Pretty And Frugal Gift Wrap Ideas

Pretty And Frugal Gift Wrap Ideas

 by: Abigail Beal

Sometimes gift wrapping can be so expensive -- once youve bought the paper, tissue and the card youve spent just as much as you did on the gift. Here are some pretty and frugal gift wrap ideas to help you save more so you can spend more on your gifts and your loved ones.

When saving money on gift wrapping materials the most important thing to keep in mind is your own needs -- and everyones needs are different. Think of what type of occasions are likely to come up during this year. If three of your friends are now pregnant, you are likely to go to three baby showers in the near future. If two other friends have engagement rings on their fingers, you will probably be invited to bridal showers and also a wedding within the next year. You cant plan for everything life has in store for you -- but try to look at what is a strong possibility and plan for that.

The next thing to keep in mind is your style. If you are a crafty person that likes to make things you may be happiest buying supplies where you need to create some of your gift wrapping materials. But if you are not a crafty person at all and you just want to wrap your gifts and make them look pretty, focus on finding pre-made gift wrapping materials. Theres no reason to re-invent the wheel and it is really apples vs. oranges if you make your own gift cards or buy them -- you are probably spending about the same amount of money.

A great place to go is The Dollar Store. There is one in most communities and usually they carry gift wrap. Sometimes gift wrapping paper can be two rolls for one dollar and other times it can be one roll for one dollar (depends on the store). The Dollar Store is also a great location for other basic gift wrapping items such as tissue, tape, scissors and even traditional cards. The key to buying gift wrapping paper and cards at any dollar store is to try to plan ahead for special occasions and holidays that will occur within the next six months to a year -- because stock at every dollar store changes over quickly and it may not be there in a month or so.

Consider gift wrapping your item in non-traditional paper. There are so many different kinds of paper out there that we use in our daily lives that are attractive. You can use something fun like the Sunday paper comics or even the crossword section for someone who likes good puzzles. A musician or composer would appreciate a gift wrapped in music sheets; these can be found at any music store. For a very artistic look try wrapping your gift using magazine pages -- such as from a high fashion magazine or even a scientific discovery magazine. A gift wrapped in National Geographic Magazine pages would be perfect for someone who cares about animals and the environment. For someone who is learning a foreign language, wrap their gift in a newspaper or magazine of that language -- you can find this at a large bookstore or even an airport. Try to match the gift wrapping paper style to the tastes of the person that you are giving the gift to.

We all know that the day after every holiday, the gift wrapping paper goes on sale. This is a wonderful time to stock up but do so in a reasonable fashion. Look for gift wrapping paper that you can use year-round because even if you do hold the gift wrapping roll for a year, chances are you are going to want to use several gift wrap rolls for a large holiday or occasion. Your best bet at after holiday sales are solid colors and patterns that you and your friends like. Everyones tastes are different -- so for one home that would just love polka dots, another home would really love to use a roll of paper that had a plaid pattern. If the pattern or color on the gift wrap roll doesnt appeal to you, dont buy it, even if it is on sale, there is just too much gift wrapping paper out there. Also remember if you are shopping at a chain store to visit the chain stores that get less traffic because they will have more of a variety of gift wrapping paper. Store your gift wrapping paper in a sensible place, somewhere cool and dry and where you will be able to find it easily like a coat closet. This is probably one of the top ways to save money on gift wrapping √ and it works like a charm.

Another choice is to consider using very basic craft white or brown paper and then to add some fancy finishes to this. Add a large bow and a nice card. Or take a rubber stamp and stamp a design on it. Do something that is easily when you are doing this √ do something that comes naturally. If it is Christmas then buy some inexpensive Christmas ornaments and tie one on each package with the ribbon. If it is springtime, pick some flowers and tuck them under the ribbon to show springs bounty. This will make your gift look very special, but it is still keeping your gift wrapping very frugal.

With a little planning and some creativity you can easily find inexpensive ways to wrap gifts for any holiday. Happy wrapping!

About The Author

Abigail Beal © 2004 Abigail Beal a.k.a. the Gift-wrap Goddess teaches gift wrap in suburban New York. She is the author of 2 ezines: GiftWrapGoddessWraps and CreativeCraftsTeachers. To subscribe: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CreativeCraftsTeachers/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GiftWrapGoddessWraps/ contact: giftwrapgoddess@yahoo.com

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How to Feng Shui Your Home to Make it Sell Quicker

CannonFeng Shui Your Home to Help it Sell Quicker
by Elaine VonCannon

In a competitive real estate market, home sellers are looking for the edge to make their home sell fast. Feng Shui, or the ancient Chinese art of placement, is one answer. Jaan Ferree, a Feng Shui consultant based in Asheville, North Carolina, explains. that Feng Shui is having the intention to pay attention to your environment.
I recently asked Jaan for a few Feng Shui pointers to help the home seller find a buyer faster. Here are some of her Feng Shui ideas for the home seller.

House Number
Jaan Ferree suggests taking a closer look at the house number and position on the block. As a buyer approaches the home is it easy to tell he or she is at the right place? Is the number of the home visible?
Front Door and Approach
Make sure the entrance to your home is easily discernable. If the entrance is not the front door, is it obvious to the visitor where they enter? Is the walk from the car to the door safe, well defined, well lit, and attractive?
Ferree says the front porch, door, and threshold should be welcoming and have a greeter. Use a pot of geraniums, other flowers or plants, a statue, or an attractive welcome mat. She also suggests a beautiful color on the door, wind chime, basket hung on the wall beside the door, plaque beside the door or other plants or objects which will lift the chi (energy) of the person approaching the entrance to the home. Finally, a clear bell or doorknocker, to let someone know you are there, is always helpful.

Trim the Bushes
Make certain shrubbery and landscaping is not overgrown. If it is, the energy may have the effect of pushing the person away who is approaching the entrance to the home. The best plants to line the edge of the walkway have soft round corners. Avoid sharp pointed plants or objects.

Interior Entranceway
Once you enter the home the space inside the door should be clear of clutter and obstructions. If there is a wall directly across from the entrance Ferree says that placing a mirror or art on the wall will lift the chi tremendously. This Feng Shui treatment makes sense because it prevents your visitor from walking into a blank wall. It also makes something visible that will immediately lift the spirits of your guest.
Ferree suggests paying close attention to the subtle environmental clues in the interior of the home to make sure that you are not pushing someone away with the objects in the space, or making them have to get smaller to walk through the space.

Safety First
In addition to aiding in lifting the energy of a space, Feng Shui can also reflect simple common sense. Safety, both real and perceived, is extremely important. Ferree recommends, Pick up any items strewn about the yard and make sure all walkways and stepping stones and steps are level. Good lighting is essential, too. It must b e easy to walk through the interior and exterior of the house without obstruction.

Avoid Clutter
According to Ferree, clutter will keep a house from selling for many different reasons, one of which says the person does not attend to the upkeep of the home. Clutter collects stagnant energy and brings the feeling of the space down.
The two kinds of clutter are passive and active. Examples of active clutter are scattered children's toys in a living room, or brushes, paints and accessories in an artists studio. Passive clutter is piles of things which have not been put away, thrown away or recycled.

Positive Energy Keeps Guests Happy
Ferree has some ideas on how to invite positive chi (energy) into your home. Spread smells, such as vanilla, cinnamon, or citrus throughout the home. Consider the lighting, colors and color arrangements and clarity of a space. Work on design enhancements that welcome visitors to your space and invite them to stay a while.
Ferree has one piece of final advice that applies to many situations. Your home tells a story about you she says, People read the story every time they visit your space. Be aware of that and put your best self forward.
by Elaine VonCannon

In a competitive real estate market, home sellers are looking for the edge to make their home sell fast. Feng Shui, or the ancient Chinese art of placement, is one answer. Jaan Ferree, a Feng Shui consultant based in Asheville, North Carolina, explains. that Feng Shui is having the intention to pay attention to your environment.
I recently asked Jaan for a few Feng Shui pointers to help the home seller find a buyer faster. Here are some of her Feng Shui ideas for the home seller.

House Number
Jaan Ferree suggests taking a closer look at the house number and position on the block. As a buyer approaches the home is it easy to tell he or she is at the right place? Is the number of the home visible?
Front Door and Approach
Make sure the entrance to your home is easily discernable. If the entrance is not the front door, is it obvious to the visitor where they enter? Is the walk from the car to the door safe, well defined, well lit, and attractive?
Ferree says the front porch, door, and threshold should be welcoming and have a greeter. Use a pot of geraniums, other flowers or plants, a statue, or an attractive welcome mat. She also suggests a beautiful color on the door, wind chime, basket hung on the wall beside the door, plaque beside the door or other plants or objects which will lift the chi (energy) of the person approaching the entrance to the home. Finally, a clear bell or doorknocker, to let someone know you are there, is always helpful.

Trim the Bushes
Make certain shrubbery and landscaping is not overgrown. If it is, the energy may have the effect of pushing the person away who is approaching the entrance to the home. The best plants to line the edge of the walkway have soft round corners. Avoid sharp pointed plants or objects.

Interior Entranceway
Once you enter the home the space inside the door should be clear of clutter and obstructions. If there is a wall directly across from the entrance Ferree says that placing a mirror or art on the wall will lift the chi tremendously. This Feng Shui treatment makes sense because it prevents your visitor from walking into a blank wall. It also makes something visible that will immediately lift the spirits of your guest.
Ferree suggests paying close attention to the subtle environmental clues in the interior of the home to make sure that you are not pushing someone away with the objects in the space, or making them have to get smaller to walk through the space.

Safety First
In addition to aiding in lifting the energy of a space, Feng Shui can also reflect simple common sense. Safety, both real and perceived, is extremely important. Ferree recommends, Pick up any items strewn about the yard and make sure all walkways and stepping stones and steps are level. Good lighting is essential, too. It must b e easy to walk through the interior and exterior of the house without obstruction.

Avoid Clutter
According to Ferree, clutter will keep a house from selling for many different reasons, one of which says the person does not attend to the upkeep of the home. Clutter collects stagnant energy and brings the feeling of the space down.
The two kinds of clutter are passive and active. Examples of active clutter are scattered children's toys in a living room, or brushes, paints and accessories in an artists studio. Passive clutter is piles of things which have not been put away, thrown away or recycled.

Positive Energy Keeps Guests Happy
Ferree has some ideas on how to invite positive chi (energy) into your home. Spread smells, such as vanilla, cinnamon, or citrus throughout the home. Consider the lighting, colors and color arrangements and clarity of a space. Work on design enhancements that welcome visitors to your space and invite them to stay a while.
Ferree has one piece of final advice that applies to many situations. Your home tells a story about you she says, People read the story every time they visit your space. Be aware of that and put your best self forward.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elaine VonCannon is a REALTOR with RE/Max Capital in Williamsburg, Virginia, and she manages investment property as part of her business. Elaine is also an Accredited Buyer's Representative as well as a Senior Real Estate Specialist. She has helped numerous clients invest in and make money on property in Southeastern Virginia.

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Choosing Anniversary Flowers

When we think of an anniversary flower, the first thing that comes to mind is the rose. Unless the one you love has a preference for their own special flower, the rose is traditionally the sign of love. But did you know that for each shade of the rose there is a different meaning? The red rose is given at Valentines Day to declare to someone that you have fallen in love with them and if given to friends it certainly would convey the wrong message. A purple, coral or orange rose is known as the Valentine rose. There are also many kinds of flowers for the anniversary besides the rose, each of them beautiful in their own way. For every year of an anniversary there is a flower that should be given.

For the first year of an anniversary in a business a pansy should be given, the second year should be Cosmos, the third year should be Fushias, the fourth year the beautiful Geranium, and the fifth year the delegate Daisy. By the tenth year you have to shop for the streamline Daffodil and the beautiful rose doesn't come into play until the fifteenth year anniversary. The 20th year brings the Day Lily, the 25th is the slender Iris and the 30th is the petite sweet pea. The 40th is the bold Nasturtium and the 50th is the Violet

Regardless of the flower that should be given on an anniversary, the rose has to be the most popular. Nothing will please a woman as the declaration of your love when it is shown with roses. Of course, there are many other kind of anniversaries, so we have to then keep in mind which flowers should be given to whom. For example, if your firm is having an anniversary then you better look up a flower list. Roses would not be the flowers to send, but if you're thinking of a wedding anniversary with your loved one, then there is nothing that compares to a dozen red roses.

For lots of helpful information on

hawaiian flowers and related topics, visit The

Flowers Guide at www.theflowersguide.com

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The Beauty of Hybrid Tea Roses

Hybrid tea roses and the original tea rose are the worlds favourite roses and are available in many gorgeous colors.

Hybrid tea roses are among the most beautiful flowers in the world. They are the florist's rose.


The blossoms are fantastic and each flower can have as many as 60 or more petals. You can not find a more beautiful cut flower.


The fragrance also makes the hybrid tea rose an excellent choice to give as a bouquet or to grow in your garden.


Hybrid tea roses are different from other roses because they produce their flowers usually one bloom to a long stem rather than in clusters. Most hybrid tea roses produce flowers during the entire growing season and the plants grow 3 to 6 feet tall.


Caring for hybrid tea roses is no more difficult than other roses although you do need to give them special care in colder climates. They are no more or no less pest or disease resistant than other kinds of roses.


La France was the first hybrid tea rose grown in 1867 by a French nurseryman, Jean-Baptiste Guillot. He cross-bred two old garden roses and developed an entirely new kind of rose.


Hybrid tea roses should be planted 18 to 36 inches apart or they can be planted with other flowers in large pots.


There are hundreds of choices when looking for hybrid tea roses. Choices can be made by color, names or fragrance. There are hybrid tea roses named after famous people including presidents and their wives.


The very first tea rose was a cross between a China rose and Rosa gigantea. These plants are more bushy than the hybrid tea rose but the well-shaped flower buds remind us of todays modern hybrid tea roses. Tea roses come in shades of white, pink and yellow.
Start thinking about adding a tea rose or hybrid tea rose to your garden this year.




About the author:
Ken Austin is the webmaster at Roses and Rose Gardening Resources

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Marketing With a Twist!

marketing & advertising tips to help increase sales within 90 days.
Marketing With a Twist! Increase Sales By 20% Within 90 days! By A.R. Carroll

The Economy is TOUGH right now! Every business owner large & small knows this fact. To stay profitable you have to utilize new unique marketing strategies. Many of these traffic-generating, store-filling, sales generating techniques are free or virtually free!

Twist Number One: Most professionals and small businesses can increase their sales simply by meeting with the public. Getting their products or services showcased out there in front people where they can offer samples, brochures, flyers, demonstrations, and of course make sales!

Street Fairs, Flea-Markets, Religious Fund-raisers, Rummage Sales, County Fairs, 4-H Club Fairs, Trade-shows, are all good places to meet with new potential customers, clients, patients, distributors, etc.

Here are several examples of businesses that can benefit from attending and sponsoring such events. A Chimney Sweep business owner can show-up dressed in their complete outfit (young children will flock to their booth dragging their parents with them). A cutout chimney mockup can be used to demonstrate how a chimney sweeping/cleaning is done. Brochures, pamphlets, discounts coupons can be handed out. Other services offered such as chimney repairs, capping, etc. can be discussed with the emphasis on safety. Yearly chimney cleanings can prevent building fires, repaired faulty bricks could prevent personal injuries and potential lawsuits. And properly capping can prevent heat loss and thus save money on heating/cooling bills, not to mention capping keeps out unwanted pests such as skunks, squirrels, bats and raccoons.

A Chiropractor can offer free spinal screenings, local dentist, periodontist, and orthodontists, can offer free toothbrush/tooth paste samples, free exam coupons, discount coupons etc. Professionals that are too busy to attend themselves can have the event hosted by a worker or family member. Remember support your community and your community will support you!

These events can also turn out to be great moneymaking opportunities for Cell Phone businesses, craft, toy, and general merchandise jobbers. Network marketing and multi-level marketing distributors can find customers as well as potential distributors to add to their downline!

Remember the key to remember is have plenty of samples, brochures, business cards and products on hand.

Twist Number Two: Offer FREE helpful advice to your local community, county or even large city where you reside. You can do this by submitting brief informative articles to your local newspapers for publication. Examples: A local podiatrist can offer a short article about heel pain, a periodontist can offer an article on gum disease, a local mortgage company can offer an article on the differences between a fixed-rate mortgage and an adjustable rate one. A local landscaper can explain the best times to weed & feed your lawns, a local CPA can offer tax-saving tips, etc. Every professional or small business owner has something to offer to the community, and will reap the benefits of the articles by having their businesses publicized for free!

Twist Number Three: Storeowners can add new specialized items, or just highlight current items with a new sales generating sign. Examples: A pizzeria can offer new Taco Pizza that is a taco shell filled with pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese and ground beef. They can attract health-conscious, weight-conscious customers by also offering it with low-fat cheese and choice of ground chicken or ground turkey. A Chinese restaurant can possibly improve lack-luster sales by adding sushi to its menu, and then they can add a sign to their window stating Healthy Sushi Dishes Now Served. A Thai restaurant can boost their sales by adding several French Entrees, Japanese Entrees, or Malaysian entrees to their menu. And then they can add a window sign stating Authentic Thai/French Cuisine, or Authentic Thai/Japanese Cuisine, etc.! Many different kinds of restaurants such as Indian, Mexican, Chinese, and Italian can increase their sales by stating that they now have Vegetarian Cuisine. This alone can possibly cause an influx of vegetarian customers to visit their restaurants. Pizzeria's can purchase a small soft-ice cream machine or soft frozen yogurt machine. In the summer their profits should rise do to the number of little league teams that usually frequent after their games. And ice cream or frozen yogurt is a nice desert following a good Italian meal for eat-in customers.

Ice Cream Parlors that don't serve other types of foods may profit substantially by offering hot dogs and possibly gourmet candies and chocolates.

Deli's, convenience stores, gas stations, etc. can increase foot traffic and in-store sales by installing a State Lottery Machine and Mini-ATM's for their customers' use.

Candy stores can sell homemade gourmet ice cream, frozen yogurt and profit-producing sugar-free delights, sugar-free candies, perfect for diabetics, weight-conscious and cavity-conscious consumers!

Twist Number Four: Expand your demographics and expand your sales dramatically! Art & Crafts stores can offer free art classes, ceramic classes etc. They can offer art classes for children. This way the whole family can learn & enjoy, and the store can ring up a lot of new sales! Kids love to draw, paint, color, and create!

Until the early 90's Mail Order businesses were predominantly started and run by men, but now nearly 70% of all new Mail Order/Internet home-based businesses are run by women! Stay-at-home moms are rushing into home-based businesses and are reaping the profits for their efforts!

Martial arts schools can offer cardio kick-boxing classes, Tai Chi classes, and mediation classes to individuals who seek to improve upon their health yet don't wish to learn to fight.

Small businesses, home-based businesses, small manufacturers & small distributors should not forget our friends up North! Canadians love to purchase American products and services, advertise that you accept Canadian orders and you could see your sales could jump 10 - 20% in no time!

Twist Number Five: Make your website informative, attractive and sticky. Make people want to visit, stay for a long time, order a lot and come back time and time again! First let me save a lot of people a lot of money! I keep seeing articles about how to get your website listed quickly on Yahoo for $199. Yahoo no doubt is one of the premier search engines/portals in the world. But even if you do get your website listed within 3 - 5 days after paying the $199, that doesn't guarantee you'll get ANY hit or visits to your website via the Yahoo search engine. The truth of the matter is that the top 20 returned search results receive 90% of the hits. If your website isn't in the top 20 then you aren't going to get any hits. A newly started website listed on Yahoo is lucky to be in the top 200,000! One way to receive quality hits is to use a pay-for-clicks type of service, which will enable your website to be listed in Yahoo's top Four Sponsored Matches. Here are the pros/cons to using a pay-for-hits service: Example 1: An entrepreneur decides to sell portable home air cleaners via their website. He builds a beautiful website with color photos, secure-server shopping cart, etc. The problem is it costs $2.70 or more per click for the keyword air cleaner if he wishes for his website to be found on Yahoo or one of the many top 10 search engines! By the way keyword air cleaner has 532,000 matches on Yahoo! Let's say this gentleman receives 1000 click-throughs per month to his website via a pay-per-click arrangement. He has to pay $2700/month for clicks/visitors, if he only sells 50 air cleaners at $300 each that equals $1500 (5% sales), you see he has to sell a lot of air cleaners to break even! Example 2: A young gentleman decides to sell snowboards on the Internet. The keyword snowboard get 233,000 Matches on Yahoo, and if he wishes for his website to land in the top four Sponsored Match positions it will cost him 36 cents or more per click! Example 3: A young woman wants to sell chocolates via her website but keyword chocolate gets 284,000 matches on Yahoo, and the cost per click would be 52 cents or more each if she wanted to have her website show up in the top four Sponsored Match listings! Example 4: Flowers keyword would display 11,900,000 matches and a cost of $3.82 or more per click-through for the top four Sponsored Match listings! The bottom line is pay-per-clicks, banner ads, and pop-ads don't work for most small business owners! Small display advertising, classified ads, in conjunction with direct mail, postcards, catalogs, flyers and properly written sales letters are still the bread & butter for the home-based Internet/Mail Order dealer! Increase your exposure & increase your sales! Good Luck & Good Selling!

About the Author

A. R. Carroll, Writer/Successful Business Owner Please visit his Websites: www.NationalBookSales.com and www.ZeoliteDepot.com

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Kinds Of Flowers

There are many kinds of flowers that we are well know about. We see these flowers in our gardens, at flower measure shows and exhibitions. We can even see simulated flowers in diverse floral arrangements. While all of this is true we not much know anything about these flowers. It is true that we may bargain another(a) kinds of flowers to put in a vase but we in truth are purchasing the different colours and fragrances rather than just the flowers. To help you empathise what these many flowers are like or even how you can grow them there is skilful advice you can get from florists on moneyed designs, horticulture centers for growth undercoat plants and books to help you know how to agnize the many kinds of flowers that we can buy. You may want to decide what use you are having for the flowers before you bargain any of them. As with everything in our lives nowadays engineering in its unlike forms has presumption us new kinds of flowers to have. For example you can buy lift flower candles that have been soaked with various prime of life scents to make these kinds of flowers more appealing. You will also find raw(a) flowers that have been made as a hybrid. These kinds of flowers are the solution of two flush varieties being interracial together. For case many of us see roses that are large and one firm color. There are all the same other roses that have striped or swirls in two or more shades.

These kinds of flowers have been created to heighten the rude(a) beauty of the rose. Some of the exotic flowers like Anthuriums have been brought over from their tropic countries to expand in our gardens during the late saltation and summertime months. For many of us looking for at at orchids reminds us that nature is National of creating flowers to resemble other forms or animals. There are orchids that look like jasmine flowers still these orchids don't have the alcohol-dependent odor of jasmines. You will also find orchids that look like scorpions. These kinds of flowers are great to have in the many alien flower arrangements that dress out league halls. In reach to these kinds of flowers you can use the diverse flowers from your garden to add some olfactory sensation and vivacious color to your rooms. The many types that we know like the lenient lily of the valley, climbing wisteria, the reminiscent of(p) roses and even apple flowers have the power to add some rancour to our lives. With so many kinds of flowers to take from you may be inundated by the dissimilar colors and scents that you can find. In the last analysis what you need to do is to just pick out the many flowers that charm to you. You can always natter the florists for more flowers when these have finished with their life span. By: Vinh Pham

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