101 Handmade Gift Ideas: project

Showing posts with label project. Show all posts

84. DIY Instagram Magnets

I found this project over at The Surznick Common Room website and it seems fairly easy as DIYs go. They have lots of pictures if you need a visual tutorial.

Whether you buy the gourd or grow it, this makes a cute little bird house. I can see multiple houses in lots of different colors....

For those makers among us, here's a cool use of an altoids tin and an old set of headphones (not to mention that cool little switch).

MATERIALS:

writing or drawing paper (20-30 uniform sheets)
thick decorative paper or cardstock (for the cover)
a Binder clip large enough to hold all of your paper in place
Ruler
Pencil
waxed linen thread (can be found in the jewelry section of craft stores)
Bookbinders needle (or a curved needle, found in the sewing section of most craft stores)
a non-tapering awl, or needle tool (to pierce holes in the paper) — you can also use a small nail or a large needle (they're just a little harder to punch paper with)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Stack your paper, with the covers on the top and bottom of the stack, just as you would like your book to appear.
Using a ruler, draw a line from top to bottom of the front cover, about 1/4"from the spine. Make two marks on this line, one 1/4' down from the top of the book, the other 1/4" up from the bottom. Now divide the distance between these marks into thirds and mark the two middle points.
Even up the pages and clamp the book together with binder clips, or weight down the front edge to keep the pages from moving. Protect your work surface with a piece of scrap wood or an old phone book as you punch a hole at each of the marked points using the awl.

(note: you can also use this technique to repair books that have loose bindings. Making these holes should not damage the text in the book. Most paperback books have an inner margin of 1/2" to 3/4", leaving plenty of room for rebinding.)
Thread the needle and tie the ends together with an overhand knot. Open the book a few pages and, next to the lower middle hole, push the needle through about five pages. Pull the thread through until the knot is snug against the pages. Go back out to the front cover by pushing the needle up through the awl hole. This step anchors the thread.
Now sew the rest of the book as shown in the accompanying illustrations. Pull the thread tight each time you go through a hole.

Go around the back and back up through the starting hole, then down through the other middle hole. Pull the thread tight after going through each hole.

Around the back again, then up through the top hole.

Around the back, then...

...around the top of the spine and up through the top hole again. Keep going, down through one middle hole, back up through the next, and down through the bottom hole. Keep the thread tight.

Around the back again and...

...around the bottom of the spine and back through the bottom hole. Go up through the starting hole again.

To finish, tie off the thread so the binding won't come loose. Do this by slipping the needle under two of the top threads coming out of starting hole and back through the loop to form a tight knot.

Run the needle back down through the starting hole and cut the leftover thread flush with the back of the book.

Free Instructional PDF

[Download Here]

[Edit 12/16] —It looks like the original source for this information (Sff.net) has been removed.

I created an illustrated tutorial a few years ago for a workshop I taught on Japanese stab-bound books, and am including it here.

If you want to learn more about making hand bound books, check out:

Making Handmade Books

by Stanford, Kate T.Trade Paperback

53. Bottle Cap Magnets

MATERIALS:

DIRECTIONS:

Cut your image(s) to fit inside the bottle cap.
Using the white glue, adhere image to the inside of cap - make sure the image is smooth and there are no air bubbles or wrinkles
place a little glue on top of the image, smooth, and let dry
Cover image with EnviroTex, or varnish and let cure for 24 hours (make sure you follow the directions on the label).
Using the glue gun, attach the magnet to the bottle cap

ALTERNATE IDEAS:

You can also drill a small hole in the top of the bottle cap & attach a small O-ring for a cord (to make a necklace) or a key chain

Instead of using the inverse side for images, why not just glue the magnet inside the bottle cap and let the cap be the magnet.

Source: Bella Online

52. Mini Herb Kits

MATERIAL

INSTRUCTIONS

Paint the pots if you like or you can take a permanent marker and write the name of the herb around the rim.
Fill mini plastic, or clear candy bags with enough potting soil to fill each of the pots in the kit.
Decorate coin envelopes, fill with seeds, seal, then label.
place ingredients into a decorated box. Old tins, recycled boxes, even old lunch boxes, would also make nice containers for the mini garden

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

If you want to give a starter plant, instead of dirt and seeds, here are some other presentation options. You are not limited to clay pots. Just about any container will work, from tea cups to cleaned out tin cans.

Want to learn more about cooking with herbs?

Herbal Kitchen Cooking with Fragrance & Flavor

by Jerry Traunfeld (Hardcover)

51. Personalized Photo Book

There are several online services that allow you to upload your photos and create a professionally printed custom photo book:

Shutterfly:

PricePhoto books range from about $13 (all sums before tax and shipping fees) to $70 for the default number of pages (20). Shutterfly's additional pages range from 65 cents per page for the two smallest book sizes, up to $2.29 per page for the largest. In most cases, you pay a lit more for custom covers.

Mix Book:

PriceRanging from $16 to $70, Mixbook's prices edge Shutterfly's, and ordering extra pages is more economical. (Deluxe covers will cost much more, of course.) Additional pages are cheaper than Shutterfly's, ranging from 50 cents per page to $1.50 per page for the largest.

Picaboo:

For Windows users. Download the free software and create your own layout. You can choose your size, style, and book cover.

Price
Books range from 9.99 to 39.99.

Source: CNET

[Edit 12/16]—This post originally linked to three services (Qoop, iLife, and Picaboo) two of which are no longer available. I updated this post to include several other options. Mac users can also still create photo books with iPhoto, although it's not clear if the app is still supported.

47. Wallpaper Crafts

WALLPAPER BOOKMARKS

Cut wallpaper into strips measuring approx. 1 1/2" x 6"
place in laminating pouches, laminate
trim bookmarks, leaving about 1/4" around sides and bottom, and 1/2" at top
punch hole at top and thread with ribbon.

WALLPAPER MAGNETS

Cut wallpaper to desired size and shape
adhere to magnets
package magnets in sets to give as gifts

WALLPAPER COASTERS

Cut Wallpaper in 4" x 4" squares. if you like, round the corners off
place into lamination pouches and run through the laminator
trim lamination, leaving at least a 1/4" border
bundle into sets of 4 or 6, tie off with a ribbon or make a paper sleeve.

Source: Tony Meredith

45. Recipe Cards

MATERIALS

The recipe of your choice

This FREE downloadable recipe card [PDF]

Card stock or Photo paper for an Inkjet Printer

Inkjet Printer

INSTRUCTIONS

Download the recipe card and print it out.

Cut out and write your recipe on the card.

If you want to be really fancy, get some clear contact paper and laminate the front of the card. Cut out a piece of contact paper that is bigger than the card and stick it to the front, then trim off the excess.

This recipe card was designed by me and is offered free of charge for personal use only.

[Edit 12/16]—Originally this post linked to HP.com (which at the time offered a really neat online customizable recipe card maker), and a forum page at the Crafster.org website in which someone had posted free recipe card templates. Unfortunately, both sites have since removed their offerings.

42. Magnets

MATERIALS

FOR THE GARDENER

print out images from the garden
trim the images out, leaving 1/4 inch boarder
peal off adhesive backing from magnetic sheet & adhere the trimmed images to the sheet
trim magnetic sheet to size
if you like, seal the image with sticky-back sheet laminate.

FOR THE WORDSMITH
You can create your own magnetic poetry

write or print out a list of words (or use this downloadable printable)
adhere the list to the magnetic sheet
cut the words/magnet to size

FOR THE COMIC BOOK AFICIONADO

print out the downloadable art:

Adhere prints to magnetic sheet & cut out

30. Button Clock

MATERIALS

INSTRUCTIONS

Poke a hole through the center of the lid with an awl. Using a nail set, widen the hole to accommodate the shaft.
Refer to the dial template to position the button hour markers. Affix buttons with multipurpose cement. To assemble mechanism, follow manufacturer’s instructions.

Source MarthaStewart.com

Want more Martha Stewart crafts? Why not check out her encyclopedia of crafts:

Martha Stewarts Encyclopedia of Crafts An A To Z Guide with Detailed Instructions & Endless Inspiration

by Luke Brock (Hardcover)

25. Handmade Christmas Ornaments

There are a plethora of ways to create handmade ornaments, here are a couple of ideas.

Wired Star Ornament:

MATERIALS

a piece of paper and

pencil,

a piece of wood (read instructions for more specific information about the wood),

tape,

a small piece of colored tape (painter’s tape or washi tape would work),

6 nails

a drill with a drill bit the same diameter as the nails

INSTRUCTIONS

Draw the star outline that you want to replicate in your ornament on a piece of paper. Make sure it’s the appropriate size for your tree, but ours was about 4 inches tall.
Find a piece of wood that’s large enough to fit the outline and tall enough that you can drill small holes for nails to fit into without going all the way through the wood.
Tape the paper to the wood.
Select a drill bit that’s the same size as your nails. You want to be able to pull the nails in and out of the wood with some effort. They still need to be pretty firmly anchored in the wood.
Tape off your drill bit so that the bottom of the tape signals when you want to stop drilling. You don’t want the holes to go all the way through the wood.
Drill into each of the 5 points of the star. Drill a 6th hole slightly off to the side. This will anchor your wire when you start actually making the ornaments.

Insert nails into each hole.

TO MAKE THE ORNAMENTS

You’ll need: 2-3 pieces of fairly soft colored wire (the kind you buy in the jewelry-making section of the craft store is best). We used different combinations of 20-30 gauge wires. Each piece needs to be about 9 feet long. Also, you’ll need wire cutters and possible needle-nosed pliers.

Line the pieces of wire up and create one bundle with them.
Anchor one end to the template by wrapping it around that 6th hole, the one that isn’t actually part of the star.
Begin drawing a star pattern with the wire, hooking it around each point of the star. Keep the wire fairly taut, but you don’t necessarily want to create sharp angles at each nail. The looser your wire, the softer the star will look.
Repeat until you have about 2 feet of wire left. We wrapped ours about 5 times, but yours will vary based on the size of the star that you drew for the template.
Now you’re going to wrap the remaining wire around the inside angles of the star. This will keep it from unravelling when pull it off the template. You’re basically wrapping up all of the wire into a neat package. Thread the wire under the star and back over the top, making loops that connect each of the inside angles. Continue until you have about 4 inches of wire left.
Wrap the end around the last point of the star once to hold the shape. Use the remaining wire from the to create a small loop. This is where you can attach an ornament hook or string a pretty piece of ribbon to hang it on the tree. Pull the nails out of the template and remove the star.
Wrap the anchor end of the wire around a point on the star where it won’t be noticeable. Trim any loose edge with the wire cutters.
You can use any extra wire pieces to create a coordinating wire hook

Source: Alyssa and Carla

24. Handmade Wind Chimes

Photo by matttorontocanada.

Wind chimes can be made out of almost any material. Whatever pleases the eye and makes a wonderful noise can be hung up and enjoyed! Glass wind chimes and metal wind chimes are particular favorites. Or, when creating your own wind chimes, try using some of these materials:

SILVERWARE CHIME

Preparing the Cutlery

Put on your safety goggles.
Drill a hole in each of the four spoon handles, approximately 1/8th of an inch from the top. Sand holes down with metal file, so that there are no sharp edges.
Choose one fork to be the hanging fork from which the spoons will be suspended. Drill a hole in the flat part of this fork, just above the tines.
Using your needle-nosed pliers, carefully bend the tines of the fork to a 90° angle.
Bend the two inside tines of the fork so that they are pointing north and south. Bend each of the two outside tines so that they are pointing east and west. Be sure to have backup forks, in case any of the tines break.
Using the tip of your pliers, carefully twist the ends of each of the tines into a loop.
Bend the handle of the fork over to make a hook to hang the chime with.
Drill a hole in your base fork. This hole should be about 1/8th of an inch from the top of the handle.

Hanging the Chime

Tie a piece of fishing line from the hole in the hanging fork to the hole in the base fork. The base fork should hang about six inches down.
Tie fishing line through each of the holes created by the tines of the hanging fork. Tie the other end of each piece of string to the hole in each spoon. The bowl of each spoon should hit the stem of the base fork.
Now you're ready to hang them

COPPER PIPE WIND CHIME

Cut six separate pipes from the copper tubing at the following lengths:
- 18 inches
- 20 inches
- 22 inches
- 24 inches
- 26 inches
- 28 inches
- To do this, you need to mark these measurements on the tubing and, using your metal crimper, cut the six pipes.
Wearing your goggles, drill a ¼ inch hole in the top of each pipe. This hole should be about a ½ inch from the top of each pipe.
Drill a ½ inch hole in the center of the large and small pieces of wood.
Drill six ¼ inch holes around the perimeter of the large piece of wood. These holes should be equidistant from one another. This piece of wood will act as the platform for the chimes.
Using your string, thread each pipe through each of the six holes on the large piece of wood. The pipes should hang a couple of inches from the base of the wood platform.
Using your nylon rope, create a loop from which to hang the chime. Thread the end of this loop through the center of the wood platform. To the base of this handle, tie the small piece of wood. The pipes will knock against this wood to create sound.
Hang and enjoy!

Reources: Repair Home

20. Tea Cup Candles

MATERIALS

INSTRUCTIONS

In a small pan set over a larger pan of simmering water, melt down old candles; clip the thermometer to the upper pot, and keep temperature at about 185°. Remove old wicks with tongs.
Cut a piece of wicking to the cup’s height plus 2 inches. Clamp one end to a wick sustainer; tie the other end around a skewer. Dip wicking and sustainer into melted wax to coat them. Remove and stick sustainer to cup’s bottom.
Pour in the wax, stopping 1/2 inch below the cup’s rim. Allow wax to set, about 1 hour. The candle will harden with a well in the center. To even it out, use another skewer to prick a circle of holes about 1/16 inch deep around the wick. Pour in melted wax until surface is 1/4 inch below rim. Cut wick.

From Martha Stewart

17. Ice Cube Candles

MATERIALS

INSTRUCTIONS

Melt the candle wax &/or crayons. This is best done by filling one pot up with water and placing a second (thrift store) pot on top - like a double boiler. You won't want to use the same pot to melt your wax in that you'd normally cook food in.
Cut the carton to a desired height.
Cut the wick about 4 inches taller than your desired candle
Secure the wick in the carton, tying the top to a pencil or tongue depressor (so it won't fall into the carton)
fill the carton with ice cubes. The coarser|larger the cubes are, the larger the holes in the candle.
Make sure the wick is standing upright and pour the melted wax into the carton.
When wax is set (ice will have melted) remove the milk carton and you have a candle that kind of looks like swiss cheese. There may be some water that will drain out as you remove the carton.

Source FamilyEducation.com

5. Mending Jar

Not just for jelly, these petite canning jars are cleverly transformed into organizers for mending necessities -- such as buttons, needles, and thread.

MATERIALS

INSTRUCTIONS

Trace the widest part of the band circle onto foam; cut out. Using thread, gather the outside edge of the calico circle. Place the circle of foam onto the top of the lid. Add the calico circle, pulling the gathers tight on the underside, and allowing a 3/4-inch opening. Cut a 1-1/2-inch circle of felt with pinking shears.
Glue the felt over the gathered fabric on the underside of the lid. Smooth the calico over the foam, pushing the foam away slightly at the lid edge. Add the band.
To make the thread and needle holder, cut card stock paper on the long sides using pinking shears. On one short side, stitch a piece of felt that is pinked on all sides and slightly larger than the card stock. Allow 3/8 inch of felt to fold over the end of the card stock.
Machine-stitch across one end of the felt, securing the card stock.
Wrap an assortment of thread on the card stock. Add safety pins at the stitched edge. Insert two needles under the thread into stitched edge.
Fill the jar with desired sewing notions.

from Better Homes & Gardens

[Edit 12/16]—It looks like BHG no longer has this project on their website, but I did find a similar project at the Silly Pearl website, complete with a cute little printable label.

A LITTLE ABOUT ME

Hi, my name is Nicki. I’m a freelance artist and graphic designer. I started this blog shortly after grad school when I was living on a shoestring budget. I would tear ideas out of magazines and keep them in a binder for reference and inspiration whenever I needed to come up with a creative, yet inexpensive gift. This blog was my foray into collecting and curating these ideas online.

Since the creation of this blog I’ve also started a second blog with even more ideas: Christmas on a Budget.

I hope you find it useful & hey, thanks for checkin’ it out.

Pages

84. DIY Instagram Magnets

81. Bird House

80. Altoid iPod Speakers

60. Japanese Bound Handmade Books

Free Instructional PDF

53. Bottle Cap Magnets

ALTERNATE IDEAS:

52. Mini Herb Kits

51. Personalized Photo Book

Shutterfly:

Mix Book:

Picaboo:

47. Wallpaper Crafts

45. Recipe Cards

42. Magnets

30. Button Clock

25. Handmade Christmas Ornaments

24. Handmade Wind Chimes

20. Tea Cup Candles

17. Ice Cube Candles

5. Mending Jar

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