Keeping plants indoors is said to improve air quality as well as increase feelings of general well being. Help make home or work a happier and healthier place to be by making your own air plant display following the instructions over on Suburbia Soup. You can get the materials needed for the holders at the dollar store but will need to visit a home improvement store or nursery to find the plants. [how to make a hanging air plant display]

Project estimate

• Strainer, $1 and up
• Small rocks, $1 and up
• Tray or cutting board, $1 and up
• Cup hooks, on hand
• Hanging hardware, on hand
• Paper fasteners, on hand
• Paper, on hand
• Pen, on hand
• Glue, on hand
• Wire cutters, on hand
• Air plant, about $3 and up

Total: about $6 and up

The post Make a Hanging Air Plant Display appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

What did you do with your love letters? I think mine are floating around in the atmosphere somewhere because most of them were via email in the 90s. If you know where yours are, and if you are brave enough to display them, sorta, then this idea from Erin at His & Hers is for you! She took dollar store frames and spray-painted them white, then added mattes, love letters, and number cut-outs (their anniversary date) over the top of them. The display is on a shelf over her windows, away from prying eyes. [how to make love letter art]

She used her Cricut to cut out the letters, and if you have a craft cutter, you already know what to do. If you don’t, you can print the letters on paper and then cut it out and paint it (or skip a step and print it on colored paper). The more frames you use, the bigger impact this art will be. I suggest going with five frames or more, like Erin did.

Project Estimate:

• Frames, $1 each
• Love letters, on hand
• Number cut-outs, on hand

Total: $1 and up

The post Make Love Letter Art appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I love wooden pants hangers (I use them as display hangers in my living room, and I even made personalized ones for my kids’ art), and I especially love this idea from Little Family in the Big City – using a hanger on the bottom of the art to keep it hanging straight and true. Oh, and it’s Mod Podged with cute paper, too! This is such a cheap and pretty way to display art. Get pants hangers at your local big-box store or IKEA for less than a buck apiece. [how to make podged art hangers] [via my bff amy]

Project Estimate:

• 2 pants hangers, $2
• Scrapbooking paper, on hand
• Mod Podge, on hand
• A poster, on hand

Total: $2

The post Make Inexpensive Art Hangers from… Hangers appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

How can you make one dollar wooden trays look a LOT more expensive? Add scrapbooking paper and hang them on the wall as a display. This is a great example of the true essence of Dollar Store Crafts: take something humble from the dollar store and elevate it into something that looks a lot more stylish and expensive. Angie at Scrap Scene made these dollar store trays Martha-worthy (or maybe Anthropologie-ish) with a simple addition of pretty paper. You can display the trays as-is or use them as frames for other things. A well-loved collection would be at home mounted in these boxes. [how to make embellished wooden trays]

Project Estimate:

• Wooden box, $1
• Scrapbooking paper, on hand or $.25
• Glue or Mod Podge, on hand
• Paper trimmer or scissors, on hand

Total: $1 and up

The post Make Pretty Wooden Tray Decor appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Su didn’t originally intend to share her whisk jewelry tree on her website, Vively Online.  That is, until her husband saw it and said, “A whisk!   You gotta be s&*##ing me.  This is something you have to share.”  I agree with him; if I didn’t know, I’d never guess it was made from any type of kitchen utensil!  This ingenious design is perfect for displaying earrings, bangles, and other baubles atop a vanity or dresser.  [how to make a whisk jewelry tree]

I’m thinking of making one of these as a display piece for craft shows; I make a lot of hook-style earrings and this is the perfect way to show them off while taking up minimal table space.  Rather than spend money on decorative stones, I plan to use beach glass that I have collected along the Lake Michigan shoreline.  You can also go hunting for pretty rocks almost anywhere!

Project estimate:

• Large whisk, $1
• Glass vase, $1
• Stones or other decorative fill, free or $1
• Beads, on hand or $1
• Ribbon, on hand or $1

Total:  $2 and up

The post Make a Whisk Jewelry Tree appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I wanted to say “make a doggie frame” but this frame is sooo much more, and the principle of making this project can be used for any kind of display you want. Blue Artichoke Interiors posted a tutorial on how to use two dollar store frames to make a unique display item. In this case, a photo of a beloved doggie is in the smaller, center frame, and the space between the frames is covered in burlap and dog bones. You can match the objects to whatever photo you are displaying, like the seashells surrounding this beach photo at Decor Chick. [how to make a display frame]

Project Estimate:

• 2 frames: one larger, one smaller (make sure you have space for decorative items when smaller frame is laid over larger frame), $2
• Burlap material or brown kraft paper, on hand or $1
• Duct tape, on hand
• Hot glue and glue sticks, on hand
• Picture, on hand
• Objects to glue onto frame, on hand or $1 and up

Total: $2 and up

The post Make a Double-Display Frame appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If you have little ones in the house, you know how those precious pieces of artwork can multiply daily.  It feels so mean to just throw some of them away, but your fridge is only so big, right?  Here’s a simple, and CHEAP, way to display a few more of those masterpieces.

Over at my blog, Mad in Crafts, I have been showing how I have been sprucing up my son’s new playroom (which used to be our dining room).  I used the PB Kids Star Art Cable as the inspiration for some wall art to make the space more kid-friendly.  Using a handful of materials from your own home, or the dollar store, you can knock-off PB Kids too!  [Go here for the tutorial]

Project Estimate:

• Craft foam, on hand or $1
• Nails and picture wire, on hand or $1 for picture hanging kit
• Hammer, on hand
• Clothespins, on hand or $1

Total: Free to $3

The post Make a PB Kids Inspired Art Display appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Hi Heather,
I first want to say that I love your blog and always enjoy seeing the crafts you showcase. I have seen you come up with ideas for several other decorating and party schemes (and your readers are wonderful too!) so I was hoping you might be able to help me out.

My husband’s family (of 14 kids *gasp) has 7 birthdays from April through May (ages 17 through 30, boys and girls) and every year we do a mass birthday party instead of trying to have a party every week. This year we are trying to plan a masquerade theme and I would really love some cheap ideas. I’m already making giant and over sized paper masks to hang on the walls and I have a couple of wrought iron candliers to hang up (we’re decorating in our large unfinished basement) and I plan to use lots of twinkly lights as well as balloons but I would sure love some ideas for centerpieces and other decor. We plan to have the party on the first of May in the evening with indoor and outdoor entertaining areas so we’ve got a couple of weeks and I’ve got a LOT of free time.

Thanks so much in advance for any suggestions you can make!

Melissa

My idea:

A Candy Buffet: Since there will be guests of all ages, a candy buffet would be a fun and colorful centerpiece (and the best part: you don’t have to spend money on stuff you won’t use again, because it’s all edible!) Here are some ideas for how to make a candy buffet:

I found a fantastic example of a candy buffet at Kara’s Party Ideas. She gives a lot of info on how she created her candy buffet in this blog entry, but some of the cool things she made are: marshmallow pops, tissue paper pom-poms, and a Dum Dum topiary, which is a fabulous centerpiece idea for a masquerade!

The Dum Dum topiary is a great dollar store craft! So great, in fact, that I’m gonna cost it out for you right here:

Project Estimate:

• Planter, $1 (paint your theme color)
• Floral foam, $1
• Foam ball, $1
• Dowel, $.50 (will make several topiaries)
• Maribou boa, $1 (if you can find one in the toy section of the dollar tree, otherwise more like $3-5 per boa)
• Bag of Dum Dums, $1 and up (sometimes they have these at the dollar store)

Total: $5.50 or so

One reason why I like the topiary is that it gives a lot of visual impact (and the appearance of a LOT) of candy, but you can make it for relatively little money. Instead of having to fill an entire vase with candy, you can strategically place your candy on the foam ball and visually extend it!

Lollipop Display Idea: There are a lot of other great candy buffet ideas at Hostess With The Mostess, including this Sesame Street candy buffet post in which she gives a lot of good advice for setting your own buffet up. I like how she displays these lollipops by filling a container with a flat piece of foam, sticking the lollipops in the foam, then topping with loose candy.

Sourcing Your Candy: If I were doing a candy buffet, my first stop would be Winco–a west coast grocery store that has a great bulk food section, including lots of candy. If you don’t live in WA, OR, CA, NV, ID, or UT, you might have a similar grocery chain in your area. The dollar store has some novelty candy (although not in big quantities!), so you might be able to do some fill-in candy from the dollar store. You can also buy a variety of candy in bulk from Oriental Trading Company (and they also have some masquerade party supplies). [I found the swirl sucker assortment shown here at OTC: $24.99 for 110 pieces]

This photo is from a Pirate birthday party I had for my son. As you can see, you don’t have to have huge containers of candy to make visual impact! I used dishes I already had at home for a few kinds of candy, and then filled in with other cheap, colorful items like plastic containers of bubbles, and basket of fruit.

Candy Buffet Display: You can find various colorful or clear receptacles for holding candy at the dollar store. They have a lot of candy dishes, bowls, vases, glasses and goblets. You can also make your own tiered serving dishes from trays and a candlestick, like this one at Tatertots & Jello, or this tiered bowl would also be especially great for a colorful candy display. Don’t overlook the cylindrical vases! They’ll make a great visual impact filled with colorful layers of candy.

[this candy buffet by Holly at Art, Meet Craft]

Serving the Candy: Remember to provide some kind of portable receptacle for people to take their candy in. Clear plastic party glasses are good for at-party snacking, and little favor bags or boxes work well for to-go boxes. You can find all of these things in the wedding section at your local Dollar Tree.

Now it’s your turn: Readers, I know you have a lot of good ideas for masquerade party centerpieces and decor, so please chime in with your ideas!

The post Masquerade Party Ideas? (Candy Buffet!) appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

How cute are these dainty stands, made to hold just one cupcake each? I love this idea, by reader Jackie at Made by the Mama Monster! Wouldn’t it be fun for a tea party or baby shower? Of course, the concept of gluing one glass thing to another is very versatile, and can be used for many different applications. The dollar store actually has a decent selection of dishes, glasses, and other things that are perfect for this kind of project. If you’re not into displaying individual cupcakes, try this idea to add height to your holiday table, or for a side table of goodies. [link to project instructions]

Project Estimate:

• Glass candle dish, $1
• Glass candle stick, $1
• Glue (E6000 or Gorilla Glue), on hand (you can also use hot glue for a non-permanent display)

Total: $2

The post Make Individual Cupcake Stands appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I really LOVE this idea: it’s so simple and versatile. J. Paige at Scatter Sunshine mixed and matched candle holders and fit one inside the other to make this clever creepy candle holder complete with display space for her favorite Halloween decorations. (Check her blog for various other great fall versions of the display candle holder, too!) This idea is infinitely adaptable – you can put ANYTHING in the candle holder you want. Wouldn’t a terrarium be cool? Or you could display items that you collect, or birthday-related decorations, or wedding decorations, or… you fill in the blanks! [click here for J. Paige’s instructions!]

Project Estimate:

• 2 vases, $2
• Display items (skulls), $1
• Candle, $1
• Other decorations (optional), on hand or $1 and up

Total: $4

The post Make a Spooky Candle Holder (Awesome!!) appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.