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Kitchen Hack: The Best Grape Cutter for Little Hands.

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November 24, 2019 by Frugal Coupon Mom Filed Under: Amazon, Hacks Leave a Comment

Take the hassle out of quartering grapes for your little one with the OXO Tot Grape Cutter. Sharp, serrated, stainless steel blades quickly and easily slice through the soft fruit skin, while keeping fingers safe and out of the way. The curved finger rests provide comfort, even during repetitive use. The grape cutter blades also cut through pitted olives and grape tomatoes with ease, making it perfect for making chicken salad, fruit salad, salsa and more.

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Older Home Improvement Hacks and DIY Renovations

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November 17, 2019 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Facebook, Hacks, Home Improvement, Instagram, Pinterest, Social Media 3 Comments

Need to spruce up your current home? Take a look at these Older Home Improvement Hacks and budget-friendly DIY Renovations you can do on your own!

Older Home Improvement Hacks

We live outside the District of Columbia, in Northern Virginia. Many of the homes here are older. Not as old has our famous monuments, but not far behind (I kid…sorta.) It’s easy to find friends in homes that are a 100 years old and also friends in homes 50 years old. Some homes are in such terrible shape that they are scrapped altogether and a huge mansion is built on .25 acres of land (did I tell you that land cost more than the value of all of these homes?) Additionally, it’s hard to get more than a postage stamp of land the closer you are to the city.

DIY Renovations

With each showing and new home I visited, I had a Pinterest board on my mind (I love these hidden boards! Especially for an account that is so public!) Every visit, I asked myself what could I do to improve the quality of this home and update it. My in goal was to be able to make each home enjoyable environment for our large family of 7 but also with the intention of “flipping” the house to make adequate profit on any future sale we might have. Pinterest became my best friend for DIY Renovation Ideas.

So this post is, once again, for me. Since my board is hidden, I also wanted to share with you what I learned from a number of bloggers to help you with our own older home improvement. Maybe we can pick up some of these Renovation Hacks together and all improve our home project by project, weekend by weekend.

Older Home Improvement Hack

Cassidy is my favorite and chances are high I might be using her $60 Carpet to Hardwood Stairs Home Improvement Hack. The Serene Sweded on Remodelholic is brilliant!

In older homes, outlets always seem to be in the wrong spot. Hide unsightly cords for under $10 with these burlap cord covers. In this case we also used a tan and white extension cord in case of any peek-a-boo showing (though not necessary, I love this brand of cord and it is so affordable!)

So using a return air grill that is 50 years old is quite gross! I think this DIY Home Improvement Air Vent Idea brings a vintage look to the home. Out with the old (grossness) in with new!

You bet this is on my list. I will be repainting bathroom tiles and improving them with stencils! Repaint your builder grade beige tiles with this Home Improvement Tutorial. All the items you need are included in the Hometalk post.

Make your bathroom cabinet look brand new for under $50. Follow this DIY Vanity Makeover.

With these older homes cords are all over the place. Either hire an electrification or learn to cut into the wall yourself or try this Quarter Round Cord Hack from Home Depot. Snake your wires through your baseboards.

An updated banister and painted stair rail will pop with just a touch of color. Paint the spindles white and the hand rail black and you will have a classic and clean look for the cost of paint (and your time!) You might consider adding a seagrass rug runner if you are that talented!

Change the warmth of a hallway or living space by painting gray interior doors and changing the hardware.

Sometimes you are blessed with a vintage green bathroom. Don’t worry if money is not in your budget. In this day and age, we are blessed with a Joanna Gaines who gives us three looks for keeping that green tile until you want to paint or replace it.

So fire places are another thing. I love to flip at switch and it’s on, my husband loves to work for his wood and have a wood burning fire place. Most of these old homes favor him and I had to find a good Older Home Improvement White Wash Brick Fireplace Tutorial.

Cabinets are a whole different story for us. They are old and ugly. In some cases you can almost see the multiple layers of paint throughout all the years and home styles. Upgrade Bathroom Cabinets with this Simple Home improvement Idea. Gorilla Wood Glue, wood pedestals, and scrap wood give this bathroom an updated look!

I love plantation shutters, but they were not in the budget (yet.) I was in desperate need of redoing our window treatments. The house we bought had curtains that were from the original purchase – 1960! For this new home, I went with budget friendly window treatments – light and airy IKEA white drapes, black curtain rods and natural bamboo shades.

Some older homes had terrible ceilings. Follow this tutorial for how to Easy Hide a Popcorn Ceiling. Bella Tucker’s entire kitchen and living space was done for under $500 with Styrofoam Ceiling Tiles. Blah to wow!

Turn an ugly bathroom into a spa oasis. Paint Bathroom Title with a Rust-Oleum Tile Transformation kit. Pink Little Notebook walks you through the entire process.

If a full kitchen renovation is not in your budget, simply replace your and reface kitchen cabinet doors with solid wood doors. This completely upgrades the entire look of your kitchen without the price!

Don’t replace the garage door, instead update your garage door by staining it. We recommended this Minwax Gel Stain.

Shutters can completely change the look of a home. Either paint your existing ones or if you don’t have any, make your own home shutters with this tutorial.

The switches. The light switches have touched 60 years of hands. Blah. Replace all old switches with new style switches.

Add towel bars to any of your fake kitchen drawers under the sink. Gotta utilize all that unused space!

Update the outdated half wall. Turn your half wall into a built-in bookcase with this DIY tutorial!

Guess what? You Can You Tile Over Linoleum. Good thing because ours in from 1960! IN all honestly, I will probably get down to the concrete floor first, but good to know!

These updated shower fixtures are new fixtures without the plumbing work. The total cost is only $35!

Are you moving? Take a look at our Moving Binder to get you organized! Pin to Pinterest.

These Fixer Upper Farmhouse Style Ideas will transform your home. Pin to Pinterest.

Also get inspired by the lady we love, Joanna Gaines, with these DIY Fixer Upper Ideas. Pin to Pinterest.

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How to Stuff a Balloon with Elf on the Shelf

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November 13, 2019 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Christmas, Elf on the Shelf Ideas, Facebook, Hacks, Instagram, Pinterest, Social Media 4 Comments

How to Stuff a Balloon with Elf on the Shelf. This magic balloon stuffing tool, a funnel and ten minutes of time creates this easiest, funniest Elf Idea! New creative and original Elf on the Shelf Ideas daily. Use your stuffing tool and funnel to create balloons filled with gifts for the entire year!

Elf on the Shelf Stuffed Balloon

We are back, so is the Elf on the Shelf! Every day in November and December, we bring you new Elf on the Shelf Ideas daily. To see new and older Elf ideas, you can view our Elf on the Shelf Master List.

For many of these Elf on the Shelf ideas, make sure you have an elf that can bend. You can do that easily with our Bendable Elf on the Shelf tutorial.

Balloon Stuffing Tool

It is incredibly easy to do this Balloon Elf on the Shelf idea. No fancy tools are needed. You would not believe how much we paid for this DIY Balloon Stuffer Machine. It isn’t even a machine, it’s a tool! YOU are the priceless machine.

Only a few supplies are needed to stuff your Elf on the Shelf into a balloon

The Elf on the Shelf
Christmas Balloons (find a set that has a clear balloon, we ordered this Christmas Balloon set)
Optional: Black Sharpie
Optional: Chocolate Candy (we used Reese’s Cups)

Now for the two magic gadgets, your Balloon Stuffing Tool and Hand Held Balloon Pump (you guys, you will want this pump for so many reasons – we used it to blow up my daughter’s birthday balloons!)

Balloon Stuffing Tool (aka canning funnel)
Hand Held Balloon Pump

The best part of these tools if you have an entire year to make incredibly affordable and easy balloons filled with gifts! Fill with candy, dollar bills rolled up, small presents and more!

How to Stuff a Balloon with Elf on the Shelf

These step by step directions will teach you how to stuff a balloon with Elf on the Shelf. Two important things worth sharing. First, this is incredibly easy. Like really easy. Plus the balloon stuffing tool is incredibly affordable so it won’t break the bank. Second, if you do this Elf on the Shelf Balloon idea, you will officially be the Elf on the Shelf queen. You kids will love it and you will have moms in envy wondering “how did you do that?!” You will of course, send them here and be like “you guys, it is so easy!” Now that we have your conversation down, let’s get to the tutorial.

First, grab a balloon and begin to stretch it. Pull on the neck, pull on the body of the balloon. You have to fit an Elf inside your balloon, so it needs to be stretched.

Second, using your Balloon Pump, put the neck of your balloon on the neck of the pump. Begin pumping up and deflating your balloon a few times. This is, to again, stretch the balloon so your north pole visitor fits.

Third, remove your balloon from the balloon pump. Wrap the neck of the balloon around your Balloon Stuffing Tool (aka canning funnel). Pull the neck of the balloon, up the neck of the canning funnel. Pulling the balloon up as much as possible will help you fit everything into the balloon.

Next, you have the option to add chocolates to the inside of the balloon to give the balloon weight. Honestly, it didn’t help us very much. Elf still moved around. The chocolates are a fun treat for your child, however, when they pop the balloon to help Elf out.

Next, we took our Elf and folded it into itself. Similar to the way it arrived in the box. It’s arms wrapped around it’s folded legs. We began to slide the bottom of our Elf on the Shelf into the balloon until the entire bottom, legs, arms and body were in the balloon.

Then we worked the rest of the balloon up the face of Elf by removing the canning funnel. Only the tip of Scout Elf’s hat was sticking out.

We slid the neck of our balloon pump into the balloon and began to pump. Inflate the balloon enough, not too much or it might pop before morning arrives.

Tie off the neck of the balloon. Using a sharpie write “help me” or “I’m Back” on the outside of the balloon.

You are amazing! You did this easy Elf on the Shelf idea and it looks like it was incredibly hard!

What now!? Your child popped Elf, how do you take your Elf on the Shelf off the floor? Use our magic grippers printable to pick up your North Pole Friend.

Elf on the Shelf Arrival Ideas

This idea is perfect for an First Night Elf on the Shelf Idea. We shared many Elf on the Shelf Ideas for Arrival, but we think this one is just adorable. It’s as if Elf floated down from the North Pole inside a balloon. You can use a Sharpie Marker and write “I’m Back!” or “Help Me!” on the outside of the balloon. We filled up other balloons around Elf and kept the clear balloons as the balloon Scout Elf chose to arrive in.

A few other ideas for arrival include…

Don’t forget our Last Night Elf on the Shelf Ideas for Saying Good-bye.

Elf Printables

We love sharing Elf on the Shelf printables! Get all of our Elf on the Shelf printables by entering your email address below. Look for an email to confirm you signed up. One you confirm, look for a second email in your inbox with a link and password!

Free Printables Step by Step Directions

1.) Enter your email address here.

2.) Look for a confirmation email in your inbox and confirm you requested a sign up.

3.) We will send you a Free Printables Welcome Email with link and passcode to all of our free printables.

4.) Enter your passcode at the top of the page here and click “Access Printables”

5. Enjoy your Elf on the Shelf Printables.

Shop our Most Popular Elf Printables + Digital Downloads

Elf on the Shelf on Social Media

Save these ideas because you will want to stay up to date on these ideas each Christmas season. We do our best to mix up easy and hard Elf on the Shelf Ideas.

Elf on the Shelf Facebook Page

Multiple ideas are added each day to our Elf on the Shelf Ideas Facebook page. This is a great way for you to share your own Elf on the Shelf Ideas and share our ideas to your page. There are some good ones! Be sure to like the page!

Elf on the Shelf Pinterest Boards

We also are in charge of a Elf on the Shelf Ideas Pinterest board. On this board, we have invited other bloggers to share their ideas and free Elf on the Shelf Printables too! Be sure to follow the board!

Our goal, to make Elf easy for you!

Elf on the Shelf Christmas Tradition

Elf on the Shelf is a Christmas Tradition. The tradition has a book and a elf doll. The book is poetic and in rhyme sharing the purpose of the Elf’s visits. The Elf visits each Thanksgiving. He/She goes and returns from the North Pole each evening. Every morning he can be found in a new location in the house. The Elf has been found in the refrigerator, fishing in the toilet, writing messages on the mirror or hanging from the lights. It is VERY IMPORTANT, the Elf is not touch each evening or his Christmas magic will be lost! Each family is able to name their special elf. The elves return to their home (Santa’s North Pole Work shop) every Christmas Eve. An Elf’s Story can also be found on DVD.

You can also trap Elf on the Shelf in the TV. Pin to Pinterest.

Don’t forget all of our daily Elf on the Shelf Ideas. Pin to Pinterest on your Christmas and Elf Boards.

We have been doing Elf on the Shelf forever. See our Elf on the Shelf Master List. Pin to Pinterest.

Baking Hacks – Oven Liners

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September 30, 2019 by Frugal Coupon Mom Filed Under: Amazon, Hacks, Online Shopping Leave a Comment

Keep your oven clean! These reusable, non-stick Oven Liners catch cheeses, sauces and other baked-on messes, and wipes clean effortlessly, so you don’t have to spend your precious time (and back) scraping away! Stick them in the dishwasher or just wipe clean! You get 3 Large Teflon Liners sized 23″ x 16.25″ each! Safe for temperatures up to 500 degrees Farenheit!

Check out our Baking Hacks and Tips.

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Kitchen Hacks – Genius In the Kitchen!

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September 23, 2019 by FCL Filed Under: Hacks, Online Shopping Leave a Comment

Do you hate spending a lot of time cooking and cleaning up afterward? Make it a breeze with these Kitchen Hacks on sale today at Zulily. New to Zulily? First, sign up here, and then you can start shopping! And, save some time when you bake with our Baking Hacks and Tips!

These Hot Bowl Holders are a must-have. Just put your bowls in them when you microwave food or even if they’re hot from food made on the stove. Then, you can easily hold them while you eat without burning your hands! Get a set of 2 of these holders for $8.99. We have these, and we use them ALL the time for leftovers. We cannot live without these!

This Mixing Bowl Splatter Guard is genius and something I need in my life for when I’m making pancake, cake and other batters. It will keep your counters clean and free from batter splatters. Get this for $5.99.

I need these Snap-On Can Strainers in my life. They make draining canned foods so much easier. I use canned beans and corn in salads a lot, so I will get a ton of use out of these. Get 2 of the strainers for $5.29.

This Scrap Trap is such an easy way to dump the ends of veggies and other things you cut that you won’t be using to cook. Just push them all over the counter and into this trap to hold them until you’re done. Then, you can throw them out! This is on sale for $8.29.

Easily strip leaves off herb stems with the Herb-Eze Container. Just pull the stem through the holes to take the leaves off. Then, you can store them in this container. Get this for $5.99.

Easily spray foods and pans with olive oil with these Evo Oil Sprayers. This set of 2 sprayers is on sale for $19.99.

Items tend to sell out fast, so make sure you hurry to grab what you want!

If you love Zulily, also check out these websites – Rue La La, One Kings Lane, and Hautelook.

Head to Zulily for a look

WHAT’S TRENDING? Take a look at our popular Free Halloween Printables.

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PSA Arm & Hammer Baking Soda Saved Me $1,000s

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August 5, 2019 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Amazon, Hacks, Online Shopping Leave a Comment

So I love Arm & Hammer Baking Soda. I love that it absorbs moisture, this was especially helpful when we lived in the humid environment of Florida.

This home habit has not stopped for me, even after our move to the DC area. I always keep a box in the refrigerator and under the kitchen sink. Under the sink because of sink pipes and also because this s the location for the tubes for our dishwasher.

For the pats six weeks we have been having trouble with the dishwasher. After trying to troubleshoot the issue ourselves, it took six weeks for a technician to finally come out to our home (The time length because was under warranty – boy those warranties are a joy!)

Well the technician FINALLY came, and unbeknownst to me, there was a very small leak. Like I shared before, under my sink was a 4 lb box of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda and that box was saturated with weeks of water leakage, saving my cabinets and wood floor. The smallest leak was unnoticed.

This is my PSA to tell you to stock up. Put boxes in places that could retain water should a leak go unnoticed. Maybe behind the clothing washer, under the sink, and near the tubes for the dishwasher. It totally saved me $1,000s. (I would not recommend the bag, as the plastic exterior would not absorb moisture.)

I also use the Fridge-N-Freezer Packs to keep moisture out of fruits and veggies in my refrigerator and one in the freezer for good measure.

Are you an avid user of baking soda too?

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Bathroom Hack | Shower Curtain Sealer

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July 27, 2019 by Frugal Coupon Mom Filed Under: Amazon, Hacks, Online Shopping Leave a Comment

The Magna Lock Magnetic Shower Curtain Sealer is a magnetic shower curtain sealing system that is durable and easy to use, virtually eliminating the escape of water from the shower. The prevention of water pooling on the floor dramatically reduces the occurrence of slip and fall accidents in the bathroom. The installation of a safety product like the Magna-Lock is a proactive effort that helps prevent injury.

Check out our Bathroom Storage Solutions.

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Summer Hack | The Beach Glass

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July 20, 2019 by Frugal Coupon Mom Filed Under: Amazon, Hacks, Online Shopping Leave a Comment

These multi-use Beach Glasses are perfect as outdoor and beach wine glasses, pool glasses or beach cups. The patented ball and stem design holds glass upright in sand and grass, and floats in water without tipping. Elegant, stylish glass made of durable, high quality acrylic that is BPA free and dishwasher safe.

Check out our Beach Life Hacks.

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