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Vanessa Hamlin

Vanessa Hamlin is the owner and founder of Food Life Design and VLHamlinDesign. With her passion for frugal living and homesteading, Vanessa loves to write about easy recipes, making money, gardening, home remedies and everything else that a good life entails! When she's not writing for Food Life Design or creating products for VLHamlinDesign, you'll find Vanessa reading, drawing, gardening, cooking or spending time with her family.

Back in October 2022, the husband and I headed to Front Royal, Virginia for the Homesteaders of America Conference. If you’re not familiar with Homesteaders of America and you have interest in being more self-sufficient, I highly recommend you check them out! Not only do they host this massive conference each year, the offer a …

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Today will be the last stop in our Christmas party. So, I thought it was high time we visited the sweetest part of the holidays…Christmas dessert recipes! Because…who doesn’t love Christmas dessert? I know I do! My favorite is this incredibly creamy and delicious Chocolate Chip Cheesecake that my stepmother makes every year. It is …

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Looking for something sweet to serve at your holiday party? Here’s 10 Easy Christmas Treat Recipes your family will beg you to make…year after year! Today is sweets day in our Christmas party and I’m sharing some really EASY Christmas treat recipes in this post! I make A LOT of Christmas cookies and candies throughout …

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In case I haven’t already mentioned it a bazillion times, the holiday season is my favorite time of year. And since we’re celebrating, I thought it would be a great time to give you some free printable Christmas cards for friends, family and everyone else, too. To be honest, I’ve been really lazy about sending …

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Looking for an awesome gift to give your favorite coffee junkie? You’re sure to find the perfect one in this list of the 10 Best Christmas Gifts for Coffee Lovers! We’re quickly headed toward Christmas mode here and it’s time to start thinking about shopping for gifts. Since it’s almost the shopping season, I thought …

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Looking to save a little money on holiday gifts for your children this year? You’re sure to love these 11 homemade Christmas gifts for kids that you can make in just 1 day! With the average family spending around $992 for holiday gifts, I’d say it’s high time we go back to making homemade presents …

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Take a step back in time to Grandma’s house with the delectable scents of Sunday dinner and the best garlic pepper steak recipe you’ve ever had… So many of my favorite recipes began in my Gram’s kitchen. It was a special place that always smelled like some amazing concoction she was cooking up. There are …

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There’s only a couple of days until Christmas! Do you have all your gifts ready? No? Are all your gifts neatly wrapped and ready to go? Or are you a procrastinator like me, finding yourself wrapping and yes, still buying last minute gifts the week before Christmas? If you’re like me and you still need …

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Looking for simple and delicious, homemade Christmas cookie recipes? Look no further – here’s 4 of my absolute favorite recipes for Christmas cookies that you don’t want to miss! It’s no secret that I love to make cookies…especially Christmas cookies. In fact, I usually make so many cookies that we end up saving the leftover …

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Topped with a vanilla orange glaze and filled with buttery cinnamon, these Old Fashioned Cinnamon Rolls take you right back to Grandma’s kitchen with just one bite. They’re perfect for Christmas morning or a special breakfast anytime of year. *UPDATED POST* – Every year for Christmas my family enjoys old fashioned cinnamon rolls for our …

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Decorate for the season with this gorgeous Free Printable Winter Garland featuring a Let It Snow theme! Do you remember those fun, construction paper garlands we used to make back in Kindergarten? Well, I suppose they don’t really do that anymore, but you can still bring that kinda joy into your own home with this …

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Need some cute Christmas gifts for teachers? Why not get her something she’ll actually use this year? Here’s a list of gift ideas for teachers…you’re sure to find the perfect thing on this list! With my oldest daughter a high school graduate (still tears!) and my youngest entering the 11th grade this fall, I don’t …

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Why waste a bunch of money on Thanksgiving decorations when you can find so many online for free? It doesn’t make sense to me! Between the appetizers, the turkey, the mashed potatoes, the cranberry sauce, 150 different side dishes and 470 desserts, we spend SO.MUCH. money on Thanksgiving food. So, why should we spend so …

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Need some pumpkin carving stencils for your Halloween Jack O’ Lanterns? You’re in the right place! Here’s 36 FREE pumpkin stencils that you can download and use right now! It’s almost that time, you guys! Halloween will be here before you know it and it’s almost time to make Jack O’ Lanterns! So, what better …

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Use this free printable Thanksgiving Menu Planner to keep track of everything you’re serving at your holiday meal this year! There’s just a few weeks left until the big day and the grocery stores are putting their turkey’s on sale! It’s time to plan what you’re serving for the big holiday meal. So, today I’m …

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The husband and I recently had the opportunity to attend the first Homesteaders of New England Fall Gathering, hosted by The Mindful Homestead. Since it was the first ever gathering of homesteaders of New England, it was a small affair, with lots of great information. One huge benefit of being a small event is it …

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Looking for Thanksgiving dinner menu ideas? This Spicy Pumpkin Dip recipe is simple to make and only requires 3 ingredients. Perfect for an appetizer or a dessert at your Thanksgiving celebration! Even though I’ve been working hard on my new meal planner and Christmas cards, I haven’t forgotten about Thanksgiving! The Thanksgiving dinner menu is …

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Happy Monday! You might notice that this week’s post looks a little bit different than our usual Monday recipe post and I really hope you’re going to love our new changes. Instead of our typical single concept posts, we’re moving toward more collective writings that will include a bit more of our story, rather than …

Read More about Beef Bone Broth, Tomato Soup, Maple Baked Beans Recipes and More!

Do you love to freak out your family and friends? Use these 5 Freaky Halloween Goody Bag Treats to gross out anyone… It’s so much fun to watch the reaction on their faces when they open something that looks disgusting. Because the “eww-factor” is already so high, Halloween is the perfect holiday for grossing out …

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