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Several times I’ve thought about whether to include a fabric this expensive in the Fabulous Fabrics series? Is it just to taunt you? No! You’re all very nice, and I like you. I’m also not trying to reinforce the perception that all organic fabric is expensive. The fact is, fine fabrics and upholstery fabrics are expensive no matter what they’re made of, and we all understand that. What I am trying to do is celebrate the organic, sustainable, and environmentally friendly fabrics that people are creating, even if most of us aren’t able to consume vast quantities of it....

Pippijoe is another great source for limited edition, hand screen printed fabrics. They print on both a 55% hemp / 45% cotton blend and a 100% hemp fabric using environmentally friendly inks. The fabrics are described as “soft to touch and feel like linen” and perfect for “crafts, bags, clothing, soft furnishings and light upholstery” and a heavier base weight fabric is available for projects that need something sturdier. Pippijoe’s Etsy Shop offers mix packs and a couple of the fabrics, or you can buy fabrics by the metre on the main Pippijoe site....

When I’m trudging around in my winter boots and bundled up in a big coat, it can be nice to add a little more spark to an outfit. Hair accessories are a great way to add a pop of color and pattern to your winter attire. Plus, having a nice accessory in your hair will detract from the inevitable hat hair that cold weather brings. Here are five hair accessories you can whip up tonight to wear out and about tomorrow....

Next » Little Monsters 1. Paper Tube Monsters Alisa Burke has this tutorial for creating adorable tube monsters. These would be a great project to entertain kids on a cold or rainy day. Experiment with different kinds of paint and trims to make them your own. Next » Lamp 2. Toilet Paper Roll Lamp Over on Instructables, there is a fantastic tutorial on building a lamp from toilet paper tubes....

Everybody uses toilet paper, so I know you’ve got some of those cardboard tubes around – and you can put them to good use by crafting them into Creepy TP Candy Holders for Halloween. This is an awesome project for kids of any age. You can have the older ones cut the tubes and do the gluing, while the younger kiddos draw up all the monster faces. It’s the perfect Halloween craft to do while you’re nibbling on candy corn and watching The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown....

Although I have long been stalking Spoonflower (a fabric-on-demand printing service), checking out their Fabric of the Week, even subscribing to their promotional emails, I have never bought their services. I have ideas, of course–fabric printed with the comic strip that my husband and I write, fabric printed with the rainbow patchwork pattern that I painstakingly piece together from a number of fabrics to make my crayon rolls, fabric printed with my pattern design for my dinosaur stuffies, etc....

Like anything else, cleaning naturally seems like a much more onerous task than it actually is. It might also seem complicated and expensive. But it doesn’t have to be! I am nothing if not paranoid and frugal. Making your own cleaning products falls under my comfort umbrella. You can be sure that this homemade soft scrub recipe is safe, cheap, and effective. On top of the DIY soft scrub, we’ve got some additional tips, so that you, too, might give natural cleaning a go....

Last week on Pinterest, I came across an adorable Tie Pot from Make It and Love It. I thought I would make my own eco-friendly version using an empty coffee can and newspaper. This tie pot has so many possibilities and is the perfect gift for any dad! Let’s get started! What You Will Need: An empty coffee can or other tin can Spray paint. Remember, spray paint isn’t the greenest craft supply, so use low VOC spray paint, if you can....

Looking for a fun and eco-friendly wreath for Easter? Look no further! I have an adorable wreath for you that’s made entirely of recycled materials! What You Will Need: Recycled cardboard. I used a pizza box. Book pages Scissors Crayons Glue. If you can, use eco-glue. How To Do It: Cut your pizza box into a circle. I used an embroidery hoop to make a perfect circle. Make a smaller circle inside the larger circle like so:...

After my husband’s sunglasses got bent and mostly broken in my purse over the weekend, I decided that he needed a case to keep his new pair safe and sound. Sure, we could have picked up a sunglasses case from the store, but most of these are made with conventional cotton, polyester, or straight up plastic. Boo! Instead of buying new, I decided to whip up a sunglasses case using supplies that were already in my craft room....

Tired of being swamped by a too-large T-shirt? My Mammaw would tell you that you look slouchy when your clothes are too big. Gain my Mammaw’s approval, and a T-shirt that is cuter and comfier to wear, by taking it in. It’s a great way to make Goodwill finds wearable, and a great way to revamp your wardrobe after a weight loss. Since I buy all my clothes from Goodwill AND have lost 23 pounds so far in the last few months (yes, that WAS an invitation to compliment me!...

I always thought these faux Christmas “candles” were somewhat creepy—especially the ones with red bulbs. Even so, they are definitely a symbol of Christmas! I wanted to make a cover for the candles to make them pretty, but still keep them festive. Something you all should know about me is that I am slightly addicted to using toilet paper rolls in my craft projects. Naturally, I used them in this project as well!...

The best plant markers are easy to make, easy to place, and impossible to move unintentionally! My favorite plant markers are the ones that I can assemble entirely from one Saturday trip to the thrift store. I take old butter knives, a broken-down Scrabble game, and some epoxy glue, and I make the cutest, handiest, butter knife and Scrabble tile plant markers that you’ve ever seen. Here’s how you can make some, too!...

The previous two sentences are courtesy of my ten-year-old, who popped in as I was staring at this blank page, failing to think of a catchy way to begin this post. I solicited her advice for a first sentence, dutifully wrote down what she dictated, and it worked, because here I am, 50+ words in and still plugging away! So this lunch box used to be ugly: I wanted a lunch box, but I didn’t want an ugly one....

The Hats for Hunger program was also started by Andrew Castle. Hannah recently got involved with the program. As a knitter and crafter she made this video below as a 4H project and won a blue ribbon, a purple ribbon, a trip to the state fair and a Best of Show ribbon. Andrew combined his love of animals and knitting to start Hats for Hunger. He sold his hand knit hats and donated $1,500 to Heifer International in 2008/2009....

Looking for lanolin substitutes? Me too! I did a little bit of digging and found few different options. Let’s consider the merits of lanolin alternatives. Wondering why vegans won’t craft with lanolin? That’s because it’s a fat extracted from sheep’s wool. Since it’s an animal product, lanolin is not vegan. Avoiding wool and wool products might seem a little bit silly, but when you look more closely at the wool industry it makes a lot of sense for someone concerned about animal rights to skip the wool and wool by-products....

I get some of my best craft inspirations from my family. My latest creation is actually a combo craft from two very clever relatives. I owe the memory jar idea to my sis. She’s making one with my nephew Harrington so he can store trinkets, notes, and souvenirs over the next 12 months. On New Year’s Eve, they’ll open the jar and recall all those fun memories associated with whatever he put inside the jar....

In many parts of our world, my fragile baby would have been born and then would have died for lack of necessary medical care; in one part of the world, you and I as crafters can help these babies live. Amanda Blake Soule, whose blog, SouleMama, is one that I check out nearly every day, and whose book, The Creative Family, taught me how to freezer paper stencil and inspired the dress-up area I built for my girls, has started a new Web site, Mama to Mama: Connecting Families through the Gift of Handmade....

Many of you are used to being appalled, by now, at the fact that I permit my children to make and play with toy weapons. Witness the PVC pipe sword. The scrap wood stomp catapult. And the one that loads of commenters on our CAGW Facebook page fell over themselves to assure me that I am officially a Bad Mom for: the pallet wood lance. Well, here we go again, because I have to tell you that this time I not only made the weapon FOR my kids, but I also made it for six of their friends!...

What You’ll Need: Strips of recycled paper folded into stars. Different widths and lengths will create different sized stars. I cut, or tear, my strips about 1/4 inch by 10 inches and then vary it from there. Needle Invisible beading cord or thread Pop in a movie or listen to a nice record and fold yourself some origami stars. I made 10 for my banner but you can make as many as or as little as you would like....