A Patchwork Canister

33 Stitches has a lovely tutorial on making a patchwork canister. It only takes a coffee tin, Modge Podge, a paint brush (or if you are a messy person, fingers) and fabric. It seems like a great craft in the upcoming fall or on a rainy day.

How to make a notebook

Bookmaking is actually quite easy and make great gifts for teachers, grandparents, or classmates.  Small children can even help by decorating the notebook covers but an adult will need to do the actual construction.  To see how to make them follow the link to Jen and Jake.

4th of July Wreath

Over at Every Crafty Endeavor, Amanda has this cute little tutorial for a great 4th of July wreath.  Hers only cost her 9 dollars but I am pretty sure it could be done cheaper using the wreath from a different Amanda at The Penny Parlor.  To see how this wreath is made click below:

Every Creative Endeavor

How to Make a Sturdy Felt Button

Ever have the problem of finding the right button for your project.  You know, one that actually MATCHED?  Well, if you are working with a feltible wool yarn or fabric, you can easily, just head over to

T-shirt bag

Copyright: DeliaCreates

Really cute spice idea.

Helpful moving resources

If you didn't already know, we move a lot and are in fact moving this month.  It is important to know things before you commit to a place.  Here is a list of helpful websites that are great resources for where to move,... at least it is for me.

http://www.schooldistrictfinder.com/
Not all school districts are covered by this site, but it is VERY helpful for those that are.

http://kaboom.org/
This site is ALL about play.  You can put in your address and find all the playgrounds near you or see if the nearest one happens to be 30 miles away.   

http://www.walkscore.com/
This rates how walkable where you live is.  This is helpful if you only own 1 car or just like to get out for a walk.  The more walkable the neighborhood the more of a community you will have.  This allows for neighbors to really know if strange behavior is happening in your area.

Hula Hoop rug from old T-shirts!

This looks REALLY fun!  A perfect project for kids (though the younger ones may need some help).

How to make fabric labels

This pictured filled tutorial shows how to make fabric labels to put into your unique knitwear or hand sewn creation.  The tutorial is surprisingly cheap and easy to follow.

Loyalty Card Holder Pattern

Grosgrain has a patterns for a Loyalty Card Holder Pattern. I see possibilities with this!  Keeping business card, recipes or flash cards are just a few!

Glazed Washer Necklaces Tutorial

Every Creative Endeavor has a Glazed Washer Necklaces Tutorial that is awesome.  It really is easier than it looks.

Mason jar lantern

This is so cute and could easily be made with a different  theme (stars, hearts, princesses or dragons just to name a few).  I suggest that this be an outside craft... It looks messy.

Two-Sided Loofah Soap

Angie and Angie's Suds and Such had a picture filled tutorial on making loofah soap. 

LidMen

I recently rediscovered this great little green craft.  We don't use any things with lids but I know for a fact that in Hawaii, you can't have lids on plastic bottles to recycle them so they always have a convenient trash can full of them.  A raiding party may need to be formed... meaning me and the kids.  The applications for this are rather countless.  Lid worms, lid zoos, and lid dinosaurs to name a few.  To see the tutorial click here.

Zippy Wallet tutorial

Noodle-Head has made a lovely little bag called the Zippy Wallet.  These creative little wallets look like they make great little compact carriers.

8 Popsicle Recipes

photographer: Jessica Merz

So summer has finally arrived and with it comes the popsicle.  I picked up popsicle molds from the store recently and decided to look up some recipes.  These are the ones that impressed me the most. 

Banana Mango Yogurt Popsicles

Pomegranate Blueberry Yogurt Popsicles

Homemade Fruit Popsicles

Chocolate and Salted Caramel Pudding Pops

Watermelon Pops

Double Rainbow Quick Pops

Lemony Ice Cream Popsicles

And of course if you can't find one above you want to try you can always Make Your Own Recipe.

Buttercup bag

Copyright Rea Hoekstra

Rea, from Made By Rea, has an amazing bag pattern called the Buttercup Bag.  Personally I think I want half a dozen.  If you don't sew she also has a list of sellers of her lovely bag so you have no excuse to not check it out!

Recycled milk carton truck

I just found the most delightful blog called the Origami Mommy.  Her tutorial is full of ideas on green toy vehicles for your little one!  They are Awesome cute and your little one can help too!

Aging Wooden Pieces

Marilyn at Harvest Moon Primitives had a tutorial on how to age wood.  It is time consuming but the end result looks AWESOME!

Simple Apron Tutorial

Who doesn't love a apron.  I know I love them.  Skip to my Lou has a lovely apron tutorial.  All you need is a tea towel, 1/4 yard of fabric, 4 yards of ribbon, and about 21" of twill tape.   

Making Recycled Crayon Batik

Suzy at Suzy's Artsy Crafty Sitcom has this Awesome tutorial on making a Batik from Crayons.  What is a Batik? It is a wax resist method of decorating fabric.  Any design can be used and then you can do all sorts of things with the fabric.

Treasure Book

This is a super cute tutorial on making a treasure book.  You could use it for more than just for kids too.  Hide valuable jewelry, money, and passports to name a few.  Visit Squeezing It All In for the full tutorial.

Sew a fabric book cover

I love books and also think of them as prized possessions.  Making a sewn book cover looks very cute and has tons or personality. 33 Stitches makes it look easy.

Useing a Drum Carder

I own a drum carder and sadly don't know how to use it.  This tutorial had great tips and tricks to getting your drum carder to do what you actually want and even make roving.  Very picture filled.

Making homemade sidewalk chalk

Copyright: ArtMind

I had no clue how easy making sidewalk chalk could be!  You will be astounded at how quick it is too.  This pictorial tutorial will help show you the way to a favorite summertime activity.

Solar dyeing yarn with Kool-aid

Copyright MunchkinMama

This looks like a great project for little kids.  Messy, yes, but at least you know the dye will not really harm them.  The possibilities seem kinda endless with this because you could dye felting fiber instead and then felt a project.

To see the full tutorial click here.

Felt making with kids

Felt-making is really easy and this tutorial shows you just how easy it really is.  This is a craft that I can't wait to have my kids get into.  I love all things fiber so this might be a good way to get the kidlets to learn about mom's obsession and will make a good Father's Day gift.

This tutorial is concise and has pictorial step by step instructions.  

To actually see the tutorial click here.

Getting free audio books.

photographer:  Khairil Zhafri

It is summer, time for the all magical road trip or never ending flight to some far off destination.  If you were like my family, you would listen to books on tape during these escapades and though your library is sure to have some to borrow, looking online can give you a greater selection.

This is where Librivox comes in.  You can download all the audio books you want free of charge.  They have all the classics I have ever searched for, childrens stories like Aesope's Fables, and even books in Spanish, French, Russian and even more languages.  It is all digital so you can download to an MP3 player and just go.



To get this freebie click here.

Lovely Garden Lamps

Photo/Illustration: Scott Phillips

These recycled tin garden lamps are perfect for summer.  The tutorial is VERY easy to follow and the end result looks fabulous.  I fully intend on making more fanciful designs and having fun making these.  In fact I think I will print out some Dragon Flies and Butterflies from Knitting-and to decorate with.

This tutorial is reprint from Fine Gardening 87, pp. 49-51. To see the picture filled instructions to making these cute garden lamps follow the link.