budget birthday gift projects = more fun than last minute shopping
i am enjoying the new cheap-or-free theme of my life. i mean, it's not as easy as a have-enough-money-to-buy-whatever-you-want theme, but it takes a good kind of creativity to work stuff out in a way that won't break the bank and will still be fun. especially presents.
i have just spent $6.75 on a sourdough starter. this was not the cheapest option out there, but the cheapest option takes up to 6 weeks (we're talking SASE to a p.o. box here) and i was thinking, based on a conversation that i had with my mom the other day, that a sourdough starter she doesn't have to mess with might make a lovely birthday present for her. AND i can keep some for myself. because the primary problem with a sourdough starter is that you end up having to discard some of it on a regular basis.... OR PUT IT IN ANOTHER JAR AND GIVE IT TO SOMEBODY. now, i'm not a huge fan of sourdough, so the idea of making a starter just for me was not enough to get me on the boat. but my mom LOVES the stuff and has an old bread machine somewhere that she wants to pull out now that i'm using mine (also known as nana's -- hey hey, cheap-or-free!). so now i have an awesome gift idea that a) doesn't cost much, b) involves a project on my part, and c) has good potential for being something she'll use and love! it's everything a gift should be! and i'll probably need to bake some test loaves to make sure the starter is working right... OH DARN.
i have just spent $6.75 on a sourdough starter. this was not the cheapest option out there, but the cheapest option takes up to 6 weeks (we're talking SASE to a p.o. box here) and i was thinking, based on a conversation that i had with my mom the other day, that a sourdough starter she doesn't have to mess with might make a lovely birthday present for her. AND i can keep some for myself. because the primary problem with a sourdough starter is that you end up having to discard some of it on a regular basis.... OR PUT IT IN ANOTHER JAR AND GIVE IT TO SOMEBODY. now, i'm not a huge fan of sourdough, so the idea of making a starter just for me was not enough to get me on the boat. but my mom LOVES the stuff and has an old bread machine somewhere that she wants to pull out now that i'm using mine (also known as nana's -- hey hey, cheap-or-free!). so now i have an awesome gift idea that a) doesn't cost much, b) involves a project on my part, and c) has good potential for being something she'll use and love! it's everything a gift should be! and i'll probably need to bake some test loaves to make sure the starter is working right... OH DARN.