Mason jars aren’t just for canning!
But perhaps you knew that already? Perhaps you, too, drink frosty beverages out of your Mason jars, or fill them with water and wildflowers and plop them in the center of your table? Perhaps you decorate their lids and store buttons in them?
Perhaps you sometimes get a little crafty with them, hmm?
Crafty Book Review: Mason Jar Crafts, by Lauren Elise Donaldson Read More 👉
Whether you’re a new mom or dad or know someone with a new baby, these DIY baby ideas are sure to rock your socks!
As always, you guys have come up with some incredible green craft projects for this month’s Green Crafts Showcase! Here are the top 5 projects.
Top 5 Projects from the June Green Crafts Showcase Read More 👉
Looking for some unique musical decor? Give an old guitar a makeover and turn it into a piece of art!
How To: Upcycle a Guitar into Art Read More 👉
My son just started an infant-toddler program, and I needed to get his diaper bag ready for school! I wanted to make it easy for the caretakers to find all of his things, so I created these zipper pulls to show what is where in his bag.
Stones are completely beautiful in themselves, but sometimes you just feel in your heart that you need something with a little more color.
And that’s okay! Maybe sometimes a plain old grey stone WANTS to be painted, you know?
There’s nothing like hopping out of the pool and into a comfy, soft, bounteous towel.
But big beach towels are hard for little kids to manage, and that bleached, dyed terrycloth can be scratchy and harsh on damp, delicate skin.
It’s an organic terrycloth hooded towel to the rescue!
How-to: Organic Terrycloth Hooded Towel with Applique Read More 👉
Got some recycled felt in your stash? We have some project ideas for you!
Have you been loving the bird decor trend this year? I adore it, so I decided to DIY my own branches and birds decor using recycled paper. Here’s how you can create your own, too!
DIY Branches and Birds Decor Read More 👉
Have you ever come across a vintage chandelier at a thrift store or garage sale, but were turned off by it’s “blahness?” Here’s how you can update a vintage chandelier and bring it back to life!
How To: Update a Vintage Chandelier Read More 👉
Got a homemade chalkboard that needs cleaning? Here’s how to make an eraser that hangs from the board for easy wiping and storage!
Have a little knight in training at home?
It takes just a few minutes to make your favorite knight her very own shield out of recycled cardboard. A cardboard shield is cheaper than even a cheap-o plastic toy shield, doesn’t junk up the environment, and best of all–your kiddo can decorate it herself!
How-to: DIY Cardboard Shield from Recycled Cardboard Read More 👉
Let’s say you need a pillowcase. You need it to be organic, because a loved one is going to be mushing her face into it for eight hours every night.
You need it to be soft, because you want your loved one to be comfy so that she gets that whole eight hours.
Oh, and you need it to be awesome, because your loved one is pretty stinkin’ awesome.
How-to: Organic Flannel Graphic Pillowcase with an Envelope Back Read More 👉
Is your house really clean if, when you’re done, it’s covered in toxic chemicals? Here are 6 resources for DIY green cleaning products to help you clean green on the cheap!
Do you have a crafty business or craft booth? Upcycle an old lantern into a unique jewelry display for your craft booth or handmade store!
Craft Booth Ideas: Lantern Jewelry Display Read More 👉
Are you and your children hiking or exploring the outdoors this summer? Create a fun walking stick for all of their outdoor adventures!
How To: Make a Kid’s Walking Stick Read More 👉
Have you been wanting to ditch the dryer sheets? My husband and I came up with a homemade dryer sheet replacement to keep us static-free without harsh chemicals!
Not every LEGO project is a sustainable one–that LEGO TIE fighter set that you bought just to build and look at isn’t serving a purpose beyond helping you get your nerd on–but there are a few specific categories of LEGO projects that do help you avoid further consumption and disposal of new goods. Here are several great, sustainable LEGO projects to get you started.
LEGOs as an Eco-Friendly Craft Supply?!?: Sustainable Projects Made from LEGOs Read More 👉
Sometimes, if you’re an artist or a crafter, you have the chance to give out business cards that have a lot more flair. Business cards that you give out at a conference or networking event, with a purchase at a craft fair, or in a package that you’re shipping with an order from your etsy shop can afford to be a little fancier, and include a little bonus gift to make you memorable.
These DIY business cards may not fit in a potential customer’s wallet, but they’ll still stand out. Whether it’s a string of hand-painted beads, a small charm, or another trinket, these items may be just more of your unneeded stash, but to others they’re gifts, a little added value that costs you nothing but a few extra seconds of time, but positively impacts how your business card is received.
How-to: DIY Embellished Business Cards–with a Treat! Read More 👉
For a lot of us, green crafting means using eco-friendly materials. Or maybe it means using your crafty skills to replace disposables in your life with reusables. Either way, the environment plays a big role in ethical crafting for most of us. For many of us, though, ethical crafting is about making a difference for individual people as well as the environment, and that’s just as important.
HandCrafting Justice is a good example of folks using crafty skills to change lives.
HandCrafting Justice: Proof that Craft Can Change Lives Read More 👉
I’ve always adored Julie’s Beach Craft: Sandy Handprint Keepsake, so when I visited the beach last week, I tried to think of other ways to display my summer adventures. I remembered this Create Your Bubble Gum Machine tutorial and adapted it to hold my summer memories!
How To: Create a Summer Memory Jar Read More 👉
Last week I bought an adorable plant stand at a garage sale. I stared at it sitting in my living room and thought, “Those curved feet are just too cute! I wish I could make it into a table.” So, I transformed it into a table!
How To: Create a Plant Stand Side Table Read More 👉
When my friend Bonnie said that she wanted a book-themed baby shower, I couldn’t wait to get crafting!
Book Page Party Decorations Read More 👉
Got some stash light-colored fabric?
Got a bored kid?
These bean bags don’t take much material, so any light-colored fabric from your scrap bin is great for this project. Your kiddos will have a fabulous time decorating them with fabric pens or fabric paints, and when they’re done, just a few straight seams and a handful of beans turns them into a super-fun soft toy.
How-to: Kid-Decorated Bean Bags from Scrap Fabric Read More 👉
You don’t even have to actually tell the recipient of your thank-you card that it’s written on recycled elephant poop paper.
But why wouldn’t you?
Why I Write My Thank-You Notes on Recycled Elephant Poop Paper Read More 👉
One frequent reader question that we get is where to find ethically-made garment labels. These custom labels on organic cotton are the perfect solution!
What’s the best part about the beginning of the month? Going through all of the awesome features that you guys submitted in the Green Crafts Showcase! Here are the features from June.
Top 5 Projects from the June Green Crafts Showcase Read More 👉
While garage saling last week, I came across this unique vintage cookie jar for $4! I wanted to sell it in my craft booth, but the paint was faded and cracked. I think it goes without saying that the owl has pretty creepy appearance as well. Here’s how you can fix up that vintage piece next time instead of passing it up.
How To: Update a Vintage Cookie Jar Read More 👉
Got some yarn leftover after your last knitting project?
Wondering if you should stuff it back in your stash for perhaps forever? Pass it on? Trash it?
Instead, how about you thrill your favorite little kid by using that stash to knit him or her the most awesome, clever, modern doll outfits ever?
Crafty Book Review: Knits for Dolls, by Nicky Epstein Read More 👉
It’s no problem to find crafts for kids to do.
It’s no problem to find crafts to do for kids.
Crafts that you can do along with your kids, however? Collaborative crafts that work well even when one participant is young and one is old? Projects that an adult doesn’t have be bored by or bossy about, that a kid can contribute meaningfully to, that they’ll both enjoy just as well?
Yeah, those are a little harder to come by.
Crafty Book Review: Side by Side, by Tsia Carson Read More 👉
Independence day is next week. Get crafty with the kiddos and make these fun DIY rockets – the perfect upcycled 4th of July craft!
Last year I made Eco-Friendly “Sparklers” to decorate for the 4th of July. This year, I created colorful recycled “firecrackers” using items that you probably already have in your craft stash! Here’s how you can make your own.
4th of July Craft: Recycled “Firecrackers” Read More 👉
If you’re serving cupcakes at your 4th of July party this year, here’s a way to add a little red, white, and blue with handmade cupcake toppers!
4th of July Party Ideas: Handmade and Eco-Friendly Cupcake Toppers Read More 👉
Artist Jamie Smith creates beautiful handmade jewelry from all reclaimed materials.
Green Crafter Profile: Jamie Smith’s Upcycled Jewelry Read More 👉
Need the perfect set of coasters? These coasters, crafted from upcycled tiles, broken glass, and grout, will keep your tables covered. They’re the perfect outdoor project for a summer day, a great project to share with a kid or two, and a useful way to use up extra wall tiles, or even to redo old store-bought coasters. Here’s how to make your own set of mosaic tile coasters.
