Decorating on a Budget
When times get tough our hobbies are generally first to suffer the cutbacks. The list below has just a few ideas to help you save money on craft supplies and you may also find yourself a new creative burst by trying them. Crafts don’t always have to be so expensive and it is fun to improvise.
Paper and card
Newspaper offcuts: A great place to get plain paper, particularly for kids crafts and drawing is a newspaper office. Our local newspaper has always had huge rolls of plain white paper available for around $10 – $15, that is a roll that is over a metre wide and 30cm in diameter. I believe it was over 100 metres of paper, well my daughter has had the same roll for over 5 years.
Scrapbooking paper and card: If you are finding the scrapbook stores too expensive try looking in newsagents, office supply stores and department stores for paper and card. They may not have the same range and quality but you may find something to help your supply of better paper last longer.
Fabric and wool: Garage Sales can often be a great source of fabric when you don’t need large amounts. Even when clothes are fairly old there are generally parts that are not faded or worn. Used knitwear is great for small amounts of wool for wool crafts. Leather: Look out for old handbags, belts and leather jackets for leather scraps and fittings. Beading: old jewelry bought for nickels and dimes can be taken apart and made into new projects.
Mosaic: Garage sales are often a great source of plates that can be broken for use in mosaics.
Nature Mother Nature has an endless bounty of craft supplies for free. Plus you get fresh air and exercise while you are beach combing, walking or fossicking. Shells, sand, driftwood, seedpods, pebbles, leaves and grasses are but a few things that can be used in many crafts.
Wood: Scout construction sites and ask the foreman for his scraps. You would be amazed at what is wasted in Modern Construction.
Making your own Some of the things we use in crafts can be made instead of purchased. For example decent paper glue can be made with cornflour, beads can be made with salt dough and there are ways to make stencils and stamps yourself too. Wallpaper paste can be made with flour, water, and sugar. You can even make homemade paint from recipes found on the internet.
I’m no stranger to hard times, but they don’t have to be boring times as well.