This is a great idea–make your own snow globe. Apparently, all you need is a jar, some sort of snow (crushed eggshells or glitter), mineral oil or glycerin, silicone sealer to keep it from leaking, and of course the object to put in the globe. All of this can be found around the house or at the craft store.

There are tutorials on eHow, Berrylicious Buttons, and Martha Stewart.

The creative possibilities are endless, especially if you make your own objects out of baked polymer clay. It’s like a little frozen terrarium for your house.

Here’s a short interview with Amy Dacyczyn, the “Frugal Zealot,” who I have mentioned before on here. I had never seen her interviewed before and I was surprised by how pleasant she seems. I guess I had imagined her as a stern sort of person when in fact, she seems the opposite. She seems palpably content.

I also like her house, although it’s not my decorating style.

It’s interesting that we give thanks for everything we have in our lives one day and then the next go shopping. I have nothing against this, really, but I’m glad this video popped up to keep in my mind as I forge through traffic this Friday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

(This is actually from my post on how to make vegetable broth, but hey, broth is broth)

After Thanksgiving and the turkey sandwiches and Alton Brown turkey hash, there’s still one more thing to be done with the turkey–make some broth with it.

Turkey broth is a great thing to have in your freezer. You can use it in any recipe that calls for chicken broth and in lots of meals that need a little extra flavor. It makes wonderful soups, risottos, pastas, sauces, and so on.

The other thing about turkey broth is that, as with vegetable broth, it can be made from the waste you create while cooking Thanksgiving dinner. That means that the ends of onions, celery, parsley, carrots, and any other herbs you would normally throw away–plus the turkey carcass itself, of course–can be salvaged and put to use making a nutritious broth. With the exception of a few pennies spent on salt and fresh herb or two, turkey broth is essentially free to make, which makes it uber frugal.

How to Make Turkey Broth:

Ingredients:

Turkey Carcass

Any of the following:

Ends of onions
Carrot tips
The stems of herbs
The tiny slivers from the center of garlic
The tops of celery

1 bay leaf
1/8-1/4 c salt
2 Tbs black pepper

Directions:

As you make Thanksgiving dinner, save the ends of vegetables. You will be surprised with how much you come up with. I stick them in a freezer bag and freeze it until I’m ready to make the broth.

After you have eaten all the turkey, use the carcass to make broth. I scrape the excess stuffing from the center of the carcass, since it is no use to the broth. Then I get the biggest soup pot I own. I break the bones so that the carcass will fit and put it in the pot. Then I get out the frozen ends of vegetables and dump them in the pot as well.* Finally, I add the bay leaf, pepper, and about 1/8 c of salt.

I take the pot to the sink and fill it with water until it is covering the turkey bones. Then I put it on the stove on high and let it come to a boil. Next I lower the heat to about medium and let the broth simmer for about an hour or two. Periodically, I’ll come by with a slotted spoon and skim the pot of any white stuff or remaining stuffing. This keeps the broth from getting cloudy.

After that, I taste the broth. I look at the color–is it golden brown? Does it need more salt? Does it taste like broth is supposed to taste? If all looks well, the broth is done. Refrigerate overnight and then divvy into freezer-safe containers

* Usually, the vegetables I cut up making dinner is enough for broth. If not, I would add another onion or celery stalk to the mix.

Cost of Dish: Turkey carcass: free; Vegetable ends: free; Water: free; Salt and pepper: so cheap, hardly worth mentioning; Bay leaf: free for me because I get them from a friend’s bay tree.
Total Cost: Free! (Well, close enough.)

Talk about making something from nothing.

I want a wood chipper. I love the idea of running branches through it and ending up with mulch that I can spread around all over my yard. Talk about recycling…

Unfortunately, I don’t have the money for a wood chipper right now, and my vegetable garden, herb garden, and flower garden all need to be mulched for the winter. The $4-a-bag price at the hardware store adds up very quickly, so I’m looking for cheaper alternatives.

I don’t like the idea of rubber, sand, gravel, or glass mulch because it ruins the soil. And since mulching is partly about looks, I don’t want to use newspaper or hay to mulch. I want tree clippings. So here are some ways I’ve come up with to get free or cheap mulch:

Search Online Forums–On Craigslist, someone put up a post for free mulch near my house. Apparently I can go pick it up, but I doubt it will still be there at lunchtime. I may go see anyway, though.

Call the Local Utilities–According to this thread on Gardenweb, you can call your local electric company and see if they have mulch available. According to one poster:

I just received my first load of free mulch from the electric company.
It was delivered the same day I called, all fresh from that days work.
There were 5 other families that also wanted a load just that day.

The guy comes over, checks over your drive way and picks a location.
He then marks it with a flag.
Next thing you know the big truck is out there dumping it!

Ask Friends or Neighbors–If your neighbor has a bunch of pine trees or something else that makes ready mulch, then you could ask to bag it up for free. I don’t have this option, though.

Rent a Wood Chipper–If it costs $100 to rent a wood chipper for a day, but you can make as much mulch as you want in that time, it might be worth it. The only thing is, you have to have a way to transport the machine to your house. I’m pretty sure a wood chipper won’t fit in my Honda Civic.

That’s all I have. How do you get cheap or free mulch?

My menu for Thanksgiving (which is *next week!*) is: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegetable side, rolls or French bread, and sparkling cranberry soda, with pumpkin pie and homemade ice cream for dessert.

The only one thing I’m undecided about is the vegetable side. I’m skipping the yams–too much starch alongside the potatoes–and the green bean casserole was never a tradition in my family. Instead, I want a vegetable side that will bring something different to the table.

Here are the vegetable sides I am considering:

Little Balsamic-glazed Onions by Sunset. I have made a French version of this dish with beef stock before, but this looks lighter and less greasy–not to mention delicious. It’s kind of labor intensive, though.

Asparagus, Peas, and Radishes with Fresh Tarragon by Martha Stewart. My husband loves peas, so there’s a good chance the vegetable side will contain some of them. This recipe looks good, except I’m not sure about the radishes.

Wine Poached Beets by Better Homes & Garden. I love cooking with beets and this dish would look gorgeous on the table. I’m not sure about wine and beets going together, however.

Arugula, Fennel, and Preserved Lemon Salad, also by Sunset. A simple salad offers a nice contrast to all the rich food, but it’s a little boring.

And finally, Brussels Sprouts with Chestnuts and Bacon by Food & Wine Magazine. Really, how can you go wrong with this?

Country Living has a how-to on how to take an old hardback book and turn it into a bag. You hollow the book out, line it with fabric, and add a handle.

It’s pretty cute, only it’s too bad there isn’t a way to close the purse. Maybe a zipper could be added to the top?

Not to brag, but I have a remarkably good track record for selling things on Craigslist. I often sell things for the price I originally paid for them. For example, I paid $400 for my last couch, used it for 7 years, and sold it for the same amount on Craigslist.

And that’s just the beginning. I have sold tables, lamps, parts of doors, a toilet, a sink, the straps that go around a water heater, a car that was never going to run again (I had a bidding war on that one), and many other things. What I can’t sell, I give away. You will be amazed what people will take for free. I have given away rusty dollies, pine cones, a giant plastic mirror, and even this door:

Yes, someone came and took away that door. I am wondering if I can go my whole life without ever going to the dump, thanks to Craigslist’s free section.

Here are my tips for selling on Craigslist:

1. Post on a Week Day. I notice that I get a better response if I post on a week day than a weekend. The posts I put up on the weekend tend to get buried. I guess a lot of people are looking at Craigslist while at work.

2. Don’t Get Overly Descriptive. Unlike eBay, you don’t want to convince the buyer how great your product is. Saying something like: “This vintage round side table with cherry stain and a post-World-War-II history will look fabulous in any living room!” will not get you half the responses as, “Round side table with cherry stain for sale.” People are scanning these ads and they don’t want to read a novel. Keep it simple.

3. Mention the Condition. I always say whether the item is in good condition or not. I am honest about any problems, but also positive. For example, with the beat-up door above (which also had a picture so people could see how bad it was), I said, “While it is not in the greatest shape, it is remarkably heavy/solid and could be fixed up.” True, and it worked.

4. Include Dimensions. ALWAY measure furniture or household items and include it in the ad. People want to know how big things are. I put:

Dimensions:
X” tall
X” wide
X” long

5. Say Why You Are Getting Rid of the Item. People seem to wonder, “Well, if this is in such great shape, why is she getting rid of it?” So I usually say something like, “I am remodeling and no longer need this item.” That way people know I have a good reason for selling whatever it is. It seems to increase their trust.

6. Include Pictures. Pictures are essential. Get out a digital camera and take a picture for everything you put up on Craigslist. I do it even if I am giving something away. It makes a huge difference in whether you get a response.

7. Include a Phone Number. At the end of the ad, I always tell people to feel free to call or e-mail me. Some people like to deal through e-mail and others like to talk to you, so I give them the option. I realize not everyone would be comfortable putting their phone number on Craigslist. While I feel that way about my e-mail address–I always use the anonymize option–I don’t worry about people having my phone number. I don’t think that many telemarketers are trolling Craigslist. (Yet?)

8. Re-Post. If you don’t sell something, wait the week that Craigslist requires, and then re-post. Most likely the ad just got buried. I often sell things the second time through that were ignored the first time. You know what they say: if at first you don’t succeed, try try again.

The cutest thing I saw on Halloween was also one of the simplest. A mother had put a hat on her newborn that looked like the top of a green bean. It was a green hat with a little swirl coming out of the top and it was just adorable.

I have looked around the web for a similar hat. I came up with a few options, like this one:

The pattern for the hat and sweater is $6 from Knot Another Hat.

But the hat I saw had more a swirl on top, kind of like this:

This $25 hat from Swirly Hat is really supposed to be an elf, not a green bean, but it’s close.

Still, a green bean baby is cuter than an elf baby. Another similar hat is this one:

The crochet pattern is free from Lion Brand Yarn. You would have to make it in green, of course.

I took an informal survey this weekend. Everyone hates eggnog. I mean, they don’t just dislike it, they hate it. They make faces and say things about it being thick and having eggs in it and what’s with the name? “Eggnog” does not sound appetizing. Who made this drink and why do we drink it?

I don’t know if I like eggnog or not because I have not had it as an adult. I had the nonalcoholic version as a kid and thought it was weird. I admit I’m curious now, so I’m thinking of making some.

It’s an old drink. Apparently, it is traced back to medieval Europe. According to Wikipedia, “the drink adopted the “nog” part of its name from the word “noggin”, a Middle English phrase used to describe a small, wooden, carved mug used to serve alcohol. Another name for this British drink was Egg Flip.”

And:

“Yet another story is that the term derived from the name “egg-and-grog”, a common Colonial term used to describe rum. Eventually the term was shortened to “egg’n'grog”, then “eggnog”.”

Since milk and eggs were not wasted on drinks in those days, it must have been a special drink for the time, and probably only consumed by the upper crust. Not so today, however.

Anyway, I’ll give Alton Brown’s version a try, although Martha Stewart’s is probably good too.

Alton Brown’s Eggnog

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
1/3 c sugar, plus 1 Tbs
1 pint whole milk
1 c heavy cream
3 oz bourbon
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg whites

Direction:

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until the sugar completely dissolves. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and whisk to combine.

Place the egg whites in a different bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks using the whisk attachment. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

Hmmm, curious. You know, it sounds like it could be good.

What do you think? Do you like eggnog?

(Image courtesy Esquire)

I have nothing against pick-your-own farms–you know, going to apple orchards, pumpkin patches, berry farms, etc., and picking your own fruit. Every year, my foodie friends go nuts for strawberries they picked themselves or Christmas trees they sawed down with personal hand saws. It seems like a wholesome activity and a great way to teach kids where food comes from.

Personally, however, I would never bother with one of these farms. Why? Pick-your-own farms, and all the related food festivals, are expensive. They are so expensive, in fact, that I would wager they are one of the costliest ways to purchase produce.

As this article in Slate points out, pick-your-own farms are more of a clever financial strategy than anything else. Many farms can’t get the labor it takes to pick their apple crops, so the fruit ends up rotting on the branches. The solution? Have the people come pick the fruit themselves and charge them more than they would pay in the store for it. Or as Slate puts it:

Encourage yuppies and their progeny to come pick your fruit—they’ll pay handsomely for the privilege, buy more than they’d ordinarily consume, and then shell out for all sorts of other value-added products. It’s the best use of child labor since Manchester’s early 19th-century textile mills.

The article also suggests another problem with pick-your-own farms–you tend to buy more than you will use. I would never buy a large flat of apples without using them up in desserts, but most people would not have the time and inclination to use the fruit up before it rots. “Besides,” says Slate, “pick-your-own orchards sell the processed versions right there, in the irresistible form of apple cider and apple-cider donuts.”

So the bottom line: pick-your-own farms are a fun activity, but they are far from frugal. To get cheap local produce, grow your own, trade with neighbors, go to a farmer’s market, or find the grocery store in your area that buys from local farms. Paying to pick rarely pays off.