Make Recycled Gift Tags From Old Holiday Cards

When I first got married, we did  not have a lot of money for the little things, like tags for presents. My husband's grandmother, Grandma Fuller, taught me how to make pretty Christmas gift tags, using old cards that had been mailed the year before! This is a very easy and cheap way to finish off your presents. In my opinion, they look a bit more personal than the store bought tags! 

Materials Used:
Old holiday cards
Scissors or paper cutter
Hole punch (optional)
Marker or Pen, for labeling

Step 1: Collect Card Covers

Gather up your collection of old holiday cards, and either cut or tear the covers off, along the crease. You can usually get 4 good size tags from one card cover! 

Step 2: Cut & Punch

Cut your Tags! 
This is where making the decision to use scissors or a paper cutter is crucial...if you cannot cut straight lines (like me!) you may want to use a paper cutter. Or you can have slightly wonky ones, like I do, and call them "rustic". Large cards that have a scene that would not look quite right cut into two tags, can become a folded gift tag! (See picture below).

Step 3: Write & Ribbon

Use a pen or marker (I chose red marker so it would be easy to read) and address your tag. Attach the tag to your gift with ribbon or tape. I  use fabric gift bags that have ribbon attached, so this was really easy.

You can omit punching a hole in the corner and just tape the corner to the gift, just make sure to make the cards large enough to flip. 

This work by Little Mom on the Prairie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Great Gardening Freebies

1. You can get free seeds by sending a SASE to Winterstown and they will send you a 6 pack of free seeds, along with information on how to save your own seeds for next year's garden!  Click here to get the info and get your seeds!

2. Marigold's Loft is offering free square foot gardening planner printables! These come in handy even if you aren't into square foot gardening, just to have a printable planner on hand. Click here to go to her page and print it out! 

 

3. There is a free visual garden planner available at BHG.com. You can choose the plants and set it up, and see what it will look like - very nice for flower gardens! 

Try it Here! 

4. You can sign up for more than 10 free gardening catalogs! I love to window shop for gardening stuff more than anything else, I think! 

Check out the full list by clicking here.  

© Annie's Annuals and Perennials

This work by Little Mom on the Prairie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Cut Pet Care Costs by 80%!

The ASPCA puts the average cost of caring for a cat at $56 per month! That is $672 per year! You can add between $5-15 per week if you have a dog depending on the size. Between food, litter, toys and treats...the money adds up fast! But there is a way you can cut down on pet food costs. I  have successfully brought my cat care costs down to less than $10 per month, or a total of around $120 per year! 

Copyright Little Mom on the Prairie 2013

I have a rescue kitty (named Josie) that I care for, even though I am not supposed to have animals and even though my budget is super tight...but I couldn't turn my back on her tiny fuzzy face! Now she is a lot more healthy-looking, Thanks to my FREE Pet Food Stockpile! 

Let me show you how I did it - Click Here to see Original Post on Little Mom Saves!

This work by Little Mom on the Prairie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Build a Free Easter Basket

Easter is around the corner...

we have a double whammy, my daughter's birthday is the day before Easter...so I had to get creative with Easter Basket ideas, for free or darn cheap! I am sharing the basket I've built for my daughter, and if you hurry, some of these deals (or deals like it!) are still available! Get them while supplies last!!

7 Ways to File Your State Tax Return For Free

It isn't too hard to find a place to file your federal tax return for free (here are 3), but finding a service to file your state return for free is a little more difficult. I did a little looking around, and found out that in most states, you can file your state taxes for free if you make under $57,000 per year. 

Free State Tax Returns Online:
1. MyFreeTaxes.com - This is a not-for-profit with funding from the Walmart Foundation, The United Way and H&R block – and they offer free state and federal tax returns if you meet the criteria.

2. TurboTax Freedom – The free version of TurboTax is available to filers with adjusted gross income of $30,000 or less. If you live in one of the following states they will also allow you to file your state return for free… AL, AR, AZ, GA, ID, IA, KY, MA, MI, MN, MO, MS, NY, ND, NC, OK, OR, RI, SC, VT, WV. If your state is not listed it will cost you $14.95 to file the state return.

3. Beehive.org – Filing your own taxes with BeeHive.org is easy. In order to be eligible free federal and state income tax filing, you need to make less than $57,000, a valid email address and your Social Security Number. 

4. Taxhawk – Prepare, print, and file your federal taxes online for FREE! Your state tax return is FREE if your income is less than $20,000 and you live in the following states:

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, or Wisconsin.

5.  On-line Taxes – This one is pretty simple. You just need to be under 20 years of age and you can get your federal and state return filed for free. If you don’t qualify both returns cost $7.95. They are a little bit different than many of the other places in that they offer free customer service with a toll-free number, E-mail, and Live tax help. They also allow you to view the forms BEFORE paying.

6. You can also go directly to you state’s Department of Revenue website to see if they offer a free filing option. For a shortcut, head over to this page which has links to each states free efile (if they have one).

7. Yes, it sounds a little old fashioned, but if you really want to file your state return for free and don’t qualify for the options listed above, you should do your taxes on paper and mail them in to the state. If you have already completed the Federal form online, it should be pretty easy to fill out the state return. You can get the forms FREE from your local library or you can print them off at your state’s Department of Revenue website.

You can also go to the IRS website Where's my refund (about 7 days after you submit your return online) to get the status of your return and refund.

This work by Little Mom on the Prairie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Free Birthday Gift from Aveda $25 Value

My birthday is right around the corner, so I am signing up for freebies galore!! 
Join Aveda's Birthday Program and get a free customized gift (valued up to $25). You can choose between a free Personal Blends, Pure-Fume Spirit or body care product. Near your birthday they will send you a postcard you can redeem at a Aveda location. You can also get a free travel-sized Aveda Hand Relief ($8 value) if you share with five of your friends.

Click here to get yours!

Free Valentine’s Day Personalized Greeting Card

Treat.com is offering a Free Valentine’s Day Personalized Greeting Card – Select “send it to me first” and shipping will be free!

Enter promo code MYHABIT to make your card free! 

2 Great Wedding Planning Freebies

Wedding Paper Divas is offering a FREE Wedding Website. You can easily create an ad-free personal wedding website complete with online RSVP capabilities and more! Click here to make yours!

I know a few of my readers are planning their weddings (congratulations!!) 

Hopefully this cool freebie will help keep you organized and on budget! You can print out a free budget chart, estimate chart and follow up sheets (for vendors). Brought to you by Bride2Be. 

Click here to print yours!

Free Printable Valentine Trading Cards

You can customize these Valentines with photos, and edit the text with your own creative sayings. Perfect for printing at home for friends and classroom Valentines. 

Free for a limited time!

FREE Owl Valentine’s Bookmark Download

Get a FREE Owl Valentine’s Bookmark download from Tracee at Teachers Paying Teachers. You do need to sign up with TPT, but it is free to join and they have tons of stuff to download for free or for a small fee. You do NOT have to be a teacher to join.

13 Free Magazines - Never Get a Bill

Know someone who would love to receive FREE magazines in the mail? Here are a few magazine freebies you can grab!

There is one issue digital magazine issue you can download for your ereader:

Get ONE free Taste of Home Digital Edition issue from Mercury Magazines!

And several offers from Rewards Country and Value Mags! 

Get a 1 Year Subscription to Black Enterprise for Free by clicking here. 

Get a 1 Year Subscription to Latina Magazine by clicking here. 

Get a 1 Year Subscription to Fast Company Magazine from Value Mags by clicking here. 

Get a 1 Year Subscription to Watch! Magazine from Value Mags by clicking here.  

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Practical Horseman Magazine from Freebizmags by Clicking here

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Working Mother Magazine from Freebizmags 

by Clicking here

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Tennis Magazine from Freebizmags by Clicking here.

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Fitness Magazine from Freebizmags by Clicking here.

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Wired Magazine from Rewards Gold by Clicking here.

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Wired Magazine from Freebizmags by Clicking here.

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Electronic House Magazine from Freebizmags

by Clicking here. 

Get a FREE 1 Year Subscription to Art in America Magazine from Freebizmags

by Clicking here. 

FREE Pet Safety Pack from the ASPCA

Help keep your pets safe with a free pet safety pack from the ASPCA!

In the event of an emergency, our pet rescue window decal alerts rescue personnel that pets are inside your home. The safety pack also includes an ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center magnet—a great way to keep the APCC’s toll-free emergency number and website address handy in case your pets get into something they shouldn't!

Office Depot: FREE Organize Me 2013 Calendar!

Office Depot is offering a free Organize Me 2013 Calendar! Just print the coupon for the calendar and take it with you on your next visit. To find the coupon search for “Organize Me” in the search bar. The link to the coupon is on the bottom right hand corner of the page you will be re-directed to.

The coupon expires 3/15/13, so that gives you couple of months to use it!

Is the Flu Near You?

Plug in your zip code and find out how many cases of the flu have been reported! Just click here and type in your zip code! 


Or you can use Google's Flu Trends: click here.

Not sure if you NEED the shot? The Center for Disease Control urges several at-risk groups to be immunized. Are you one of them? Click here. 

Free Money $ from Serve and American Express

Wanna make a quick $35? Of course you do, who doesn't like FREE MONEY?

I just found this deal and tried it myself, and was surprised at how fast and easy it was! 

I signed up for a Serve Account via American Express, which only took me 5 minutes! (They ask for name, address, email, birthday, and last 4 digits of SSN.) This offer is for new members only. They are sending me an AmEx card, to use for online or in store purchases. 

When you add $25 or more to your NEW account through December 31, 2012, they’ll match with a $25 deposit. The FREE MONEY arrived in my account in 60 seconds! 

If you spend $20 in one purchase,using your card, they will give you an additional $10! That is $35 total profit! I have not done the purchase part, I am waiting for my card to arrive via snail-mail. Hopefully it doesn't take too long! 

Purchase must be made by Dec. 31, 2012. 

I have 3 adults in my house, and we each set up an account. We made $75 in one hour! After our qualifying purchases (holiday gifts!!) are made, we will have made a collective $105.00 FREE CASH towards our Christmas gifts. 

PLUS.....When you sign up for the Serve Digital Prepaid Card, 

you’ll get some other great benefits:

**Standard American Express 90 day purchase protection for accidental damage or theft for eligible purchases.

**Roadside Assistance – when your car breaks down, they will send help for towing, winching, flat tires, battery boost, fuel delivery or emergency lock-out. (Great for teenagers and college students).

**Entertainment Access – enjoy access to pre-sale tickets, reserved seats and behind the scenes experiences in certain cities when you use your Serve Card.

NOTE: These cards are assigned a special subset of numbers, that lets every system know that this is a prepaid card. Many online systems WILL REJECT this card. A lot of the "free trial-cancel later" offers will NOT accept this card, I have tried!! But this is a great way to make some extra cash and I plan to use it to give my preteen her allowance!

FREE Printable 6 Gift Tags Download

I just made these up on my computer, using my hand drawn designs and scanning them in, creating a kind of digital 'stamp' out of them! 

Open publication - Free publishing - More cards

Print your tags on standard printer paper or on nice card stock. I used a hole punch to attach ribbons, and wrote out our names. You can see them in action here, shown on my Custom Made Gift Bags from It's a Wrap! Gift Bags. 

This work by Little Mom on the Prairie is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

15 Handmade Gifts They Won't Hate Receiving

Whenever most people think of handmade gifts, they think of ill-fitting knit hats or hideous reindeer sweaters, or inedible jams. I,however,have to admire people who make bunches of their own holiday gifts. If you do it right, it can save you money, and there’s also just something about homemade presents that says you really care...as long as you get it right! At any rate, it is more thoughtful than a gift card in most cases. 

These artsy-craftsy folk got it right, in my opinion! Here are 15 awesome handmade gift ideas that are sure to please every man, woman or child on your list! There are even gift ideas for cats and dogs!

1. Leather iPod Touch Case by gmjhowe graphic design

2. Wooden Necktie (and Bowtie) by laxap

3. Office Foot Stool from an old Tray Table by Alan Casey

4. TREAD BELT by opendesignclub

5. Homemade Earring Organizer by eolough

6. Cargo Scarf by lovefromvirgil

7. sew an adjustable chef's apron  by compwalla

8. Recycled Teacup Soy candle by cheekysttich

9. Finger puppets for all reasons! by stinkymum

10. Kids Snuggie by scoochmaroo

11. Fridge Magnets by hethlee 

(I think of Alphabet magnets for kids)

12. MINI-MUFFIN CRAYONS by AlwaysAllTheTimeCrafting

13. Kid Crane Riding Toy by stevemoseley

14. Rope Dog Toy by mattrush

15. Knotty Mouse for Good Cats by J3443RY

coupons