Shel Horowitz's Monthly Frugal Fun Tip for December, 2002
Vol. 6, No. 7: Easy and Cheap Holiday Decorating Ideas

* Cut strips of tinfoil or used metallic wrapping paper and place them where they reflect light-- they can be cut into shapes and used as 2-dimensional decorations, the thicker kinds can be crumpled into a ball for 3-D ornaments to hang from a tree (or a ceiling), and the thinner, softer ones twisted into strips as you would with crepe paper and hung from the ceiling, or cut into paper chains. Aluminum foil can also work, and also looks great under lit candles
* Gather pinecones from the woods and stuff them with something colorful (bits of dried citrus peel, candle drippings, chopped red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes
* Stud a lemon with cloves
* Braid strings of colored yarn and string them across doorways
* String cranberries and popcorn--and if you don't have pets, you can even string foam packing peanuts
* Make rubbings from the art carved on gravestones and have the kids color them in
* Collect willow branches and shape them into homemade wreaths
* Chanukah candles can be very elegant, and come in many different colors. Tomorrow is the last night of Chanukah, so on Saturday might be a very good time to buy them very cheaply
* On December 26 or 27, run out and buy some deeply discounted decorations and put them aside for next year.
* Get your kids to do art projects that can be used to decorate
* Easy ways to make your house smell wonderful: boil cinnamon sticks, cloves, ginger and apple peel, then waft it around the house--or just bake some gingerbread cookies
* Birthday party-type decorations, like crepe paper and balloons, can make a house very cheery for pennies
* If opened reasonably neatly, wrapping paper can be used several times