That's a Wrap!

It’s time to take care of any last-minute gift-wrapping! But if your scissors are dull, worn out, and making it impossible to cut through your wrapping paper, you're ready for an upgrade—and here’s one that won’t even cost you a dime!

Sharpen your scissors in a hurry with this simple trick: Just fold a piece of aluminum foil into three or four layers, and cut it into strips with your dull scissors. Eight or ten slices should put those clippers back on the cutting edge. Now, get wrappin'!

And when you’re done with your foil pieces, don’t throw them out! Instead, cut holiday shapes out of cardboard by tracing cookie cutters, and wrap the shapes with your leftover foil pieces (shiny side out). Add stripes by gluing on a few scraps of festive wrap. Punch a hole in each one, and attach string.Then hang them inside—or even outside! They are great for decorating your yard, and that flashy foil will even keep pesky birds away from your fruit trees and berry bushes!

These terrific tricks are from our bestselling book, It Pays to be Cheap! See all the helpful hints it has to offer for FREE with our 21-Day Free Preview. Also, visit our Bookstore to see more of our amazing offers, and sign up for our Free E-Newsletter for special offers and exciting news each week!

Festive Fabric Fiesta

If you have a basket full of sewing scraps just waiting to be used, then this is for you! There are all kinds of creative ways to recycle those bits and pieces. Here are some of our favorite ways to give ’em new life for the holidays:

Trim the tree. Grab a couple bits of fabric and cut out two identical shapes (trees, snowmen, or star shapes all work well). Sew them together inside out, leaving one end open. Flip the little pouch right side out, and stuff it with cotton or bits of old pantyhose. Stitch it shut, attach a ribbon, and hang your homemade ornament on the tree!

Wrap presents. Use larger scraps in place of wrapping paper and tie them with braided bits of fabric or high-quality ribbon—the lucky gift recipient can even save the scraps to reuse themselves!

Tag it. Glue bits of fabric onto sturdy, solid-colored paper. Then, cut out fun shapes to make gift tags. Punch a hole in each tag, and secure them to your holiday gifts with colorful ribbons. Don’t forget to fill out the tags with a permanent marker!

Our bestselling book, Can the Clutter!, is full of terrific ways to reuse old “junk”…and it’ll save you a bundle! Try it out for FREE for a full 21 days with our Free Preview. And visit our Facebook page for more holiday helpers all season long!