I had the honor to be a guest on the Creatively Chic Podcast, hosted by Carly J. Cais of ChicSteals.com. Come listen to me talk about Dollar Store Crafting, the best buys at the dollar store, and how to live a beautiful life. And while you’re listening, check out this super cute t-shirt craft idea from Chic Steals: embellish a plain t-shirt with sequin trim to make a faux Peter Pan collared shirt – so cute! [how to make a DIY Sequin T-shirt]

You can listen to the Podcast here: Creatively Chic – Making Things on an Extreme ($1!) Budget: Heather Mann of Dollar Store Crafts

DIY Sequin T-shirt

Project Estimate:

• T-shirt, $1 and up
• Sequin trim in your choice of color, about $1 a yard
• Fabric chalk, on hand or $1
• Fabric glue, $1.67
• Hand-sewing needle & matching thread (optional), on hand

Total: $3.67

p.s. check out this Bling on a Roll – it could be super fun! Only $2 per 10 yards.

The post DIY Sequin T-shirt Idea & Heather Interview on Creatively Chic Podcast appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

When Heather asked me if I would be interested in completing Craft’s 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 questionnaire, I was very keen on the idea.  While I write every day about craft ideas and the physical process of creating things, it’s not all that often that I get a chance to talk in-depth about why I create and the emotional energy that goes into making stuff!

One Project You Are Particularly Proud Of

1:  I love making miniature things, especially ones that look very realistic.  I think the best miniature I’ve ever done was a set of dollhouse horse head bookends made using toy horses and popsicle sticks.  Tiny things are just so much fun!

Two Mistakes You’ve Made in the Past

1:  Touching partially-cured resin.  Okay, it wasn’t on purpose; I picked something up that I didn’t realize had resin drips on the bottom side.  I don’t recommend it to anyone, it was a huge pain in the butt to get it off of my skin!

2:  Dropping out of art school.  I jumped headlong into a really challenging and serious program, and 18-year-old me wasn’t ready for the pressure.  I always swore I would go back but I somehow never got around to it.  Instead, I have 106 credits at the local community college, with classes in just about every subject you can imagine.

Three Things That Make Your Work Unique

1:  I’m not afraid to experiment.  New materials and techniques are exciting to me, and I love trying things I’ve never done before.

2:  I have a strange, whimsical, geeky, twisted style and sense of humor, and I think that shows itself in a lot of my work.  (Basically…  I’m a weirdo.)

3:  Having a diverse background in many mediums, from oil painting to lampwork  glass to paper crafting and many other things in between, gives me a unique way of seeing materials.  I like combining techniques from different disciplines to come up with my own way of doing things.

Four Tools You Love to Use

1:  My binding machine.  I found a great deal on a twin loop wire binder a few years ago and used it to turn all of my cereal boxes into notebooks.   The machine paid for itself in a single craft show!

2:  My precision tip scissors.  They’re perfect for snipping in itty-bitty corners and nooks.

3:  My round-nose jewelry pliers.   I use wire in a lot of projects, and as far as I’m concerned there is no more essential tool for wire.

4:  Where oh where would I be without my hot glue gun?

Five Inspirations

1:  Nature.  I grew up in the country and am lucky enough to live right in the heart of some of the best hiking in the Midwest, so I’ve always enjoyed spending a lot of time outdoors.  I love working with materials like leaves and acorns that I find while I’m out in the woods.

2:  Architecture.  I’ve always enjoyed styles that are a little different, especially Gothic and Googie.   If you’ve never heard of Googie architecture, think buildings that look like they belong in The Jetsons.

3:  Being broke.  No, really!  Living a very frugal lifestyle makes you see things differently, and that view of the world nurtures and entirely different kind of creativity and inspiration.

4:  Geekery.  I’m an old-school nerd from way back.  I was coding HTML in Notepad in 1992.  I’ve seen every episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.   I heart being a nerd,  and I enjoy bringing nerdy ideas and references into my work.

5:  Other artists and crafters.  I love seeing what other people are doing and how they are using materials.  I keep an eye out for innovative thinkers who do things I’ve never seen before, and often find the work of others to inspire me to try new materials or techniques.

The post 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Things About Rhonda Greene appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

A couple weeks ago, I got an email submission from Karlista from EZ Crafts with Karlista. I was super-impressed, because Karlista is 12 years old and is already writing her own tutorials on her own craft blog! Check out this hip pouch she made from a scarf. She graciously agreed to be interviewed, so check out the interview after I break down the materials needed for this great project. Hop on over to her blog and say hello! [how to make a hip pouch from a scarf]

Project Estimate:

• Scarf, $1
• Sewing stuff

Total cost: $1

Interview with Karlista from EZ Crafts with Karlista

Hi Karlista, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed! How long have you been crafting?

I’ve been raised on crafting. So,5 about 11 years AND STILL GOIN’ and lovin’ it!

How did you get interested in crafting?

My mom helped me make a craft every day when I was little. At our house, we have always had a cabinet full of art supplies and anything crafty I was welcome to use anytime I wanted! And, I have been involved in all kinds of classes ranging from pottery painting and shaping, art, jewelry making, Michaels Weekly crafts, and sewing… And anything else I can get my hands on!

What are your favorite crafts?

Recreating clothes!!! And making head-bands! Oh, I can always go for a Mod Podge spell!

What’s your favorite project you’ve ever done?

I made a head band with a flower at church and it turned out sooo cute. I also love my skirt I turned into a purse back in February. Recently, I Mod Podged my light switch plate and I L-O-V-E it!

Can you remember your first craft?

Well, I can’t remember my “First” craft but when I was like 4, 5, 6 and 7 my mom let me tell the weather by getting a piece of construction paper and gluing cotton balls on it for clouds and we cut out suns for the heat and rain drops for when it rained! I loved it and looked foward to doing this every day!

Has there ever been a project that didn’t turn out like you wanted it to? What happened?

I made a night gown for my little sister out of some pants and one of my old shirts… Well, I got really over excited and sewed it up and added the ruffles… After I had it all ready and whipped up, I realized I forgot to measure her. The ruffles that were “suposed” to hit the neck… Long story short, the ruffles hit her hips! Let’s just say, It didn’t turn out as cute as I wanted… But…hey, at least I tried!

What are your favorite materials to craft with?

Mod Podge, Sewing Machine, and old clothes! I always feel like going to the fabric store and choosing funky fabrics! I absolutly love pink. So, pretty much anything in that color range makes me happy! Ruffles, zippers, and buttons give me chills! I just love them! My favorite idea/ pattern book is “One Yard Wonders”!!

Any advice for the crafters out there?

Craft because you like it, not because you have to!

The post Make a Hip Pouch & Interview with Karlista from EZ Crafts appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I think you will be interested in the site because I know you love great ideas, good design, and making your house a home, all on a budget. If you can dollar store craft, then you can build Knock Off Wood style! One of the things I like most about the site is that Ana White, the author of the blog, demystifies the process of building and is really encouraging toward beginners. Even if you have never picked up a hammer or power tool in your life, you will feel like you can do it after reading a few of the blog posts and reader testimonials.

Ana let me ask her a couple questions to share with you. I’ll share the interview on the next page, but first let me tell you about my storage bed and the very cheap (but cute) storage containers I made to go in it.

The Bed: Here’s the bed. It’s a king-sized storage bed that I painted dark brown. (Sidenote: you will notice that it’s REALLY tall because we use the boxspring as well as the mattress. I am so thankful for the lip on the end of the bed so I can get on the bed!! Otherwise, I’d also have to build a staircase too!). It’s been several months since we built it, so I don’t really have any major details to share because I have mommy brain and I can’t remember them. I believe we spent about $150, including paint and a countersink and drill bits. It took about 3-4 hours to build (not including about 2 hours in the home improvement store to get the lumber cut!) and several coats of paint. I think I should take a page out of some of other other builders’ books and go ahead and distress it in advance since I have 3 small kids!

Storage: I was stumped about how to put storage under the bed without spending as much as we spent on the bed. Large baskets were about $20 apiece at the cheapest, and the bed has space for 12 baskets. Hmm, 12 x $20 = too much. So, I hit upon a great idea. I bought a pack of 10 bankers boxes at Costco for less than $15, as well a can of paint.

I like the banker’s boxes because they are cheap, sturdy, easy to replace if necessary, easy to paint (and repaint, if you change color schemes), and streamlined looking. A painted banker’s box would also be easy to embellish. You could Mod Podge pretty paper to them, add fabric, ribbon, flowers, or whatever, according to your style. Oh, and they provide a ton of storage!

Project Estimate:

• Banker’s boxes, about $1.50 each
• Can of latex house paint, about $11, or on hand (leftover paint is great for this project)
• Primer, if you have some

Total: $1.50 and up per box

To Make:

Prime the banker’s boxes. This is optional, but recommended. You want to cover over any words or logos on the boxes so they don’t show through the paint.

Paint the boxes with latex paint in your chosen color. Give it a second or third coat, if necessary.

I assembled the boxes before I painted them, but after I did it, it occurred to me that it would be a lot quicker and easier to paint the boxes while they’re still flat.

Side project: if you want to make a “headboard” like mine, put three nails in the wall, tie dollar store jute string to them for a virtual headboard, and hang photos from the jute string with clothespins! Total cost: about $2 if you don’t already have everything on hand.

Now, on to the interview with Ana.

See Page 2 for interview –>

The post $2 Storage and Knock-Off Wood Interview appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Dollar Store Crafts reader Michelle was inspired by the Recycled Soda Bottle Coin Purse project to make her own. Then she took it one step further to make an entire soda bottle into a nifty holder for her iPod! Of course, you could use the bottle to hold many things. How handy would a holder like this be to toss into your diaper bag (straight into a bottle pocket!) or oversized purse? This would be a fantastic Earth Day craft for your scout troop, classroom, or other group.

Michelle’s tips for making this project:

My only advice is when cutting the bottle, to make sure to leave enough “flat lip” to sew into easily. Also, I found that using a tiny craft punch on the plastic first, made it a whiz to sew together…like those sewing cards we learned on with shoelaces as kids. LOL.

And here’s the photo of Michelle’s super-adorable coin purse!

iPod Holder Project Estimate:

• Recycled soda bottle, on hand
• Zipper, $1 or on hand
• Craft punch, on hand
• Needle & thread, on hand

Total cost: FREE to $1

The post Make a Recycled Soda Bottle iPod Holder appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Staci from Fiber Space Designs posted some amazing placemat handbags in the Dollar Store Crafts flickr pool so I just had to ask her for some more info about her creative process in designing handbags with placemats.

But first, the project breakdown! You can make a placemat handbag with one placemat or two (or more, especially if you use another kind of placemat for lining!). You can get handbag handles by purchasing an already-made purse from the dollar store. I bought one the other day that had hoop handles I plan to use on a placemat purse. The handles are made of plastic, and not very fancy, but I thought I could jazz them up by crocheting around them. Just an idea.

Project Materials:

• Placemat(s), $1-4
• Handles, $1
• Ribbon, $1 or on hand

Total cost: $2 and up

And now, the interview:

Where do you get your inspiration for the purses?

I get my inspiration anywhere I can find it, actually. I look at what other crafters are doing, and I look at mass produced bags to understand structure and how the parts go together.  When I see fabric in any form — placemats, sheets, tea towels, table lines, curtains, bandannas, etc. — I think about what it would look like as a bag or some other project. I’m a huge fan of thrift stores — Goodwill is my favorite — and I look for things I can strip for parts. I buy nice wool skirts for my future rugmaking endeavors (I haven’t actually learned how to do that yet, but I’m stashing already!), and I buy wool sweaters for felting. Leather skirts are great, too, for bags and pouches or sometimes for handles or straps — you can also cut up leather belts for that.  And don’t forget to save the zippers if they’re still in good shape. I always skim the scarf bin and the linens. Old prom dresses are good for lining fabrics.  There’s just no end to the things you can do with thrift shop finds! The craft supply table is always my first stop, though. I once got a bag full of 8 skeins of gorgeous Froehlich wolle yarn for $5.00. Retail, it’s about $7/skein. It’s also a good place to scavenge vintage buttons and costume jewelry.

Where do you get your inspiration for the interesting details you add to your purses?

I’m a fan of earthtones and things that are found in nature — shells, wood, bone, stones, etc. — and my friend likes bright colors and flowers so I try to think about what would appeal to lots of different people. There are a lot of teenagers in my life, too, so I try to think of things that appeal to them, as well. If you’ve seen the emo/goth wristlets on my blog or in my flickr page, I guess it’s pretty obvious they were meant for some teenagers.

I also knit, spin, and dye and my husband does knotwork and woodworking, so I get lots of ideas for details.  Using ribbon for handle loops was sort of an accident.  I was making prototype bags and I needed something to make the loops — the only thing I had handy in the right color was ribbon, so I used it, and everyone seemed to like it.  I wouldn’t recommend it for a bag that’s meant for everyday use, though — it’s just not tough enough.

Do you have any advice for working with placemats?

As far as advice for working with placemats, I recommend having different sizes of needles handy for your sewing machine for the different textures and weights of the placemats. I learned my lesson the hard way. I use a heavyweight needle that is meant for denim when I work with placemats. If they are hemmed, I cut the hems off. The seams just become too bulky when you’ve got the placemat and the interfaced lining. I also keep in my car some placemats and lining fabrics that don’t have mates yet. When I shop, I take them into the store with me and use them to find matching placemats and linings.  Be sure to take your receipt with you, though! My local stores all know me now and are used to me doing this, but when I started, I did have to dump out my bags a few times to account for everything! Fabric stores are used to seeing people do this, but dollar stores and thrift shops and other retail places not so much.

Do you have any advice for finding handles?

I’ve been buying my handles at my local Joann Fabrics and I just got a UMX catalog, but I’ve also been know to cannibalize other bags for parts, too.  Someday maybe my husband will have the time to make me some wooden or knotted ones.

The post Make Creative Placemat Handbags (Interview!) appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.