Handamde Holidays: Plush Cactus from Recycled Felt
Got someone on your list who has sort of a black thumb? Gift them with a plush cactus that is impossible to kill!
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Sewing
Tutorial Mashup: Turn a pair of shorts into a maternity skirt
Somewhere in the last few weeks, my baby bump popped right out, and suddenly none of my bottoms fit anymore! Getting dressed was starting to be a challenge, so I whipped up a maternity skirt to flesh out my wardrobe a little bit. That project went swimmingly, but one skirt does not a new wardrobe make. Instead of making another skirt from scratch, I decided to turn a pair of old denim shorts into a maternity skirt.
Tutorial Mashup: Turn a pair of shorts into a maternity skirt Read More 👉
10 Upcycled Plastic Grocery Bag Crafts
Got a stash of plastic bags that you can’t bear to toss? Try some of these plastic grocery bag crafts to give them a new life instead!
DIY Toy: Make a Crinkle Toy from Scrap Plastic
My husband and I are expecting our very first child, so I have baby crafts on the brain! I’ve got a couple of new mommas in my life right now, and it’s been educational hanging with them and seeing what toys their kiddos like. One toy I’d never seen but is apparently great for babies is a crinkle toy. Sure, you can buy a crinkle from the store, but with a few things from your stash, this is an easy DIY toy to whip up at home!
How-to: No-Sew Upcycled T-Shirt Grocery Bag (with Beads and Bells and Fringe!)
Want a re-usable cloth bag that’s branded with what YOU like, sized and shaped like a conventional plastic bag but stretchy, so that you can fill it even fuller?
Okay, and do you want to make it WITHOUT sewing?
You won’t have to sew a stitch to make these grocery bags out of your favorite old T-shirts.
How-to: No-Sew Upcycled T-Shirt Grocery Bag (with Beads and Bells and Fringe!) Read More 👉
Project Show-and-Tell: Upcycled Star Wars T-shirt Quilt Top
For my partner’s 35th birthday, I made him a Star Wars T-shirt quilt in a log cabin style, pieced together with complementary fabrics from my fabric stash.
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Craft Project Show-and-Tell: Matching Dresses from One Vintage Snow White Flat Bed Sheet
For our upcoming trip to Walt Disney World, I sewed my two daughters matching dresses from one vintage Snow White-themed flat bed sheet.
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How-to: Resize a Fitted Sheet to Fit a Smaller Bed
Although this method of resizing a fitted sheet to fit a smaller bed is a little more complicated than my quick-and-dirty tutorial for turning a flat sheet into a fitted sheet for the same bed size, it’s still a simple process that allows you to save money by using what you own instead of buying new.
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Review of Dalai Mama Patterns Waldorf Doll Clothing Patterns–and a Giveaway!
Making clothes for your Waldorf dolls is a cinch with the right patterns. Doll clothing is small, so it’s a great way to use up your scrap bin or remake a kid’s favorite outgrown clothing into something cute. Check out my review of Dalai Mama Patterns, and stay tuned for a Waldorf doll clothing pattern giveaway!
Review of Dalai Mama Patterns Waldorf Doll Clothing Patterns–and a Giveaway! Read More 👉
Handmade Gifts for the New Baby Made from Upcycled and Recycled Materials
If you have a baby gift of your own that needs to be crafted, whether it’s Doctor Who themed or not, check out the ideas below. They’re all made using recycled and upcycled materials, so not only are they crafty, but they’re also eco-friendly (and way cheaper than a store-bought gift!).
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Pirates, Princesses, and Mouse Ears: Upcycled Disney Crafts
Before our trip to Disney World this fall, my kiddos and I have been spending the summer crafting our own Disney souvenirs, primarily from upcycled and recycled materials. The stuff that we’re making is cute, it’s Disney-themed, and it will hopefully at least cool down the consumerist frenzy for Disney stuff that we can’t help but be bombarded with in Orlando this fall.
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Six Crafty Green Ways to Upcycle Flat Bed Sheets
Read on for six projects designed to make perfect use of a single upcycled flat sheet.
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Review: The Lil Blue Boo Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress Pattern
The Lil Blue Boo Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress is written to be used with upcycled T-shirts, and because of this, it has some real advantages over conventional sewing patterns.
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How-to: Recycled Paper and Scrap Fabric Business Cards
These sewn business cards, which utilize two layers of scrap fabric, a recycled paper base, and your complete business information, are a little more work than your ordinary business card, but they’re beautiful, eco-friendly, quite thrifty, and they’ll certainly stand out in a crowd. Here’s how to make them:
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How-to: Make Recycled Paper Business Cards Using Your Sewing Machine
Even though it’s a little more work to create these particular business cards, made from colorful paper and stamped and embellished, they offer a lot more impact than your ordinary card. And since these business cards are made entirely from recycled paper and cardstock, they’re also eco-friendly and absolutely free.
How-to: Make Recycled Paper Business Cards Using Your Sewing Machine Read More 👉
Clean Cotton: 16 Organic Cotton Resources
I talked on Wednesday about more of the trouble with conventional cotton, but don’t fret, my fellow seamsters! There are plenty of organic cotton resources out there to help you sew cute without any green guilt.
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How-to: Sew a Soothing Scented Buckwheat Eye Pillow
For headache or stress relief, or just a nice, long nap, an eye pillow weighted with natural buckwheat and sewn from soft fabric is just the thing you need to help you really relax. You can fill your eye pillow with your favorite herbs, sew it from silk or organic cotton, store it in the freezer to keep it soothingly chilly, and make a few extras to give as gifts later on.
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Sew Two Pairs of Shorts from One Upcycled T-Shirt, Tute #2: Capri Shorts from the T-Shirt’s Body
In my first tutorial, I showed you how to sew a quick-and-dirty pair of kid shorts from the sleeves and shoulders of an upcycled T-shirt. This tutorial requires a little more sewing, but the shorts are also a lot cuter and, depending on your kiddo’s height, they could be made to be as long as capri length.
Sew Two Pairs of Shorts from One T-Shirt, Tute #1: Comfy Shorts from Upcycled T-Shirt Sleeves
Using one XL T-shirt, you can sew two pairs of shorts for any size up to your average early-elementary kid. Your kiddo will be so comfy in her soft jersey-knit shorts, she’ll love the awesome appliques taken from the T-shirt’s front, and you will have clothed her quickly and cheaply for the win.
Read on for the first tutorial in this two-part series: how to sew your first pair of shorts using the sleeves from your upcycled T-shirt.
How-to: Upcycled Circle Skirt from a Vintage Bed Sheet
Here’s how I’ve managed to combine my love of vintage clothes, vintage fabrics, and thrift stores: A circle skirt created from a thrifted vintage sheet.
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How-to: An Upcycled T-Shirt Tank Top Tutorial
An upcycled tank top is a quick and easy sewing project to make from any old T-shirt.
Making Your Own Waldorf Dolls: Tips and Tutorials
Although making your own Waldorf doll is a complicated and time-consuming craft, it is not especially difficult, especially with all the generous tutorials and thoughtful patterns available to walk you through the process. Here are all the resources that I’ve been using as I create Waldorf dolls for my own children.
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How-to: Sew an Upcycled Petticoat from a Recycled Prom Dress
Even if you regularly sew lovely dresses, it can be easy to forget that you must also often sew the correct foundation garments for those dresses. Here’s how to sew a full petticoat using parts from an upcycled formal gown.
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How-to: Dog Treat Bag from Fabric Scraps
The thing about dog treats is…well…they are gross. Like, super gross. My husband and I quickly got sick of our pockets smelling like dog treats, so I whipped us up a couple of simple drawstring bags to hold them instead. Dave somehow lost his bag, though, and when I was getting ready to make a replacement, he asked for one that would hook onto his belt loop. I have to say, that was a brilliant idea!
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How-to: Reusable Party Streamers from Recycled Felt
One of my very best friends is having a baby in May, and last weekend we threw her a baby shower. Of course, we wanted to make things extra fancy with festive decorations, so a couple of us party planners got together for a crafternoon, where we schemed up the party layout and made some decorations. I had a great time churning out these felt streamers, and they were super simple to make! Here’s how you can make your own.
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From Cloth Pads to Crocheted Tampons: DIY Menstrual Supplies
Even though there are a lot of great manufacturers of reusable menstrual supplies out there, if you’re feeling crafty, there’s no reason why you couldn’t make nearly everything that you need all by yourself. When you DIY, you can make your stuff extra comfy, extra cute, of just the right absorbency, and even completely from stash, if you’re super-resourceful.
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How-to: Make a Repurposed Table Runner
Of course, I could have hit up the big box store for a table runner, but where’s the fun in that? Plus, those store-bought situations tend to involve either conventional cotton or some type of polyester, and they’re made in far-off factories. Who knows what the labor practices are there, right? Instead, I hit my stash and whipped up this reclaimed table runner that’s exactly the right size for my new sideboard. Here’s how you can make a table runner of your own!
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5 Awesome Ways to Repurpose a Burlap Coffee Sack
We’ve talked some about the joys of burlap before. Burlap is made from jute, a very low-impact plant to grow. Not only that, it’s pretty easy to get second hand burlap, if you know where to look. Local coffee shops, especially ones that roast their own beans, tend to be rich with big, empty burlap sacks. If you frequent a local coffee shop, get friendly with the staff and ask nicely – I bet they’ll be happy to give you a burlap sack or two!
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How-to: Make Lovebird Wristwarmers from Sweater Sleeves
Brr! It’s getting chilly out there again. Wristwarmers can add an extra layer of cozy to your winter look, but the store-bought kind often aren’t the most eco-friendly. Chances are, they’re mass-produced in a factory using conventional cotton (with all of the issues that come along with it). You can skip the human rights and environmental issues, though, and make your very own set of wristwarmers out of a thrift store sweater instead! Here’s how.
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How-to: Repair an Umbrella
Fortunately, one of the most common points of breakage in an umbrella–that tip that comes unmoored from the metal support–is quite simple to repair.
How to Sew a Drawstring Bag (an even easier tute!)
In the year since I crafted my first drawstring bag tutorial, I’ve refined it to correct these fiddly bits and to make the bag even quicker and easier to sew. Read on for the quickest, easiest, drawstring bag tutorial that you’re ever going to find.
How to Sew a Drawstring Bag (an even easier tute!) Read More 👉
DIY Valentine’s Day Gift for Him: Neckwarmer with a Hidden Heart
The thing about crafting for dudes is that it’s hard to resist my inner urge to fancy things up with hearts and flowers and whatnot. Plus, since this is a Valentine’s day gift for him, I wanted it to have a little bit of romance! My solution was to tuck a secret little heart inside the neckwarmer, so I can be mushy without treading on this project’s manliness. Here’s how to make your very own!
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DIY Buttons: Make Your Own Buttons from Natural or Recycled Materials
Using tools ranging from scissors to drills, using materials ranging from fallen tree branches to clamshell packaging, and, most importantly, using absolutely no additional money, I’ve been able to make a wide variety of sturdy buttons for all my sewing and craft projects. Check out the following tutorials to see how to make some DIY buttons of your own.
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Reader Question: Food Safe Fabric for Sandwich Bags
A reader recently wrote in with a great question about finding a food-safe fabric for making snack and sandwich bags. She was specifically looking for a laminated cotton fabric that was eco-friendly. In digging to answer this question, I found a ton of information and a few ideas for the safest ways to make reusable snack bags that are at least semi leak proof.
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What are You Making Under There? Upcycled Underwear Tutorials from Around the Web
Instead of wearing cheap, mass-produced, low-quality undergarments that have to be replaced regularly, I’ve found that sewing panties and boxer shorts, for people both big and small, really isn’t that hard. You can sew underwear from your own stash fabric–even scraps, for kids’ underwear!–or from awesome thrifted clothing, and the results are unique, way cheaper than store-bought, and often sturdier, since they can be made from higher-quality fabrics and sewn with care.
To make your own upcycled undergarments, check out these patterns and tutorials from around the web.
What are You Making Under There? Upcycled Underwear Tutorials from Around the Web Read More 👉
Tutorial: The 5 Minute Headband
This necktie headband took me all of 5 minutes to make. Bing bang boom! Here’s how you can make your own!
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