It has been chilly on and off here in Atlanta, and I have been seeing pictures of snow all over my friends’ Facebook pages. Nothing warms me up on a cold morning like a hot drink, and I hate when my warm cup of coffee goes almost instantly cold in the fall and winter. These DIY coffee cozies are a great way to use scrap or stash fabric. Make them for yourself, or whip some up to gives as gifts!

1. Knit Cozy – Grab this free pattern and whip up cute cozies in your favorite colors.

2. Coffee Cozy and French Press Cozies – Stitch up matching cozies to keep your French press coffee warm from carafe to cup.

3. Button Cozy – Raid your button stash for this cute, simple reusable coffee cozy.

4. Cat Cozy – Wrap your cup in a kitty hug. Download the free pattern for this cute felt coffee cozy.

5. Pencil and Paper Cozy – These would make a great teacher gift.

6. Ruffle Cozy and Gift Card Holder – Include some coffee with that coffee cozy. This ruffled cozy has a space where you can tuck in a gift card to your favorite local spot.

7. Fox Cozy – Grab the free pattern for this super cute fox-themed coffee cup cozy.

8. Hope Mug Cozy – Paper coffee cups aren’t the only ones that go cold in winter. If you use this free pattern, the pattern creator asks that you donate a dollar to St. Jude Children’s Hospital to help fight childhood cancer.

9. Custom Sized Mug Cozy – Mugs come in many sizes, and this tutorial shows you how to create a custom cozy for your favorite one.

10. No-Sew Coffee Cozy – Felt and hot glue are the keys to this simple coffee cozy tutorial.

The post 10 DIY Coffee Cozies for You or for Gifts appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Over at Carolyn’s Homework, a cute leftover notebook was turned into an adorable journal for jotting down project ideas, sketches and notes with the help of some leftover fabric. Dollar stores always have notebooks of random sizes, so this is a great way to stashbust those scraps! [how to make a fabric scrap journal]

Project estimate:

• Notebook, on hand or $1
• Fabric scraps, on hand
• Glue, on hand

Total:  Free and up

The post Make a Fabric Scrap Journal appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

This looks like a fun project for pretty much any age – stuffing pretty scraps of yarn into a tube and then transforming it into a shiny bracelet. They remind me of the glittery water bracelets I used to wear back in the 80s. Our new friend PC over at Meijo’s Joy shared this cool project with us. It will definitely get you and your kids through the final “I’m Bored!” days of summer! [make a pvc tube bangle]

This bracelet is a great way to use up scraps of yarn (or even fabric!), or glitter, sand, beads, or whatever else fits inside a little plastic tube. You can find the tubing at your local hardware store, or maybe in the pet supplies section of your big box store.

Project Estimate:

• PVC tubing, $1 and up
• Scrap yarn, fabric, or ribbon, on hand
• Bamboo skewer, on hand
• Cooking oil, on hand
• Lighter or source of flame, on hand

Total: $1 and up

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What is yarn bombing?  Also called yarn graffiti, yarn bombing is “vandalizing” a public space by installing knitted or crocheted pieces.  It is often seen in the form of lamp post cozies or sweaters on statues.  Here are a few examples:

[Tree Trunk Cozy from Wikimedia Commons]

[Stop Sign Post Cozy by Streetcolor]

[Bike Rack Cozy by Micro-Fiber Militia]

And so I issue a challenge!  I dare all of you to dig into that stash and yarn bomb something on June 11, 2011.  Hang dozens of pom poms from a tree in your neighborhood playground, make hats for the parking meters downtown, wrap granny squares around the slats of the benches at the bus stop…  Whatever you think will make people in your town or city smile!

We want to see what you do to celebrate International Yarn Bombing Day, so we’ll be opening a Flickr pool when the event gets here!  Meanwhile, here are a few helpful links on the subject for you to check out:

• International Yarn Bombing Day Facebook Page
• Yarn Bombing DIY Flickr group
• YarnBombing.com
• Yarn Bombing by Instructables user DarthKnitious

The post Yarn Stashbusting: International Yarn Bombing Day appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Challenge sponsor and participant Marisa Pawelko made a girly toilet roll cover that she shared with us last week, making some not-so-pretty components into a beautiful creation.

Stashbuster Tanya has posted a couple of her stashbusting projects so far on her blog, ScrappyLand, USA. First she used a pair of fuzzy mittens to embellish an Easter gift bag, and she also used her new Westcott Brand scissors and some felted sweater material to make a scrappy flower.

We already showed you the fold-up organizer made by Debra of Housewife Eclectic; she also used the zippers in her stash box to make no-sew zipper roses.

Caro, one of our Canadian bonus stashbusters who got a box of goodies from Until Wednesday Calls, made a monogram frame that she shared on her blog, Caro’s Thrifty Adventure, and we shared with you last week as well.

Craft foam has been a hot item from the stashbuster boxes, and thanks to Creative Hands Crafts there was plenty to go around!  We’ve seen some great uses for it so far.   Aunt Peaches over in Illinois used some to make a crazy pendant lamp reminiscent of Pee Wee’s Playhouse.

Our UK stashbuster, Sam, sent us a rundown of how she made a kawaii-style cookie greeting card using craft foam.

In Texas, Jackie (who started a new blog, My Crafting Projects, just for this challenge) used some sheets of foam and some pipe cleaners from her stash box to make a puzzle frame.

There are more projects to come, so stay tuned!

The post Secret Stashbuster Check-In: 9 Stash-tacular Projects appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

How is your April stash bust going?  Our super secret stashbusters have been busy, busy bees, and we’ve been seeing all kinds of fun things start coming our way!  Our UK stashbuster, Sam, sent us this abso-freakin’-lutely adorable kawaii cookie greeting card that she made using a couple of items from her challenge box.  If you’ve never heard the term kawaii, it’s a Japanese term that refers to a style featuring extra-super-over-the-top cuteness.  She doesn’t have her own blog, but she was kind enough to write about the project for us!

Project estimate:

• Craft foam, on hand or $1
• Circle die or templates, on hand
• Creative Hands Sm’Art Foam Markers,  on hand or $4.49
• Gel pen, on hand
• Scrapbook paper, on hand
• Glue, on hand

Total:  Free and up

Make a Kawaii Cookie Greeting Card

by Secret Stashbuster Sam Child

On 15th April 2011, a box arrived at my house in the post, which had me puzzled! My first thoughts upon seeing the ‘mystery box’ (as a frequent swapper on Swap-Bot!) were that it must be a parcel from a swap partner; yet I could not recall signing up for any large swaps recently…

Eagerly delving into the parcel, a friendly letter soon answered my question regarding its sender – Dollar Store Crafts!! (I am ashamed to admit to it, but until the letter refreshed my memory, I had forgotten all about signing up for a chance to take part in the crafting experiment – my memory is so poor lately! – but I was most excited about having been chosen & feel very lucky!)

From the exclamations of ‘wow!’s, ‘ooh!’s and ‘aah!’s that anybody passing my room would have heard as I sorted through the box’s contents, methinks it was most clear that the contents did not disappoint!! Despite this, I was somewhat ‘stuck’ to begin with, as to what to do with the fabulous goodies…I felt somewhat overwhelmed, I guess!

Slowly but surely, ideas began to creep into my brain… boys pirate-themed birthday cards with medals attached, decoupage upon the magnetic letters with some pretty papers from my stash…the Sesame Street ice cube tray had me somewhat stumped still, but I knew I’d just have to use it for something fun, as my brother is often (lovingly!) referred to as ‘the cookie monster’!!!

Despite this, my first (and so far, I’m afraid to say, my only completed!) project took me by surprise!  You see, other than the ‘fuzzy stix’, the one thing which perhaps appealed to me the least of the box’s contents was the coloured foam sheets. Not that I have anything against it, mind you, but I’ve had some sitting in my own crafty stash for (what seems like!) forever and never seem to find any use for it. Thus, when I found myself planning out a project using some of the foam, I was somewhat shocked; I guess it goes to show that anything ‘new’ can inspire you..even if you already have access  to something similar (..that, and the fact that perhaps I need to stop buying craft supplies and have a good ol’ rummage around through what I already own – who knows, maybe I’ll be inspired by something!!)

To begin with, I decided to have a play with running the foam through my Sissix Bigshot machine – something I’ve never done (nor even really thought of doing!) before now. I wasn’t sure that any dies that I currently own would cut through the foam, but a quick search on Google informed me that the nestabilities dies were indeed capable of cutting foam. My limited die supplies proved somewhat useful in my project, for it made me consider – what I could do with circles, perhaps? So, the idea of a cookie came about!

After using a large circle die to cut the cookie ‘base’ from the beige foam sheet from the stashbuster goodies, I used the smallest circle die to cut multiple ‘chocolate chips’ from the brown foam sheet…and so – with a little tacky glue, some firm pressure & a fair amount of drying time! – the ‘cookie’ began to take form!

Whilst I left the glue to dry, I decided to open the Creative Hands ‘Sm’Art Foam Markers’ and test ‘em out on some of the scrap foam I had from cutting my ‘cookie’…

First impressions? I was quite impressed that these did seem to draw on the foam relatively easily and ‘bleed-free’, but I wasn’t sure if they seemed much different to using a permanent marker on the foam… Enter my faithful black permanent marker! To be honest, after comparing the two pens in a few test doodles, I still wasn’t not wholly convinced that there was a huge difference in how the two markers ‘took’ to the foam, the time taken to dry to be smudge-proof, nor in the extent of bleeding, although the foam marker was perhaps slightly easier to control on the foam & retains the ‘black’ colour a little better than the permanent marker (which, once dry, can appear to have a purple-ish tint in some lights). One quandary I think I’d have with the foam markers is the thickness – they are thicker than I expected, which makes it difficult to accurately draw on any fine detail. I know I can get permanent markers with a fine tip, but as for the foam markers? I’m glad to have been introduced to them courtesy of this stashbusters giveaway (thank you, Heather and Creative Hands! :-D)… fine-tipped foam markers are definitely something I might have to look into!

Next, after ‘finishing’ the edges, by running the ‘cookie’ back through the die cutting machine with the large circle die, I used a (normal, office-type) hole punch to create two tiny circles from a scrap piece of white card, which were finished with details drawn on using my faithful black gel pen; the ‘eyes’ were then glued onto the ‘cookie’ using the aforementioned glue and I drew on a ‘smile’ using the black foam marker, which I had previously tried out. The ‘cookie’ was then backed onto a white card circle, which I bordered using my black gel pen and attached (using ‘sticky fixers’ from my stash) onto a card (which I had given a blue dotty background to, using a scrap of patterned paper) Finally, I used another small scrap of white card from my stash to create a small speech mark, onto which I doodled some text & a border; this was also affixed using ‘sticky fixers’ from my stash, to add more dimension to the card.

..and there you have it – a cute ‘kawaii’ style cookie card, suitable for all sorts of occasions!!

The post Stashbusting Tutorial: Make a Kawaii Cookie Greeting Card appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

When secret stashbuster Caro of Caro’s Thrifty Adventures opened up her magical box of goodies and saw fabric and a zipper she panicked for a moment, since she doesn’t fancy herself much of a seamstress.  She shook it off, got to brainstorming, and came up with this project that incorporated both without requiring her to pick up a needle and thread:  a framed monogram with subtle detailing that makes it quite elegant.  Since she’s an avid paper crafter, she had a bunch of letter stickers and chipboard letters on hand; if you don’t happen to have any in your stash, check out Dollar Tree for stick-on craft foam letters that will give the same dimensional effect.  [how to make a monogram frame]

Project estimate:

• Picture frame, on hand or $1
• Letter stickers, on hand or $1 and up
• Chipboard letters, on hand or $1 and up
• Fabric, on hand
• Zipper, on hand or $1 and up
• Embellishments, on hand
• Spray paint, on hand or $1 and up
• Cardboard, on hand
• Glue, on hand

Total:  Free and up

The post Secret Stashbuster Project: Make a Monogram Frame appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Super secret stashbuster Mich L. started her blog JUST to show off what she is making from the envelope o’ randomness I sent her. She has challenged herself to make TEN things from the envelope – I love the ambition. So far she’s made three things, all great. The third project is a showstopper! She used some zippers to make pretty necklaces (and the black part of the pendant is also a secret ingredient from the dollar store!). [click here to get the zipper necklace tutorial]

Project Estimate:

• Nylon zipper, $1
• Ribbon ends, $1
• Chain, $1
• Stuff from your stash for the pendant, on hand

Total: $3

The post Make a Zipper Necklace appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I should save this for my weekend stashbusting roundup, but I really can’t wait! Check out these amazing flowers that Nicole made while she was working on busting her stash! I love the innovation involved in taking a humble material like the paper towel and transforming it into something so colorful and whimsical. I am digging the combination of elements on each flower: burlap, dyed paper towels, buttons, faux flowers, netting, and more (and I like how Nicole arranged the flowers on a dollar store wreath, too)!  [click here for the tutorial at Made by Nicole]

If you’re having trouble getting inspired by your stash, look no further than your recycling pile and a roll of paper towels, and try making some of these flowers! They seem like such a fun playtime activity!

Project Estimate:

• Paper towels, on hand
• Dye, paint, food coloring, on hand
• Assorted other embellishments, on hand (use what you have)
• Stapler with staples, on hand
• Wreath form, on hand (or cut cardboard into a circle)

Total: FREE

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