Coupon Codes 4 U!

I love saving money!  I bet you do too!  My husband is an account so that means he counts every penny and doesn't like me to spend any extra money.  He is happiest when we get great deals!  He even has my kids in on it.  We have banks for each of the kids and whenever we get change back at a store they ask to put it in the back!  A penny saved is a penny earned- right?!

I like to save money too but I also HATE to spend a lot of time cutting coupons, looking online at all the different coupons sites, running around town to 20 different stores,  trying to jump through all the hoops to save $1 at the end of all my hard work... I mean- my time is worth more then that! 

So when I found coupons4u.com I was excited! They are the best spot online for coupons, deals and sales on the internet... it should be the first spot before you shop.  They have coupons for online sites AND for regular stores like Target or Aeropostale.  In these financially tough times it is great to know that there is a one stop site to help us save money! 

Their site is easy to use too!
On their home page you can look at the Top 50, The best sales, or exclusive codes.  Or you can enter the store you are going to shop at and see what coupons are available (See the green arrow).

 

So- Lets say that you are looking for savings on art materials at dick blick.  Just write Dick Blick in the search box and up come all the coupons and deals!

Looking to save money on your grocery/household care bills?  Using soap.com money saving codes are ideal! 

It is getting to be swimsuit time!  Maybe your thinking of using a weight watchers coupon!  They have those too!  

 

You can also sign up for their Keep Saving Newsletter- in which they have exclusive SUPER deals that are not displayed on their site!  You could be hooked up and in the know!  The sign up is quick and easy! 

Coupons4u.com is one place that is easy to find the coupons and deals at the stores I am already shopping at.  If I want I can also look at what the top deals are too.  It makes it so easy! 

What ever you are shopping for you should check out coupon4u.com first!   

Tell me - Who is the money saver at your house?  How do you like to save money?

 

Flip-Flops repurposed into summer home decor! {Tutorial}

So, I hate wearing flip-flops.  They hurt my toes and I cannot stand the feeling of them on my feet.  I know I am totally weird but there it is!  But- I do think that they are adorable.  I got a pair of flip-flops for my birthday, and I decided to repurpose them into a cute summer decor for my 3 season porch.  What could be cuter them to make them flip-flop photos?

Here is what you will need to make your own:

Flip-flops (the cheap ones!)

Lace 

Mod Podge

Spray Adhesive

Photos printed on paper

scrap wood (I used a broken ruler)

Hot Glue (not pictured)
Optional: Paint markers (not pictured)

1. Start by cutting off the band.

2. Trace around your flip-flop on your photos (my photos are 5X7 printed my regular paper in black and white).  Cut out your pictures and attach them to the flip-flop using spray adhesive. Poke a hole through the paper where the top hole was on the sandal.

3. Brush Mod Podge over the pictures to seal them to the flip-flops.  I did 2 light coats. Let dry completely.

4. Cut out 4 pieces of lace about 6 inches long each.

Use a pencil to help  push the lace through the hole in the sandal.

Use hot glue to attach the lace to the backside.

5. Use hot glue to attach your piece of scrap wood to the back of your flip-flops to attach them together. 

6. Optional: Use Paint Marker to add some fun to the bottom of the sandal.

I hung mine up on the wall.
I think these turned out pretty cute and would make a great gift! 

 So tell me, do you love or hate to wear flip-flops?

 



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Reduce,Reuse, Re-purpose Round-up With DASANI

This post is sponsored by DASANI.  All opinions are 100% mine! 

I have been talking about how DASANI is celebrating reducing, recycling, reusing in many ways!  They have created a new bottle made out of 20% plants,  their bottle is 100% recyclable down to the ink they use on their labels, and they are partnering with New Balance to re-purpose their bottles into shoes. 

DASANI is also giving back through a fun Facebook app: Photosynthesis

Get creative with Facebook’s new timeline feature and support a good cause by ‘recycling’ your Facebook photos into an eye-catching image to top off your profile. For each photomontage created through the app, DASANI® will make a donation to the national non-profit organization, Keep America Beautiful in support of recycling initiatives on college campuses throughout the U.S.

How to use the app:

Fans who have ‘liked’ the DASANI® Facebook page can access the application on the Photosynthesis tab of the Facebook page.  First, fans will select a photo from either their Facebook albums or a design from DASANI®, to create into a photo-mosaic. The Photosynthesis app will ‘recycle’ all of the fan’s existing Facebook photos into a stunning mosaic that fits perfectly as a cover image on their profile. Each time a fan participates, DASANI® will donate $1 to the nationally recognized nonprofit, Keep American Beautiful, in support of their Bin Grant Program on college campuses. In addition, the fan’s profile photo will be added to the DASANI® mosaic of supporters, which will be featured on the Photosynthesis tab.

We also had a fun linky party showing off our projects that celebrated Recycling, Reducing, and Re-purposing! 
 Here is a round up of our favorite link-ups:

Bring new life to glass bottles with Its Over Flowing

Make your own Googly eyes with MeiJo's Joy

Re-purpose a table into to a chalkboard table with Kalina Blog

How cute are these Recycled Robots at Art Club Blog ?!!

Ski poles turned into a  Lamp at Reposhture

Check out this cool car make out of cardboard at Kayboo Creations

 Thanks to everyone who linked up to our RRR party!  And be sure to check out DASANI's Facebook page and use their Photosynthesis app to create some really fun mosaic pictures as well as helping keep America clean!


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Yarn Wrapped Pine Cones {tutorial!}

My son found these pine cones at the park and had to bring them home.  I saw my green yarn and inspiration took over.  I mean, isn't everything cuter with yarn wrapped around it?!

Here is what you will need:

Pine Cones

Yarn

Spray Paint

Hot glue

First spray paint your pine cones.  I did one side- let dry, and then flipped and did the other.

Then Wrap your yarn around the end:

1. Big blob of hot glue on the tip and coil your yarn around it the blob. 

2. Then make a line of Hot glue down the side.

3. Wrap your yarn around the side on the hot glue you just made.

4. Tuck the end inside one of the pine cone bristles to hide, it.

Display on your spring mantel.

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DIY Kindle Book Cover

Hello F&J readers! Jeannine here. My hubby and I got each other Kindle's for Valentine's Day this year. We are both total book nerds and are constantly reading, so the e-book has been tempting the techy sides of us for years. This isn't a Kindle review, but I will simply say, I love it. I wanted a hard case to protect it, but didn't want to pay the store-price. So I made this, absolutely free from what I already had in my house. If you're crafty, you'll definitely have these things laying around. Even if you're not so crafty, there's a good chance you'll have all or most of the items you need. And if you're too busy wiping butts to have time for crafts {like me} this one doesn't take too much time. Because of the glue, I had to spread it out over a few days, which actually made it a little easier to get done. {I think this would work for other "tablet" type devices too.}

Materials:
~hard cover book of your choice (I chose a classic, old-fashioned looking book)
~pencil
~razor knife (a.k.a. box cutter)
~Mod Podge
~artist paint brush

I chose The Secret Garden for mine {a childhood FAVORITE} and Treasure Island for my hubby's. I like the idea of secrets and treasures hiding within the books.

Open your book to the page you want to start cutting on. I went to the table of contents page, leaving the first few pages in tact. {I don't know why, it just felt like a good place to open to. I'm weird like that}.

Center your device where you want it to sit in the book.

With your pencil, draw a line around your device.

"Paint" the book pages together with Mod Podge on all three sides. Give it some time to dry.

 **If I could re-do this, I would adhere some kind of elastic or leather tie inside the back cover that I could use to hold the book closed once it's all finished. I didn't think of it though, until after I glued this together. I think an elastic head band would be the perfect size. Though, it would be just as easy to wrap it around the whole book to hold it closed.**

With the razor knife, start cutting out pages following your pencil line. You want to follow the line exactly, or even go slightly outside the line, otherwise the device will be too snug. 

This step is the most tedious. You have to keep cutting and cutting until your hole is deep enough for your device to fit the way you want it to. Also, I recommend cutting a notch on the bottom a couple inches wide so the power button isn't getting bumped. {See the bottom picture for an example}.

Be sure to save those pages for one of the many awesome book-page-crafts out there!

**I cut mine slightly inside the lines, thinking I wanted my Kindle to fit snuggly, but it was too snug. And when I tried to widen the hole, it didn't work too well, which is why the cutting looks a little wonky at the bottom.**

Paint Mod Podge inside the "frame" to hold the pages together.

Optional: Cover the whole page with Mod Podge to protect the paper, inside and outside the frame.

Give it a day or so to dry.

Drop in your Kindle, and there you go!

Some things I love about this:

~It "feels" more like I'm reading a book; it's more natural in my hands. 

~I can easily rest it on my knees if I'm sitting in bed.

~It doesn't cramp my hands trying to hold on to that skinny little thing.

~It keeps my Kindle safe{er} in the tub - I don't feel like it's going to slip out of my hands and into the water.

 

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Tie Belt Tutorial

Today I have a SUPER easy project... It will take less then 15 minutes to make!  A cute tie belt.  

Here is what you need:

A tie {I grabbed mine from my hubby... yes, I asked first!}

A set of D Rings {found at the fabric store in the notions section}

Sewing machine with tread, scissors, etc...

I measured around my waist and decided to cut a couple inches of the SMALL side of the tie.  I didn't want it to hang down to far.    This is totally optional.

 Fold over the end of the tie 2 times so that you have a finish edge and make a loop for your set of D rings (you should have two of them.)and sew as close to the rings as possible.  I sewed a couple of times just to reinforce the seam.  {Might i suggest using a coordinating color Thead too!  White was already loaded in my machine so that is what I went with!}

DONE! 

It is such a fun accessory!

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