1 month, 15 projects, 100s of family hours, $0 = Priceless

It has been 31 days since I stepped foot in a Dollar store, home decor store and craft store! I have not spent a dime on crafts, clothing and home decorating. I am shocked and can't believe it myself!

To start I want by thanking everyone for their words of encouragement over the past month; we have read and enjoyed every comment and email. Just a quick reminder tomorrow is the $0 Budget link party and everyone is invited to stop by to share their ideas.

When my husband and I gave up spending for the month of March, I never thought I would accomplish what I did. I am amazed at how I was dependent on running to the store to buy something in order to complete a project. I just need this or that..but could I do it with what you have one hand? I proved the answer to that is yes.

I will admit it got tough towards the end. I ran out of hot glue pretty early on (I should have planned a little better :) ), I am nearly out of mat Mod Podge and had to resort to glue sicks..horrible little things. I ran out of black spray paint in gloss so I have had to substitute with Satin.  But in the end, shockingly, I still have enough supplies to go one more month (maybe even two-but that is just crazy talk now) which as you know is what I have to do. I am keeping this $0 budget going until Easter.

Not only did I accomplish so many fun and amazing projects this month, I also got so much done around the house. By not going shopping, I had the time to do things I thought I never had the time to do.

• I cleaned, defrosted and used up so much in my freezer. 
• I purged my pantry of all old and expired food (I am embarrassed at how much I had to throw out because it was bad). 
• I cleaned my linen closet and donated old towels and sheets that we haven't used since we moved it. 
• I purged the hundreds of books in my office and donated bags full to a local charity.  
• I cleaned my kids closets and organized a system for laundry. This is a huge step for me because I hate doing laundry!
• We spent many hours playing games and spending time as a family! This is by far the best thing that came out of this month. AMAZING.

Since tomorrow is my big party and I have one more amazing $0 budget post (you will see it tomorrow...it is breathtaking!!!!). I thought today I would do a summary page of my favorite top 10 $0 projects.  Here are my top 10 favorites..let me know if you agree:

#1. The stair basket out of an old cardboard box.

# 2. Custom cutlery drawer divider using hard board.

 

#3. Framing my Favorite Quotes

 #4. Wood Dice out of a 4x4

 

#5. Conversation Cards

 #6. Toilet Paper Roll Art

 #7. Dry Erase Freezer Inventory List

  #8. Magnetic Board with Old Picture Frame and Roofing Flashing

 #9. Recovering Old Photo Albums

 #10. Teacup topiary

My flat screen TV frame is not included in my top 10 but is my absolute favorite for the month.  I can't include it because it was not with a $0 budget. I had purchased the materials a couple of months ago anticipating making it...so I don't think it fits into my top 10 $0 projects. But I will show it to you in case you missed it.

Remember tomorrow (or late tonight) is the $0 Budget party. Please stop by to share all your craft, home decor, gift giving tips, family secrets...anything you want as long as you did it with stuff you had on hand. I am looking forward to seeing ideas that will get me through one more month with a $0 budget!

See you tomorrow.

Stephanie