Pinterest is filled with great ideas but some of the pins can be expensive to actually create and if they don’t turn out like the picture, we get discouraged. One thing about millennials, is that they can be creative in ways to save money because that is something they don’t have a lot of…especially since college cleans your wallet and bank account leaving you to live on your pocket lint.
I will be taking popular Pinterest ideas and showing you the cheaper, simpler ways to complete the project.
Turn on your right sided brain, put up your hair into that messy bun, and unfasten your imagination seat belt!
1) Wood Burning
A wood burning tool
is very inexpensive and you can go crazy on any wood item you can find. You can find many under $20 for a limitless amount of creative projects.
Wood can be found all around you if you keep your eyes open. You can find old pallets behind stores, logs or sticks in your yard, and wooden items at Goodwill/ Salvation Army to create many personalized crafts. If you go to craft stores they charge around $7 for just a little, thin coaster sized piece of wood. It also looks like its made of some fake wood fillers which doesn’t give the wood the vintage texture so salvaging around has many perks and can save your extra change to keep your pocket lint company.
I have bought cutting boards and personalized them by burning the names of the new married couples on them which makes an amazing, cheap gift with a personal touch added. Also, my family burns wood throughout the winter so we have many logs in the barn and my Dad is nice enough to take his chainsaw and cut my some circle coasters that I can use to burn designs for gifts as well.
2) Flipping Furniture 
You can go to all these antique shops, spend money on Etsy, or buy brand new furniture to transform a house into a home, but what if I could share a secret, fun way to dazzle up the place? I’m about to share with you some easy suggestions.
All Ready Made
Go to the nearest Goodwill, Salvation Army, curb, junk yard, or second-hand stores that sell furniture no one else would want. You can find old dressers, desks, and tables for super cheap. They look worn and old to an untrained eye, but to you they are treasure! Look at the structure of the furniture and make sure it is not overly bulky because bulky furniture may not be what you want since it takes up space in your home. Pick out something based on structure, but not on looks as far as paint or wood grain.
Paint
Some furniture may need some sanding but painting will be the easiest part! choose what color scheme you are looking for and buy spray cans of paint. You may have to take out the drawers and tape off areas you don’t want paint to get on but spray cans really do even out the coat of paint and will not show brush marks.
Design 
If you can great at painting freehanded with a brush like me then designing your furniture isn’t hard, but if you are not, then I have used the sticky drawer liner decorative paper to place a design on the outside of the drawers. You can also line the sides of the draws to add flare to an open drawer.
Add handles
Pick out some handles. If you are going for a vintage look, mix match handles. If you are going for classy, replace original handles with glass handles. If you are going for an enchanting, magical look, add some porcine flower handles on the drawers. If you are in the mood to go industrial, then use brass pipes as handles. Handles all depend on the look you are going for. They can really bring the theme you want your furniture to convey.
3) Photography
Everyone seems to be getting cool looking family photos to hang on their walls but they can be so pricey. What if I told you that you could go the same, but without paying anyone to do it for you? Let me give you some hints!
Have Fun
Always treat a session like a creative opportunity. To make your photos look less “posed” snap some photos during the transitions during the process of setting up the subjects. Also, make them smile during the shoot so your subjects do not feel stressed or awkward. Some people are naturals in front of a camera but there are some that straight out become stiff as a board. Totally unnatural. The more fun you have, the more fun your subjects will have!
Pick a Theme
Themes are so much fun! Shooting a subject that loves photo shoots and volunteers to participate in the shoot will be all in when it comes to agreeing on jumping into a theme and model for you. I’ve done themes such as hippie, vintage, oldies, enchanting, and so much more and all of them have, hands down, been my favorite. Get the creative juices flowing and design a sweet shoot!
Tools
You don’t have to own the best camera in the universe to be a good photographer believe it or not. Does having a good camera help? Well of course it does, but if you do not have a natural creative eye, then it is challenging. You can even take pics off your phone camera and make them look good if you have a creative angle, good eye for editing details, and proper light. I use a FREE editing website called ipiccy which works like Picnik used to. If you want an editing platform more like Photoshop, download Gimp. It is FREE too! Yah, I’m definitely a millennial girl trying to cut corners and use the FREE options.
Post or Print
Post those creative pics on those social media accounts and show others some beauty. Print them out and glue them in that SMASH journal or hang them on your string of twinkle lights you keep up year around! They would make good gifts as well…cheap, thoughtful gifts might I add!
