Grow Plants in ANY Container @ MIFS

Today at Make It From Scratch showing you how to grow plants in ANYthing! Stop by and join in the conversation.

Experimental upside down bean plant in a 2 liter soda bottle.

Also don't forget about the Wonder Hanger Giveaway ending this week.

What’s a girl to do with ALL THOSE PLASTIC EASTER EGGS???

Plastic Easter eggs are a lifesaver when it comes to buying bulk candy for the kid’s Easter baskets. The eggs are usually about $1 for a dozen. This is how I save a ton of money when making their baskets. Once the day is done, candy has been consumed and the kids are recovering from a sugar coma, we are left with a behemoth pile of plastic eggs.

Custom Wall Tile Decor Project for LESS Than $10

Custom Wall Tile Gift Project

I had some extra blue ceramic bathroom tiles I bought from a yard sale a couple years ago. Since it's an odd number, coasters were out but I didn't want them to go to waste so I finally found a way to put them to good use.

This is an easy and cheap way to create customized family wall decor.

I created these in homage to my boys! As I look at each tile, I see a different aspect of my childrens' personality. I loved how they turned out and here's a quick run down of how I made these personalized wall tiles!
Costing under $10, I utized Modge Podge, 4” ceramic tiles (or any size you might have on hand), picture hanging wire and hot glue I already had on hand. My only out of pocket expenses were the chipboard images found in the sticker section of the craft store and Glaze spray paint (completely optional).

Hand Soap - Semi Homemade Style

Last week I shared this idea with the readers of Make It From Scratch where I contribute every Monday. This week, I thought I'd share it with all my readers who may not have seen it.

We traveled quite a bit last summer for hubby's doctor's visits. We stayed overnight at various hotels because hubby couldn't physically handle the long road trip back home. Thankfully he's better and we're no longer traveling so much but it's left me with a rather large collection of hotel soaps. What to do with them???

Here's a nifty little project you can do with hotel soaps or any bar soap bits you have lying around the house.

1. Grate soap bits with a cheese grater into a glass dish or double boiler.
2. Add boiling water and stir till all the soap is melted.
3. Add optional scented oil.
   
4. Allow to cool overnight in a glass dish.
5. Stir well.
6. Transfer to soap pump with a spoon and large funnel.

I used one grated hotel soap bar and a half pint of boiling water. If the consistency is too thick for your needs, place the glass dish back in a pot of boiling water to re-melt the soap. Mix more boiling water, allow to cool, and stir when cooled.

It literally takes less than ten minutes and the kids can be great help with this project!

It's that simple to have your own hand soap, semi homemade!

Applique T-Shirts

Hand applique is a great method to cover up stains, holes or even dress up a plain tee. It can be done in a flash with very little expense. T shirts are easier to applique than you might think. Here's a list of items you'll need to get started:

T shirt
Coordinating fabric*
Embroidery thread & needle
Image for t shirt**
Freezer paper
Heat n Bond Fusible Interfacing
Iron
Scissors or Pinking Shears
Pencil
Embroidery hoop (optional)
Fabric paint (optional)

*Use outgrown, stained, ripped, or otherwise unworn clothing to reduce your expense on this project and save it from the landfill.
**Someone with artistic talent, can sketch their own image like I did but you can also find great applique images from coloring books. I suggest you start with a simple image until you get comfortable with the process.

1. Cut down a section of coordinating fabric to a size slightly larger than your image.
2. Trace your applique image onto a section of freezer paper. If you plan to applique multiple fabrics (eyes, lips, hair, etc) then a traced freezer paper image for each fabric is necessary.
3. Using medium heat iron setting, iron the freezer paper to the RIGHT side of your fabric.
4. Cut down a section of Heat N Bond Fusible Interfacing and iron to the WRONG side of the fabric. Follow the package directions.
5. Cut out your image from your interfacing, fabric, freezer paper sandwich and gently peel away freezer paper.
6. Arrange your image on your t shirt RIGHT sides up.
7. Set aside all pieces except the bottom (or base image) of your applique cut out.
8. Iron bottom image to the t shirt per package directions.
9. Stitch around edge with embroidery thread.
10. Add the next image layer and repeat steps 8 and 9.

An embroidery hoop will help hold the t shirt taught if you have trouble free hand stitching around your applique. Another alternative is to run a bead of fabric paint around the edge of your applique.

See my step by step photo's to help guide you along.

I spruced up a plain long sleeve t shirt I bought on clearance for $3. I already had the other supplies and used old holey t shirts long abandoned for the yellow, white, and orange fabrics. I intended to machine applique the entire project with a zig zag stitch. After starting with the fish body, I discovered I'm just not that good at it yet so I switched to hand stitching. The rest was done by hand very easily. The eye's pupil was back stitched with black embroidery thread.

It took me about two hours while fighting with the sewing machine, watching TV, chatting with hubs, and keeping the cat out of my potted plants. I could have done it MUCH quicker stitching it ALL by hand! {laughing} My next project is to embroider a race car J Man drew a few weeks ago. Cross your fingers and toes everyone!

Upcycled Applique Pillow

I told you about my new sewing machine a few days ago! Since then, I've been sewing away. I've practiced all the different stitches on fabric remnants to get a feel for my new machine. I have tons to learn about sewing. Serging, lining, interfacing, measuring, cutting tools, and tons more but I like to dive right in and see if I can at least tread water! That's just the type of person I am! If any of you have book suggestions or sewing websites, I'm all ears!!!

My first project was to make my daughter an applique'd pillow for her birthday. I don't have much of a fabric stash, other than a few bits of fabric I bought a few years ago when I discovered Printable Fabric Sheets + Heat N Bond + Fabric Puff Paint = Great looking canvas bag designs! Since I haven't built up a fabric inventory, I used some of our clothes we've either outgrown or worn too much for daily wear. My pillow turned out better than I even expected plus I feel good knowing I've kept a few things from going to the landfill.

This pillow is slightly larger than a typical travel sized pillow measuring 18" x 14". The denim came from a pair of jeans with way too many holes either in the front or at the rear pockets - Not exactly wearable! The hot pink fabric (see photo 2) as well as the red, rainbow and blue fabrics in the letters M and A are left over fat quarters I used years ago to make my daughter's fabulous Girl Scout bag! I should clean it up and show it to you!!! All the other letters were created from shirts and shorts cast aside long ago. The light pink fabric I appliqued her name to was the bottom of an old Girl Scout camp T Shirt that received virtually no wear. No one can wear it now and it wouldn't fetch much at a yard sale or consignment store so I created a better use for it! The only thing I bought for this little pillow was the cotton fiber fill. I would have used plastic grocery bags if I thought it wouldn't get used much but, knowing her, I'm sure it'll get plenty of use! I'm so proud of how this turned out, I even managed to match up all my seams!

My next projects include making a Nintendo DSi carrier for J Man, a quilt, and an apron...oh and turning the other part of those jeans into a hand bag!

Easy Room Decor Ideas-Girly Edition

Here's a few things I've done in my daughter's room inexpensively and without too much time involved. Michaela's room was already painted pink when we moved into the house last April so that part was done.  I converted curtains I made for the home we live in before into the canopy you see in the photo. A white full sized sheet, cut in half, stitched hem, then dyed with one bottle of purple RIT per bottle instructions. Two six inch long pieces of ribbon were sewn at one end evenly spaced apart and then tied in a square knot to form a loop. The hoop is an old embroidery hoop spray painted hot pink and hung from the ceiling using eye hooks and S hooks. The white bed side drawers needed a little punching up so I added painted wooden knobs!   The cork board in the second picture was salvaged from a thrift store for $1. Tape off and paint the frame hot pink, the cork gray, paint the butterfly and flower using a homemade stencil and your done! The shelf was an old book case with the cardboard backing removed, shelves screwed into place, and again tape it off and paint. I do recommend sanding the veneer so the paint doesn't peel! Her dresser was painted to match using the handle hardware I bought years ago for the bedside table pictured above but discovered was the wrong size after I got it home! These photos were taken last summer and everything still looks great!

Some other easy decorating ideas: String old Christmas lights around the doorway, ceiling, behind a room partition or curtains for a cool effect. Use calendar photos or magazine pictures in painted picture frames to keep up with the ever changing pop star idols. Hot glue ribbon, jewels, etc around frames, dressers, book cases, etc to jazz it up. Create a window valance using old jeans cut into 2" wide strips looped around a curtain rod (plain or fancy) and tied like a necktie. Trim it with sequins, hem it or fray it for the look that matches your child's personality. Decorating a girls room is much easier for me than it is for my boys. Their's is a continual work in progress and will be posted next! What are your decorating ideas?

Kitty Toy Ideas

Our new kitty, Sandy, has adjusted well to her new home! She's healing VERY well from her wound and is quite playful now. She loves having her belly scratched and plays with Daniel's toy letter's and blocks. I felt bad not having any toys for her and they're so very expensive in our little town. Being a frugal craft-diva, I've devised a few homemade toys for our newest family member.

Using left over jingle bells, milk jug rings, an unused key ring, and fabric remnants cut into approximately 1" wide by 18" strips, I was able to create a fun teaser toy!

1. Tie at least three strips of fabric into a knot.
2. Braid the strips to a desired length and tie off into a knot. Be sure to leave several inches of a fabric tail for kitty to paw at!
3. Wind the bells and milk jug rings onto the key ring. (You can also use several soda can tabs instead the bells.)
4. Tie the key ring onto the end of the braid, just under the knot.
5. Enjoy watching kitty play with her new toy.

This toy can be used in a variety of ways. Tie or hang it from a hook or knob for kitty to swat, use it in tug of war, or simply let kitty drag it around the house!

Other great toy ideas: loop several soda can tabs to a key ring or tied together with fabric as a floor play toy; an empty toilet paper roll provides hours of entertainment; Styrofoam ball is tons of fun too.

Repurposing-The Creative Answer to Your Budget!

In our current economy crisis, it's more important than ever to find clever and creative ways to slash the budget. I'm sure you've read all about cutting the grocery, water, heating and electric bills, along with every tip known to man on how to improve your gas mileage but I've got another budget friendly tip you may not be so familiar with: Repurposing. Countless times repurposing an item has save my family the financial burden of buying a new or even used product. On occassion it's made the difference in eating well versus eating not-so-well. I can honestly say it's saved my family hundred's of dollars-yes I said HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS! Depending on how creative you are, the sky is the limit on how much money you save!

You don't know what repurposing is? It simply a type of recycling by taking an object and finding another purpose for it or a different way to use it. Repurposing helps keep our landfills free of excess materials therefore contributes to the growing "green" movement within our nation. It also saves on your garbage removal service-if it's not in the trash, you don't have to pay to haul it away!

Now you're wondering: How do I get started? That's simple enough! Take a look around the house, garage or the office. Just about anything can be repurposed into something else. An unused bedroom dresser can be moved to the dining room as a buffet! This works especially well for the holiday season when extra space is always necessary for the big family meal. Easily alter an old old wooden or glass french door into a coffee table or headboard with a little hardware.

Convert the over-the-door shoe rack into extra bathroom, art supply or toy storage. A wooden closet shelf, some brackets, screws, mirror, and a chair can modify a nook into a built in vanity. Mount a breadbox near the toilet for extra toilet paper storage. A decorative plant stand easily transforms to a lovely side table, bathroom or pantry storage.

Some of the most creative repurposing ideas can be found at www.junkmarketstyle.com/projects. Sue Whitney, co-author of Junk Beautiful and Decorating Junkmarket Style: Repurposed Junk to Suit Any Decor has created an online community to share, discuss, and find inspiration to turn your junk into treasure. You'll find a clever use of vintage ties: convert them into a seat cushion. A bakery style cupcake display rack metamorphoses into a terrarium. I've gleaned many inspiring ideas from her works and I'm sure you will too! Repurposing can be economical, environmentally friendly, and completely CHIC too!