Link Dump: How To

Crafts in honor of National Library Week (April 13-19):
Recycle Book Cuffs

Make a dry erase board - perfect way to play Nightshift Library BINGO without generating wasteful paper

HOW TO:
I need to watch this video because I still have not busted out projects with my Print Gocco How To Gocco Printing

How to Design your own scrapbook paper

How to make a welcome mat - this is also in a craft book that I just look at or it is in Dollar Store Decor

How to make a recycled bath mat

How to make a vinyl pouch

How to make a fabric wall hanging - I just posted my wrapping paper wall art in which I covered canvases. Keep your eyes peeled during garage sale season for old canvases that you can recover with fabric or paper!

How to refashion an oversized t-shirt

How to make a charging station

How to make an Altoids watercolor tin

How to photograph food

Link Dump: Crafts

Fabric Eye Exam Art - this is a cool way to present a little message!

Paper CD Case

Recycled Album Fans

Sick Day Elephant - for my coworker who wants to make stuffies for baby/kid gifts

Super Sock Pig - this would be a cool gift for Cincinnatians and those running in the Flying Pig marathon!

Reversible Cut-out Handle Bag

Warhol-inspired Crochet Afghan

Green Cleaning Kit

DIY DVD Wedding Invitation Kit

Print your own temp tattoos

Adhesive Hold it Stripes - cool use of this product

Book Review: Sew Everything Workshop
- I recommended my library purchase the book so I can see if before I decide whether I want to buy it

Link Dump: Food & Cupcakes!

Chocolate Button Pretzels are like my Chocolate Peanut Pretzels

How to make a mini s'more grill

How to make whiskey peanut fudge

How to make Neapolitan cupcakes

Homestar Runner Birthday Cake

Mix and Match Cupcakes - so awesome!

Simpson Cupcakes

Cutest Cupcake Entries

Make It: Fondant Cake

Fondant Cake
Originally uploaded by udandi

My sister-in-law made this fondant cake for Gramma's pizza party on Saturday. I love the way fondant makes cakes look so silky smooth and elegant, but there is no way I will ever be able to master it.

Watching this Fun with Fondant video I can see that I will never move that quickly when making a cake, only when eating it!

The Project Vault

In response to who I do my crafting for...me! I like the challenge of making something otherwise regarded for the trash, of styling a piece of jewelry that no one else will have and sending a birthday card that's unique to the recipient. It is thrilling to me the way some might enjoy sporting events or gadgets or tinkering on engines. I come from a family of do-it-yourselvers. Both of my parents and siblings are creative and handy and speaking of their talents are posts in themselves.

There are only a certain few people I can give handcrafted gifts to and that's because almost any crafter will tell you of the heartbreaking experience when someone does not appreciate the time and effort.

I encourage readers to browse this blog since I make short posts with colorful photos, but here's a link list of projects I've posted.

Gifts:
Make It: Rock Star birthday card
Make It: Birthday tags
Make It: Advent Calendars
Make It: Martini birthday cards
Make It: Lunchbag Album
Make it: Rockabilly Onesie & blankie
Make It: McCutie onesie & blankie
Make It: Baby Rock Tee
Make It: Stamped Coasters
Make It: Wine Charm Markers
Make It: Faux Leather Cards
Make It: Valentine's Day Cards [more]
Make It: CD booklets [more] [more] [more]
Make It: Ticket Bowl Gift Basket
Altered: Pull Tab Can
Altered: Lunchbag Album
Altered: AOL case accordion scrapbook

For me:
Make It: Dry Erase Board
Make It: Wrapping Paper Art
Make It: Fortune Cookie
Make It: Cupcake Table runner
Make it: Circle Journal Scrapbook
Make it: Easy Mat Photos
Make It: Pillows from Napkins
Make It: Remake a necklace
Make It: Your Own Art
Make It: A drawstring waist skirt
Make It: Two-Paper Frame
Before & After: Kitchen Clock
Make It: altered clipboard
Make It: Pencil Tin from a band-aid tin
Before & After: Shelves
Before & After: Gumball Machine
Make It: Chalkboard Sign
Make It: Business & Logo Tees
Make It: Food Magnets
Altered: Band-Aid Tin Pen Holder
Make It: from Capital One Swag
Altered: Listrine Pocket Pack Frames
Make It: Painted Dr. Scholls Sandals
Make It: Ribbon Memo Board
Make It: Necklace
Altered: Typewriter Stand
Make It: Scrabble Bracelet
Make It: Luggage End Table
Organize: Your Albums & Scrapbooks
Storage: Craft Supply Center
Organize: Crafting Space
Make It: Credit Card Art
Altered: Game Board Tray
Make It: Stamped Domino
Altered: Lunchbox Album
Make It: Magnetic Memo Boards
Make It: Snow Globes
Storage: Coffee Can Cubbie

Recipes:
Make It: Guacamole
Make It: Sangria
Make It: Bruchetta Chicken Bake
Recipe: Peanut Butter-Chocolate Brownies
Recipe: Sinfully Silly Snickers Apple Fruit Salad
Make It: Cold Italian Pasta Salad
Make It: Chocolatetown Pie
Make It: 4-H Cookies (Chocolate-Peanut Butter-Oatmeal)
Make It: Layer Cookie Bars
Make It: Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies
Make It: Cheesey Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Make It: Bagel Cheese Dip
Make It: Easy Apple Crisp
Recipe: Sour Cream Pumpkin Bundt Cake
Make It: Cool Cookie Dessert
Make It: Chocolate Peanut Pretzels
Make It: Grand Old Flag Cake
Make It: Quick Sundaes
Make It: Decadent Peanut Butter Brownies
Make It: Grilled Italian Pizza
Make It: Chicken Enchiladas
Make It: Cookie Pizza
Make It: Spicey Chicken Dip
Make It: Fruit Smoothie

Others' Projects I've linked to:
Make It: innerTee
Make It: Bagel To Go
Make It: Floppy Disk Bag
Make It: Chess Table
Make It: Aprons
Make It: Pop Art Shoes
Make It: Rockin' Sock Monkeys
Make It: CD covers from lunchbags
Make It: Teeny, Tiny Fast Food
Make It: Meat Cake
Make It: Ladybug Cake
Make It: Silly Cakes
Make It: Crazy Cakes
Make It: Garden Markers
Make It: Solar System of Cupcakes

Make It: CD cover art

For me, more fun than making a mixed CD is creating the track list and packaging.

The two bottom photos, I used catalog images to create cover art and then added the track listing to the backside.

The left two photos, I created accordian track listings sandwich between cardboard and tied up with ribbon. The back piece of cardboard has a vellum pocket for holding the CD.

Altered: Board Game

I was on the lookout for a cabinet door that I could make into a tray when I stumbled upon this wooden game board for $1 at the thrift store. I lightly sanded the edges, applied a clear coat and added drawer handles.

Total cost: $5

This was a featured product back in the early days of Craftster!

Make It: Stamped Domino

Use Staz-on to stamp an image on a domino, then color it with Sharpie markers to create a pin or magnet. If you're skilled with a Dremel, you could drill holes to create a pendant, keychain or bracelet.

Actually, you could create a pendant if you glued a long, skinny bead along the top of the domino.

Project Inspiration

Domino-lined tray

Altered: Lunchbox Album

Okay, really it is the Target Dollar Spot CD storage box, not an over-priced, un-decorated lunchbox intended to be decorated with patterned paper and ribbons.

From blank 12x12 neutral toned cardstock, I stamped a background and cut 6x6 pages to mount photos. I free-handed tabbed dividers (as shown) and then used two circle punched pieces of cardstock affixed back to back at the top of a page to create additional tabs. The big clip (also Target $ spot) allows me to rotate the pages out for display (the tag is blurred out b/c it contains vital info I'd rather not share on the interweb).

It's hard to estimate the exact cost of this project, but depending on your supplies you could probably do something similar for under $10, of course, the memories of photos are priceless! I mean who knew the girl in the mirror would one day wear a mickey mouse sweater for her post-braces photo?!

Cross-posted: getcrafty, SCS

Make It: Magnetic Memo Boards

Using sheet metal and tin snips, you can create your own magnetic memo board for under $15 or less if you have access to scrap sheet metal.

Two of these boards were punched so eyelets could be set in order to not tear the ribbon hanger. The other was edged in ribbon and had long ribbons wrapped vertically to serve as the hangers.

All are topped off with marble magnets, obvs, but one is customized with chalk board paint and a cork board.

I find these boards to be very useful in displaying the ever-changing crop of baby photos I get!

Marble magnet directions: one, two

Altered: AOL case accordian scrapbook

This post is a shout-out to a former coworker who gave me this AOL promo case with a challenge that I make something with it. That was probably 2 years ago.

Yesterday, while shopping the Target $ Spot I saw 10 sheets of 12x12 scrapbook paper and saw the opportunity to make an accordian scrapbook.

The inside pages were cut to approx 4.75 x 12 and then folded accordian-style and glued together with the last section being glued in the bottom of the case. There are 12 panels of photos. The whole thing will be tied up with ribbon.

I love Picasa for making those photo pile photos and the ease of blogging about it.

[crossposted at getcrafty]

Altered: Lunchbag Book

My birthday buddy loves to make (and eat) cupcakes so a perfect gift for her is a lunchbag picture book of how to make cupcakes starring her (she likes seeing photos of herself)!

Stack lunchbags and fold in half, hole punch and ribbon thread for binding.
Some pages will have openings (from the lunchbags) in which you can create pull-out pages, front and back.

This idea isn't limited to making story books, it could be a photo/memory album, a quote or prayer book, a journal or anything you can think needs to be preserved and carried around!

Make It: Snow Globes

clean glass jar and lid
plastic trinkets
confetti/glitter
distilled water
glycerin
heavy duty glue (E6000)

Sand the lid where you want to glue on the trinkets - make sure if the jar is curved inward, you place the trinkets so they fit inside the jar (does that make sense?!).

Fill the jar with distilled water and a little glycerin (I eyeball everything). Glue the threads of the jar so the lid is permanently adhered. I didn't paint the lid, but you certainly could.