Written by Julie Finn
Published on January 16th, 2010
You might think that this is a Christmas project–they are ornaments, after all–but for one thing, my girls and I were waaaay too busy before Christmas making presents and the really uber-Christmassy projects (made-from-scratch gingerbread house, anyone?) to have time for something festive but not necessarily thematic. And for another thing, our part of the midwest doesn’t start to get really cold, like weeks at a time below freezing cold, until after the new year, and for this project, you want a consistent few days under freezing to enjoy your work.
So for us, this is a nice winter project to do anytime it’s cold enough. It adds some decoration into a yard bare of flowers and most of its greenery, and depending on what you use, will become a handy natural dispenser for either birdseed or self-sown wildflower seeds. Here’s how to make it:
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Written by Becky Striepe
Published on January 12th, 2010
When the weather gets cold, the cold get crafting! It’s been in the teens and twenties here in Atlanta, and cozy clothes and blankets are basically all I can think about right now. You can imagine my delight when I was browsing on You Tube and came across this handy tutorial from Whitney Sews for turning old t-shirts into a reversible scarf!
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Written by Becky Striepe
Published on January 6th, 2010
Is it too soon to be thinking about Valentine’s Day? I sure hope not, because today I ran across an awesome video tutorial for making your own pop up Valentine’s Day card from old magazines and one of those cardboard Priority Mail envelopes! Check it:
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Written by Becky Striepe
Published on January 3rd, 2010
Just last week we were talking about your scrap bin as a fabulous, free fabric resource. Today, I ran across yet another amazing project for those little scraps: Miss Prickly’s Patchy Belt!
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Written by Julie Finn
Published on January 2nd, 2010
My girls are at ages in which they really, REALLY love matching games. They own everything from dinosaur matching games to My Little Pony matching games to this crazy phonics matching game that even I have trouble with, but their favorite matching games to play with tend to be the several sets of handmade games that we’ve made together.
And of these handmade games, there are sewn matching games, matching games using photos, matching games made from paint chips, and matching games that utilize my girls’ own artwork.
This is a fun and personalized project that can incorporate even the youngest child’s scribbled art. Here’s how to create it: Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Becky Striepe
Published on December 30th, 2009
Crafting with old books is a bit of a touchy subject. Why cut up a perfectly good book just because you have a project idea or it happens to have a rockin’ cover? That makes perfect sense to me. Still, sometimes we end up with books that are too damaged to read, and at that point why not turn it into something new and useful, right?
Over at Curbly.com, Chrisjob has a tutorial for turning a book into a super sweet purse! Check it:
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Written by Wenona Napolitano
Published on December 30th, 2009
I didn’t get to make as many handmade gifts as I had planned but I still made a few. Here’s a bit of my handmade holiday show offs.
I made my mother another memory shadow box out of items I found in my grandparents old stuff. This one matches the one I made for her last year. Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Becky Striepe
Published on December 29th, 2009
We rounded up a bunch of fabric scrap projects back in April, but somehow that scrap stash just keeps accumulating!
Sure, all of those leftover bits and pieces can be a pain to store, but they’re also an awesome resource for fabric that’s basically free! Here are just a few more ideas for ways to incorporate those sweet scraps into your crafty projects:
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Written by Becky Striepe
Published on December 23rd, 2009
The weather is getting colder, and we have a handmade holiday on our minds! Handmade gifts have heart, are better for the environment, and, if you opt to buy, it supports independent artists!
This is the very last installment of the 2009 Handmade Holidays, and we’d love to hear from you! Tell us all about your handmade holiday adventures!
Christmas is just a couple of days away, and if you’re anything like me you’re pulling together a few last-minute gifts for the folks on your list. In case you’re feeling stumped, here are a few ideas for you!
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Written by Julie Finn
Published on December 22nd, 2009
Vegetable glycerin melt-and-pour soap is often my go-to gift for a couple of reasons:
* It’s super-quick. If I want to give a loved one a couple of bars of cold-process soap for Christmas, I’d better make it in October. If I want to give a loved one vegetable glycerin soap for Christmas, it’s done in two hours (with about five minutes of hands-on time, most of that being prep work).
* My three-year-old and five-year-old, with me around to actually melt and pour, can make a really nice present for the adults in their lives. A really nice present, I might add, that the adults in their lives actually want, and actually find useful (what other project appropriate for a three-year-old can you say that about?).
Quick, easy, satisfying, and a terrific gateway drug to get you interested in more involved methods of soap-making–here’s how to do it: Read the rest of this entry »
