Take these elephant and dinosaur toys from the dollar store and use them to make some fun photo holders to display on your desk, shelf or playroom. Add a dash of whimsy to any room. You’ll be surprised at the way these clever photo holders are constructed, so check out how easy it is to make this dinosaur photo frame craft!

Hi there! Katie here today from Punk Projects! I love using inexpensive items in my crafting. If it involves upcycling, I’m all for it! I took a trip to the Dollar Tree to get some inspiration for today’s post and I found these awesome plastic toys.

Supplies Needed:

Project estimate:

• Toy animals, $1
• Flat magnets, on hand or $1
• Super glue, on hand or $1
• Craft knife or box cutter, on hand

Total:  $1 and up

1. Decide on your animals. I loved the brontosaurus, and the elephant is for a friend.

2. Use a craft knife to cut through the animal. Most plastic animals have a seam where they were put together, cut on that seam and it will be easier. Just don’t cut yourself.

3. Once you have your animal cut in half, trace around him onto a magnet.

4. Cut out 2 magnets for each animal.

5. Go around the cut edge of your animal with super glue and glue your magnet to it.

6. Let it dry completely.

Once your magnets have been glued on and dried, slide a photo in between the animal piece and stand him back up! I love these little dinosaur photo frames!

What do you think? Would you make a dinosaur photo frame craft for yourself, or for a friend?

Pin the Dinosaur Photo Frame Craft:

I’m Katie, a lover of anything artsy. I doodle on everything I can get my hands on, however my favorite projects are scrapbooking, restyled/upcycled crafts and sewing. I write my blog, Punk Projects, where I post tutorials, inspiration and other fun things as well as designing custom shoes in my etsy shop.

You can also find me here on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

The post Tutorial: Toy Animal Photo Holders appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Have you ever wished for a piece of cake that had no calories?  Well, wish no more!  Believe it or not, these slices of cake are actually made out of ordinary household sponges.  They would make great gifts or party decorations.  Or use them as treats for a make-believe tea party!

Project estimate:

• Sponges, $1 and up
• Scraps of foam board, on hand
• Paint, on hand
• White silicone caulk, about $2 and up
• Cake decorating kit, $1 and up
• Hot glue, on hand

Total:  about $4 and up

With scissors, cut the sponges into the shapes you want. I wanted my slices to be double layers, so I cut two of each.

Cut a piece of foam board that is just a bit more narrow than the pieces of sponge. This will separate the layers and allow you to put frosting between them. Glue the foam board in the middle of the sponges, I used hot glue.

Paint the sides of the sponges. The easiest way to do this is to use a sponge brush and press the paint into the sponge. I painted the chocolate slices three times. The pink cake I used a pink sponge and only painted one coat because I wanted the pink to show through. Even if your sponge is the colour that you want your cake, paint it. It will look much more realistic.

Now you’re ready to frost your cakes. I would strongly recommend buying a dollar store cake decorating kit, accidents happen and the silicone will dry pretty hard. Use the silicone just as you would frosting.

I will not presume to tell you how to frost a cake. I will, however, tell you that the thicker you apply the “frosting” the longer it will take to set up.

Time to paint the frosting! I used acrylic paint that I purchased from the dollar store. The colour I used on the dark chocolate slice was Burnt Umber. For the frosting I added white for milk chocolate. For the white frosting, I didn’t do anything because the silicone is so realistic on its own.

The post Tutorial: Faux Sponge Cake (made from real sponges!) appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

As someone who is obsessed with miniatures, I squealed a little bit when I first saw this tiny version of the classic leg lamp (as seen in “A Christmas Story”), which was created by Instructables user seamster.  Already amazed at the scale – it’s made from a Barbie leg – I then realized something else completely amazing – this one is even a working lamp!  Crazy, right?  If you’re up for it, the instructions show you how to add the electrical components – or you can skip that bit if you’re not comfortable with your wiring skills and go for one that’s just for show.  [how to make a miniature leg lamp]

Project estimate:

• Fashion doll, on hand or $1
• Fine-tip Sharpie, on hand or $1
• Yellow paper, on hand
• Lampshade template, free
• Fringe trim, $1
• Glue, on hand
• Barbie shoe (or clay), on hand
• Wooden circle, on hand or $1
• Electrical components (optional), about $2 and up

Total: about $1 and up

The post Make a Miniature Leg Lamp appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

This pumpkin has gone incognito.  It’s like it’s wearing a costume!  But seriously, how cute and clever is this idea?  Kelly at Studio DIY has a bit of a pineapple obsession, which led her to this fun design.  This is a pumpkin decorating technique that doesn’t require any cutting so it is very kid-friendly, and uncut pumpkin last longer before they begin to rot.  Or do this with a fake pumpkin and you can enjoy it for years to come!  What other fruits could you dress up your pumpkin as for Halloween?  [how to make a pineapple pumpkin]

Project estimate:

• Pumpkin, on hand or $1 and up
• Paint, on hand or $1 and up
• Paper, on hand or $1
• Glue, on hand
• Sunglasses, on hand or $1

Total:  Free and up!

The post Make a Pineapple Pumpkin appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

My iPhone is one of my most important possessions – it goes everywhere with me and serves so many different purposes that it’s indispensable! But you know what would make it even handier? A tripod! Shannon from eat.sleep.MAKE. made one for herself using the back half of a plastic dinosaur and I could not be more delighted with her design. Not only is it functional and inexpensive, it’s also freakin’ hilarious! [how to make a dinosaur phone tripod]

Project estimate:

• Plastic dinosaur, on hand
• Caulk, about $5 and up
• Suction cup, on hand or $1

Total: about $5 and up

The post Make a Dinosaur Phone Tripod appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If the neighbors had any doubt that we are the strangest people on the block, I think that my latest project just might confirm our status as the neighborhood weirdos.  Lots of folks around here have plastic flamingos on their lawn – one guy even has a collection of them that he rearranges into different configurations every few days – but nobody else in town has a zebra flamingo.  (Zemingo?  Flebra?)  Want to add a little weird to your yard as well?  Read on…

Project estimate:

• Plastic flamingo, $1 and up
• Spray primer, on hand or $1 and up
• Black paint, on hand or $1 and up

Total:  $1 and up

I was so excited to see plastic lawn flamingos at Dollar Tree that I had to resist snatching up a whole armload of them.  Instead, I grabbed a pair.  If you can’t find them at your local store, check for them on the Dollar Tree website; while seasonal items come and go from their inventory, when I looked I found them available with a minimum order quantity of four!

I knew that I wanted to give my flamingos a complete makeover, so the first thing I did was give them a few coats of white spray primer.  Be patient and use lots of light coats to get good coverage in all of the cracks created by the feathers without making the paint look drippy.

Before you start painting the zebra stripes, look at some photos of real zebras to get an idea of what they should look like.  I kept a photo of a zebra up on my computer screen as I was working so I always had something to refer to.  This picture is from Wikimedia Commons; if you want to see more pictures of zebras from different angles, try a Google image search.  A little research goes a long way!

The great thing about painting zebra stripes is that, due to their unique-like-a-fingerprint nature, they are actually very forgiving.  I had five or six “oops” moments while painting this one and you can’t even tell!

I still have one more flamingo left to paint, but I am debating what to do with it.  Should I paint it with zebra stripes as well, or should I try painting one with giraffe spots?  (Wouldn’t that be funny??)  What’s your vote?

The post Tutorial: Zebra Stripe Lawn Flamingo appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Ever wished that your littles were as good at cleaning up messes as they are at making them?  If you have a crawler, here’s a way they can help with the housework!  Carissa made this hilarious “cleaning crew” onesie that she shared at Creative Green Living, using a dollar store car wash mitt to make a tummy-mounted dust mop.  It’s never to early to be mommy’s little helper, right?  At the very least, this ought to get some good laughs out of people.  …Though keep in mind that your kid may never forgive you if you dub them with the nickname “Swiffer.”  [how to make a baby cleaning crew shirt]

Project estimate:

• Onesie, on hand or $1
• Car wash mitt, $1
• Freezer paper, on hand
• Fabric paint, on hand

Total:  $1 and up

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There are some popular big box store retailers that sell adorable themed piggy banks. Unfortunately they also come with prices to match. There is no need to spend lots of money on an adorable change collector when Jessica from Mad in Crafts shows you how to make even an even cuter themed piggy bank on a dollar store budget. [how to make a piggy bank with butterfly wings]

Project estimate:

• Piggy bank, $1 and up
• Painter’s tape, on hand
• Glitter spray paint, $5 and up
• Butterfly floral accent, $1 and up
• Glue, on hand

Total: $7 and up

The post Make a Piggy Bank with Butterfly Wings appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If you follow our Facebook page, you might have seen my recent post about my shenanigans at work.  On a slow day around the office all by myself, I decided that the bulletin board in our hallway was too empty.  So I made a flyer – a very silly flyer featuring a collection of “tearable puns.”  (Awful, I know!)  By popular demand, we’ve made it available to download as a PDF!  Just print it out and cut slits between the puns so they can be torn off.  I zipped off a couple of extras and hung one at the local coffee shop as well, as seen here.  I hope it brings a smile to someone’s day who really needs it!  Where will you hang yours?  [click here to view the PDF]

The post Free Printable: “Tearable Puns” Silly Flyer appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I love clever couples costumes.  Okay, I love Halloween costumes in general, but I am especially fond of seeing couples whose combined ensembles  make me giggle.  (One of these years, my hubby and I are going to go as a gorilla and a banana.  We’ve been talking about it for ages now.)  Over at Craft, designer Meg Allan Coe came up with a pair of costumes that, with a few props, becomes the breakfast of champions.  She shews how to in a great video!   It’s such a great idea that it might even net you additional medals or trophies!   [how to make eggs and bacon costumes]

Project estimate:

• Felt, about $10 and up
• Sewing notions, on hand

Total:  about $10 and up

She also shows how to make a doggie version of the bacon costume!

The post Halloween Costume for Couples: Make Eggs and Bacon Costumes appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.