Pretty cups and saucers can be used for more than just afternoon tea. This candle in a tea cup is gorgeous, and cost almost nothing to make. I used a 50 cent cup and saucer from my favourite Op Shop, a candle we already had that was a little out of shape, a length of cotton string from the kitchen drawer and a few drops of lavender essential oil to scent it. They are quick to make too, about 15 minutes all up. This candle cost me 50 cents. I saw a similar thing at Coles yesterday, in their Mother's Day display, for $11! A Candle in a Tea CupYou will need: 1 tea cup and saucer 2 or 3 coloured candles Cotton string (or a candlewick if you have one) Your favourite essential oil Hot glue gun An old fruit tin or similar for melting the candles A large saucepan Step 1. Using your hot glue gun, glue the cup to the saucer. Step 2. Break your candles into smallish pieces. Put them in the fruit tin. Fruit tins are ideal for this step as you can throw them away when you are finished. If you do use a saucepan, don't use one of your favourites or you'll be cleaning it for ages. Wax is very difficult to remove completely. Use a fruit tin and avoid the stress (and the work). Step 3. Sit the fruit tin in a large saucepan. Fill it with water to about half way up the side of the fruit tin. Bring the pot of water to the boil, all the while stirring the melting candles. Once the water is boiling, turn it down to a simmer. Continue to stir the candles as they melt. Step 4. Cut a length of string twice the height of your cup. Dip the string into the melted wax a couple of times to stiffen it. Step 5. Carefully pour a tiny blob of melted wax into the bottom of the tea cup. Stick one end of the wick to the bottom of the cup. Step 6. Holding the wick straight (you might need someone to help you here) fill the cup to the brim with the melted wax. As the wax cools it will form a slight dip in the centre. Melt any remaining wax and fill the dip. Add embellishments to the rim of the cup, the handle and/or the saucer if you wish to. Platinum members can login for full access to the Tip Store
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These are a lovely gift for a new mum, and yes, they get their name from the mythical baby bundles left by the stork. They are easy to make, taking only a few minutes and look really cute when you hand them over. Best of all they are inexpensive and anyone, no matter how creative, can whip one up in just a few minutes.
You will need: 10 new born disposable nappies 10 rubber bands a length of ribbon one bunny rug Step 1. Roll each nappy like a Swiss roll and secure with a rubber band. Step 2. To assemble the bundle, fold the bunny rug in half lengthwise and then in half again, creating a long strip. Lay the folded blanket in front of you and stack four rolled nappies in the centre. Step 3. Stack three nappies on top of the first four, then two nappies, and then one on the top. Step 4. Fold the ends of the blanket up to help hold the nappies in place. Make sure the top of the bunny rug is even on both sides. Step 5. Tie the ends of the blanket together with a ribbon, attaching a teething ring or dummy to the ribbon. The instructions are for a stork bundle made with disposable nappies, which, despite their environmental issues, will make life easier for the new mother in those first few days before she gets into a routine - please don't point the cost, dollar, environmental or otherwise out to me before you finish reading. Stork bundles can be made up with anything that will roll. I've made them with cloth nappies and face washers, and even a bundle of flannelette bunny rugs with great success. A bundle of MCNs would make a lovely and very useful gift too. You could use bibs, jumpsuits, singlets - anything at all that will roll up. Use your imagination! All these things are very handy with newborns, and you can never have too many nappies, face washers or bunny rugs as they all have so many uses. I love these little tarts, and I'll let you in on a little secret - I keep a packet of Aldi scotch finger biscuits cases in the freezer just for making these! Why the freezer? So the fridge fairies won't find them and devour them of course!
They're so quick and easy to make, perfect for unexpected visitors or when a quick dessert is needed. Ingredients: 1 pkt all butter shortbread biscuits (or frozen tart cases) 125g butter, melted 2 pkts vanilla instant pudding (or MOO equivalent) 2-3/4 cups cold milk 300ml cream, whipped Method: Line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake papers. Crush shortbread biscuits into fine crumbs, about the texture of brown sugar and mix with melted butter. Spoon crumbs into cupcake liners. Press firmly on the bottom and up the sides. Mix pudding with milk according to directions on packet. Spoon pudding into crusts. Top with whipped cream. Keep chilled until ready to serve. During our Cheapskates Club Show on Tuesday night, one of the questions was about snacks, particularly for keeping teenage boys full.
Boy, do I know about that! My boys seemed to have not just hollow legs, but no soles on their feet - I used to tease them the food just fell straight through! It's hard to keep snacks not only healthy, but budget friendly too, so that you and the kids are happy. Don't be tempted to give and buy snacks. Packets of chips, corn chips, pop corn, crackers, muesli bars, fruit leathers, little containers of dried fruits, yoghurts, custards, biscuits and individual cakes are very expensive. And all of these things can be quickly and easily made at home - you don't need any special ingredients, or skills (if I can make these, you can!). Here are the snacks I made for my kids (and still do on occasion):
Add your favourite budget friendly snacks to the list in the comments below. When you grow rhubarb you understand it's either a feast or a famine. Those pretty red and green stalks can be few and far between while you're waiting for them, as soon as you ignore it, that rhubarb crown will just go beserk. When this happens in your garden, make Rhubarb Champagne. It's a delicious, slightly fizzy, pretty pink drink that's as easy to make as ginger beer and just as refreshing. And if you grow rhubarb and lemons and make your own apple cider vinegar it is really, really cheap - about $1.00 to make. Rhubarb Champagne Ingredients: 5 litres cold water 1 lemon, thinly sliced 3-1/2 cups rhubarb 3-1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar Step 1. Wash rhubarb and lemon. Don't peel the lemon but slice it thinly. Cut the rhubarb into rough chunks. Step 2. In a clean and sterilised bucket put the water, apple cider vinegar, sugar, rhubarb and lemon. Sit the bucket in a warm spot on your kitchen bench. Don't put a lid on the bucket, the mixture needs to gather the natural yeasts in the air to start the fermentation process. Leave for 48 hours (no longer or the rhubarb will sour the drink and it will be ruined). Step 3. On bottling day, wash and sterilise bottles and caps. I use recycled soft drink bottles that have been thoroughly washed and cleaned; you can use cleaned and sterilised wine or beer bottles and caps if you can get them.
Step 4. Strain the rhubarb champagne through a cheesecloth or Chux. Add the rhubarb and lemon to the compost or feed the scraps to your chickens if you have them. Bottle and cap the champagne. Store in a dark cupboard for up to 2 weeks. The drink is ready in three days - two weeks, depending on how fizzy you like your drinks and of course the weather, it's ready earlier in summer than it is in winter. Chill well before serving. Makes four 1.25ml bottles of rhubarb champagne. From the Drinks Recipe File One of my biggest bug bears is wasting food.
When you throw food out, or even put food in the bokashi, you are throwing your money away. We have pineapple with our salads, and one tin does two meals for the five of us. When I open a tin, I take out the four slices we need, then tip the other slices and juice into a container and put it in the fridge until the next night. The Aldi pineapple rings in juice are what we like. They are bought in bulk when I replenish the stockpile each year. After I use the remaining pineapple slices, instead of drinking the juice, or worse, pouring it down the drain, I make a quick marinade with it. I add a slurp of vegetbable oil, a dash of soy sauce and a pinch of garlic and give it all a shake. Then I plan chicken for the next night, take it out of the freezer and pour the marinade over. Let it marinate overnight in the fridge and then it can be baked, fried or barbecued. And nothing is wasted! Nuts’n’Bolts
Ingredients: 500g Nutrigrain (generic equivalent works just as well) 375g salted peanuts 375g pretzels (broken into small pieces) 100g pumpkin seeds 1 packet Cream of Chicken soup mix 1 packet French Onion soup mix (generic works just as well) 3 tsp curry powder Pinch chilli powder 1/2 cup currants (or sultanas) 3/4 cup olive oil, heated Method: Combine all ingredients except oil in a large bowl. Mix well to make sure everything is coated with the seasonings. Warm the oil and stir through the dry ingredients, making sure they are all coated completely. Store in a large, air tight bowl. If you are going to jar it up for gifts, wait two days. Stir the mix completely each day then on the third day pour into jars and label. This mix looks great in nut dishes on the Christmas table too. If you don't have all the ingredients, don't stress. Add what you have, and substitute the rest. This makes a HUGE batch, so great for a few gifts, with plenty leftover for your Christmas snacks. Package it in jars or cellophane bags to give. It's the best day of the year for shopping. Whether you get to line up early on the 26th or you have to wait until the 27th, hitting the Boxing Day sales is great fun and a great opportunity to pick up some fantastic bargains....and get a head start on next Christmas! Before shopping: *Check to see what you already have. *Make a list of the things you want to buy. Prepare your list around what you already have, what's on sale, and what gifts you'll need in the coming year (birthdays, Mother's Day, Father's Day, 21sts, engagements, weddings, special anniversaries, new babies and of course next Christmas!). *Plan your spending to avoid impulse buys. Don't spend money on things you don't need. *Wear comfortable shoes and clothes, take a bottle of water and remember to have fun. Easy Rocky Road
Ingredients: 1 x 250 gm packet snakes 2 x 200 gm blocks milk chocolate, melted 1 x 100gm packet mallow bakes (mini marshmallows) 1 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, toasted 1 cup desiccated coconut Method: Grease an 8 cm x 26 cm bar cake pan; line base and two long opposite sides with baking paper, extending paper 5 cm above edges of pan. Using scissors, snip snakes into 2-cm lengths. Combine snakes with remaining ingredients in a large bowl; mix well. Spoon mixture into prepared pan, pressing mixture firmly with back of spoon. Cover refrigerate several hours or until set. To serve, stand for 10 minutes at room temperature before cutting into slices. I have also put some mixture into patty pans and once set turned them out and placed them upside down on a plate put some ice cream on the top for children who would not eat plum pudding at Christmas time. Today's idea is for a very inexpensive but oh so valuable gift. It comes in the form of a family recipe book. The Family Recipe Book Almost every family has a treasured, favourite recipe or recipes that have been handed down through the generations. A great way to ensure that the recipe and the family history aren't lost is to make a family recipe book. Putting your Family Recipe book together will be great fun and easy to do if you follow these simple steps. Planning & Design *Will it just be a recipe book or will it have space for family history? *Will you include stories with the recipes, such as why Granny's Johnny Cakes were the best ever, or the secret to Aunty Mary's Beef Casserole? *Will there be space to add other recipes? *Are you going to include illustrations, photos (you can scan them in), family sayings, funny events etc.? *And will you leave space for comments and notes to be added later on? *How will you decorate it? *Is it to be a single page or a double page spread? *And what about a cover and binding? *Is this your own personal project or would you like some other family members to help you? Gathering the Recipes If you have the time, ask family members for copies of their favourite recipes and anything else you want to include in the recipe book. Give a deadline for the return of the information or your Family Recipe book could be an ongoing work. If you need it right now, use your favourite recipes and leave a few blank pages so they can add their favourites to the book. Putting it Together This is the fun part. Use your computer to type the recipes up, add the images etc. Have someone else proof read it for you, there are bound to be typos and formatting errors that you just don’t notice because you’re so close to the project. Printing and Binding You can print the pages yourself if you’re confident and have a good printer. Alternatively you can take it to an office supply store (Officeworks etc.) or a printer (Kwik Copy etc.) and have it printed. The size of the finished book will determine the best binding. A spiral or comb binding will allow the book to open flat, making it easier to use and read. If your book isn’t too thick, you can punch holes and tie the book off with a ribbon. Laminating the pages will also help to protect them from spills etc. something you can do if your Family recipe book is to be just for the family. |
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