Create a simple and elegant magnetic organizer from a dollar store cookie sheet — you can use it as a kitchen command center, a makeup organizer or a handy memo board. Dollar store cookie sheets are great for crafters; they’re made out of steel, which means they are magnetic! This gorgeous idea is from The Crazy Crafty Lady: [DIY a Magnetic Organizer]

Project Estimate:

• Cookie sheet, $1
• Scrapbook paper, on hand or $1
• Mod Podge, on hand or $1

Total: $1 and up

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This hair bow organizer is a pretty way to keep little girl’s hair bows neatly organized. It makes a great gift, too!

I found the wooden bow at Goodwill for just $1, but I have seen similar items in the unfinished wood section at most craft stores.  The secret to getting a glittery finish without glitter shedding everywhere is to use glitter paint! You get all the sparkle and shine of glitter without the mess.

Project estimate:

• Wood Bow, $1
• Glitter Paint, on hand
• Ribbon, on hand
• Tulle, on hand or $1

Total $1 and up

Step one: Paint the bow with a base color, then begin painting layers of glitter paint. I used DecoArt’s glitter paint, but you can make your own if you prefer. The best way to get an even, glittery finish is to apply several light layers of paint, letting each layer dry before applying the next one.

Step two: Cut a piece of ribbon to the desired length. Trim the ends and seal them by heat setting them or with fabric glue, like I did. Glue the ribbon to the back of the bow.

Step three: Cut strips of tulle and glue them to the back of the bow. I added 15 ribbons of tulle to create a full tutu-like effect.

I nailed a sawtooth hanger to the back to make the bow hanger easy for my gift recipient to hang.  I’ll be giving this bow organizer as part of a baby shower gift.  It will decorate the package like a bow, but also doubles as part of the gift!  All the mom-to-be has to do is clip her little one’s hair bows to the ribbon.  If you wanted to personalize this gift even more, you could add the little girl’s name to the ribbon.  Have fun crafting and creating!

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Whether you need to organize your desk, your craft studio, or your bathroom vanity, there are a ton of ways you could incorporate these fun, colorful containers!  Courtney from A Little Craft In Your Day made these out of colorful plastic bottles from the dollar store.  They’re an inexpensive way to add a personal touch to your space in a practical, functional manner.  [how to make upcycled plastic bottle organizers]

Project estimate:

• Plastic bottles, $1 and up
• Rubber band, on hand
• Marker, on hand
• Craft knife, on hand
• Iron, on hand

Total: $1 and up

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When I saw these sweet unfinished wood hearts in the Valentine section at Michael’s, I bought them without knowing what I’d do with them.  I really don’t need anymore frames, but I could use a lot of help getting organized.  That’s when I decided to turn it into an earring holder.  Instead of the usual chicken wire, I opted to use plastic canvas, which can be painted and won’t prick your fingers like wire does!

Project estimate:

• Heart Frame, $1.79
• Paint, on hand
• Dimensional Magic, on hand or about $3
• Plastic Canvas, on hand or $.50
• Glue, on hand

Total:  $1.79 and up

Step one:  Paint the wood heart frame.

Step two:  Cut the plastic canvas to fit the frame and spray paint it.

Step three:  Apply Dimensional Magic to the heart frame.

Step four:  When everything is dry, glue the plastic canvas onto the back of the frame.

You could add pegs or hooks to the frame to be able to hang jewelry if you want to.  I’m happy to finally have a dedicated space to hold my earrings, like the steampunk pair I showed you how to make.  You could also try these amazing hot glue drop earrings or these perler bead earrings, and build a collection to store on your new organizer!

The post Tutorial: DIY Jewelry Organizer with Plastic Canvas appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If your jewelry lives in a disorganized pile that looks more like Medusa’s head than a department store, then this craft is for you! Keeping your jewelry organized means it will be easier to find and less likely to sustain damage from being scratched and tugged on. Plus keeping your jewelry on display helps make you more fashionable by inspiring you to accessorize every day. Heather teaches us how in her tutorial over at Home Made Simple. [how to make a jewelry organizer tray]

Project estimate:

• Recycled box, on hand
• Cardboard tubes, on hand
• Paint, on hand or $1 and up
• Felt, on hand or $.50 and up
• Craft glue, on hand
• Scissors, on hand

Total: Free and up!

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Earth Day was yesterday, and hopefully you were inspired to find ways to incorporate recycling and upcycling into your crafting.  As a frugal crafter, I’m always looking for ways to turn my unwanted items into something useful.  Here’s an idea for turning grocery store plastic containers into fun, functional drawer organizers!

Project estimate:

• Plastic produce or take out containers, on hand
• Newspaper, on hand
• Glue, on hand
• Paint, on hand

Total:  FREE

To make your own recycled drawer organizers:

Step one:  Cut to separate the lid from the body of the plastic container.  You can use both pieces if they fit your needs.

Step two:  Tear newspaper into small strips.  I used some Japanese newspaper that came with a package I had received.

Step three:  Apply glue to the bottom of the container, lay a strip of newspaper on top, and cover the strip with more glue.  I used DecouPage for my project, but you could use any glue on hand, or make a paper mache paste.

Step four:  Continue to cover the container with layers of glue and newspaper until the plastic is covered.  Let it dry.

Step five:  Paint the inside of the container, just to give it some color and make it look more hip.

I plan to make several of these in different sizes to fill my kitchen drawers with.  No more digging around for pens, scissors, and other supplies.  I can get organized, craft, AND recycle, all at the same time.  Win!

The post Recycled Craft: DIY Drawer Organizers appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Did you know you can use coupons at Dollar Tree now?  Just the idea of all those awesome deals makes me want to jump up and down with excitement.  As a huge couponer one of my biggest problems is having to put my organizer on the seat.  When I do this I either bury it with stuff or I can’t put anything there.  What a pain.  I need that extra space.  A super fast craft involving a file organizer, glue gun and velcro, problem solved!

Project estimate:

• File organizer, $1
• Hot glue, on hand
• Velcro, on hand or $1

Total: $1 and up

First cut your velcro to the length you want it.  Make sure both pieces are equal in size.  I just stuck them together and cut as one.

Flip your organizer over laying it flat with the flap open.  Place the soft side of the velcro right below the fastener securing with your glue gun.  Then place the rough side of the velcro to the bottom securing with your glue gun as well.  Make sure they are lined up so that when you attach them together over the handle it is even.

You are done.  Now on your next trip to the store simply take out your organizer pull the top piece over the hand rail and secure to the bottom piece.

The post Tutorial: Hands-Free Coupon Organizer appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I don’t know about you, but when I was potty training my son I had lots of stuff sitting around the toilet to keep him entertained and also to reward him for a job well done.  We have 3 bathrooms so I kept every one stock and ready for action.  The upstairs bathrooms weren’t that big of a deal but it was a little embarrassing to explain to my friends why I had a bag of Cheerios and stickers in my bathroom (those with boys totally get this).  So I came up with a solution I was able to use then and have now transformed into something we can still use.  Using a Dollar Store table runner I made an easy organizer for my bathroom.

Project estimate:

• Table runner, $1
• Sewing machine or needle and thread, on hand
• Toilet paper, on hand (for sizing)

Total: $1

Measure from the tip of the runner 36″ and mark.  Draw a line across and cut.  Fold raw edge over 1″ towards the back and secure with a zig zag stitch.  A zig zag stitch will give you a stronger hold.  Not a sewer?  No problem.  This is a great project to try Steam a Seam!  Just watch your temperature when ironing on this material.

Using the remain section of table runner, wrap fabric in a single layer over a roll of toilet paper. This will give you a perfect template to know the size for your bottom pocket.  I used this pocket for books, but now it’s also a perfect for our extra toilet paper rolls.  Before you cut make sure you have allowed enough room to slide the rolls in and out as well as enough space to fold raw edge over before securing.

Center fabric in the middle of the runner.  Depending on what you’re using the pocket for you can decide where to place it.  Then  secure with your chosen method, sewing or iron on adhesive.  This will complete your bottom pocket.

I don’t like to waste anything so I used the other pointed end to make a pocket at the top of the runner for all the misc items such as the Cheerios and stickers.  Now it make a perfect pocket for a magazine or those wonderful flushable wipes.  To make the pocket fold top raw edge over and secure.  Then with the other two side fold edge over (it should already be folded for you).  Secure to runner leaving top open.  You’re now ready to hang it on the wall.

The post Tutorial: Table Runner Bathroom Organizer appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

My sons like to accessorize with necklaces, and I’ve been looking for a way to help them keep their jewelry organized.  Most jewelry boxes are very feminine, so I started looking for ways to make a fun organizer that is more gender neutral.

I love the recent trend of making deer and moose heads from cardboard, and that’s what inspired this idea.  My boys and I have been longtime fans of Robert Sabuda’s work, and he generously shares free templates for making your own 3-D art.  I used one of his designs to create this three dimensional shark jewelry holder.

Project estimate:

• Robert Sabuda 3-D Shark Printable, free
• Cardboard box , on hand
• Paint, on hand
• Wood square, on hand or $1 and up
• Glue, on hand

Total:  Free and up!

To make your own 3-D Shark Jewelry Holder:

Step one:  Download and print Robert Sabuda’s template here.  If sharks aren’t your thing he has dozens of other templates to choose from.

Step two:  Cut out and trace the template onto cardboard, and cut out the pieces.  (Note that I only used the head, not the fin or body.)  For the dotted lines, use a razor to cut the top of the cardboard, but not all the way through!  This will make it easier to fold on the line.

Step three:  Paint the teeth white, the inside of the mouth red, and the wood square blue.

Step four:  Assemble the shark and glue as directed.  If you want a smoother edge, you can use tape to seal.

Step five:  Paint the shark silver.

Step six:  Glue the shark to the wood board, glue on eyes, and add a saw tooth hanger to the back.

My son just loves his new necklace hanger.  He thinks it’s hilarious to put jewelry inside the shark’s mouth!  Between all those teeth, the mouth, and the head, you can hang quite a few items on this tiny but mighty shark.  Now I need to make one more for my oldest son…maybe I’ll go with the more conventional cardboard moose head this time.

More shark crafts:
Follow Mrs. Greene’s board Shark Week! on Pinterest.

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My mom isn’t a super crafty person, but she does enjoy making her own greeting cards. It’s something we enjoy doing as a mother/daughter activity, so when I had the idea to turn a photo album into an organizer for my cards, I knew I had to make one for her too! This would make a great gift for any paper crafter (my mom loves hers); you could even go a step farther and fill it with cards before gifting it to make a correspondence kit. (Such a thing would be great as a going away present or graduation gift.) Or make one for yourself and be the envy if all your crafty friends!

Project estimate:

• 4×6 photo album, $1
• Paper, on hand
• Ribbon, on hand

Total: $1

Start with a plain, brag book style photo album – the kind you would carry around in your purse. Slide the paper inserts out of the covers of the album and use them as a guide to cut new covers out of the paper of your choice. I used double-sided scrapbook paper so that a different, coordinating pattern shows on the inside of the cover.

Decorate the covers however you want. I kept things simple and used some stickers out of my stash to put our names on the front covers. When you’re done decorating and any glue you might have used is dry, put the new cover inserts into the album.

When you start putting cards into the album, the extra bulk will make the book want to pop open. Solve this problem by adding a ribbon to tie it shut.

Cut two piece of ribbon about 12 to 15 inches long.  You’ll want them nice and long so that even when the album is completely full, you will have plenty of ribbon to tie a big bow!  I used Amazing Goop to glue my ribbons in place, but hot glue would work as well.  Once the glue is dry/cool, it’s ready for action!

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