Think Crafts Blog – Craft Ideas and Projects – CreateForLess

By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and is always looking to improve her crafting skills. Join Mable on Facebook to socialize and share with other crafters!

If you have a creative child around, there are many great craft supplies to keep them busy, and keep you worry-free. Keep the right supplies on hand, and crafting with your kid can be fun and help you build memories that can last well into their lives.

Perler Bead Bangles – The Southern Institute

Perler beads are a quick way to keep the kids occupied for ages. They can create designs and shapes that can magically be melted into solid form to preserve their hard work. What do you do with the creations once they’re melted though? Here are some great crafts with perler beads that you might actually get some use from!

Perler Bead Bowl – Kiwi Crate

Melt your perler beads into colorful confetti bowls! They’re a great way to store odds and ends and you could even line them with wax paper to bring homemade baked goods to a friend.

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By Kid’s Crafts Contributor Stephanie, from the blog A Geek In Glasses.

This is sure to be a hit with anyone of any age. It’s just simply the gift of wishes. It’s the right time to start collecting them, and stock up for the winter holidays, birthdays and just plain sad days. My daughter and I love fairies, she calls the puffy seeds of the dandelions “fairy wishes”. Just yesterday she found the first puff of the season and before she blew on it to send her wish out into the world we saved a couple in a tiny vial to give to her friend for her birthday. How adorable to give this tiny glass vial filled with wishes.

Supplies:

• Dandelion Puff
• Glass Vials with corks
• 1/16″ Ribbon or Cord

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By Kid’s Crafts Contributor Stephanie, from the blog A Geek In Glasses.

A popular trend in jewelry, the nest is a cute way for moms to show off their family. The mamma ”bird” wears her nest proudly displaying how many little ones she has at home. This project is simple even for the smallest of hands to make and they are great gifts to give.

Supplies

• beading wire
• round beads
• pliers
• silk ribbon

To start this project decide how many “eggs” your nest is going to have. I did a one egg nest and a 3 egg nest , if you are going to need more eggs, use smaller beads. Read the rest…

By Kid’s Crafts Contributor Stephanie, from the blog A Geek In Glasses.

This is a great project for children to make for their mom or grandmas for a gift. The knitter’s pendant is just string wrapped around a bead and glued in place. A simple project that offers great results. What knitter wouldn’t love it?

Supplies:

• Larger Round Bead
• Head Pin
• String or Lace weight yarn
• Glue
• Tooth Pick
• 2 small beads with large holes

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By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and is always looking to improve her crafting skills. Join Mable on Facebook to socialize and share with other crafters!

Our friend Mark Montano is full of amazing crafty ideas made from common materials. We’re head over heels for these paper daisy earrings! They’re light, easy to make, and so much fun! These earrings would make a perfect Mother’s Day gift using pages from her favorite magazine. Don’t forget to make a pair for yourself! You’ll find the tutorial for these earrings and plenty more DIYs with his “Make Your Mark” videos on Mark’s YouTube Channel.

For even more jewelry projects made by Mark, be sure to check out his newest book, The Big-Ass Book of Bling! You’ll find lots of unique DIY accessories projects that will have you blinged out from head to toe. You’ll look like a million dollars, but spend way less!

By Guest Blogger Beth from the blog Owlswakeup.

Beth shares DIY fashion and crafts that will be sure to amaze when you tell anyone you made them. Check out her Etsy Shop for beautiful and high quality handmade accessories.

This past summer, J.Crew had an explosion of exciting necklaces. The colours vibrant, the prices intimidating for a poor publishing professional like myself. I took this challenge to the streets of Toronto.

I hit pay dirt at Chaton Beads at Queen and Bathurst. They had the exact beads from the J.Crew necklace. Same size, shape, detailing… Would have preferred them in blue but I can’t complain

Finding appropriate beads is by far the most challenging part of this DIY. As long as they are a similar tubular shape and length, you’re golden. Otherwise the design might not form the way it should. Just be aware you’re using lightweight beads because this necklace is heavy. I wore it to work once and whenever I bent over and then straightened up, I got smacked in the chest and temporarily winded. All in the name of fashion!

The original necklace. Photo from J.Crew’s website

What You Need:

BEADS (55 total, 1.8×1 cm), thick chain (like I said, this necklace is heavy!), eye pins, 1 head pin, 0.7mm jump rings (small ones just won’t support all of your beads), clasp, pliers, round-nosed pliers and wire cutters.

By Guest Blogger Diane from the blog CraftyPod

In addition to her fantastic sewing and craft projects, Diane’s blog CraftyPod gives insider tips and ideas for selling your crafts and your blog.

I get thousands of emails each week, begging me to offer more plastic canvas coverage on my blog.

(…Okay, well – perhaps that actually happens only in my mind. But still.)

I’ve been noodling with these needlepoint pendants lately, and liking both the process and finished product. They make up quickly, and use up odds and ends of embroidery floss. Plastic canvas makes a great base for these, because it adds a “heft” that helps the pieces drape well.

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