I have many fond childhood memories of Grandma’s house.  One thing that I remember is that she always had a basket full of pretty little soaps that sat near the bathroom sink.  These were the “guest soaps” and nobody was allowed to use them.  It never made sense to me; why call them guest soaps if the guests aren’t supposed to touch them?  These days I prefer to call them “decorative soaps,” a name that seems much more fitting.  Want to dress up your vanity with some decorative soaps of your own?  Gail from Can’t Stop Making Things applied a free vintage graphic to some plain bars of soap, creating her own custom soaps that would be perfect for display or to use as gifts.  You can use this method to put any image you want onto the bars!  [how to make decorative printed soaps]

Project estimate:

• Bar soap, $1
• Tissue paper, on hand or $1
• Computer & printer, on hand
• Graphic, free
• Wax paper, on hand or $1
• Hair dryer, on hand

Total: $1 and up

The post Make Decorative Printed Soaps appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Here’s a graphic 3D art project to make just in time for Valentine’s Day. Meg at Brassy Apple is a dollar store craftin’ genius, and she found a great way to use those cool valentine floral picks from the dollar store. Need a little giftie to give friends or neighbors for V-day? I have found that valentines are one really good way to make connections with people. Give a co-worker a valentine, and you’ll be on their good list for the year. These are the perfect grown-up answer to the little valentine cards from grade school. [how to make 3D Valentine Art]

You can find the picks in the seasonal section at Dollar Tree, but you can also usually find them near the wedding section year-round (at least, you can at my DT).

Project Estimate:

• 5×7 Frame (remove glass), $1
• Scrapbook paper, on hand
• 2 heart picks (package comes w/8), $.20
• Supplies: knife, pencil, scissors, glue, on hand

Total: $1.20

The post Make 3D Valentine Art appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

A few weeks ago my local Dollar Tree put out a bunch of last year’s leftover Christmas merchandise marked at half off.  Included in the offerings were a bunch of ornament display hangers.  I thought about grabbing one but had no idea what I would do with it; now I wish I had gone with my gut and gotten one!  Leah from Mommy on the Bus used her ornament hanger to create a fabulous photo display for Halloween!  [how to make a spooky photo display]

Project estimate:

• Christmas ornament display hanger, $1
• Paper photo frames, $1
• Spray paint, $1 and up
• Images, on hand or free
• String, on hand
• Coffee or tea, on hand or $1 and up

Total: $3 and up

She used the same paper picture frames I bought on a recent trip to Dollar Tree, using black spray paint to give them an entirely different look.  She filled the frames with spooky images that she printed using her computer from a blog called The Graphics Fairy, which she then gave an aged effect using coffee.  You can also use pictures from greeting cards, coloring books, or of course actual photos.  For a more whimsical look, you could add buttons, ribbon, and other embellishment to the frames as well!

The post Make a Spooky Photo Display appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

This mobile is a great way to bring some mid-century modern into your home for less than a buck. Yep! I said a buck. In fact, if you work from materials in your stash, or your recycling bin, your only expense will be the two pennies you use to weigh the mobiles down. I used two main colors for the two sides of the mobile, plus a couple accent colors , so when the mobile hangs freely in the air, the pieces rotate gently and the look of the mobile constantly changes.

I love this print by artist Jenn Ski. I am in love with her color choices, the shapes, and the way she put them all together. I bookmarked the print months ago, and recently found it again and was inspired to create a mobile for myself, using the print as inspiration. (In a separate incident last year, I bought some of Jenn’s awesome Actopus To Zelephant paper products at Michael’s. I didn’t even know they were by the same artist! I am a confirmed fan of Jenn’s now!) She’s a terrific artist, and Jenn is also a super nice person, and she graciously agreed to let me share my mobile instructions and templates with you. Because this project is based on another artist’s work, please use these instructions only for personal use (no selling mobiles based on this pattern.)

A few weeks ago I got a Cricut Expression (if you aren’t familiar with Cricuts, they look like a printer, but they cut lines instead of printing them) from another crafter, and I found out about a software called Sure Cuts-a-Lot, which allows you to cut any shape you want using the Cricut. This mobile was my first project using Sure Cuts-a-Lot. I have to use the software a little more before I review it for you, but let me just say, in a word, love.

I have been on a cut-out-paper project kick for a few months anyway, and the Cricut reduces production time (read: tracing and cutting) from hours to minutes. I was able to make this mobile in about an hour, from making the shapes on my illustration program, to cutting them on the Cricut, to assembling the mobile.

But don’t worry if you don’t have a Cricut. You can do this project without one. You can even do it without a printer. I’ll tell you how to do it no matter what tools you have at your disposal.

But first, the

Project Materials:

• 2-4 pieces of 12×12″ card stock, $.50 each
  (OR) recycled cardboard like cereal boxes, on hand
• Page of text, (like newspaper, love letter, book page, etc.) on hand
• Fishing line or thread, on hand
• 2 pennies, $.02
• Craft glue
• Clear tape
• Scissors, X-acto knife, or Cricut with Sure Cuts-A-Lot
• (optional) Computer printer
• (optional) 2 rings (like binder rings) for mounting, $1

Total: $.02 and up

Go to Page 2 for Instructions

The post Make a Mod Mobile appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.