Your money is coming in slower than it’s going out. You already work full time and the thought of picking up a second job that would work around your “8-5-Er” is practically impossible without falling asleep on the job. You have extended your credit to the max and you are still short.
Did you know that over the past 12 months in 2008, the number of unemployed persons has increased by 2.8 million, and the unemployment rate has risen by 1.7 percentage points, per the U.S. Department of Labor’s statistics???
Obviously, you are not alone in what feels like a never ending battle to put a little cash back in your pocket. Change things up a bit this year and go personalized with your gifts.
Do you have a computer, scanner and printer and do you know how to use them??? Great! let’s get started!!! If you don’t have a scanner or printer look on the free section of craigslist.com, they always have them listed there!!!
Easy one to start out with is Calendars. Get pictures of your family or yoru friends. You will need 12. On an 8×11 sized paper you will need to print out each month’s calander in landscape or length wise. Then on a blank page you will need to print out your first picture in landscape. Face the picture up on a table and grab the january calander. You will then print on the back side of this the second picture you will want to use, also set in landscape. FAce the picture upside on top of the January and continue through the months. To add some fun to the caldendar you can always type or write in special birthdays and holidays that are personalized to you. Then take a hole punch and punch 3-9 holes at the top of your calendar. Cut small pieces of ribbon or string and loosely tie them together for easy opening of the pages. Office supply stores that have a printing department in them do this and change anywhere from $10-$15 a piece for these. Great present for the person who never knows when anyones birthday is!!! Here is also a link for easy and free Calendar templates.
The next holiday project is a picture slideshow! If you have microsoft office, most of the newer versions come with powerpoint. You can add music and audio clips to lots of your favorite moments. If you are unfamiliar with powerpoint, you would need to familiarize yourself with how to do use the program before you consider this option or you will just frustrate yourself!
Another fun christmas present is iron on transfers. If you go to your local stores and for about $15 dollars you can purchase printable iron on transfers. Take photographs you have scanned into your computer and print them on these laserjet type iron on pages and all you need is some cotton item to iron it onto as a personalized gift! T-shirts, pillow cases, nurses scrub pants, etc. If you don’t have a scanner you can always type out someones name in a word document and print it on the transfer page too!!! Iron-on the item and your set!
Another fun project is a personalized mirror. Great for friends that enjoy certain hobbies. Go to the dollar tree and pick up a cheap framed mirror usually located in their dollar section. You will also need either glue or rubber cement depending on the type of frame you are getting and the width of the fame. I like the thick framed ones that are wood. Print out pictures of the hobby and cut them like a collage and start gluing them all around the mirror on the frame so that way there is no empty areas. Once it is dried you can use decoupage or clear nail polish or a clear sealers paint and paint over the top of it to seal it together! It’s fun and intresting to hang on your wall!!!
If you have more suggestions on fun and super cheap creative crafts, please leave a comment and share your ideas!!!
