It’s fun to change your home décor for each season. But investing in items for holiday decor can get expensive. If you shop at Dollar Tree or any other dollar store, you can save a bundle and spruce up your home each season.

What types of fall decorations can you find at the dollar store? And when is the best time to shop for things like Thanksgiving decorations and Halloween décor ideas? As a homeowner on a budget for 10+ years, I’ve uncovered some of the best DIY dollar store fall décor.

So dust off your hot glue gun, pull out that spray paint, untangle that burlap ribbon, and get ready to make everything from a fall centerpiece to a grapevine wreath, all with dollar store finds.

Think About Your Home’s Style When You Choose Your Dollar Store Fall Décor

Not every décor idea looks great in every home. If you have a seaside home with beachy accoutrements, you’ll want to steer clear of country styles. A mason jar candle holder won’t match a mid-century modern house.

Many of the DIY dollar store crafts lean toward farmhouse, country, or rustic styles. You’ll find plenty of items to create any home décor idea you can find on Pinterest.

Some of the rustic decorations you’ll find at Dollar Tree or other dollar stores include:

• Burlap ribbon
• Twine
• Flowers and flower pots
• Mason jars
• Wooden boxes
• Chalk paint
• Pumpkins
• Vases
• Faux fruit
• Candles
• Rustic baskets

Make Your Dollar Store List

Once you have a handle on your home’s style, start thinking about creative home décor ideas to transform your house into a cozy, autumn paradise.

First, jot down any notions that inspire you. Do you prefer apples or pumpkin spice? Bonfires or fall leaves? What are your favorite fall colors? Do you want a spooky look for Halloween or symbols of gratitude for the harvest season?

Then, make a list of the rooms or spaces you need to decorate and what type of fall décor items you might use for each space. You may want to infuse a bit of autumnal wonder in the following areas of your home:

• Front porch or steps
• Walkway
• Kitchen
• Dining room table
• Mantel
• Bathroom shelves

If you plan to make your own wall hangings, take measurements so you know how much space you have. Do the same for mantels or tables where you may want to place fall centerpieces. Measure your door so you can make a fall wreath that’s a perfect fit.

Browsing Dollar Tree aisles may spark ideas for new craft projects and affordable decorations, so don’t limit yourself to fall décor ideas you find online. The goal is to walk into the store with a rough idea of the materials you’ll need, what rooms you want to decorate, and how many DIY crafts you want to create to fill those spaces.

Plan Your Visit to Find the Home Décor Items You Need in Stock

Most stores, including Dollar Tree, typically put out their Halloween decorations in early September. It’s not unusual to see pumpkins and ghosts next to school supplies as the stores shift from back-to-school season to Halloween and, within a week or two, Thanksgiving decorations.

Shop in mid-September or early October to get the best selection. The closer it gets to the holiday the harder it will be to find what you need.

If you’re looking for larger quantities or hard to find items, you may want to show up at the store after the week’s shipment has arrived and workers have had a chance to restock the shelves.

Delivery days vary by store but are usually early in the week. Ask a manager at your local dollar store when they typically receive shipments and how long it takes to restock shelves. If trucks arrive in the morning, it could be noon before you’ll see the new merchandise on display.

Making Halloween and Thanksgiving Decorations for Your Home

Dollar store Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations run the gamut from foam pumpkins to decorative plates. You can easily find everything you need to create any fall décor idea you can imagine.

Your fall décor ideas might include a:

• Fall centerpiece
• Grapevine wreath
• Mason jar candle holder
• Decorative foam pumpkin

Don’t be afraid to stray from typical holiday decorations. You can use unusual items from the dollar store to decorate your house for fall, too.

For instance, wine glasses, sunflowers, and cat figurines may all fit your fall theme, but you can find them at the dollar store year-round. Anything with owls or apples can also find a place in your dollar store fall décor.

In recent years, home decor celebrating the harvest has grown in popularity. Flowers, fruits, and rustic signs expressing gratitude fit well with a harvest theme.

DIY Dollar Store Fall Decorations for Your Table

Your dining room or kitchen table often represents the main gathering space in your home during the fall. The kids may gather for hot chocolate after an afternoon of jumping in leaves. They may sort their Halloween candy at the table.

Gatherings move indoors for meals as the weather gets cold in some parts of the U.S. Of course, your Thanksgiving feast will revolve around your table.

A fall centerpiece breathes a warm welcome into your dining room or kitchen. If you choose only one holiday decoration, make it a centerpiece. Best of all, you can create anything from elegant candle holders to baskets of faux fruit with items from Dollar Tree, Dollar General and other dollar stores.

Clay Pot Candle Holder

A collection of small clay flower pots tied with raffia or burlap ribbon can hold either small artificial sunflowers or dahlias or a candle. Consider using four clay pots, with two candles in the center ones and flowers in the others. Or surround the clay pot candle holders with flowers, gourds, and pine cones on a decorative tray.

Harvest Fruit Basket

One year at a fundraiser, I won a beautiful wicker basket filled with home goods. With autumn approaching, I purchased colorful fake leaves at Dollar Tree and lined the bottom of the basket so the leaves peaked out over the edge. I added gourds, pine cones, and plastic apples for a beautiful, natural looking fall centerpiece.

Pumpkin Centerpieces

Many great home décor ideas stem from using real or foam pumpkins as the starting point. Pick up a wood tray at Dollar Tree, and add a variety of pumpkins of different sizes. You can spray foam pumpkins white or orange for variety. A little creativity turns a plain tray into a dazzling centerpiece.

You can even spray paint the front edge of the tray with a message, such as “Thankful,” “Blessed,” “Gratitude” or simply, “Welcome Fall.”

Mason Jar Fall Décor Ideas

You don’t want to forget the humble mason jar when it comes to your Halloween décor. A collection of decorated mason jars can form a fall centerpiece for your table or a display for your mantle.

Use chalk paint to create a surface to write messages on the mason jars, or use a Cricut machine to put letters on these Halloween mason jar lanterns.

You can even use larger mason jars with LED tea lights inside to light your outside walkway or illuminate your porch.

DIY Dollar Store Fall Decorations for Your Walls

A wall hanging makes a great handmade holiday decoration you can use every year. Dollar stores carry many fall wall hangings, including wall plaques, shadow boxes, mirrors, decorative wooden signs, and picture frames.

You can:

• Buy a ready-made wooden sign to celebrate fall
• Spruce up one of the many wall plaques by adding flowers, pine cones, or ribbon
• Make your own wall-hanging from scratch using items you can find at Dollar Tree

Mirrors, shadowboxes, and picture frames can be painted and decorated using artificial leaves, flowers, foam letters from Dollar Tree, or Cricut designs you make.

Consider clustering mirrors or shadowboxes of similar sizes or shapes to fill a larger space. You can also find hooks and other mounting products at the dollar store to help bring your home décor vision to life and ensure your DIY crafts stay firmly on your walls.

How to Make a Fall Wreath with Dollar Store Finds

The dollar store also stocks all the crafting materials you need to make a fall wreath. You can make a vibrant floral wreath for your door from items you can buy at Dollar Tree, including a metal wreath ring, faux gerbera daisies, maple leaves, and a strand of pumpkin garland.

A grapevine wreath has become a new trend in home décor in recent years and it fits the harvest season perfectly. You can find a pre-made grapevine wreath at the dollar store or take advantage of the fall harvest and forage for the vines yourself.

Twisting the vines may take some time, but it’s an easy DIY craft. A simple ribbon can be enough to adorn your grapevine wreath, or you can add faux flowers, small wooden signs, painted wooden letters, or pumpkin garland from Dollar Tree to decorate your fall wreath.

Dollar Tree Crafts for Fall to Do with Your Kids

DIY crafts can be a fun family project, too. From making wreaths to filling baskets with seasonal treats, kids of all ages can help with many of the projects described above. But kids will especially enjoy any that uses a:

• Mason jar
• Foam pumpkin or other dollar store pumpkin
• Foam letter kit

A DIY craft using these materials is often easy for little fingers. Parents should complete any parts of the craft that require hot glue.

What are some DIY crafts that children can do easily?

Kids can make beaded napkin rings for your Thanksgiving table, fall wall hangings using decorative corn stalks, or painted foam pumpkins for your front steps. Browse your local Dollar Tree and see what catches your eye. Kids love to come up with their own ideas and then work to make their DIY craft a reality.

On a Dollar Tree Budget? Easy DIY Pumpkin Décor You Can Make

Dollar store foam pumpkins inspire creativity. Like a blank canvas, these inexpensive dollar store pumpkins spark affordable home décor ideas.

One year as part of a Boy Scout project, the kids in my son’s troop glued strips of paper from old books onto foam pumpkins and then added a light coat of paint, so the words showed through. It was a creative project that was easy to finish in less than an hour.

You can also cover a foam pumpkin in fabric and wrap the stem with ribbon or raffia for a cleaner look that fits farmhouse or country cottage home décor. Cluster pumpkins of different heights and sizes together to create an intriguing display.

You can’t go wrong pairing pumpkin decorations and Halloween, but these dollar store pumpkin ideas will last through Thanksgiving.

Find More Ideas for Dollar Store Fall Décor Here

Pinterest remains the go-to website for home décor ideas, but don’t hesitate to check out TikTok and YouTube, too, for easy DIY crafts. Here at PennyPinchinMom, we’re proud to provide some unusual DIY craft ideas for fall, too. And I am very impressed by the Dollar Tree website, which offers an informative blog with DIY craft instructions and even supply lists for the items you can find in their stores.

Take your inspiration for dollar store fall décor from nature, as well as from wall hangings and centerpieces you may find in higher-end stores. You can recreate most fall décor ideas you see in home goods stores or at craft fairs for less than half the price by using items from the dollar store.

–By Dawn Allcot

What dollar store fall décor will you use to spruce up your home this autumn?

The post Easy DIY Fall Decorations From the Dollar Store appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

We all know about how to make the handprint turkey with our kids. But do you want to try a new and fun Thanksgiving craft? We’ve got a list of 15 simple Thanksgiving craft ideas you can have your kids try this year!

Let’s talk some turkey, Thanksgiving Turkey that is!  I can hardly wait to dig into a plate overflowing with turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing that is smothered with gravy. But until that day, I plan to do as many crafts possible with the kids. Here are some of my favorites.

1. Pumpkin Pie

What a cute way to make a slice of pie! Have the kids take this paper plate pumpkin craft and make a slice for all of your guests (and they can enjoy it knowing it won’t hurt their appetite).

2. Paper Plate Turkey

No matter your child’s age, he or she can easily make one of these paper plate turkeys.

3. Construction Paper Turkeys

4. Tootsie Pop Turkeys

How adorable are these turkeys? They are not only easy to make, but would be perfect for a party or get together.

5. Turkey Windsock

Gobble Gobble! Your kids would love to make one of these to hang outside and greet your guests as they come to enjoy your Thanksgiving feast.

6. Paper Pumpkins

Paper pumpkins are easy enough for kids of all ages to make.

7. Handprint Turkey

As a mom, I always love anything that have my kids’ handprints on them!

8. Thankful Tree

I love this idea not only for kids but for your guests! As everyone comes through the door, have them trace their hand and add what they are thankful for.

9. Lollipop Turkey

If you want something simple for your toddler to make this year, have them help press lollipops to make a cute turkey centerpiece for your table.

10. Cardboard Characters

How cute are these little guys?

11. Ribbon Turkey

Isn’t this bright and colorful! It is a simple way to make a fun turkey (and use up all those ribbon scraps you have on hand).

12. Scarecrow Plate

Awww…isn’t this adorable?! Your kids would have a lot of fun making this little guy!

13. Gumdrop Turkey

No matter your child’s age, he or she could easily make one of these cute little gumdrop turkeys!

14. Mini Turkey Pumpkins

Hang onto your Halloween pumpkins and then use them to make a centerpiece for Thanksgiving!

15. Glowing Turkey

A glowing turkey?!?! Your kids will flip for this!!
 

16. Handprint Turkey Hat

How cute is this little hat?!? Your kids would LOVE to make one!

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From a very young age, my kids always wanted to be a part of the Thanksgiving baking. I wasn’t going to stop them, but they obviously weren’t capable of doing most of the baking I did on my own. We started letting them make and decorate these cute Turkey Cupcakes and they’ve become a family tradition!

Not only are these perfect for kids to help make so they contribute to the Thanksgiving baking, but they’re also a great kid’s dessert to have on your dinner table on Thanksgiving day! Sometimes kids don’t like things like pecan pie, so having this kid-friendly dessert option is perfect!

Other fun fall ideas:

• Harvest Mix
• Turkey Paper Plate Craft for Preschoolers

Supplies:

Chocolate Cake Mix
Chocolate Frosting
Sixlets
Candy Eyes
Cando Corn

Cook your chocolate cupcakes as directed on the box. Each cake mix should make 24 cupcakes. Wait for them to cool, and then frost them with the chocolate frosting.

Place a candy corn with the point down, in the center of the cupcake. This will act as the beak of your turkey. Place two candy eyes directly above them.

For the turkey’s tail, use your sixlets and make two rows around the outside of the cupcake to represent his tail feathers. We always pick out the fall-colored sixlets from the package, but you could use whatever colors you wanted.

My kids love making these each year, and it’s always fun to see their creativity as they work on making each turkey special in its own way. They’re always so proud that they contributed to the Thanksgiving meal by making these, and are sure to give one to each of their grandparents every year too. Do your kids have a special treat they help make each year for Thanksgiving, or do you like to do the baking yourself?

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What’s the best part of Thanksgiving? The leftovers, of course! Sure, the food the day of is always excellent, but being able to eat leftovers for days after is truly my favorite part.

Below you will find over 25 delicious ways to use up your leftovers. Enjoy!

Also See: Five Tips To Keep Thanksgiving On a Budget This Year

1. Turkey & Stuffing Muffins

2. Turkey & Mashed Potato Empanadas

3. Loaded Turkey Panini

4. Leftover Tostadas

5. Leftover Pierogies

6. Sweet Potato, Cranberry & Turkey Pizza

7. White Bean Turkey Chili

8. Creamy Turkey Shepherds Pie

9. Leftover Stuffed Eggrolls

10. Leftover Breakfast Biscuits

11. Chopped Turkey Salad

12. Mashed Potato Pancakes

13. Sweet Potato & Turkey Enchilada Skillet

14. Turkey Pot Pie

15. Baked Turkey Sandwiches

16. Cheesy Breakfast Stuffing Cakes

17. Day After Pancakes

18. Leftover Turkey Chili

19. Turkey Pesto Panini

20. Mashed Potato Croquettes

21. Turkey & Cranberry Salad

22. Turkey & Mashed Potato Pot Pie Soup

23. Turkey, Bacon & Egg Breakfast Sandwich

24. Turkey, Cranberry & Brie Crescent Bread

25. Turkey Stroganoff

The post 25 Creative Ways To Use Thanksgiving Leftovers appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Admittedly, my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner is the gravy. But if I had to pick a second favorite, it would be the sides. When else can you make a meal, accompany it with five or more sides and people not think you are crazy? I pile my plate high with mashed taters, veggies and casseroles galore.

Here are some of my very favorite Thanksgiving sides.

Butternut Pecan Sweet Potato Casserole

Apple Cranberry Rosemary Stuffing

Corn Casserole

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Browned Butter Sweet Potato Casserole

Green Bean Casserole

Maple Cranberry Sauce

Cornbread Sage Stuffing

Brown Butter Honey Roasted Carrots

Creamed Spinach

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Baked Mac & Cheese

Brown & Serve Rolls

Cheesy Green Bean Casserole

Garlic Ranch Mashed Potatoes

Pear Pecan Stuffing

The post 16 Delicious & Traditional Thanksgiving Sides appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

This thankful banner for Thanksgiving is very, simple to make.  It will be the perfect backdrop for your get together this year.  Your guests will be impressed and think you spent hours making it (but we know you didn’t).

You will want to check out these other ways to decorate as well:

• Fall Decor Centerpiece
• Fall Mason Jar Luminary
• Easy Pumpkin Centerpiece

SUPPLIES:

Burlap Scrapbooking Paper
Fabric (any type of fabric will do)
Tulle (if desired)
Needle and thread (should closely match fabric color)
Twine
Letter Stencils (as large as you want to make your letters)
Black paint
Sponge brush

Determine how large you want to make the letters and cut the bottom into an inverted “v” (or you can leave them flat).  Use the stencil to add the letters to each one, so it spells THANKFUL.

Next, you will make the flowers.  Take some scrap fabric and lay it flat. Pinch your two fingers right in the middle of the scrap fabric (the size or shape of fabric really doesn’t matter).

Start twisting fabric starting from the middle where you are pinching. Once you have the desired look for your flower. Use a needle and thread to secure the flower together.  Then, sew it to the burlap flower.   (You can also check out our burlap flower tutorial if you want to make a larger flower).

If you want to make different flowers, lay some tulle on top of your fabric scrap.  Then, follow the same steps as above to make the flower.

You can also create bows out of scraps of fabric, if you wish.  Just cut the fabric into the size of strip you want and create a bow.  Sew it onto the banner.

The final step is to punch a hole on each banner piece (one in each upper corner).  Thread your twine through each letter, allowing around 3 – 4″ between each letter.  Cut off any excess on each end.

The final step is to create a loop knot at each end so you can hang it on your wall.  And you’re done!!

The post DIY “Thankful” Thanksgiving Banner appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Fall is such an awesome time to decorate your home. There’s so many themes and colors to choose from, and the decor can stay up for a full three months before you have to switch to Christmas! This fun DIY Fall Home Sign is super easy to make, and doesn’t require you to be super crafty!

The greatest thing about this DIY Fall Home Sign is that you can customize it to your own decor by changing the colors, pumpkin etc. I liked the bold fall colors and patterns, so I chose a dark brown for my H, a glitter pumpkin for my O, a fun yellow gingham print for my M, and a bold green for my E. But, you could mix it up to suit whatever your decor style is in your home.

Supplies:

Blank Wooden Hanging Sign (we found ours at Walmart in the craft section for less than $10.)
Small Foam Pumpkin
Acrylic Paint (in the colors of your choice)
Fabric Tape
Hot Glue Gun

Line up your letters for your DIY Fall Home Sign before you glue anything down. I painted my H and my E. Then I used fabric tape to cover my M in a fun yellow ginham checked print. Fabric tape is super easy to use, and you can use it for several projects like we did for this fabric tape covered pumpkin!

Once you have the letters painted or covered like you want, line them up on your sign to make sure they’re even and placed how you want them to be. Leave them all in place and hot glue one letter at a time. Allow your sign to dry for ten minutes before moving it to its resting place in your home.

If you liked this DIY Fall Home Sign, check these out too:

Wood Crate Pumpkins

Candy Corn Fall Decor

The post DIY Fall Home Sign appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

I love when the leaves turn pretty colors and the world is turned into a fall colored wonderland for a couple of short weeks. I do not, however, like my lawn littered with fallen leaves. There are lots of things you can do with those fallen leaves besides raking them up or composing them. One of our favorite things to make are these Fall Leaf Rubbings.

Fall Leaf Rubbings are simple art projects that can be done with kids who are old enough to hold and use a crayon. They’re fun to do in traditional colors, or even to mix up and do it fun, rainbow colors too. I like to use them to also help teach kids about diferent tree leaves, and about the parts of the leaves as well. Moments like these are when you can teach kids without them feeling like it’s a school lesson.

Other fall fun ideas:

• Fall Bucket List
• Paper Plate Turkey
• Nature Scavenger Hunt

SUPPLIES

Crayons
Fallen Leaves
Paper (white works best)

Go on a treasure hunt outside and find all different sized and shaped fallen leaves. Collect them and then bring them inside to make your gorgeous creations. Get your white piece of paper, and place one leaf underneath it where you want the leaf rubbing to be. Use your hand to hold the leaf in place, and use the crayon in the other hand to make firm sweeping motions over the top of the leaf.

As you rub (try to go in the same direction for the best results) you will see the details of the leaf show through darker that the rest of the crayon markings. We like to do several laves on a single sheet of paper so we can have more than one to look at and study later. This would be a great activity for kids on the weekend, or even for a school project.

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Fall means pumpkin spice everything, or at least it does it at our house. We love pumpkin flavored desserts, so we go through a lot of Pumpkin Pie Spice. It’s actually super easy to make your own and much more cost effective. I’m sure you already have all the pieces to mix together to make your own, so I’ll share with you the recipe we use.

This recipe for Pumpkin Pie Spice will make a small batch, but you can double, triple, or even multiply this recipe by ten to make as large of a batch that you want. I like to make a big batch and then just keep it in a little container in my pantry so I have it whenever I need it. I always check my stock right before the holiday baking season too to make sure I don’t need to whip up another batch.

More tasty pumpkin spice recipes:

• Pumpkin Pie Dip
• Pumpkin Pie Spice
• Pumpkin Spice Latte

Print

Pumpkin Pie Spice

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

• Author: Tracie
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Category: Seasoning

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon allspice

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

1. In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients together with a whisk.
2. Keep stored in an air-tight container until ready for use.
3. This batch size makes 4 Tablespoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice.

Don’t waste money buying spice blends that are already made for you. Making your own spices is most of the time very simple, and takes just a few minutes. Making your own often tastes better than storebought blends too, so you’re doing your tastebuds and your wallet a favor at the same time! Once you do it, you won’t ever want to go back to storebought again.

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We have a lot of friend and family get togethers in the fall. I love to make treats and snacks, but sometimes I’m limited on time. While I’d love to make a pumpkin roll everytime someone comes over to sit around a fire at night, realistically it’s just not going to happen.

Additionally, I love to send fun fall themed snacks with my kids to school. This Harvest Party Mix is so easy to throw together and is the perfect blend of salty and sweet. It’s not hard to make, and a big batch is quite cheap to put together too. You can customize this to whatever you know your family or kids will like and enjoy, but I’m gonna give you the recipe our family loves the most.

More fall recipes you need to try:

• Candy Corn Bark
• Candy Corn Trail Mix
• Halloween Bark

Supplies:

Brach’s Candy Corn Fall Mix
Salted Peanuts
Small Pretzels (twists and sticks)

Directions:

Combine one bag of Brach’s Candy Corn Fall Mix with one 12 oz can of salted peanuts. Mix until the two ingredients are evenly combined. Once they’re mixed, then add in two cups, or a small bag, of mini pretzels. We use twists and sticks, because we like both. Mix them together and then enjoy your snacking.

You can keep them in a large air-tight container.   Alternatively, you can put them into small, snack-sized baggies.  That makes them perfect to grab for a mid-day snack or when you run out the door after school.

They keep in the pantry for a long time as long as they stay cool and dry. These are also great game day soccer snacks for when it’s your turn to bring an after-game treat!

The post Harvest Party Mix | Simple Fall Treat Idea appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Fall is such a fun time to spend doing little crafts and activities with my kids. I like seeing them create and explore all while learning about the seasons and holidays. Paper plate crafts are always something I’ve enjoyed making with them because they’re inexpensive and leave room for so many possibilities.

This Paper Plate Turkey craft is an excellent one to do in the fall, and is super easy to do with kids of all ages! All you need is a paper plate, some construction paper and a couple of googly eyes and you’re ready to make it! This would also be a great classroom craft as well.

Supplies:

Paper Plate
Construction Paper
Googly Eyes
Stapler
Scissors
Elmer’s Glue

Begin your Paper Plate Turkey by cutting the middle circle out of your paper plate. When you’re left with the outer ring, color it brown. You can also paint it if you want , but coloring was a little less messy for us, so we went that route.

Cut twelve strips of different colors of construction paper to make his tail. We used six different fall type colors to make his tail fun and colorful. Use a stapler to attach the strips to the top of the plate to make his tail.

For his head, cut out a 4″ circle of brown construction paper. Cut a small orange triangle or his nose, and glue it on. Cut a red squiggly design for his nose, or you can used a red balloon that hasn’t ben blown up yet. Glue the entire face to the the bottom of the paper plate.

Let your Paper Plate Turkey dry for thirty minutes before allowing him to be handled. Display him like a wreath, or set him up as a cute little decoration for the season.

If you liked this Paper Plate Turkey, check out these crafts too:

Apple Pumpkin Painting

DIY Fall Leaf Luminary

Paper Plate Pumpkin

The post Paper Plate Turkey appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over. Before you know it the kids will be heading back to school, the cooler weather will come and everything pumpkin will appear. I think everything pumpkin time is my favorite time of year. I love finding smelly good things to make my entire house smell like pumpkin. But when it really comes down to it, pumpkin desserts are my favorite.

Are you a pumpkin desert fan as well? Then make sure you try at least one of these this fall.

Chocolate Pumpkin Dessert Lasagna

Creamy Pumpkin Pie Bars

No Bake Pumpkin Dessert

Pumpkin Muffins

Pumpkin Flatbread

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

Pumpkin Layered Dessert

Pumpkin Dump Cake

Pumpkin Dessert Bars

Pumpkin Cloud Bars

Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

Pumpkin Pie Dip

Pumpkin Cheesecake Mousse

Pumpkin Caramel Poke Cake

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

Pumpkin Pudding

Pumpkin Brownies

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

Pumpkin Cake

Pumpkin Roll

Do you have a favorite pumpkin dessert?

The post 16 Pumpkin Desserts You Should Make This Fall appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

There are so many fun things to see, do, and experience as a family during the fall. It can be hard to every one of them — or even to remember what it is you want to do!  Our family made this fun Fall Bucket List Jar this year and I’m so excited to try it out!

We sat down together and wrote down a list of things we wanted to do this fall.  When you make yours, it can be anything that is fall related.  For instance, my oldest daughter wanted to make sure we went to a corn maze this year, so we added to the list.  But one thing on my list was that I wanted to grab a Pumpkin Spice Latte.  My husband added apple picking and our youngest wanted to make sure we visited the pumpkin page.

Once you have your list, you are ready to make your jar!

You will also want to try these fun fall ideas too:

• Fall Mason Jar Luminary
• Thankful Thanksgiving Banner
• Candy Corn Fall Decor

SUPPLIES

Mason jar (or other empty jar or vase)
Split peas, leaves, acorns (whatever you want to fill the bottom of the jar)
Popsicle sticks

After your list is made, write down one idea on each popsicle stick.  Then, place them into the jar.   you write each of the ideas down on a popsicle stick. After your ideas are all on popsicle sticks, they’re ready to go into a jar.

Now, when you aren’t sure what to do on the weekend,  you can go to your jar and get an idea or two. You’ll be certain to do all of the fun fall activities you always mean to (without remembering them on December 1st and having to wait another year).

You can also make deciding your activity fun too!  Blindly draw one out or take turns.  Either way, it’s sure to make for a fun fall with your family this year!

The post Fall Bucket List Jar appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

I really love when I can make my own home decor. Not only does it save me money, but also gives me a sense of accomplishment that I made those pretty things myself! Seasonal decor is a ton of fun to make, because there’s so many possibilities. I really enjoyed making these Candy Corn Fall Decor pieces!

What’s great about these Candy Corn Fall Decor pieces is that they don’t take any skill or a lot of brain power, so I can do it when I’ve got an extra ten minutes and they turn out great! You can make these in any color combination, but I kept with the classic candy corn white, orange, and yellow. Didn’t they turn out cute?

Other cute fall decorating ideas:

• Halloween Mason Jar Lantern
• Wooden Pumpkin Crates
• Pumpkin Planters

Supplies:

Paper Mache Cones
Skein of Yellow Yarn
Skein of Orange Yarn
Skein of White Yarn
Hot Glue Gun

Directions:

To begin, glue a line of hot glue around the bottom of your cone. Wrap a strand of yellow yarn (without cutting it) around the glue and let it dry before continuing. After it’s dry, just start wrapping the yellow yarn along the bottom third of the cone. You don’t need to keep the strands straight, or line them up, just wrap around and around, and overlap the other stands.

Once it looks like this, then glue the yarn down at the top of the yellow portion. Wait for it to dry, and the snip the yarn.

Glue down about an inch of the end of the orange yarn right above the yellow yarn.  Allow to dry and then wrap in the same way.  Repeat to add white to the top.

The white is a little trickier because of the tip of the cone. Just keep your wrap slow and tight when you get near the tip of the cone, so keep the yarn from slipping off. Use plenty of hot glue to hold down the end of the white yarn when you’re finished. If you want extra reinforcement as you’re wrapping, just put some glue on the tip of the cone, wrap some of the yarn, and then let it dry before you continue wrapping again. This will make sure if you bump it while wrapping, that it won’t come unraveled.

Once you do one of these Candy Corn Fall Decor they will be a breeze to keep doing! They’re cute in multiple sizes and even in different colors!

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I love this fall centerpiece. It is so easy to do and is very inexpensive.  These fall centerpieces do that perfectly – easy and they look great!

Other fall decorating ideas:

• Pumpkin Floral Centerpiece
• Fall Leaf Luminary
• DIY Pumpkin Planters

FALL CENTERPIECE TUTORIAL

SUPPLIES

Approx 2 lbs of dried beans, lentils, corn, split peas etc.
Large glass hurricane
Orange votive candle (or large pillar for bigger vases)

DIRECTIONS

Add your dry goods to the hurricane.  You can layer them to add color, or just use one product.  Once filled, press the candle into the center.

I get compliments on this idea all of the time.  Little do my guests realize how absolutely simple it is to create!  Each one will cost you less than $5 to create.  And, you can make the same look year after year!

The post Easy DIY Fall Decor Centerpiece appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Make this pumpkin floral centerpiece for your dinner table this year.

Did you know that pumpkins float? Well, the little ones do! That information will help you jazz up your fall floral arrangements! It’s super simple to make your own, and we will show you how! Grab a big clear vase, some flowers, and a few mini pumpkins and let’s get started!

SUPPLIES:

Mini pumpkins
Fresh fall flowers
Vase

DIRECTIONS:

Trim the tips of the flowers. In order to extend the life, make sure you cut them diagonally.  This ensures they are fresh and open to receive water, and that they can absorb as much water as they need easily. I like to do this over the sink or the trash can to keep them from making a big mess. Those stems can really fly when you cut them!

Once you have your flower stems cut, you’re ready to start your arrangement.  Fill your vase 3/4 full with water. Clean your pumpkins, and plop them in the water.  It is important that the pumpkins are placed into the vase before you add the flowers, or this will not work.

Arrange your flowers in the vase until it is a full as you would like for it to be. Sunflowers, mums, and fall colored daisies work well for fall arrangements and can be put in a vase in any way at all and still look great!  That’s all there is to making your pumpkin floral centerpiece!

This idea is great for your home, but would also be great for churches, wedding centerpieces, fall parties and more!

We would love to see how yours turned out! Send us a picture, or let us know on our Facebook page! Happy fall!

Other simple fall decorating ideas:

• Easy Fall Decor Centerpiece
• Fall Mason Jar Luminary
• Paper Plate Pumpkin Craft

The post DIY Pumpkin Floral Centerpiece appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Thanksgiving isn’t far off, and I always love to have fun, festive treats planned out for my family to help make together. These adorable Thanksgiving Pilgrim Hat treats are fun and fast, and super yummy!

SUPPLIES:

Fudge Stripe Cookies
Mini Reese’s Cups
Yellow Writing Icing

Unwrap the mini Reese’s and flip the fudge stripe cookies upside down. You will need an even amount of Reese’s and fudge stripe cookies (unless you want extras to snack on while you work…like I did).

Use your writing icing, and place a generous dot of icing right in the center of the bottom of the fudge stripe cookie, and press your mini Reese’s down onto it, with the widest part facing downward — like a hat would look.

Place a stripe of yellow icing around towards the bottom of the Reese’s.  However, do not get too close as you need to add a buckle to the center of the icing.  Once the stripe is done, add your square for the buckle of the hat.

That’s all it takes to make this simple – yet fun – treat for Thanksgiving.

The post DIY Thanksgiving Pilgrim Hat Treats appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

 Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away.  If you’ve hosted before, you know how quickly everything can add up to feed a large group of people.  From turkey, to pies to decorations – the costs can really be overwhelming.  Here are five simple tips to help you save money (and your sanity) when planning this year’s Thanksgiving dinner:

 Also See: 25 Creative Ways To Use Thanksgiving Leftovers

1. Share the menu duties. Ask each person coming to your dinner to bring a dish.  Make sure you assign specific menu items, as you don’t want to have 4 people show up with a green bean casserole.  This way, everyone can feel that they are contributing.  In addition, you can have more time to enjoy the holiday and less time in the kitchen — and save money by not having to purchase all of the ingredients yourself.

2. Shop Wisely. Don’t chase every deal to save money and/or price match when you can.  There are going to be a lot of really good deals at various grocery and retail stores over the next couple of weeks.  Unless you live close to all of them, just select one store and do your shopping there.  You will save yourself time, fuel and headache.

Stores like Target and Walmart will price match competitor’s ads.  See if your local store has a really good deal that they will match and you can save time (and money).  Make sure you also check out the online sites for the newest printable coupons which can save you even more.

3. Get Your Turkey for Free. Watch for the free turkey with purchase offers.  Many times, stores will offer a free turkey when you purchase select items. In fact, we sometimes see a free turkey with the purchase of a ham at the deals where I live.   That might take care of 2 holiday dinners at one low price.

4. Shake up the menu. If you are tired of the same meal, you could mix it up with different sides or even a main course.  Thanksgiving is about being together and not just about the food being served.  Some meals include ingredients which can be much easier on the budget.  We have all sorts of great ideas for side dishes you can try this year.

5. Decorate naturally. Go outside and pick up fallen leaves to scatter down the center of the table.  Create a centerpiece with dried flowers and other items from the outdoors.  No reason to spend a lot on fancy decorations.  Pinterest has lots of incredibly simple and affordable ways to decorate.

What money-saving tips do you use when you plan your meal?

The post Five Tips To Keep Thanksgiving On a Budget This Year appeared first on Penny Pinchin' Mom.

Candy corn parfaits are a healthy Halloween treat idea.  It’s no secret that Halloween is known for it’s sweets. But, you can still have a lot of fun and fed the kids something fun – while they are still eating something healthy!

These candy corn parfaits are the perfect fit for any party.  Made with fruit and whipped cream, the kids see a fun treat.  However, mom and dad are able to see them eating something that is not so loaded with sugar!

Add some sprinkles to the top (cuz let’s face it, anything with sprinkles is a treat to kids), and you’ll have something fun they’ll gobble up!

Other fun Halloween party treats:

• Fruit Filled Jack-o-Lanterns
• Monster Teeth
• Witches Broomsticks

And, make sure you follow my Halloween board on Pinterest for more amazing Halloween treat ideas!

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Candy Corn Parfaits

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

• Author: Tracie
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 5 mins
• Yield: 4 servings
• Category: Dessert

Ingredients

• 4 plastic cups
• 1 can diced pineapple
• 1 can mandarin oranges
• Whipped Cream
• Sprinkles (optional)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

1. Open and drain both the pineapple and oranges.
2. Place a layer of pineapple on the bottom of the cup.
3. Add a layer of oranges
4. Top with whipped cream and add sprinkles!

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