Frugal Luxuries by the Seasons: Celebrate the Holidays with Elegance and Simplicity--on Any Income [Paperback]

Tracey McBride (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 31, 2000

All year-round, create lush beauty and quiet graces for home and family (without breaking your budget)

Tracey McBride's first book, Frugal Luxuries, elevated frugal but elegant living to an art form. Now in this companion volume she shares all new ways to embellish cherished holidays and the timeless rhythms of the seasons. Here she shows how to use joined efforts, loving hands, and exciting ideas to create gracious touches and sumptuous celebrations, delicious meals and wonderful seasonal treats. Learn how you can enrich your home with timeless pleasures and lighten the spirits of those you hold most dear--without exhausting your bank account. Enjoy:
Emblems of spring: aromatic Irish linen sachets, warm scones drenched in jam and butter...and mysterious bunny tracks you can make to delight your children
Enchanted summers: floral wreaths as party favors, an Italian feast with homemade pasta...and bountiful gifts from the garden
Autumnal offerings: scented cinnamon pinecones as fire starters, fresh challah for Rosh Hashana...and a house warmed with fall bouquets and cozy paisley throws
Winter wonders: mood-enhancing music, illuminating with lights, inside and out...and a Christmas gift pantry--begun in January--to create stress-free giving
Plus an abundance of seasonal blessings, imaginative uses for yard-sale treasures, an appreciation of things old and marvelous...and creation of a life of beauty and simplicity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Think of Tracey McBride as the Martha Stewart of the cheapskate set."
— Chicago Tribune

Visit Bantam's website at www.bantamdell.com

"There is an incredible amount of wisdom between the covers of this book on how to live a totally fulfilling life no matter how much money you have."
— Jack Canfield, co-author, Chicken Soup for the Soul

Also by Tracey McBride
Frugal Luxuries
Simple Pleasures to Enhance Your Life and Comfort Your Soul

Available wherever Bantam Books are sold

From the Inside Flap

All year-round, create lush beauty and quiet graces for home and family (without breaking your budget)

Tracey McBride's first book, Frugal Luxuries, elevated frugal but elegant living to an art form. Now in this companion volume she shares all new ways to embellish cherished holidays and the timeless rhythms of the seasons. Here she shows how to use joined efforts, loving hands, and exciting ideas to create gracious touches and sumptuous celebrations, delicious meals and wonderful seasonal treats. Learn how you can enrich your home with timeless pleasures and lighten the spirits of those you hold most dear--without exhausting your bank account. Enjoy:
Emblems of spring: aromatic Irish linen sachets, warm scones drenched in jam and butter...and mysterious bunny tracks you can make to delight your children
Enchanted summers: floral wreaths as party favors, an Italian feast with homemade pasta...and bountiful gifts from the garden
Autumnal offerings: scented cinnamon pinecones as fire starters, fresh challah for Rosh Hashana...and a house warmed with fall bouquets and cozy paisley throws
Winter wonders: mood-enhancing music, illuminating with lights, inside and out...and a Christmas gift pantry--begun in January--to create stress-free giving
Plus an abundance of seasonal blessings, imaginative uses for yard-sale treasures, an appreciation of things old and marvelous...and creation of a life of beauty and simplicity.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (October 31, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 055337995X
• ISBN-13: 978-0553379952
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.8 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,038,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book!, February 26, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Frugal Luxuries by the Seasons: Celebrate the Holidays with Elegance and Simplicity--on Any Income (Paperback)

This is an awfully warm and cozy book that encourages the reader to create a beautiful and comforting home. She emphasizes making each corner of a house appealing and gives practical suggestions for making that happen. And while I've heard criticisms for her use of the word *frugal*, I guess it depends on what you consider frugal to be. Cheapskate she's not, but her suggestions are mostly in the reach of the average joe.

The recipes are fun and I esp. enjoyed the quotes given at the beginning of each section. She also covers the topic of clutter and how it can bog the homemaker down. She never makes a suggestion without giving you an out for it. Excellent!

I think Mrs. McBride has a great grasp on making a house feel like a home. Greatly recommend it for other *cozy* types!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Frugal Martha? So what?, March 8, 2001

By 

Kevin Hull (Savannah, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frugal Luxuries by the Seasons: Celebrate the Holidays with Elegance and Simplicity--on Any Income (Paperback)

Some reviews of her other books disparagingly refer to her as a frugal Martha Stewart and say who needs all this "luxurious" stuff. So? I really like this book. Living frugally doesn't necessarily have to mean living spartanly. I like nice things like bath salts, drawer fresheners, etc., and since I'm a mom, I like to make things myself and know that there aren't nasty chemicals or anything articifical in the things in my home.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple Smiles and Things from Days Past, February 11, 2006

By 

L. Lord (Boulder, CO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Frugal Luxuries by the Seasons: Celebrate the Holidays with Elegance and Simplicity--on Any Income (Paperback)

If you live with a rat race mentality this book is not for you. If you are desperately seeking simple treasures to bring smiles to your day and others this is a RARE GEM! There is a focus on fun gifts to give others. Many of the gifts use items recycled from the kitchen combined with items from your garden. You will not spend much money but will need to invest your time to create the items. I loved this sense they are very inexpensive I can share more gifts with others. There is a real touch of sharing family traditions and togetherness.