Economic Times

"You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. You cannot help the small men by tearing down the big men.

You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich. You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling down the wage payer.

You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatreds.

You cannot establish security on borrowed money. You cannot build character and courage by taking away man’s initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves"

attributed to Abraham Lincoln

Pic: Small town America. Hot Springs, NC.

Faux Gingerbread

Years ago when the kids were little I started making Gingerbread houses. The real Martha Stewart kind where you bake all the pieces and put the house together with Royal icing. It was fun but it was a lot of work. One day I was watching the Carol Duvall show and she had a guest on the show making Gingerbread houses out of cardboard and decorating them with cutouts. They were cute. A light went off in my head and the "Faux Gingerbread House" was born.

I realized that the kids enjoyed the decorating process much more than they enjoyed the baking process. No one ever ate any of the house, it was strictly for show. Decorating the gingerbread house was where the real fun was. I came up with the idea of making a cardboard house shape and covering it with Graham crackers for the base and decorating that.

Below you can see a picture of the house base we used this year. The Styrofoam base came out of a gift basket that someone gave me. I used the side of a cardboard box for the roof and sides. The best part is that I put it all together with a glue gun or craft glue. I could not find my glue gun so I put the house together with Tacky glue and pinned it together until the glue dried.

After finding the glue gun I glued the Graham crackers in place. I have always used Royal icing to glue on the pieces and the decorations but decided this year to try the glue gun and it worked perfectly and was really fast. I had the house ready to go in about 10 minutes.

We used Wilton's Cookie Icing that comes in a squeeze bottle to make motar in the "stones" and to make "snow" on the roof, after we glued on all the candy. Here is the finished product:

I had $5 left in my decorating budget and I spent $3.75 on icing and crackers. The candy was left over and bought with CVS bucks so I made my budget! You could use any size boxes even round oatmeal containers and make houses of every shape and form. If you cut out windows and line with cellophane ,or melted hard candies, you could even light the houses and have stained glass windows. It is really cute to do a village of small houses. A very non Martha gingerbread house for sure. Let me know if you try this idea. If you want to make a Martha Graham cracker house go here.

Either way I would like to see some pictures.

Bottom Pic: Mento's snowman with gumdrop hat and a marker applied mouth.

Sticking To My Budget

I've made it a goal to stick to my $14 or less decorating budget again this year. I'll admit it would be easier if it were $20! But it is fun though to try and do it for as little as possible. My ornaments from my previous post came to less than a dollar or free depending on how you look at it because I didn't buy anything. I had everything in my stash of craft items.

My hubby brought home a Poinsettia as a present. The only thing I have bought were a couple of red checked tablecloths for $3 and a green cross stitch pillow from the thrift store for .50. I'm using these items to decorate my porch. The arrangement on the table I already had. (I found that table on the curb btw. Gotta love it!) I made a wreath for the door from a couple of garlands and ornaments I had and added a velvet bow I bought for .20 on clearance last year. I think the results are festive and I have only spent $8.70. I still have $5 left for supplies for our traditional "Gingerbread" houses. I have spent so much money in the past for Holiday decorations. Most of them bit the dust years ago after 4 kids. It is such a good feeling to be able to make things look nice for pennies. If and when I do decide to spend money on decorations I won't feel like I've been wasteful.

Christmas Ornaments And Gift Tags

It isn't always easy to get kids interested in sitting down and looking through family genealogy and I think it is important that they know something about their family history. I thought it would be interesting to include ornaments for these family members in away that would be fun and educational.

I did some brainstorming and came up with this idea after watching a scrap booking show where they made gift cards using movable elements.

I bought this box of tags at a yard sale for 50 cents. I wasn't sure what I would do with them. I knew that gift tags were a real possibility but I wasn't sure about any other uses. I just knew that there were possibilities and the price was too good to pass up.

Using paint, glitter, beads, jewels and Mod Podge from my supplies and photos I printed out I created these tags that I am using as ornaments on my tree. The backs are equally decorated and include names and relationship. I am a glitter kind of girl so I brushed each with a coat of Sparkle glaze after the Mod Podge and they look great on the tree. My favorite it the "shaker" ornament. I used the plastic cover from a pack of safety pins for the cover. I put beads and a little gold glitter inside and glued it to the decorated tag. The beads and glitter add some fun and interest. The possibilities are endless as to what you could add, any small item would work.

These would also make great gift tags. You could use pictures of individuals instead of names and they could hang them on the tree after they open their gifts.

Pics: The middle picture: Me with my middle sister at my grandparents home (Yes Sonya, I'm making one for you too!), My mom at 18 (Wasn't she pretty?) , My husband is the little boy on both tags (What a cutie!) , and my dad's parents.

Christmas Greetings

I hope everyone is getting into the mood for Christmas. I think I finally am. I can't decide what to do with the blog template yet, so I put this one up temporarily.

We have had our tree since Thanksgiving and I am finishing up my decorations. I don't have any pictures yet so I'm including one from last year and a link to my post about my challenge to myself to decorate my house for Christmas with just $14.

I've got some recipes to share and a couple of other ideas. So I'll be posting those soon. Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy my Christmas flashback.

Coupon Shopping This Week.

I tried out a couple of new places this week. I did my first CVS purchase. A small one which netted me $1 ECB. So with my one and only ECB I bought the Irish Spring ($.60 after my ECB and my coupon plus $1 ECB back.) and 1 bottle of Bam cleaner (on clearance for $2, so $1 after my coupon) So tax and all was $1.76 out of pocket and net of 1 ECB at CVS.

At Walgreens I had four $1 coupons for Taster's Choice and they had more of the stick packs for $1. So those were free. I had 2 Catalinas for $10 off Walgreens Glucosamine that someone had given me. They had it on sale BYGO. I found a bottle that had 90 tablets for $11.99 so I got 4 bottles for $3.98 (savings of $43.98 before sale or $20.00 from sales price). The Aleve was on sale for $2.99 and I had a $1 coupon. The Gillette was on clearance for $ 1.04 and I had $1 off 2 so I got 1 free. Total at Walgreens was $7.56 after tax.

I learned a few weeks ago that Fred's Pharmacy doubles coupons up to 70 cents on Saturday's only. Today was my first time trying it out. I learned that they will only double the first manufacturer's coupon for an item. So if you have multiples you must make separate transactions. The manager told me they have no problem with that.

They do NOT take Internet coupons. If you look at their online ad you will have to scroll to the back of the ad to find the cleaners, toiletries, etc. While in the store I found they had many items on clearance and regular prices on many items seemed much better than the other stores. For example the Mr. Clean Apple scented cleaner was regular priced at $2, so with my coupon it was $1, the Lysol cleaners were on sale for $1.79 after coupons they were .79. The Lipton Tea was priced at $1, with a coupon it was free. The Band Aids were also free. The Luzianne tea was only 77 cents after my coupon and the Excedrin came to .79 each after coupons. The only thing I didn't have a coupon for was the trash bags. I will definitely be shopping there again.

I'm not going to list everything by price but what you see below after coupons came to $18.72. $13.24 not counting the trash bags. Not bad. Before coupons everything added up to about $41.

I also made a Kroger run that before coupons came out to $42.06. After coupons the total was $20.51. I didn't bother to take pictures of that. I got several great deals though, including 7 boxes of breakfast Hot Pockets for $.66 per package of 4.

If I added right before coupons I spent $164.77. After coupons, and my one little ECB, I paid $48.55 out of pocket. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Pics: Top: CVS

Middle: Walgreens

Bottom: Freds

Attitude Of Gratitude

Hubby and I took a little time to get out in the beautiful fall weather we had this weekend. We traveled up to Norris to the Museum of Appalachia. I have been wanting to take some pictures there and my hubby was so sweet to wait around while I took a little over 100 pictures.

I'll be sharing a few of them over the next few weeks.

The theme of many of the post on Frugal Fridays and other blogs has been about knowing when we have enough and being wise about how much we bring into our homes. That message was brought home to me when I saw this little cabin on display. It is one of the smallest buildings ever placed on the Register of Historic places.

I wish that I had thought to get the name of the man who lived there. There is a picture by the door of him sitting on the front porch. They try to be as accurate as possible when they arrange the inside of the cabins for display. They use photographs as reference and they display all period pieces. This is probably a very good portrayal of how he lived. I stood in the doorway looking at the house that is smaller than the smallest bedroom in my house and realized that a man lived his life there. Everything he owned was sheltered in those walls. I felt humbled. I was awed by it. I felt gratitude for what I have and at the same time I felt ashamed.

Ashamed of the fact that I couldn't fit everything in the closets of my home in that house. Ashamed that I have a storage building in my backyard almost twice the size of this man's home.

When did we change so? When did "stuff" take over our reason for living? We always seem to need bigger, better and more of it. We expect it. We think we deserve it. We cannot have gratitude for what we have because we expect to have more.

Meanwhile, it consumes us, controlling our lives with longer work weeks to pay for it all, often at jobs we hate but can't afford to quit. It infringes on our free time by requiring constant maintenance and upkeep of our "investments" .

We claim to admire and respect people who are good and honest. The ones to whom family means so much. People who live simple, grounded, purposeful lives. But it is the ones who live lifestyles exactly the opposite who cover the pages of our magazines .

They are the ones who you can't turn on the TV without having to see, everything they do makes for headlines and is talked about on even the news channels. They are the ones so many aspire to be like.

I think if this man were here today, living in his little house, content with the basic necessities of life, I don't think many of us would look favorably on him. I think the labels of lazy, shiftless, and possibly even crazy would be used liberally and often.

Would I want to live in a tiny little house like that? Probably not. Could I? If I had too.

It would be painful. It would take a major shift in lifestyle. I would like to think I could do it. I hope that I could do it. I pray to cultivate the attitude that I would need. That's a beginning isn't it?

“Each of us will one day be judged by our standard of life -- not by our standard of living; by our measure of giving -- not by our measure of wealth; by our simple goodness -- not by our seeming greatness.”

William Arthur Ward

It Works!

My friend Angie has been telling me about her luck with coupon shopping and I have been reading about the deals Crystal gets.

Honestly, I didn't think I could save as much. It just seemed like so much work. When Crystal put her program on sale earlier this week I decided purchase it because she always seemed to have such great tips on her site. It is a well put together program and I would recommend it especially to those just learning to live frugally or just setting up housekeeping. Even an old dog like me learned a few tricks.

It is no secret that I am a die hard tightwad from way back, but coupons are something I just haven't taken the time to use. This week I decided to take the time to clip coupons, check the sales and make a list. I even organized my coupons... kind of.

Well tonight I took the plunge at my local Krogers. And I think I did really well. Everything you see in the picture above was $74.00 and some change. By purchasing items on sale and after my coupons (Kroger doubles 50 cent and lower) I only paid $36.33 tax included!

I got the mustard, 2 bottles of Worchestershire, and 2 cans dog food for free! I was very excited. The bag boy was impressed and the guy behind me said "That's what I'm talking about!" LOL.

Truthfully it wasn't that hard. I'm sure it will get easier as I get more organized and get used to the process. A big thanks to Angie and Crystal both for inspiring me to give it a try!

What Makes You Happy?

I saw in the news that there was one winner of the huge lottery this weekend. They won something like $140,000,000. That is a lot of zeros!

Would you be happy with lots of money? If everything went just as you planned and all your proverbial ducks were in a row, would you be more satisfied with life? I don't think it will conjure any winning lottery tickets for us but according to this article on the CNN money site by Jeanne Sahadi we may be more inclined to have things go well for us if we are happy people to begin with.

Well, that isn't good news for all us gloom and doomers is it now? Actually, according to the article pessimist, or realist, actually perform better in some jobs. But all isn't lost! We can learn to be happier.

We can develop the skills that one needs to think positive and ultimately live a happier more satisfied life. So there is hope yet! I read an article somewhere that said that lottery winners, and others with large expendable incomes, are found not to be any happier after spending their money on the material items they wanted to purchase. The boats, houses, cars and diamonds give a high that only last so long. If there isn't a core of happiness, a foundation of positive outlook there in the beginning, they soon return to their former level of satisfaction with life. One article I read matched census data on earnings with data on self-reported happiness from a national survey. When comparing people with the same income, with ones living in a richer area data showed that the people in the richer area reported being less happy.

The thing that consistently helped to raise the level of overall happiness in life was to use money to create memories. Yep, after taking care of the basic needs and paying our base expenses, spending time creating memorable moments in life went further toward making for a happy life than anything they could buy.

Ok, I know that you can create some really big memories with $140,000,000! Granted. But since the Powerball people aren't passing out checks this year, especially to people who don't buy tickets, I think we had better find some more realistic ways to create some fun memories.

One of the things our family found that created some of the most memorable times and cost the least was camping. We collected sleeping bags and camping equipment from yard sales and thrift stores. We bought our first tent on clearance. Our investment was very small.

We had some relaxing trips, some wild and wooly nights ( never did figure what that animal outside clawing around was) and some downright disastrous experiences (how much water could a sleeping bag hold if a sleeping bag could hold water?). But we bonded during those times and we still love talking about them.

Getting control of our money gives us the time and opportunity to find productive, satisfying ways to spend our days, and to spend time with family and friends. After all, that is why we practice all this frugal stuff in the first place isn't it?.

Pic: Lillies and Purple Coneflower. Townsend, Tn.

Want To Live In A Hobbit Hole?

If you do then check out this home .

Built in Wales, this home is a low impact structure built out of many recycled and natural materials. I think it is adorable and super cool. With all the talk about how to lower our personal imprint on our environment it is easy to overlook the obvious benefits for frugal souls.

In ignoring the multitude of businesses for profit that offer expensive alternatives to our toxic cleaning products or items such as the ridiculously overpriced canvas shopping bags and getting down to the real green life, the business of recycling and reusing items and finding ways to lessen what we use in our everyday lives, one comes to realize living a greener life also means a frugal, simpler life.

Replacing all those incandescent bulbs with compact florescent saves in more ways than one. Turning up the thermostat puts $$ in your pocket and helps lessen the pull on our power grids, taking an ink cartridge to W*algreens to get it refilled makes perfect sense budget and environment wise. Every time you find a way to reuse, recycle or remake and item, you aren't only saving dollars, you are making an impact on our environment. So, every time you make a gallon of laundry detergent or other homemade cleaner, use vinegar and baking soda to clean, or repair that old pair of pants one more time, remember to smile and feel good about your lack of environmental impact all the way to the piggy bank.

As always check out Crystal's site for more Frugal Friday tips.

Thrifty Thursday

I've been very busy again this week and haven't had the time or energy to post anything. Today after I finished the work I had to do, finished the housework on my list and completed the errands I had to run, I decided to stop by a couple of my favorite thrift stores.

I'm really glad I did! After years of looking for a good price on a dehydrator I finally found one for only $3! I'm so excited. I have been using my make do version that works but this will be nicer because it came with 4 trays and I picked up a couple of extra for only 50 cents each. I don't think they came with this dehydrator but they fit anyway. I already have mushrooms drying.

I also picked up some vintage Tupperware. I've not seen the cookware before. It says on the bottom it works in regular or microwave ovens. I'll have to check that out. If anyone has any info on it I'd appreciate it. I only paid $2 for the Tupperware and a few other small items.

Tomorrow my hubby and I are headed over to Muddy Pond, a Mennonite community near Crossville, Tn. We do business with a nice Mennonite couple at their store The Country Porch. I am so looking forward to a piece of delicious homemade Coconut cake there. It is the best I have ever had.

I also hope to go by the General Store there and the Bakery. I want to pick up some Sticky Buns and other goodies. I'll try to get some good pictures to post.

Then tomorrow night we are off to the Harry Potter party. We have been to every one since the first book. My son is looking forward to it. Until next time. God Bless.

Lavender Air Freshner

I like my house to smell nice. I've found that many artificial fragrances bother both my husband and me. I've found an easy and natural way to add fragrance to our home and it only cost pennies.

I take a jar and fill it about one half to three quarters full of Epsom salt. I want to leave room in the jar to shake it and mix the ingredients. To this I add the leaves and flowers and the chopped up stalks from lavender plants.

The Epsom salts leach the moisture out of the plant material and smells wonderful. When I want fragrance I just shake the jar and remove the lid.

I add plant material through out the growing season. In the winter if I need to refresh the scent I add a few drops of essential oil. For more tips check out Crystal's site.

Soft Soap

I've noticed the past few years that cleaning products have started to bother me. After cleaning the bathroom or kitchen I would be coughing and my eyes would itch. I discovered the recipe for homemade laundry detergent online and decided to make a version of it for cleaning.

I have been using the pink Zote soap in mine simply because that is what I have found at a good price. My soap consist of only 3 ingredients: A half bar of Zote soap, grated, about a half cup of Washing Soda and about a gallon of hot water. I don't bother to add the Borax called for in the laundry soap recipe because it is for whitening and odor removal and I don't think I need that in this recipe. I melt the soap in a pan on the stove and then stir in the Washing Soda, (the mixture starts to thicken when the washing soda is added) simmer on low for about 10 minutes.

Remove from the heat, allow to cool enough to transfer to storage containers. Soap will thicken as it cools. Mine is fairly thick. The more water you add the softer it will be. Experiment until you get a consistency you like.

Before I transfer it to the storage containers I add essential oils for fragrance. I added Lavender and Peppermint to mine. The Zote soap has a light floral fragrance that blends well with it.

I use this soap for cleaning almost anything. I have found it works well for floors, bathroom fixtures, to pre-treat laundry and even to wash dishes (It cuts grease well). I just mix in about a third of a cup with about a gallon or so of water. I use more, or sometimes even straight, if it is a tough cleaning job.

As I run out of cleaners I have on hand, I am replacing them with natural products such as vinegar and baking soda. I also use micro fiber cloths. I get mine in the auto department at Wal Mart. I use them on my Swiffer for mopping as well as regular cleaning. Using natural products not only helps me, but it helps the environment as well.

Less Becomes More

If you want the honest spiritual truth, my prayer is this:

Dear God, get me out of this mess.

Rita Mae Brown

It has been a busy week around here. We worked in the business everyday, including the 4th. Work, combined with the extremely hot weather, has left me feeling tired, physically and emotionally.

I get into a kind of depression this time of year. We are so busy with our business that everything else goes to the wayside, especially my house.

I had planned to have a yard sale this year. There were boxes crammed with books, clothes, knickknacks and whatnots under my garage. Every time I would carry another box out to the pile I felt this felling of chaos and confusion engulf me. I began to look at that pile of stuff with such a feeling of despair.

It became a pressure that I felt stuck or mired in. A distressing situation that I couldn't find the time to change. I knew I had enough for a very good yard sale, but it became more important to me to just get rid of the stuff. In doing so I hoped to clear my mind as well as my garage.

I guess I'll always be a messy person. I don't always make my bed. I don't always hang up things after I wear them. I've been known to leave a towel laying in the floor. Being messy causes small miseries to pile up as well. Things get lost or broken. I get embarrassed when people come over and everything isn't like I want it to be. I've found that when my house is messy, my life is usually messy as well.

When everything gets to the point where I can't stand it anymore, the only thing to do is purge and clean. Reach for the broom and the garbage bags and boxes and clean it all up. That is what I have been doing. I took two truck loads to Goodwill and the dump and two truck loads of weight off my mind and spirit.

In some cases always holding on to items "in case we need them", or making a decision that may save or make us a few dollars, but requires a lot of effort on our part, may feel like the most frugal thing to do. In reality it can bind us and keep us from receiving a much greater blessing or prevent us from using our time and effort where it is most needed. Being frugal isn't just about stuff or money. It is also about being wise with our greatest resource... our enegry and our own peace of mind.

"Prayer and housekeeping---they go together. They have always gone together. We simply know that our daily round is how we live. When we clean and order our homes, we are somehow also cleaning and ordering ourselves." Gunilla Norris

Links To Plants in a Bag And Other Cool Stuff!

This first link is mostly for my friend Angie. (She is a new blogger at Simple Living through God and a much better gardener than me! Everybody stop by and say "Hi".)

I think others will like it too . You Grow Girl has a great post about growing plants in plastic bags. Check it out. Too cool!

Gracious Hospitality has great pictures and instructions on making Lavender baskets. I'll have to try one of those.

Teri's Paper Dolls is a site I found awhile back. If you like paper dolls you will love the site. Check it out.

Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management was published back in 1861. An interesting read. Women took the art of homemaking very seriously. We are so blessed to have so many conveniences today.

If you take part in the Walgreens rebate programs, here is a website that list their rebates by month.

Pic: Lavender in my yard. The only thing growing well in this drought.

Teaching Kids about Money: Some Great Videos

(Note: This post was intended for last week Frugal Friday. Since it wasn't put up I'm connecting to it for this week.) Teaching kids about money is a long drawn out process. Some lessons are only learned by experience.

As soon as our children were old enough to understand we taught them how to evaluate their purchases and determine the best buy for their money. Allowing them to make financial decisions for themselves and then discussing those decisions with them, was the best teaching method I know.

We were never parents to purchase every toy that came along that our kids wanted. When the kids were old enough to start asking for expensive items we worked out a plan with them.

We stated the dollar figure we were willing to contribute, then we worked out a list of jobs the child could complete to earn the rest of the money needed. After the money was earned we taught them how to comparison shop and look for sales. We encouraged them to look for second hand items if possible.

I'm proud to say that my children all handle their money very well. They are savers and live within their means. None of my grown children have credit cards and operate on a cash only basis.

I found these great videos on YouTube that teach kids about budgets and money management. They are wonderful. I think they would be great supplements to any lesson on money management. Enjoy.

Use it Up Poster

Meredith had a link to Frugal For Life where there are some great WWII posters. I'm posting my favorite, which happens to bear my personal motto. I love it. Do you think we could all pull together and sacrifice today the way they did back then?

Yard Sale Haul

Got in a few yard sales today before the rain set in. I think I got some really good deals.

This cute little wallet/purse with a shoulder strap still had the tags on with a price of $49.00! I got it for $2. The little plate is a Fitz and Floyd with the tag, priced at $35. I can't believe they actually paid that much for it. I don't much about their line and what it normally sells for. I need to look up the price. Anyway I paid $1.

Other things I picked up were these pretty embroidered tea towels for 25 cents each. A teapot and tea ball (diffuser?) with a snowflake fob for $3. A really pretty teacup and sugar dish for 50 cents each. A milk glass vase for $1 and a pretty glass dish with a glass serving spoon for 10 cents each.

So everything was $8.20. Not bad. I look forward to using the teapot. I have wanted one for quite a long time and I love this one. Sounds like a good excuse for a tea party to me!

Frugal Fridays

I keep a few homemade mixes on hand. These mixes are inexpensive to make and keep well. To save time, or make it a little easier for any little helpers, you could prepackage these in the correct measurment size. I put mine in a sealed container with the directions taped to the top.

Chicken Flavored Rice Mix (makes about 4 cups of mix)

4 cups uncooked long-grain rice

4 tablesppons instant chicken bouillon

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

1/4 teaspoon white pepper.

Combine all ingredients and stir well.

Store in airtight containers in a cool dry place. Keeps 6-8 months.

To use: Combine 1 1/3 cup of mix, 2 cups cold water and 1 tablespoon butter or maragine. Bring to a boil and cook 15-25 minutes until liquid is absorbed makes 4-6 servings.

Sloppy Joe Seasoning Mix 1 batch

1 tablespoon instant minced onion

1 teaspoon green pepper flakes ( I use my own dried green pepper crushed)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon garlic

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard ( I have used regular in a pinch. It takes about 1 teaspoon)

1/4 teaspoon celery seed

1/4/ teaspoon chili powder

Combine all ingredients and stir well.

To use: Combine:

1 pound lean ground beef

1 batch seasonig mix

1/2 c water

1 8oz can tomato sauce

Brown beef in a skillet. Drain excess grease. Add mix, water and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

Makes 6 sandwiches.

What In The World Is This Thing ?

Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without is our family financial motto. Creativity is a key element to living that motto.

Now to answer the question in my post title. What is this thing? It is a "make do" dehydrator. I have wanted a dehydrator for years but I have never been lucky enough to find one secondhand. I realize that I don't do enough drying to justify buying one full price, so I had to come up with a "make it do" solution to fill the gap.

What I did here was use a frame to a TV tray, a pizza pan (the kind with holes), a clamp on shop light with a 100 watt blub, and a cardboard box. It won't win any design awards but it works like a charm to dry the small amounts of food I've tried in it.

So even though I am repeating myself my frugal tip is: Be Creative. This seems to be a theme this week on Frugal Friday tips. There is almost always some way to get what you need without spending the big bucks.