As quick and easy as it is adorable, this easy Easter embroidery pattern by Wendi at Shiny Happy World will have you stitching up a storm! If you have a collection of scraps and remnants, whipping up a collection of this cute embroidery hoop art is a great way to use of some of those treasured bits you’ve been saving. And if you don’t have any appropriate scraps on hand, this is a great excuse to go fabric shopping! [how to make easy Easter embroidery]

Project estimate:

• Embroidery hoop, on hand or $1 and up
• Fabric scraps, on hand
• Fusible webbing, on hand or $1 and up
• Embroidery floss, on hand or $1

Total: Free and up!

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We love a good tea towel project, and this one is particularly cute for summer!  Sarah from Sarah Hearts used a clever combination of simple stamping and embroidery to make these fruity kitchen accessories.  If tea towels aren’t your thing, this motif would also be cute on a tote bag, a t-shirt, or any other fabric item that could use a bit of sprucing up!  [how to make citrus tea towels]

Project estimate:

• Tea towels, $1 and up
• Fabric paint, on hand or $1 and up
• Sponge, on hand or $1
• Embroidery floss, on hand or $1

Total: $1 and up

The post Make Citrus Tea Towels appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

My favorite thing about embroidery is choosing my floss colors. These designs are lovely just as the artists displayed them, but you can get a totally different feel with the same embroidery pattern just by mixing up your colors. Swapping hot for cool or adding a pop of contrast to give any of these free embroidery patterns a bit of your own personality.

1. Don’t be Distracted – Inspired by a Sufjan Stevens song, this design from Wild Olive looks lovely in vibrant colors.

2. Make a Wish – How sweet are these pretty dandelions from While Wearing Heels?

3. Life is Beautiful – This cheery spring sampler from Baker Court is perfect for beating the winter blues.

4. The Sky is the Limit – I’d love this pretty hot air balloon by Spool & Spoon embroidered onto a tote bag.

5. Feather Alphabet – Use this free printable to create your own typographical art by Feeling Stitchy!

6. Give Thanks – Thanksgiving is long gone, and I love this reminder from Creative Kismet that we should be thankful every single day.

7. Do Small Things with Great Love – Amy at Nana Company says that this pattern was inspired by Mother Theresa.

8. Carl Sagan – Cherry and Cinnamon may have won my heart with this Carl Sagan quote embroidery pattern.

9. French Poem Napkins – Cloth napkins are tres chic, and I’m loving this pattern that Teresa Down Under shared on Craftsy.

10. COFFEE! – Need I say more? Thank you, Wild Olive, for sharing this one!

The post 10 Free Typographical Embroidery Patterns appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

What do you do with the empty cardboard tube when you finish a roll of tape?  Do you toss them in the recycling bin, or are you the type who packs them away just in case you come across a good idea for reusing them?   If you answered the latter, then this project from Alison at Whimsey Box is one you’ll want to remember!  Using an empty tape roll, a leather punch, and a few colors of embroidery floss, she created a beautiful bracelet design.  Doesn’t it make you want to go use up some tape?  [how to embroider a cardboard tube bangle]

Project estimate:

• Cardboard tape roll, on hand
• Leather punch, on hand or about $6 and up
• Embroidery floss, on hand or $1 and up

Total:  Free and up!

The post Embroider a Cardboard Tube Bangle appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If you don’t own a Dremel, there are a million reasons why you should, and this is one of them.  Erica from Honestly WTF was inspired by the work of a Russian designer; knowing she would likely never even have a chance to own a designer pair like the ones she saw on the runway, she whipped up her own version instead.  This is granny chic at its very finest!  [how to make embroidered sunglasses]

Project estimate:

• Sunglasses, on hand or $1 and up
• Dremel or power drill, on hand
• Embroidery floss, on hand or $1

Total:  Free and up

The post Make Embroidered Sunglasses appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

When you look at your desk, do you ever think, “Gee, this space just isn’t geeky enough”?  (No?  Maybe it’s just me?)  If your workspace is in need of a little personality, perhaps the answer is a wrist rest.  A geeky, keyboard cat wrist rest, perhaps, like this one from the good folks over at Urban Threads.  Cute, practical, and delightfully nerdy – how could I not fall in love?  [how to make a keyboard cat wrist rest]

Project estimate:

• Fabric, on hand or $1
• Embroidery thread, on hand or $1
• Rice, on hand
• Sewing machine or needle and thread, on hand

Total:  Free and up

The post Make a Keyboard Cat Wrist Rest appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

In time for Valentine’s Day, Thirty Handmade Days and Allison from little lovelies have come up with the perfect gift to give to all the book lovers in your life. Allison even provides you with a printable for a cute card to make these into a complete Valentine’s Day gift. These adorable stitched-heart bookmarks are so easy to make that you’ll want to give them to all your friends this year! [how to make stitched heart bookmarks]

Project Estimate:

• Felt, under $1 or on hand
• Thread, $1 or on hand
• Paper Clips, on hand
• Cardstock, on hand

Total: $2 or less

The post Make Adorable Stitched Heart Bookmarks appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

When they decided to call this book a class, they weren’t kidding.  Better Homes and Gardens Applique Class covers everything you ever wanted to know about the topic and then some!  I’ve been wanting to learn how to applique for years now, since it’s an inexpensive way to customize so many different things.  And it’s a good way to use up all of the random fabric scraps I keep stashed away.

The old adage says that there is more than one way to skin a cat, and this holds true for just about every step in the applique process.  Applique Class highlights six different methods of preparing the applique pieces, as well as techniques for both hand-sewn and machine-sewn appliques.  Every step of the way, you can decide what works best for your experience, skill level, and even what materials you have on hand.

To test your new applique skills, the remainder of the book is full of projects ranging from simple samplers to complex, advanced quilts, all selected by the editors of American Patchwork and Quilting.  Inside the front cover of the book is an envelope containing patterns for every project in the book so you can recreate them for yourself.

I’ve got my eye on the pattern from one of the book’s coffee cozy projects, but I want to use it to make a set of coasters.  After all, Christmas is quickly on its way…

I’m not going to lie and say that this book makes applique look easy, because no matter which combination of methods you use, it’s a very involved and exacting process. The book does, however, leave me walking away with a sense that yes, I could actually do this.  Considering that I am a novice seamstress, that’s a pretty big deal.

disclosure:  a review copy of this book was provided.

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While looking at a pencil cup she got at IKEA, Camilla from Family Chic noted that the mesh surface would be perfect for needlepoint.  She whipped out some yarn and made a lovely little sampler!  There are a couple of things that I really appreciate about this project:  1) that it’s perfect for using up some of the loads and loads of scrap yarn I’ve hoarded, and 2) that if you get tired of the pattern, you can easily cut it off and give it a re-do!  Camilla even made one with a cute spider motif for Halloween.  You can make them match any theme or occasion!  [how to make a needlepoint pencil cup]

Project estimate:

• Wire mesh pencil cup, $1 and up
• Yarn, on hand or $1 and up

Total: $1 and up

The post Make a Needlepoint Pencil Cup appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

You’ve heard of sock monkeys…  But how about glove squirrels?  No?  Esther from Handmade with Love needed a little plush zombie critter this Halloween, but didn’t want to zombify any of her existing stuffed animals.  Instead, she used inexpensive gloves to make a couple of cute little squirrels (one squirrel per glove), which she then made creepy and gruesome.   Cute and twisted…  Now that’s my kind of craft!  If you’re not into zombies, you can leave out the blood-and-terror element and embellish them to your own liking.  [how to make a glove into a zombie squirrel]

Project estimate:

• Gloves, on hand or $1
• Sewing notions, on hand
• Polyfill, on hand or about $3 and up

Total:  Free and up

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