July 4th Picnic on a Budget
My sister and I have always managed to find adventure in everyday life. We have been know to take last minute road trips to the beach (an 8 hour drive), whip up some fabulous food creations, and drive up and down back roads taking pictures of old churches.
It has been like this since we were children (we are in our 40’s now). We spent many of our childhood days on our grandmothers farm playing in the woods, catching June bugs, riding horses, and fishing in the creek.
These are great memories that you can’t get sitting in front of the television. In honor of creating memories, how about having a Fourth of July picnic? Picnics do not have to be fancy or expensive, all you need is good friends and food.
I decided I wanted to create a Fourth of July picnic on a budget using items purchased at the dollar store and items around the house. My sister, being up for the challenge, decided to help. I hope you enjoy what we came up with and it inspires you get of the house and spend time together.
You can keep is very simple or
You can do something a little more elaborate.
Barbecue foods such as hot dogs and hamburgers are a lot less expensive than serving steak, or better yet, have a pot luck. This keeps any one person from carrying the full load. Keep the drinks simple…tea, lemonade, and/or water. Just let you guest know what you will be serving and allow them to bring anything extra that they want.
If you are in a hurry and don’t have time to make everything from scratch, run by your local grocery store and pick up a few items. Take them out of those ugly plastic containers and place them on some pretty serving dishes.
My sister made these adorable sacks for the popcorn.
You can also add a little something to purchased foods to give them that special touch.
Now that food it out of the way, what about setting the table? Unless you want to ask everyone to bring their own plates, cups, napkins, etc., you are going to have to step up and do this yourself. Visit the dollar store where you can find everything you need. This doesn’t have to mean paper plates and plastic cups. Unless you are serving a large group of people, why not pick up some glass or ceramic pieces. If you stick with a solid color, you can use them for other occasions.
If you have time, and like to do crafts, why not make your own candles? (I’m working on candle tutorial) These easy candles can be made using juice containers and simply wrapping them in ribbon. You can then set the candle on the candle holders you made yourself with dishes that you picked up at the dollar store.
If you don’t have room at your house for a picnic, check out your local parks. These pictures were taken at Historic Washington State park in Washington, Arkansas.
Here is a breakdown of items on the picnic table and their costs.
Purchases made from the Dollar Store (Each item cost $1)
Total cost for 6 place settings $32.50
Plates – $1 each
Saucers – $1 each
Cupcake holders – 4/$1
Glasses – $1each
Candle holders $2 each
Table cloth (folded in half to make table runner) $1
Star tablecloth weights 4/$1
American flag $1
Items from home:
Blue/white pitcher
White tray for cookies
Silverware
Candle (handmade)
Banners
Clear dish for popcorn
Crepe myrtles for center piece
