Freebies

For all you homeschoolers...here are a few freebies you might find useful. 

Love Dare {Day 8}

Love is not jealous

 

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Love is as strong as death, it's jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire. - Song of Solomon 8:6

Jealousy is a very strong emotion.  It drives men and women to do unthinkable things.  If you think about it Lucifer (satan) was driven by his jealously of God the Father.  He wanted to be God, he convinced Adam and Eve they needed to be "like God" and the rest is history.  The desire to have what is not yours is a terrible thing.  Proverbs 27: 4 says "Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood, but who can stand before jealousy?" 

The Love Dare {Day 7}

Love Believes the Best

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[Love]believes all things, hopes all things. -1 Corinthians 13:7