Wrapping it up in style

Need some gift-wrap ideas fast?

These suggestions from Penny’s Day Book are perfect. And earth-friendly. And they probably do not require you to make a trip to the Big-Box drug store at 11pm in your slippers.

The photo is from earth911.com.

Punch up your holidays beyond just “the holidays”

More uses for that punch bowl you found at the resale store:

Punch Bowl Cake during strawberry season

This recipe’s a favorite year ’round. So easy and so good!

Of course, you don’t have to put just punch, or dessert, in a punch bowl.

A festive punch bowl decoration is a natural.

Ducks? Why not?

A punch bowl as liner for a ice basket of summer beverages

And finally… you could always donate, sell, or reconsign your punch bowl to your favorite shop after the holidays.

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Punch up your parties… and your decor

The absolute, bar-none (I’ll get to the pun in a moment) recycled holiday purchase you can make is a punch bowl. A punch bowl with cups is even better.One of the best reasons to shop first in local consignment, resale, and thrift shops is to save money, and resources, on possessions that are used so seldom, it simply doesn’t make sense to pay full price. And most folks drag out their punch bowl sets only a few times a year.

And punch, or eggnog, or grog, or any colorful flavorful concoction, is perfect for the holiday entertaining season. No messing around with a full bar, no pre-guessing how many bottles of this or that you’ll need… and an opportunity to do some beautiful beverage decorating!

Here’s my favorite recipes for holiday punch, all of which do equally well with or without alcohol.

• Secret-Ingredient Christmas Punch
• Another Secret Ingredient Punch
• And for those of us who think punch isn’t punch without champagne: Champagne Punch

PS: To keep a punch cool, freeze some of it (perhaps with the appropriate fruit garnish) in a Bundt pan*. As the ice melts, the punch doesn’t get diluted, so the last cup’s as tasty as the first.

* And there’s another thing that’s perfect to buy secondhand: a Bundt pan!

More on-the-button Eco-Friendly Holiday Tips

Okay, so you want a green holiday celebration. We Professional Resalers of HowToConsign.com applaud you! We, of course, believe in recycling, reusing, and reinventing. (And this Professional Resaler adores these little button wreathes and plans to give lots of them this year! After all, every resale shop in the country has boxes of “lost” buttons*…)

And there are so many ways to have not only a joyous and green celebration. Here’s a bundle of ideas from our friends in the UK.

* Here’s another way I’ll be using lost buttons for holiday decor. And if I had fat quarters lying around, this is what I’d make with them.

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20 Days ’til Christmas, 20 Things to Buy

Okay, time to get serious. Twenty days, and at least twenty more things to buy…

at your favorite consignment, resale, or thrift shop.

Some of these might be gifts, some might make your life a bit easier, and some… well, heck, you need a little gift too, don’t you? You’ve been good!

So head your sleigh in the right direction, bring along a few carrots for the reindeer and a little bit of money, to find:

Entertaining supplies. Punch bowl? Extra wine glasses?

The perfect party outfit. Dancing shoes. Hostess gown. LBD.

The perfect decor items. Vintage, glamourous, or tongue-in-cheek.

Blasts from the past. A Parcheesi game, Rubik’s cube. Great hostess gifts.

Books. Rather than a single best-seller, gift your reading friends with a bundle of 5 great books.

Cold-weather gear for the sleigh ride or ski slope.

Kitchen gear you might only use once. A Bundt pan or trifle bowl.

Warm-weather gear for the resort-bound. Great beach bag? Diaphanous cover-up?

Christmas stockings. From simple to silly ornate, for use or to hang from every eave of your house.

Stocking stuffers. Teeny toys, funky sit-arounds, amusing bibelots.

Party clothes for the kids (red velvet’s adorable, but really, to buy new? Not so much fun.)

Serving pieces. Gravy boat, turkey platter.

Sparkly accessories. Rhinestone chandelier earrings? Cut-velvet evening bag?

A birdhouse. Spray it white and sprinkle with glitter, it’s an instant holiday centerpiece. Imaginative and budget-friendly.

Your wallet will love you almost as much as your friends and family will, for your thoughtfulness and imagination, when you shop resale, shop local, shop earth-friendly.

The birdhouse photo’s from A Stroll thru Life.

Are ‘tweens too cool to recycle? Not with this idea!

What’s that you say? Your ‘tweens are a bit too old to make that gift wrap so beloved of grandparents, the “hand prints on paper bags” idea? They wouldn’t be caught dead doing things with tempera paint and grocery sacks? Well here’s something I (almost) guarantee a bunch of ‘tweens will enjoy:

Deck the Halls, Nostalgia-wise

My favorite treasure to hunt for, year-round, in resale shops is vintage decorations.

There’s so much you can do with them, and not just at the holidays.

A village of tiny buildings, originally nestled in cotton snow under the tree now

Let the kids help MAKE the holidays

So many families feel their children are audience members at the holidays, rather than participants.

But there’s nothing so memorable, and so just-plain-fun, as participating in the preparations and plans for the big day. Don’t deprive your child of the opportunity to learn to give, as well as receive, in this season.

Let the kids

Easy to do: A gift-unwrapping seat!

Step 1: Find a sturdy stool in a consignment, resale, or thrift shop.

Find a shape and a height you like. Don’t worry about the color. Just make sure it’s sturdy. Buy it and take it home. If you find several, buy ’em all. This is gonna be FUN!

Step 2: Make it your own.

Paint it. Gild it. Decoupage it. Sticker it. Feel like you don’t have enough imagination or talent? Then simply

More cachet, less cash: you can do it!

Take a look around. Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Is your home all you want it to be? Will it be appealing to holidays guests and visiting kinfolk?

If you’re like most of us, the answer is….

Wellll….