Think Crafts Blog – Craft Ideas and Projects – CreateForLess

By General Crafts Contributor Amy, from the Blog “Mod Podge Rocks!”

I’ve been doing a lot of fashion crafting lately, which is fun because I feel like I have a new wardrobe!  I really love chandeliers, and my boring orange ol’ t-shirt needed something to spice it up.  Simply Screen, a DIY screenprinting program, was just the ticket – it took only a few minutes to get this fabulous glittery chandelier.

To make, you’ll need to gather these supplies:

T-Shirt

Simply Screen Stencil Chandelier 

Simply Screen Glue 

Simply Screen Glitter Precious Metal 

T-shirt form, or something to put in between the t-shirt while crafting

Parchment Paper

Iron

Here are the goods (minus the glitter pack, which I couldn’t find when I took this photo).  I’m ready to get my craft on!

Make sure that you put something between your t-shirt and lay it down on a flat surface – smooth the stencil down firmly wherever you want the image to go (the stencil is self-adhesive).

Place a line of glue across the top of the screen.  I’ll show you why in the next step.

Using the squeegee that comes with the stencil, spread the glue down the front in smooth strokes.  I repeated several times until the glue covered the image, making sure to get it in every part of the design. You can even go side to side – just make sure not to get any on the t-shirt!

Peel off the stencil and let the glue stand for 30 seconds.  Then sprinkle glitter all over the design, making sure to cover all areas well.  You might want to do this outside, or at least in an area that be glitterized.  Don’t shake yet!

Allow the adhesive to dry for three hours, and then place parchment paper over the top. Iron for 30 seconds on the cotton setting.  Shake off the excess glitter and your design is done!

One other thing – Simply Screen also comes with some great paints, so you can combine paint and glitter to your heart’s content.  Fun, huh?

By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and has aspirations to improve her crafting skills. 

It’s June and there are blooms everywhere! I live in the Northwest where it’s green most of the year, so it’s raining most of the year… I don’t mind the rain because it makes our trees, grass, and flowers so pretty. There’s no wonder why Portland is the City of Roses.

It’s almost July and it’s still been pouring here! Since I’ve been inside away from the rain,  I made these easy flowers to decorate for summer. More importantly to decorate me! All you need to decorate yourself for summer is…

Organza fabric
Scissors 
Beacon 3-in-1 Adhesive 
Lighter
Beads or rhinestones 
Felt
 Pin back, head band, bobby pin, hair clip (anything you’d like)

I started by cutting lots of different sized circles from the organza, the largest had a 3″ diameter to the smallest at 1/2″. Since a flower isn’t a perfect circle, it’s not necessary to trace, just wing-it. I stacked the circles on top of each other, so the bottom is biggest. The next circle is a little smaller, until you get to the smallest circle on top. Each flower has about 5-6 circles of organza.

Next I lightly ran a lighter around the edges of each circle so the fabric melts and starts to curl.  Once you have curled all the edges of the circle layers, sew them together and use a bead for the center. You can accent with rhinestones or buttons or feathers…

To attach the flower onto your hair clip or pin, glue a piece of felt on the back. I attached my handmade flowers to a headband, a hair tie, a clip and a pin back. I also added a flower to card I mailed to my mom. They are so easy to make and can be used to decorate anything!

I sewed a flower onto a hair tie to accent a pony tail

A few of my favorites!

By General Crafts Contributor Amy, from the Blog “Mod Podge Rocks!”

Do you have a little princess that likes to play dress up?  I highly suggest a magic wand!  This is actually an inexpensive yard decoration that I found.  With supplies that I already had on hand, I was able to make a wand fit for a princess on a budget.  Keep in mind that because this is wood, it’s for older princesses only!  Always make sure to use with adult supervision.

To make, you’ll need to gather these supplies:

“Magic” Wand – decorative wood stick
FolkArt Acrylic Paint – Ocean Cruise, Wicker White, Perfect Purple, Kelly Green or the colors of your choice
Art Institute Glitter – Blue Hawaii (Ultrafine Opaque), Celery (Ultrafine Opaque), Angel Dust (Ultrafine Transparent)�
Mod Podge Gloss�
Flat Paint Brush and Liner Brush
Ribbon – 6 feet of your choice, I used white chiffon

Using your flat paint brush, paint your flower first.

Paint the handle and the leaves next.  If your wand has black print on it like mine, it will take several coats.  I used the smaller liner brush on the petals and to get around the edges of my flower.  Allow to dry.

Using the end of your brush handle, dot white polka dots on the main body of the flower.  Allow to dry.

It’s time to apply glitter in the areas of interest – I’ll show you an example with the center of the flower.  Paint Mod Podge in the area that you want glittered.

Using your glitter (I have one of these cool dispensers), spread the glitter all over the Mod Podge.  Allow to dry and then tap on the side of something (like a table) to get ride of the excess.  You can see that I did it on the leaves as well – I also went back and added some on the white polka dots.  It’s very sparkly!

Allow your wand to dry completely overnight before giving it to your princess.  I highly recommend adding some ribbon tied around the handle for some extra flair.

By Sparkle Crafts Contributor, Sparkle E. Glitter from the blog “Sparkle Studio”.

Sewing is not my forte.  If I can figure a way to make a project without it, I am happy.  Not having to sew to put this pillow together also makes it a good project for kids to tackle. There are so many interesting bandanas available these days, you should choose two that you like and change the colors so they suit you.

I used Sparkle 21 mainly because it is washable, but it also has amazing color and sparkle!

This project does not take much time, let’s get started.

You need:

• Sparkle 21:  Blue Suede Sparkle (or your favorite color)
• 12″ x 12″ pillow form
• Bandanas: solid black, zebra print (or pieces of fabric  21” square)
• Four 24″ lengths of black cord (ribbon will work, too)
• Printed pattern
• Chalk pencil 
• Computer/printer

Try this:

Lay the black bandana flat on your worktable.  Place the pillow form in the center of it.  Cover the pillow form with the zebra bandana, so the edges of both bandanas line up. On one side, roll the bandanas together toward the pillow form.  Roll an adjacent side in the same way. 

At the corner, where the two sides meet, tie a cord.  Repeat on all sides and corners.

On your computer, find a font you like and print the word you want. A name would be great too! Print and enlarge to the size you want to fit the center of your pillow. On the backside of the paper, trace the lines of the word or name with chalk pencil. Place on center of pillow, chalk side down.  Trace letters with pencil, transferring chalk to fabric.

Draw letters with Sparkle 21. Add lines, swirls, or dots as desired.

Another great thing about this pillow is that it is easy to disassemble for washing or changing designs.

Glitter on!

Sparkle

By General Crafts Contributor Amy, from the Blog “Mod Podge Rocks!” 

My parents re-did their backyard, so I decided to make them a birdhouse in celebration.  They aren’t as kitschy as I am, but I still think they will appreciate this gnome and mushroom birdhouse.  If they don’t love the gnome or the mushrooms, they will surely love the woodgrain roof.  It’s magical! 

To make, you’ll need to gather these supplies: 

Wood Birdhouse
Mod Podge Outdoor
FolkArt Paint – Fresh Foliage, Burnt Umber, Pure Orange
Martha Stewart Woodland Collection – 12” x 12” paper pad, stickers and letters
Cardstock scraps
Craft Glue
Flat Paint Brush
Scissors or Craft Knife
Ruler
Pencil
Outdoor Sealer  

Choose a few sheets of paper to cover the sides of your birdhouse (except for the front).  Using your ruler, measure the size paper you’ll need and then cut it down to fit with the craft knife.  Set aside. 

Paint your birdhouse.  I chose to paint the roof with Burnt Umber and the sides with Fresh Foliage.  The only side you’ll have to completely cover is the front – all of the other sides are going to be covered with paper. 

You can’t see it here, but later I went back and covered the perch with some Pure Orange.  It needed a special touch! 

This is the fun part.  Keep in mind that Outdoor Mod Podge is thick, but that is intentional.  Working one side at a time, spread a medium layer of Mod Podge on your birdhouse. 

Immediately smooth your paper down thoroughly.  Use an old credit or gift card to get underneath the roof, and make sure to smooth *really* well.  Complete the other two sides and the roof.  Allow to dry for 15 – 20 minutes. 

You are now ready to coat the entire birdhouse.  Give it a medium layer of Mod Podge, allow to dry for 15 – 20 minutes and then repeat.  Allow to dry. 

When it comes to the front, that is your embellishment area, so decorate it how you like!  I added my parents’ last name, the gnome and then some mushrooms I cut out with my die cutter.  I had some extra cardstock lying around.  This is the time to decorate to your heart’s content.  Seal everything with the Outdoor Mod Podge and allow to dry overnight. 

Once your birdhouse is dry, it will be slightly tacky – to remedy this and to give the birdhouse an extra protective layer, I highly recommend using a clear outdoor sealer so that your project will last for years to come.

By Recycled Crafts Contributor, Anitra from the blog “Coffee Pot People”. 

Summertime. Sandals, hula hoops, water balloons, picnics, and filling the sidewalks with colorful chalk art.

What’s even more fun than gettin’ down and drawing on concrete? Making your own sidewalk chalk first, and it’s easy!

You’ll need:

• Plaster of Paris 
• Food coloring, tempura paints, or acrylic paints 
• Water
• Mixing containers and a spoon
• Molds

You could probably figure out what to do just from that list, but I have some tips to go with it.

You’ll use two parts water to one part Plaster of Paris. Pour the water into your mixing container, and add the coloring agent you’ve chosen to that. Then add the plaster of Paris.

Add your color to water

Add Plaster

The thing about plaster of Paris is that stirring it makes it set up faster. Adding the color to the water means less stirring, and more time to work with the goop. Warm or hot water also makes the plaster set up more quickly.

Wet your mold before pouring the plaster into it, to make the chalk easier to remove when it’s hardened.  Don’t worry if you slop a little on or around the edges; it will flake off easily later. Give the mold a jiggle or two, to settle the plaster and smooth it out.

Molds can be anything you like. Ice cube trays work well, as would popsicle or candy molds. I’ve even used the tubes from inside toilet paper, wrapped in plastic film, and just torn them off when the plaster was set. By happy circumstance, I ran across molds made specifically for making chalk at Goodwill.

The last step is to let the plaster set up firmly. Don’t get impatient to see your chalk “all done” and try to turn it out before its time, or you’ll get what I got—broken chalk!

Welcome our General Crafts Contributor, Shelly from the blog “Pickwick & Plum”.  

Hats are nice, but crowns are better! Could there be a better way to herald spring than to proclaim yourself Queen for a Day? I think not. I’m going to show you how, with a little imagination and elbow grease, you can build yourself a ‘one-of-a-kind’ crown, worthy of any Palace!

For this project, the most challenging part will be to find a base on which to build. I find that the stainless & silver plate aisle at Goodwill is a good bet. For my example, I am using a re purposed casserole holder. You could also build a base using fabric, cardboard, wire – or any number of things but I like the built-in filigree of casserole holders.

Other materials might include:

10 – 12 gauge wire
Vintage buttons or millinery
Ribbons or rhinestones 
Glitter stems
Ball chain
Fabric (about 20″ square)
Old belt
Vintage Christmas trim
Pearl or beaded strand�

You will also need:

Hot glue gun
 Hole punch or drill
Metallic Paint 
Paint (reddish brown & black)
Needle nose pliers
 Scissors

I’m going to explain how I built this example, but there are many variations on what I’m going to show you. I wanted an antique looking crown, so the first thing I did was paint over the metal with a watered down mixture of (mostly) reddish brown and (a little bit of) black paint. If you find that your paint does not want to stick to the metal surface of your frame, you can either heat the metal, or sand it lightly.

Because I was going for something a little rustic, I punched holes a bit randomly around the top of the frame and used rusted bailing wire for my braces. These wire braces can be in a variety of shapes. I wanted the top of my crown to have a traditional shape, so I went with an ogee silhouette. I bound them together in the center and left them at odd lengths – entwined.

At this point you will need to choose a fabric that will make up the inner top part of the crown. Cut a square about 20″ wide and holding the crown upside down, set the fabric inside the frame – creating a bowl of sorts. Stuff newspaper into the bowl and adjust fabric as needed. Cut the excess off and hot glue the edges to the inside of the frame. Keep the newspaper inside the crown until you are completely done. It provides structure while you are building.

Next I ripped 3/4″ strips of a complimentary fabric and set them behind my wire bracing. I used gold glitter stems and a short length of pearl trim to create little ‘buttons’. I hot-glued these onto the fabric with the wire sandwiched in the middle. (Both the glitter stems and the pearl trim were antiqued using the same reddish brown & black paint.)

Once each wire has a strip of fabric and your ‘buttons’ are attached, you can begin to work on the outside of the crown frame. I used a combination of ripped silk, vintage christmas tinsel and antique millinery trim for the upper band and then along the bottom I used an old belt and a ball chain. I painted the belt with metallic gold paint and stuck a strip of vintage christmas ribbon behind it. You can just see it peeking up behind the ball chain.

To finish it off, I wrapped the top with an antiqued string of plastic pearls!�
Et Viola – vous etre une reine du jour!