Why waste money on plug-in devices that spray chemicals into the air when you can scent your house with natural ingredients? This time of year, I like to buy whole cloves in bulk from the grocery store to make a simple homemade air freshener. All I do is take a small saucepan, fill with a cup or two of water, then sprinkle in a small handful of cloves. Keep the pan on low heat and let the spicy smell waft into the room. Of course, this does expend a bit of energy. I’m working on a bicycle-powered version of this little trick. . . .

Do you have any homemade potpourris or air freshener ideas? Do let us know!

Do your paper snowflakes come out looking like doilies? Do you wish you had the creativity, skill, and expertise to cut out a proper paper snowflake? Keep reading to learn how a prize-winning* snowflake cutter makes it happen.

1. Fold a square piece of paper in half.

2. Fold it in half again.

3. Fold it in thirds, so it looks like this:

4. Cut the top part off.

5. Cut out pieces to create your snowflake design. Note that there is very little paper left! Cut nice, skinny lines to create a delicate paper snowflake. Cutting out tiny shapes all over will result in a doilyesque snowflake.

The finished product!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

*All right, so I never really won a snowflake prize.

Paper snowflakes make the perfect cheap DIY holiday decorations. They work for me! For more Works for Me Wednesday ideas, head on over to We are THAT Family.

When the last piece of Halloween candy has been devoured and the sugar high is over, it’s time to look forward to the cozy festivities of Thanksgiving.  If you happen to be preparing the feast this year in addition to being pregnant or the mother of a little one, you may feel oppressive exhaustion just thinking of a centerpiece.

Fear not!  There are several gorgeous things to choose from which are probably laying in your front yard or in the park up the street.  On a brisk autumn walk you and your child can easily gather lovely items to display on Thanksgiving without breaking a sweat.

Here are some of Mother Nature’s offerings that will make for an elegant display:

Do you have other easy ideas for Thanksgiving centerpieces? Are you in charge of the cooking this year?  Do you have tricks to share with the rest of us? Do tell!

While some of us have been lovingly hand-sewing Halloween costumes since Memorial Day, the rest of us are stuck sticking stainless steel colanders on our kids’ heads and making them trick-or-treat as “robots.” Last year we mentioned several DIY Halloween costumes—from the Cold Weather Bandit to the Glad Bag. (Yes, that’s right—we actually recommended dressing your kid as a garbage bag.)

What brilliant last-minute ideas were we able to come up with this year?

Baby burrito. Swaddle your baby in a white blanket, letting some lettuce or cabbage leaves peak out at the edges. Variations on this theme include baby spring rolls, baby eggrolls, or baby turkey wrap.  Here a doll is modeling this look, which took just one minute to create.

Striped baby bug. If you can get your hands on some antennae—or make some out of pipe cleaners or something—then you can dress your baby in various striped garments for this look.

Gnome. Last year Audrey put on a brown tweed skirt and coat she had received as a gift. She wore striped tights and carried a tin watering can to collect her treats. I did need to sew a pointy green hat out of an old curtain, which took me about an hour or longer (because I am such a bad sewer), so this isn’t a completely last-minute costume option.

Charlie Brown. Is your baby bald? Do you have a yellow onesie and some brown shorts? Can you draw a passable zigzag pattern with a felt-tip marker? Then you can dress your baby as Charlie Brown.

Old Man. Again—is your baby bald? Do you have some baby-sized glasses, some sort of “old man” hat and maybe a sweater vest? If you answered “yes” to any of the questions above, you might be able to dress your baby as an old man this year.

Alien. Dress your baby or child all in white and use a black eyeliner pencil to create huge alien-eyes.

Dick Cheney. One of our Green Baby Guide consultants came up with this one. “Another great costume idea for babies is the ‘Dick Cheney,’” he says.  “Dress them up in a little blue business suit and add a cheap pair of reading glasses and some white hair around the sides via cotton balls for a look that will delight Democrats and Republicans alike!”

ZZ Top. This costume idea brought to you from the mastermind behind the “Dick Cheney.” All you need is a set of twins, some fake beards, sunglasses, and grungy old hats.

Baby Grecian. Another Green Baby Guide consultant suggested fashioning a toga out of a piece of fabric and crowning your baby with leaves. Brilliant!

Check this site out for baby costumes (including a baby muscle man and Sasquatch!) that require some actual crafting and sewing skills.

If worse comes to worst, you can always stick your baby in a cardboard box, bucket, or other baby-sized receptacle. What is this costume, exactly? “Baby in a box,” “baby in a bucket,” etc. All right, I’m clearly running out of inspiration. What are your best DIY Halloween costume ideas?

Making my own costumes out of household odds and ends works for me! For more Works for Me Wednesday ideas, head on over to We are THAT Family!

It was my sister-in-law who came up with the idea: Why spend all that money on disposable diapers that just end up breaking down in a landfill for the next 500 years? Wouldn’t it make more sense to use nature’s bounty to diaper our babies? This fall is the perfect time to start carving your own diapers out of pumpkins. Simply choose an appropriately-sized pumpkin, carve out the top, scoop out the seeds, and cut out two leg holes. This DIY diaper requires no sewing.

Check out my niece sporting her all-natural homemade diaper:

While gDiapers claim to be compostable, they still contain SAP–a petroleum product that doesn’t really break down. A pumpkin may not have the wicking and absorbing powers of an ordinary diaper, but it is 100% natural and biodegradable!  No other diapers can compete with that.

Babies in pumpkins work for me. For more Works for Me Wednesday ideas, head on over to We are THAT Family.

First, take a square piece of paper and fold it in half. I usually just start cutting out the spider freehand, but if you prefer, draw the spider on the paper first, like this:

Then cut out everything surrounding the spider’s body and legs, leaving a border around the edge.

Open it up and there you have it: A creepy paper spider to hang up for Halloween. Tip: If you want the spider to be a black widow, cut a diamond shape out of the abdomen and tape a piece of red paper behind it.

 Step 1: Fold a piece of orange paper in half. Draw half of a pumpkin on the paper if you don’t want to cut it out freehand.

Step 2: Cut out the pumpkin, the mouth, and the nose.

Step 3: Fold the pumpkin in half again for the eye. Draw on half of a triangle and cut it out.

It will look like this when you unfold it partway:

And then it will look like this when you unfold it all the way:

Here’s a goofy variation once you’ve mastered the basic jack-o-lantern. Go wild!

This post is a part of Works for Me Wednesday over at We are THAT Family. It’s another themed edition featuring cleaning tips this week. As usual, I am not on the ball with these themes!

Pregnancy is a wonderful time to cherish the life growing inside of you. It is also the time to dress as a pregnant nun or the Pillsbury Doughboy. Sporting a watermelon-sized belly this fall and wondering how to best feature it in this year’s Halloween festivities? Check here if you want to view a photo gallery of some homemade costumes for pregnant women. (I love the “bun in the oven” costume!) Thrifty Fun has many excellent ideas, many of which I’ve listed below.

• Pregnant ‘80s Lady

How to Make a Television Set for Dolls out of Recycled Materials:

1. Find a little cardboard box.
2. Locate a picture of a television set from a magazine that will fit on one side of the box.

3. Cut it out and glue it on.
4. Accessorize! Glue little pictures of DVDs or remote controls to the sides. Cut out a picture of a plant, glue it on some cardboard, and stick it in a slot at the top.
5. Cut out a slot on the front. This is the DVD player. Cut out small pictures of DVDs. Your child can feed them into the slot and retrieve them by opening the box back up again.
6. Prepare yourself for hours of fun watching your dolls gaze at an old cardboard box.

You may have already read my post on making a dashing doll dress out of a frazzled old sock. My creative endeavors did not stop there: I went on to make a doll house out of a cardboard box and an Ikea catalogue.

My daughter and I spend one Saturday morning cutting up little chairs, beds, and even whole rooms out of the catalogue, then pasting them inside the box. We even found an outdoor scene to glue onto the outside of the box so that the dolls would be able to entertain outdoors. Audrey actually does play with the box, too, setting her little dolls inside and creating stories for them.

So if you want a little project that requires no new materials and almost no crafty skills at all, give this a try!

For more Works for Me Wednesday ideas, head on over to We are THAT Family.