Dollar Tree is a great source for plain ol’ school and office supplies, but what if you are looking for supplies with a little more personality?  Well, you can always give those plain supplies a makeover!  Over at I Heart Naptime, Courtney gave some dollar store clipboards a school-themed makeover using vinyl and her Silhouette.  If you don’t have a vinyl cutting machine, you can also get the same look with a stencil or by painting the design freehand.  And as a bonus, the back side of each clipboard is actually a chalkboard!  [how to make a back-to-school clipboard]

Project estimate:

• Clipboard, $1
• Vinyl, on hand or about $3 and up
• Chalkboard paint, on hand or about $3 and up

Total:  $1 and up

The post Make a Back-to-School Clipboard appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Between food allergies, concerns about kids hyped up on sugar, and schools outright banning Valentine candy, sometimes it’s just best to give non-edible treats to your classmates and friends. Here are 10 sweet ideas that won’t break the bank!

Valentine Wands and Printable from U Create

Valentine Ruler Gifts from Pretty Handy Girl

Sweet Valentine Bubbles from Dollar Store Crafts

Pom Pom Monsters from Create.Craft.Love

Pixie Dust Necklaces and Printable Tags from Dollar Store Crafts & Creative Green Living

Hand Stitched Bookmarks and Printable from Thirty Handmade Days

Measuring Cups and Printable Gift Tag from Dollar Store Crafts

DIY Scratch Off Valentines and Free Printable from Dollar Store Crafts

Glittery Cupcake Jar Candles from Mrs. Greene

Bent Wire Heart Earrings from Wobisobi

The post 10 Candy-Free Valentine Gift Ideas appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

It’s back to school season, and it’s always nice to kick the new school year off with a little handmade gift.  It’s a fun way to say, “let’s make this a great year!”  When I was a classroom teacher, I was always asking parents to send more pencils to class.  With that in mind, I made this fun pencil gift holder to give to the new teacher.  You could put something else in the gift container (art brushes, Twizzlers, markers, etc.) or make it a gift for a student.

The post Tutorial: Back to School Gift Container appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

It’s that time of year again.  If you haven’t already, you’ll soon be taking those traditional first-day-of-school pictures of your kids.  Want a cute way to display them?  Michelle at A Little Tipsy used pencils to give a basic frame a simple, scholarly makeover.  This would also make a great way to display school or class photos, or to give as a teacher gift!  [how to make a pencil picture frame]

Project estimate:

• Picture frame, on hand or $1
• Pencils, $1
• Embellishments (optional), on hand or $1 and up
• Glue, on hand

Total:  $1 and up

The post Make a Pencil Picture Frame appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Back-to-school is just around the corner! It’s time to start thinking about school-related projects again. Projects like this magnetic locker pouch by Instructables user Jessie Marie. Her design is sturdy enough to hold all of your essentials and – perhaps the best part – it’s a no-sew project. (And it uses recycled cardboard plus scrappy bits of fabric, so it’ll also cost you next-to-nothing to make!) [how to make a magnetic locker pouch]

Project estimate:

• Fabric, on hand or $1 and up
• Duct tape, on hand or $1 and up
• Cardboard, on hand
• Magnets, on hand or $1 and up

Total: Free and up!

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When I was a kid, I was constantly hunting for personalized items like school supplies, but with a not-so-common name like Rhonda it was rare that I ever found pencils or note pads or key chains bearing my moniker. It was always such a thrill to find something that had my name on it – something that was just for me. I know a few kids these days who have even more obscure names, so I decided that I would make some of them a few personalized gifts, starting with my friend's daughter Elena.

I wandered through the back-to-school section at Dollar General looking for anything that I could personalize for her. They had tons of great options – definitely a good place to check out when it comes time for back-to-school shopping! When I found a binder and some bulletin board letters, I had a great idea and ended up with a fun, one-of-a-kind gift for a one-of-a-kind kid.

Project estimate:

• Binder, about $2.25 and up
• Bulletin board letters, $1.65
• Repositionable spray adhesive, on hand or about $3 and up
• Masking tape, on hand or $1 and up
• Spray paint, on hand or $1 and up

Total: about $3.90 and up

I picked out a binder with a clear cover into which you can insert pieces of paper. I had the idea that I could use paper to mask off shapes and paint over them, creating "frames" on the cover! I used letter cutouts to make my shapes, but you could do this technique with any design you want!

Use newspaper and tape to mask off the inside of the binder and protect it from any overspray.

Place the letter on the cover. The letters I used had repositionable adhesive along the top edge, which I used to figure out the placement, then I used spray adhesive to hold them all the way down. (Tip: Make sure the spray adhesive dries completely before sticking the letters to the binder to avoid leaving a sticky residue.) Spray paint over the entire cover.

You could stop at this point, but I wanted to add more details, so I used masking tape to make a plaid-ish design on the cover. After the paint was completely dry, I added a few stripes of tape in each direction across the cover, then added another coat of paint. After that paint dried, I added more tape and spray painted another color. I repeated this process until I had four colors on the cover: yellow, purple, lime green, and black.

After all of the paint has been applied, carefully peel away the tape to reveal the design.

I had a little seepage of paint around the letters because the ridiculous humidity was making the paper letters curl and the adhesive come loose; if you do this in dryer weather, this should not be an issue.

Insert anything you like into the cover and it will show through the letters. You could use pretty papers, photos, doodles, or you can even change the paper whenever you want so that your binder always has a fresh, new look!

The post Spray Paint a Customized Binder with Dollar General appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I recently attended my 15-year class reunion – it seems crazy that it’s been that long already! As the crafty person in my graduations class, I was asks to be in charge of the decorations, and I knew that I had to knock it out of the park. The most important part of my decorating was the centerpieces for all of the tables. When I realized that the dollar store shammy towels were the same colors as my school colors, I had an idea – big, funky flowers!

Project estimate:

• Shammy towels, $1
• Pencils, $1
• Hot glue, on hand
• Foam, on hand or $1
• Flower pots, on hand or $1 and up
• Gift basket filler, $1

Total: $3 and up

My school colors were blue and gold, which is conveniently the same colors as the 2-packs of “handy shammy” towels at Dollar Tree. If you can’t find shammy towels in the appropriate colors for your school, you could also use sheets of heavy felt.

Start by cutting each shammy towel into thirds. Each piece will make one flower, so a 2-pack of towels will make 6 flowers.

Cut one of the long edges into fringe, leaving about 1/2 inch uncut along the other edge.

Working along the uncut edge, begin rolling the strip, securing the roll with small dabs of hot glue as you go.

Roll the strip on a slight angle so that the bottom of the finished roll is slightly concave.

Fill the concave space with hot glue and press the eraser of a pencil into it. Hold in place until the glue begins to cool.

When the glue is cooled completely, shake the flower to fluff it up.

To assemble the flowers into centerpieces, place pieces of foam inside of flower pots or other containers. Press several flowers into the foam, then fill the rest of the pot with gift basket filler to cover the foam.

The post Tutorial: School Spirit Centerpieces appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

It’s time to link up for this month’s craft challenge, sponsored by Dollar Tree!  This month’s theme is based on some of our favorite dollar store crafting items:  school supplies!  Submit your craft below and you might be our lucky winner, who will walk away with a $100 Dollar Tree gift card!  (Imagine all the school supplies you could buy with that!)  So, readers…  What can you make using school supplies as craft supplies?

Are you ready?  First let’s recap the challenge rules:

1. Post your project on your blog, or as a post in the “Community” Section on Dollar Store Crafts. A photo of your project is required, as well as a list of materials used.

2. Submit a link to your project using the linky submission that will at the bottom of the contest entry post.

Dates: August 1st, 2012 at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time (PT). Linky Party closes at 11:59 p.m. PT on August 7th, 2012.

Multiple entries by the same person are accepted, however, only one prize will be awarded.

Eligibility: Residents of the USA, 18 and older

Winner Selection: There will be 1 Winner, chosen by a team of 3 judges who include 2 members of the Dollar Store Crafts staff, and one independent person with expertise in the area of crafting. Entries will be judged on the basis of the following criteria: originality, usefulness, creativity, clarity of instructions, and availability of materials at dollar stores.

Prize: $100 gift card to Dollar Tree.

And now for the entries!

The post Link Up for the School Supply Craft Challenge! appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Okay, is this brilliant or what?  It’s a pendant necklace that features a tiny chalkboard!  Cat from brideblu used chalkboard spray paint to turn a blank, beveled pendant into a completely customizable piece.  The spray-on chalkboard paint is usually a little cheaper than the brush-on kind, and it dries quicker.  Alternatively, of you want to put a permanent message on your pendant, you could use flat black spray paint instead of  chalkboard paint, then use white acrylic paint to paint your design.  Wouldn’t it be a perfect back-to-school gift for your favorite teacher?  [how to make a chalkboard pendant necklace]

Project estimate:

• Pendant blank, on hand or $1 and up
• Chalkboard paint, about $4 and up
• Chain, on hand or $1 and up
• Ribbon, on hand or $1
• Masking tape, on hand
• Newspaper, on hand

Total:  about $4 and up

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

Are you counting down the days yet?  As much as I hate to admit it, we’ll soon be rolling down the back side of the hill that is summer.  That means it’s time to start gathering all of the odds and ends your kids will need to help them be successful in the months to come.  And, as with just about everything, there are plenty of ways to add a handmade twist to back-to-school!  Need some ideas?  Here are your homework assignments!

School Supplies

Pens and pencils and paper, oh my!  I’ll admit it, I’m a school supply junkie.  (They fall under the same umbrella as my office supply weakness!)  Make your kids’ school supplies (or your own) stand out from the rest of the pack with some handmade touches.  Here are a few projects to help create and dress up the basic essentials.

• DIY  Notebooks by fiks*d
  
• Block Print Burlap Pencil Bag by Factory Direct Craft (pictured at top of post)
  
• Felt Pencil Toppers by Whimsy Love

Teacher Appreciation

Teachers are traditionally celebrated during a week toward the end of the school year, but there’s no reason you have to wait until then to say, “Thank you!”  Start off the year by letting your children’s teachers know that you’re grateful for all that they do with these teacher appreciation crafts.

• Teacher Survival Kit by Modern Parents Messy Kids
• Pencil-filled Etched Teacher Quote Cup by From Glitter to Gumdrops
• Beary Nice Teacher Gift Figurine by Suzy’s Artsy Craftsy Sitcom

Printables

For non-artistic people who want to add an artistic flare to a craft or handmade gift, free printables are a great option.  They’re also handy at the last minute when you find your to-do list is so long it feels like you need more hours in the day.  Get ready for a great year with these back-to-school printables.

• Vintage Lunch Bag Printables by Fun.kyti.me
• Teacher Appreciation Subway Art by eighteen25
• Printable Teacher Appreciation Tag by it is what it is

The post 9 Crafts and Printables for Back to School appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.