Party ideas

Beyond the Sandcastle: 20 Great Ways to Use a Beach Bucket

Kelly Medeiros — Tue, 30 Jul 2013 10:24:30 +0000

Besides making sand castles and carrying water, beach buckets are also handy to have on hand for many other purposes. They are cheap and plentiful, especially during the summer months. Check out dollar stores, warehouse stores, beach shops, pharmacies, big box stores, craft stores, or supermarkets for affordable options, and start exploring the many alternative ways to put an inexpensive plastic pail to good use. (See also: 30 Uses for the Humble Cardboard Box)

1. Beer Bucket

Find an extra large beach bucket for this task, and the sturdier, the better. Fill it with ice and use as an ice bucket, or place a few bottles or cans inside to make your own mini cooler.

2. Cleaning Supply Storage

A regular sized beach bucket is a great container to store lightweight sponges, dusters, or microfiber cloths in one place. Use the bucket's handle to hang it on a hook in a laundry room or closet to free up valuable floor or shelf space.

3. Beach Bucket Cakes

A very cute and affordable idea for a beach-themed party or summer gathering is a beach bucket cake. It basically works by filling small, clean beach buckets with layers of cake, frosting, and graham cracker crumbs, which serve as fake sand. Insert a little flag or a chocolate shell for a beachy finishing touch.

4. Art Supply Organizer

Try a series of buckets to hold crayons, markers, paints, or brushes in a well-organized way. Using multiple buckets dedicated to each type of art supply will make it easier to find that one colored marker or paint tube that always gets lost in the shuffle.

5. Bucket Centerpiece

This is great for a beach-themed party or buffet when you want to add a playful touch. Choose a nice looking beach bucket to hold flowers or a potted plant in the middle of a table. Alternatively, you can fill a bucket with sand and shells and add a small candle to use as a centerpiece outdoors. Depending on the candle, your centerpiece can also keep the bugs away.

6. Tub Toys

Young kids love to play in the tub, and a beach bucket makes a great multipurpose tub toy. My daughter’s beach bucket does triple duty. First, it stores her smaller tub toys and sits on the side of the tub. Second, it's a toy itself during bath time. And third, Mommy uses it to clean the tub after a bath.

7. Garden Supply Organizer

Keep all the hand tools for the garden in one easy-to-find and carry beach bucket. Not only will it keep small shears, trowels, and spades in place during your regular gardening and planting tasks, but it also can be easily carried around the yard by its handle.

8. Craft Storage

Beach buckets work great to collect scrap fabric, paper, ribbons, yarn, buttons, and other craft trimmings you want easy access to and need to keep organized. Crafty types might even decorate their craft storage buckets with the ribbon and glitter they store!

9. Halloween Trick-or-Treat Tote

Use an orange bucket or decorate any color beach bucket to make a nice trick-or-treat tote for a costumed kid to carry door-to-door. You can also decorate one and use it yourself to dish out the goodies when your doorbell rings menacingly.

10. Serveware

Another great beach-themed party idea is to use beach buckets and matching shovels to serve chips, pretzels, popcorn, and other snacks. Or, use small buckets to hold ice cream toppings for a make-your-own ice cream bar.

11. Hair Accessory Storage

Use a beach bucket to keep brushes and hair ties in one place on a bathroom counter. A small, brightly colored bucket looks great in a kid’s bathroom, is easy to clean, and is shatterproof when it inevitably gets knocked over by little hands.

12. Party Favors

Great for birthday parties, regardless of the season, small beach buckets filled with toys, stickers, or candy are excellent party favors. Or, for baby or wedding showers, use the buckets to hold packs of flower seeds and other little mementos.

13. Snow Toys

They work great on the beach with sand, but don’t rule out the possibility of beach buckets in the snow. Use them to hold snowballs for the next great snowball fight or to build little mounds and forts when the snow is heavy and wet.

14. Creative Picnicware

A unique serving idea for a casual barbecue or picnic is to use beach buckets lined with wax paper to hold fried chicken and fries (or whatever you like). It allows you to skip the plate and use your hands to dig in and enjoy eating something in a fun way. Beach buckets are also great for crab feasts and corn on the cob.

15. Dog Toy Storage

Use the biggest buckets to stow rawhides and other chew toys for your dogs in one place. Beach buckets are a cinch to clean, too. Dried dog slobber rinses right off.

16. Bon Voyage Gift

If you know someone going on a beach trip, beach honeymoon, or other fun journey, a beach bucket filled with some goodies makes a clever and inexpensive gift. Include snacks, sunscreen, cheap sunglasses, and other small beach items.

17. Utensil Caddy

If you are having an outdoor gathering or a dinner on your back patio, use a beach bucket to hold your utensils and add a fun touch to a casual meal. It’s also great for holding paper napkins outdoors to prevent them from blowing away.

18. Toy Storage

If your kids have toys that come in very small pieces or who have small collectibles, then a beach bucket is the perfect storage container. A kid can grab the handle and carry the bucket from room to room. This hopefully makes cleaning up easier and eliminates those small, easily forgotten pieces from falling to the bottom of another, larger storage container.

19. Garden and Harvest Basket

If you pick flowers or vegetables from your own garden or go berry picking at a farm, you definitely need a portable container to collect your bounty. A beach bucket is lightweight, easy to carry, and holds plenty. Plus it’s easy to clean, and it’s cheap enough that you won’t mind getting it dirty.

20. Washing the Car

There’s no need to invest in an over-priced bucket for car washing duty when a large beach bucket can get the job done. Fill your bucket with water and use it to soak and wring your sponges out as you soap up the car.

What's your favorite fun way to use a beach bucket or pail?

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This article is from Kelly Medeiros of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

8 Things You Must Do to Throw a Frugal, Fun Backyard Party

Tisha Tolar — Fri, 26 Jul 2013 09:48:32 +0000

Believe it or not, the days are already getting shorter. That means now is a great time to host a little soiree to celebrate the remaining days of summer and create those wonderful memories of time well-spent with family, friends, and neighbors. (See also: How to Throw a Kid’s Birthday Party That’s Fun, Happily Memorable, and Not So Expensive)

Plan ahead, borrow what you need, and make use of what you have to make your bash fun for your friends and family without being a burden on you.

1. Open the Pantry

The trick to having fun on a budget is to make the best of what you have. Rather than write out a list of what you want to have at the party, make a list of what you already have in the pantry, and create your party menu based on ingredients you already have on hand.

2. Ask Friends for Fresh Finds

It you have friends and family who garden, ask them to bring along ingredients for a salad, a homemade salsa, or a veggie tray. You’ll get lots of fresh produce at no cost to anyone.

3. Prep the Traffic Areas

If the party is to be held out in the backyard, clean only the necessary areas like the kitchen and bathroom. Close the doors to your other rooms. Do have a backup, like the garage or the rec room, spruced up in the event of rain. If you live with a busy schedule, do a little cleaning every day, so you are not completely stressed out on the day of the party.

4. Make It BYOB

Don’t let alcohol drink up your budget. Let guests know there will be plenty of food and soft drinks available, but anyone who wishes to imbibe must bring their own booze.

5. Borrow Coolers, Chairs, and Tables

Don’t spend your money on what other people already have. Ask to borrow from family and friends the items you only need temporarily including coolers, chairs, and tables. Coolers are especially important because you can keep everyone out of your fridge during the hot day. Stock several coolers around your yard, and label each with its contents to make it easy for guests to find what they're looking for.

6. Provide Home Comforts

Make sure to set out comfort items for your backyard guests including towels to cover hot chairs, sunscreen, and bug spray. Also consider providing several shady areas for seating either under a tree or under a canopy.

7. Keep It Clean

Outside parties can include uninvited and unpleasant animal and insect guests, so create an area away from the party for trash disposal. Set up several cans with lids and recycling bins for cans and glass. Post a sign for guests to outline what gets recycled. You should also keep a small side table nearby with hand sanitizer, baby wipes, and paper towels. Monitor trash cans throughout the day, and tend to them as they get filled to minimize insects and the potential for trash to blow around your yard and neighborhood.

8. Keep Kids Busy

To keep your adult guests happy and relaxed, you need to consider how to keep the kids happy and busy. Visit the local dollar store and pick up small toys like bubbles, water balloons, glow sticks, and badminton rackets. Also make up a list of good yard games for adults and kids to play throughout the day like egg races. For super-hot afternoons, bring out a sprinkler, and a hose and let kids cool down.

Throw a backyard bash recently? What did you do to make it a success?

This article is from Tisha Tolar of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

How to Throw the Most Fabulous (and Frugal) Baby Shower of all Time

Janey Osterlind — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 10:24:08 +0000

One of my very best friends in the whole world is having her first baby this August and I’m excited to help her celebrate by throwing the best baby shower of all time. While I’d like to say the sky’s the limit as far as budget goes, unfortunately, my funds are actually quite limited. So how do I plan to throw the best baby shower in the history of the world, without spending myself into the poorhouse? So glad you asked! (See also: Build a Better Baby Shower)

The Invitations

Homemade invitations are generally the least expensive way to go when it comes to making invitations for your baby shower. I plan on buying some colorful cardstock and a border punch used for scrapbooking. Other embellishments include die-cut paper (wonderful for dressing up the cardstock), die-cut ribbon, and rub-on borders. For ease of printing, plan on making two or four invitations per 8.5”x11” piece of cardstock. Lay out your wording in Microsoft Word or with a free online template (search for “free baby shower invitation templates”), print, cut, and decorate.

Other inexpensive (or free!) invites include e-mail invitations like those found on Evite.com, or you can buy pre-printed invitations relatively cheaply from a site like Tiny Prints, a personal favorite of mine. Invitations on Tiny Prints start for as low as $0.59 per card.

The Venue

Baby showers are often held in the hostess’ own home, which is, of course, free. In my case, my little abode won’t accommodate the number of guests who will be attending, so I’m relying on the generosity of my friend’s (and mommy-to-be) mother to open her home. If you’re not so lucky or if you prefer to think outside the home for a baby shower venue, consider having the shower in an outdoor location like a park — just remember to keep the comfort of the guest of honor in mind before planning an outdoor shower in August! Other frugal venue choices include churches or Jewish Community Centers, where rental fees are generally less than banquet space at a hotel or restaurant.

The Food

When it comes to food, simplicity is key. Not only will it save your sanity when planning a baby shower for 50 (as I am); it will also save your wallet. I plan on enlisting several close friends to each bring one hors d'oeuvre — that way, I’m not burnt out from preparing numerous dishes, and my friends get to exhibit their fabulous culinary skills. As a matter of logistics, I’d recommend only cold or room-temperature dishes, since coordinating oven cooking times and outlets for crock pots can get onerous. If you need some inspiration for easy-to-make finger foods, try checking out this article on frugal office party dishes.

For the pièce de résistance, I intend to honor the mommy-to-be with some fabulous, frugal desserts — cake pops, to be exact. Try making your own or, if cake pops aren’t your thing, find some bright ideas for baby shower-themed cupcakes at MarthaStewart.com.

The Gifts

One of my all time favorite baby shower gifts I’ve seen was a nested toy box set. The gift giver had purchased three unfinished wooden boxes of different sizes and painted them with whimsical animals and finished them with snippets of nursery rhymes winding around the boxes’ sides. If you’re creative, try something similar with a memento box or photo box. If you want a meaningful present without the hassle, take a look at some of the handmade gifts on Etsy.com for one-of-a-kind items.

The Entertainment

When I did some preliminary research about baby shower games, I found that suggestions are nearly endless. People are apparently suckers for a good baby-themed game. The nice thing about this is that the cost of putting together any one of these games costs nary a penny. The downside, though, is that I have to find something that my mommy-to-be friend doesn’t find tacky (and frankly, I’m with her — no poopy diaper game for our crowd, thank you). With a comprehensive list of games like the one found at BabyCenter.com, I’m sure I’ll find something that satisfies both my budget and my friend.

The Favors

As with most things, favors are generally less expensive if they’re something that can be made rather than purchased. In my case, I’ll be making cake pop “bouquets” for each guest to take home: they’re tasty, they’re easy, and they’re a whole lot less expensive than a personalized candle. You can make pretty much any edible treat a favor by packaging it appealingly — try cookies in cellophane and ribbon matching the shower theme, or muffin mix in tins with computer-generated labels.

So there’s my quick guide to throwing the most frugal, fabulous baby shower in the history of the world! Will I do it for my own BFF? I don’t know, but I plan to try! Any tips or thoughts for me? Share your insights in the comments!

This article is from Janey Osterlind of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

TWINKIE SUSHI - Chopsticks optional

Paul Michael — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 22:36:12 +0000

I am not exactly a Twinkie fan. I moved to the USA in my mid-twenties and so I hadn't acquired a taste for them. And most likely never will (although I did try a deep-fried Twinkie recently...not bad, considering).

Anyway, kids do love Twinkies. But they're not so fond of Sushi. So those clever (or devious) people at Hostess foods have decided to fuse the two ideas together and perhaps create something that adults and kids will love equally, or despise with the same passion. Either way, I think they're a novel way to dress up a party platter, they're nice and cheap to make, and if nothing else they'll be a talking point. Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto.

Items Needed:

3 Hostess Twinkies
Assorted dried fruits
Assorted fruity candies
2 green fruit roll ups
Dried mangoes (looks like pickled ginger)

DIRECTIONS:

Slice Hostess Twinkies into pieces about an inch tall.
Slice fruit roll ups in strips to the long enough and wide enough to wrap around the Hostess Twinkie pieces.
Wrap the fruit roll ups around the Hostess Twinkie pieces.
Place dried fruits and candies into the cream filling.
Place Twinkie rolls on a plate or in a bento box.
Garnish with strips of dried mango to resemble pickled ginger if you wish!
Serve with chopsticks if you wish.

This article is from Paul Michael of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread: