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Posts Tagged ‘DIY’

Inspiration

Inspired by BLANK: Painted Wooden Eggs

Easter inspiration from BLANK

A Painted family of nesting eggs, by BLANK

I recently fell in love with a store called BLANK, created by a girl named Danie, and filled with blank supplies to inspire you to make stuff.

Sadly, the store is in Australia and at this time does not ship to the States, but that won’t stop me from being inspired by her sweet ideas and encouraging you to visit the shop and get inspired too.

BLANK carries gorgeous gift boxes in fun bright colors, great gift tags, stickers, and other fun supplies.

Danie recently shared the painted wooden eggs shown above. Great colors, right? And they nest too!

Wooden Eggs from Wrapworks

Wooden Eggs from Wrapworks

To get your hands on something similar so you can paint your own, visit iUsedtoBeATree (they’ve got the nesting ones), Wrapworks (a mega awesome gift embellishment shop), or your local craft store.

(h/t that’s happy)

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Wooden Eggs from Wrapworks

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Make this Gift! DIY Stenciled Umbrella

Stenciled Umbrella DIY by Two Happy Hearts

As the saying goes, April showers bring May flowers, but why wait? Christen of the blog Two Happy Hearts shows how to adorn an umbrella with stenciled flowers.

This rainy-day DIY makes such a fun personalized gift and the sky’s the limit with how creative you want to get. Not the roses type? Try stripes, polka dots, tree branches, or do as the Portlandians do, and put a bird on it.

Stenciled Umbrella DIY by Two Happy Hearts supplies

Check out Christen’s tutorial for the step-by-step and her suggestions for supplies to help get it just right.

Feeling inspired by this DIY? Is there a stencil or pattern you’d like to try?

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Stenciled Umbrella DIY by Two Happy Hearts supplies

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Makin’ & Eggs: 24 Easter Egg DIYs to Dye For!

Makin' and Eggs: 24 Easter DIYs to Dye For

Color and creativity blossom like crazy in the Spring. Blogosphere you are an imaginative bunch! After rounding up these gorgeous DIYs, I’m now completely antsy and dying to get crafty with these awesome ideas.

For your Easter brunch hostess, your kids, your table, and by all means yourself, here are 24 fantastic DIYs to turn the incredible, edible canvas into a work of art.

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Lovely Indeed Washi Tape DIY and Roy Jot Easter Succulent DIYWashi Tape and double-stick Tape Easter Eggs diysPolka dot eggs and Ombre eggsNatural Easter Egg diys and dotsEaster Message Egg by Present&Correct and PoppytalkNeon Dipped Eggs and Thread wrapped eggsPink Deviled Eggs by The Year in FoodEaster Egg Brownies by La Receta de la FelicidadLove Eggs and Jello EggsDipped wooden Eggs and String wrapped eggs by Craftberry BushRIT dyed eggs, Candle eggs and painted egg

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Best Mail Day Ever: DIY Birthday Surprise!

creating gif

DIY Birthday Mail Surprise, photo by Jordan Ferney

Birthday mail is the best mail, don’t you think??  Now, imagine getting 112 birthday greetings from all your favorite people that, when combined, forms a giant mural!  BEST mail day ever, right?  Jordan from Oh Happy Day has the deets on kicking off this awesome birthday mail campaign — check it out!

DIY Birthday Mail Surprise, photo by Jordan Ferney

My favorite part, aside from how ridiculously clever this DIY birthday idea is, is all the sweet notes written on the back!  This would be a great way to get family and friends in on a simple but heart-warming birthday gift — kind of like this 60 years of memories idea — but with a little more pizzazz!

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DIY Birthday Mail Surprise

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Make This Gift: DIY Cross-Stitch Pendant Necklace!

DIY Cross-Stitch Pendant, by Brittni Mehlhoff

Oooh, I love this little DIY gift idea so much.  Brittni from Papernstitch shares her technique for making this abstract cross-stitch pendant, but the possibilities really are endless!  I’m thinking triangles or polka dots done in some neon or metallic thread — what do you say?  How would you customize this gift?  Share your pattern ideas with us!

Check out Brittni’s step-by-step tutorial right here.  You can snag blank cross-stitch pendants from Lovely Lovely for $7.50.

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Make This Gift: Cheerful Paint-by-Numbers Coasters

DIY Paint-by-Numbers Style Coasters

DIY Paint-by-Numbers Coasters, photo by Halligan Smith

You guys, please tell me I’m not alone in my obsession with coasters… I mean, I really can’t get enough of them! Good thing there are so many fantastic DIY possibilities out there, including these colorful paint-by-number style beauties created by Halligan Smith. The way I see it, everyone needs coasters, right? Consider making and giving a set for birthdays, thank-yous, house warming parties, or just because! Halligan shares the process (and even offers free templates for all four designs) over on Design*Sponge, so go check it out!

Have you spied any other clever DIY coaster designs? Let’s have a coaster part—share your faves in the comments!

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Make This Gift: Custom Art from Your Own Fingerprints!

ManMadeDIY : How To: Make Custom Art from Your Own Fingerprints

Custom Fingerprint Art, by Chris Gardner

Here’s a DIY that’s perfect for Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, wedding gifts, or just because. It utilized something so specifically you and turns it into art—your fingerprints!

You’ll need to have some simple creative computer skills (or know someone who does) and be quite cunning to acquire the fingerprints without raising any suspicions. Just tell your Valentine with a wink and a smile, “Shut it! No questions.”

Our friend Chris at ManMadeDIY put together this handy tutorial to take you through the steps for making your own. And if his visual style isn’t quite yours, get creative! There are many ways to adapt the idea changing the scale, colors, paper colors and typeface. Have fun! And let us know how yours turns out.

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Pretty in Pixels: Make a DIY Pop-Up Pixel Card for Valentine’s Day!

DIY Pop-up Pixel Card

DIY Pop-Up Pixel Cards, by Kate Petty

These pixelated pop-up cards are hot off the press, y’all! The always fabulous Kate Petty from MiniEco assures us that these super impressive handmade cards are, in fact, super easy to make. All you need is a craft knife, a ruler, and some colorful paper to print on. Once you’ve grabbed your supplies, head over to MiniEco to download Kate’s printable template–you’ll be on your way to 3D heart-popping, pixelated glory in no time. (Did that sound like a promise? Oh, good. It totally was.)

Happy Handmade Valentine’s Day!

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How to Make Delicious, Delightful Dipped Pretzels

DIY Dipped Pretzels wrapped in a box

We’re down to the wire and you’re thinking, “What could I make with a lot of love, a lot of fun, but not a ton of time?” Dipped pretzels! These are sure to blow the tastebuds off of teachers, friends and neighbors. Let me show you how to turn ordinary pretzels into a fun and classy present that you’ll love giving. Trust me, they are a huge hit.

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Hot wot make Dipped PretzelsMaking Dipped Pretzels - Part 1Making Dipped Pretzels - Part 2

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How to Wrap A Present – The 18 Best Gift Wrapping Videos

Time to wrap! Whether you’re looking for inspiration or how-to help, we’ve gathered up the best videos to help embellish or upgrade your gift-wrapping skills.

The first few cover the basics of wrapping a box. You’ll also learn creative ways to reuse materials already around your house and crafty DIYs with pom poms and potatoes.

For veteran wrappers, learn clever fixes for when your paper is too short, how to wrap a cookie tin and make it look beautiful, a dramatic way to wrap a wine bottle, and how to make glossy confetti-filled gift wrap.

These first two are simply to get you in the mood. They made me smile. I hope they do the same for you!

Holiday video by Amsterdam media company, Suikerdepôt

From the ever-festive folks at Kate Spade.

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wrapping-vidsdandeeonekingslaneetsynormandailycandytwinstriperecyclenowthreadbangerconfettiheidielsagekatescookietinjapanese-winemay-diagonalucgoodswrapcatGift Wrap Video Tutorials from The Container Store

Give & Tell

Give & Tell with Chris Gardner of ManMadeDIY

Chris GardnerWriter and maker Chris Gardner is is the main man at ManMadeDIY, a crafting blog for guys (though this gal really digs it too). He’s also the editor at Curbly.com, a community of people who make things for their homes. As Chris explains, “ManMade recognizes that all sorts of creative outlets can be realized by, for, and with men. Rosie can rivet, Chris can craft, and all demographics can DIY!”

I’m been a big fan of Chris’s creative how-tos and crafty finds from around the web. In the spirit of the holidays, a couple posts of his you’ll want to checkout are Why You Have to Make Egg Nog… and How to Do It, How to Make Modern Perforated Tabletop Christmas Trees, and How to: Turn a Tacky Glitter Reindeer into an AWESOME Glitter Reindeer.

Oh and while you’re at it, don’t miss Curbly’s mega set of holiday roundups like 10 Other Places to Hang Your Christmas Stockings, or their rad gift guides like 30 Hip Design Gifts Under $25. Here he is sharing gifting tips and tales as only Chris can—thanks so much Chris!

Have you ever done any sneaky research to determine the right gift for someone?

Oh my, yes. I’m a total trickster when figuring out preferences or sizes for gifts. My masterpiece was giving someone a hug while secretly holding a tape measure. I also made up an elaborate story to snag my sweetheart’s fingerprint to make some original art for Valentine’s Day last year, and have managed to use calipers to figure out her exact finger size while she was taking a nap.

Could you share a wrapping secret with us?

I think brown kraft paper will never get old. It looks amazing simply tied up with string, but can be customized in all sorts of fun ways. Last year, I cut out the recipient’s name from old books I got for ten cents at the thrift store and simply glued them on. I also figured out a way to make custom gift “envelopes” by sandwiching the gift between two layers of craft paper and stitching it shut with a zig-zag stitch on my sewing machine.

Plus, it matches regular brown paper sandwich bags for those small or bulk gifts, which can look amazing with a simple stamp or hand-printed gift tag.
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Chris Gardner's Gift Picks from Wantist

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Martha’s Gift Wrap Challenge—Cast Your Votes!

Vintage Portraits Wrap by Something's Hiding in Here

Vintage Portraits Wrap by Something’s Hiding in Here

As if it were possible to pick! Well okay, we’ll try.

All this week over at the Crafts Department on Martha Stewart, some of our most favorite crafty bloggers have been sharing creative and inexpensive wrapping ideas as part of a Gift Wrap Challenge.

The ideas are bursting with inspiration, and now the trick, to choose the most inspiring! Will it be color copies turned gift wrap? Sleek and stylish stitching? Homemade bows with confetti inside? Or whimsical glittered gift tags?

Pictured are each of the submissions with links to their tutorials so you can give them a go. Wrapper friends, these bloggers are true stars and their sites are wonderful corners of the internet. So go get lost, but don’t forget to vote!

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Adorned Glitter Clothespin Gift Toppers by Creature ComfortsConfetti Bow Ribbion and Pom Pom Topper by Hello SandwichStitched Wrap and Printable Pull Tag by Shimtokk