Think Crafts Blog – Craft Ideas and Projects – CreateForLess

By Kid’s Crafts Contributor Stephanie, from the Blog Geek with Glasses.

My daughter is to the age where she has a couple of friends that she wants to exchange presents with. We are making our own cards and as an alternative to sugary treats we made little charms to give to her friends. I was wandering through the craft store and came across the Shrinkable plastic. A blast from the past, I had to make 100 swaps for a scouting event out of shrinkable plastic. The thrill of watching the large plastic cutout shrink down to mini size was fun for me then, it should be fun for the kiddo now. I was right, she was amazed at the process and enjoyed making these zipper pulls.

Supplies:

• Shrinkable Plastic Material
• Permanent Markers
• Color Pencils
• Image to Trace
• Lobster Clasp
• Jump Rings

Tools:

• Scissors
• Hole Punch
• Pliers
• Cookie Sheet
• Oven

If the plastic you are using is clear plastic and you want to use colored pencils, I suggest ruffing up the surface with a scotch brite pad or fine sandpaper. This gives the plastic a texture that will hold the color of the pencils. If you are using a permanent marker, then you don’t have to ruff it up.

To begin this project you need an image to trace or if you want to free hand draw the image that’s fine too. The image will shrink about 42%, if you design or print an image it will have to be about 3″ x 3″ to shrink down to a 1″ x 1″ finished piece. If you are using an image to trace, print it out and place it behind the shrinkable plastic. I trace the image with a permanent marker to create the outline for the little one to color in.

We used colored pencils for some and permanent markers for others. The thing with the markers are that they turn out so dark, so if you want something brown, try and use a tan.

Next cut out the image, I leave an 1/8″ to 1/4″ boarder then at the top where I want the hole I leave more space. Once the image is cut out I punch a hole using a scrapbooking punch it’s 1/4″ hole.

Now we’re off to the oven. Preheat the oven according to the instructions on the package and place the cutouts on a piece of parchment paper on the cookie sheet. Place in the oven and keep an eye on them, this is the fun part! They will shrink down, they may curl up a little if that happens use a toothpick to make them flat. In the instructions of the plastic it will advise you on all troubleshooting.

Once the cutouts have cooled, take a pair of pliers open a jump ring and insert it into the hole of the cutout. Then into the hole of the lobster clasp. Close the jump ring and you’re done.

This is neat project that the little ones can help with, by coloring them. Then they get the enjoyment of watching them shrink up. A useful gift, instead of sugary treats, and they can be clipped to book bags, jackets or even shoelaces. Have fun creating yours!

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

You know what I just hate? Losing a favorite earring. I can never let the singleton that’s left go either, because, who knows? Maybe someday I’ll find the lost one.

But probably I won’t. Which is why I’m so happy to have a way to use those lonely left-alones, one that is simplicity itself. You’re just going to move your remaining favorite earring from your ear to your collar!

This is what you do:

Just poke the earring through your collar, near the point, and put the earring back on it to hold it. Now, you may notice there’s a second cap in the photo above, a little white one. That’s one of those rubber stoppers they put on earring wires to keep them from coming off earring cards, or slipping out of your ears. You can use one if the earring post sticks out too far, to keep it from poking you.

That’s it. What was once a favorite earring is now a favorite pin!

By Guest Bloggers Melissa + Kellie, from the blog Icing Designs.

Not sure what it is, maybe it’s because Valentine’s Day is near, but we are loving all things wedding right now! Of course we love when brides incorporate DIY projects into their weddings, it makes things seem so personalized and special. We are just loving the idea of a fabric corsages! They are just as beautiful, if not more, than using real flowers. What a fashionable gift/keepsake to give your bridesmaids or flowergirl! If you are not a corsage person, wear it as a bracelet!

Here’s a tutorial to make your own Fabric Corsage!

By Sewing Contributor Jessica, from the blog Life Sew Good. 

My daughter recently had a Hello Kitty birthday party, so I made all the little girls kitty ears. This tutorial can easily be modified for monkeys, bears, puppies, or whatever fits your costume!

You need:

• Fleece—colors of your choice
• ½” headband
• Thread

1. Cut ears from fleece. CUT 4. To get the right ratio, if making kitty, bear, or monkey ears, the base should be about 3 ½” wide. Make a mark 2 ½” high and free hand draw a curved line, either pointy for a kitty or rounded like a bear or monkey. If making a dog or other animal, you may want taller ears.

2. Cut band from fleece—CUT 1. Cut a 12 ½” x 1 ½” rectangle.

3. Sew Ears. Stack 2 ears, right sides together. Simply sew a seam close to the edge on the 2 sides—or on the rounded part. Do not sew the base. Repeat to make 2nd ear.

4. Take your fleece band and fold in half, bringing short sides together. Measure ½” from the middle on each side. Make a mark. Make slits for the ears that measure ½” from the center of the band and 2 ½” to 3″ down.

5. With right sides together, insert ears into the slits you have made.

6. Sew seam close to edge. Trim the extra fabric.

7. Fold band over, matching all edges, wrong sides together. Sew a wide zig-zag stitch across the long edge. Also enclose one edge.

8. Insert head band through open edge. Close end with seam.

Decorate as desired!!

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

I love all the embellishments for clothing, bags, and other items being made from zippers these days, don’t you? Exposed zippers are a hot trend right now and this look is very easy to get. This is a simple flower pin to make, using just three things, plus a needle & thread:

• A brass zipper about 21 inches long; metal is best (I cut mine from a jacket I no longer wear) OR ZipR Trim
• A pin back or small circle of non-fraying material
• A “silk” leaf
• Needle & thread

Begin by separating the zipper into its two halves—simply unzip all the way, if it’s one that comes completely apart, or cut the stopper off at the bottom and then unzip it. Remove the zip-up thingy, which you won’t need. If you want, you can cut off the long straight piece at the bottom. If you leave it on, use that end to begin your flower.

Before you start working with the zipper, take your silk leaf, stripped off any supporting plastic veins, and stitch it to the pin back’s pierced disk or circle of fabric. You just need to do a couple of stitches in the center, as the stitching to attach the flower will add more stitches to it, too.

My flower has five petals, and I found that about 3″ of the zipper was needed for each one, so I put a dot every three inches, and then just “stacked” the dots. Begin like this:

Then just continue looping. It’s very like making a bow for a package:

Every so often, stitch down through the stack and pin disk to fasten the petals in place. That way they won’t get away from you.

When you have about 6″ of zipper left, start rolling the center of your flower, beginning at the free end of the zipper.

As you roll, take stitches to keep everything in place. When the zipper’s completely rolled up down to the petals, stitch it to the center of the flower, going through the pin disk or fabric circle as you work. Fasten off the thread and cut, and attach the pin’s back piece to the pierced front part. If you’ve used a fabric circle, you can sew a safety pin on the back now; make sure the pin is off-center, near the top edge of the circle, so that the pin doesn’t droop forward.

You’re done! What will you wear your pin on?

By Paper Crafts Contributor, Lauren Romano.

I was left with a small piece of scrapbook paper after using the majority of it, and loved it so much I wanted to immediately use it for something else. I got a wooden bracelet and combined the two, which allowed me to reuse excess materials and wear something that looks unusual. The mix of bright and dark colors works with a variety of outfits and makes the accessory stand out.

What you’ll need:

• Wooden bracelet
• Mod Podge Hard Coat
• Scrapbook paper
• Scissors

Step 1. Cut the scrapbook paper into thin strips. The length depends on how wide the bracelet is. Measure it by wrapping a test strip from around the outside of the bracelet to the inside where they’ll overlap; trim the excess. As far as the width, the pieces are going to overlap, so factor in that only half of the width of the strip is going to show. If you want more of each strip to show, cut wider strips; cut them thin for less to show.

Step 2. Apply Mod Podge to the outside of the bracelet and only on an inch at a time. Put each paper strip down overlapping over half of the piece you applied before it. To avoid creating bumps or creases, pull each strip taut, then place it down with the ends hanging over either side of the bracelet. Do this around the entire bracelet until you’re back at the beginning piece.

Step 3. Apply a layer of Mod Podge on the inside of the bracelet. Use your finger to apply Mod Podge onto the ends of the strips and press them to the inside of the bracelet. Work your way around the entire bracelet, then do the same for the ends on the other side; overlap the two ends on the inside of the bracelet. Let it dry thoroughly before continuing.

Step 4. Place the bracelet over your four fingers to keep it steady while you work on it. Apply a layer of Mod Podge onto the outside of the bracelet, smoothing down all the pieces as you go along. When the bracelet is completely covered, hang the bracelet on something straight to let it dry. I hung mine on a single chopstick and put either end of the chopstick on two containers leaving space in between so the bracelet can hang freely without knocking into anything. After it dries, apply another coat of Mod Podge.

Step 5. Before moving the bracelet, test it with you finger to make sure it’s completely dry and doesn’t feel tacky. Give it plenty of time to dry thoroughly before wearing it.

By Kid’s Craft Contributor, Gillian from the blog “Dried Figs and Wooden Spools”.

I usually only wear my wedding ring but it’s nice, at times, to have something pretty for my other fingers and this initial ring is just the thing.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 12 gauge wire
• Wire cutters and shapers
• Scrap paper and pen
• Pen or marker about as big around as your finger

1. On the scrap of paper, write the letter you want in cursive.

2. Cut a 5 inch piece of wire.

3. Using your wire shaper, bend the wire to follow the shape of the letter.

4. Center the letter on the pen and wrap the ends around so that they overlap by 1/2 inch. Trim off the excess and smooth the ends.

5. Crimp at the places where the wire crosses to accentuate the letter.

6. Slide on your finger to adjust the size.