Paper Woods

When it comes to buying supplies, you always have choices.  Walk into any craft supply store and you will find walls of adhesives, some identical only made by different companies.  Same thing with eyelets, ink pads, and embellishments of every kind.  You have options, including how much you want to spend.  So my frugal tip for you today is to think about what kinds of supplies you are willing to purchase in a cheaper form. 

For example, I use Aleene’s Tacky Glue for pretty much everything because it’s super cheap and works for me.  I purchased my last bottle for a whopping $0.92, and it’s lasted me for about a year now.  Now, some people might not like to use it because the tip always gets clogged and it doesn’t dry as quickly as some of the “designed especially for paper crafting” liquid glues.  However, I simply keep a little plastic tray with my bottle and every time I use the glue I completely unscrew the top of the bottle and pour a little into the tray, and then use a toothpick to spread it wherever I want to use it.  I don’t mind throwing away the glue I’ve poured out that day but didn’t use because it’s so stickin’ cheap!  Plus, I’m also a pretty patient person so I don’t mind waiting for the glue to dry.  I usually have something else to work on anyway! 

So, yes, it can be a little bit more of a hassle sometimes to use the cheap stuff instead of the specialized products that might come in easier to use forms, but you just need to figure out what things you’re willing to skimp on and what things you aren’t.  However, I will offer this caveat emptor: sometimes the cheap stuff really doesn’t work.  Sometimes the reason it’s cheap is because it is just not a high quality product, and has nothing to do with the packaging or other negotiable qualities.  But, if you try the cheap stuff first and find it doesn’t work, at least you won’t have wasted that much money!