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I don’t know where our lunch bags go. Do you? Perhaps one is in a child’s backpack that hasn’t been used since last week. Perhaps another is under the other child’s seat in the minivan. The spare one could be in the wash, because one kid spilled her milk in it. The second spare almost certainly got left at the park. Lunch bags, along with glasses cases, slippers, pincushions, and bookends, are items that I can never seem to have enough of, so the easy tutes for DIY versions of these that make up part of Makery, by Kate Smith (a publicist gave me this book for free), are handy ones to have at my fingertips....

If you want DIY decor on a budget, you’ll love this tutorial: create do it yourself wall art with old embroidery hoops and vintage lace! More do it yourself wall art: Painted Spoon Art, Typographical Music Art I recently moved into a new (to me) rental home that is plagued with builder beige. In other words, every single wall of the home is painted with a light beige paint. I’m thankful it’s not a patterned wall paper, but it’s a bit boring for my taste....

Betz White and Spoonflower are teaming up, and they want to see how you Sew Green! To celebrate the release of her book Sewing Green, Betz white designed a special Sewing Green print on organic cotton just for Spoonflower. Not only are they running a deal on the fabric itself, they’re holding a contest where you can win your choice of book from STC Craft, the company that publishes Sewing Green....

Fall is officially here! It’s cool and blustery, and we’ve got cozy fabrics on our minds. What better way to welcome in the lovely changing leaves and chilly weather than with some beautiful recycled felt? Feltwerker, a Chicago fiber artist, offers beautiful recycled wool felt scraps that you can incorporate into your Fall and winter projects! Wool felt is an awesome, versatile fabric and great for making things like super-warm hats and fingerless gloves....

Beyond the couches, futons, ottomans and bed frames, Furnature offers some interesting non-toxic fabrics. The company offers a line of 100% organic cotton weaves found in a Houndstooth Check (pictured), Oblong Dobby, Herringbone, a Textured Weave, a Finer Texture, a Washed Cotton Chenille and Dimpled Chenille Texture. They also offer a couple of cotton/bamboo blends in a Diamond Dobby pattern and Greige Herringbone. They even have a pretty decent looking organic cotton velvet, something that you definitely don’t see every day!...

CPSIA Legislation May Put Crafters Out of Business The CPSIA(Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008) states that even a simple wooden toy maker will be required to have a third-party lead test every different variation of marionette he makes, costing upwards of $2000 a pop. While well intentioned in the wake of numerous recalls of imported products for lead and toxic chemical content, CPSIA ignores the financial constraints and mostly excellent track records of domestic toy manufacturers....

Glass is actually very recyclable, so I don’t usually feel much of a pang about tossing it in the recycling bin. But if I can give this part of the glass bottle a new life, as well, then why not? These glass bottle bottom ring holders are quick and easy to make, and don’t require any additional supplies other than several grits of sandpaper. If, like me, you’ve been crafting up a storm and have lots of bottle bottoms to upcycle, you can make these assembly line-style with very little brainpower....

I found Debby Arem Designs on Etsy while looking for a teacher’s gift a few years ago. I thought the shop’s concept of recycling computer components was a great way of prolonging their demise of ending up in landfills. Debby reuses computer parts to create unique ‘geekery’ jewelry and accessories for the home and office that are sometimes whimsical or abstract and sometimes purely decorative or quite functional. She is a perfectionist and fascinated by detail, texture and color when creating her pieces so you know you are getting a good quality product when you buy from her shop....

I can’t stop drooling over these cozy, upcycled houses from Snugville! Artist Amy Larson creates each little snug from scratch out of vintage materials. She says that she is drawn to materials that give her the opportunity to reduce, reuse, and recycle! All of that scavenging for just the right vintage bits and pieces gives each snug a unique personality and charm. Snugville’s lovely little houses definitely show that upcycling can be whimsical and fun....

The weather is getting colder, and we have a handmade holiday on our minds! Handmade gifts have heart, are better for the environment, and, if you opt to buy, it supports independent artists! If you want to have a totally handmade holiday, now is the time to get started. Over the next couple of months, we’ll be posting about recycled gifts and giftwrap you can make yourself and great handmade finds for sale!...

Not all homemade instruments can handle use by an energetic toddler. Toddlers do not know concepts like “be careful” and “don’t stand on that,” so their toys get put through the ringer. These homemade instruments have seen some things, and they’re still intact. Earlier this summer, my three-year-old went to a super magical music camp. He is obsessed with drums right now, so a week of music-themed fun seemed like the perfect activity for him....

Homemade tea can be very simple or more complicated, and you can customize your recipes to suit your own tastes. These are some of our favorite hand-crafted tea ideas to stock your pantry or for your gift list! Some of these teas are ones that you brew on-demand and others are recipes for homemade tea blends and tea-related ideas that work well as gifts. I wanted to cover an array of tea options, so there would truly be something for everyone here....

A few weeks ago, I was in a thrift store with my mom, and she came across a Van Gogh Calendar from 2000. She encouraged me to buy the calendar, and I’m so glad I listened! Now, I have a beautiful piece of art framed in my room for a lot less! What You Will Need: An old calendar. I found mine at a thrift store, but you can also find them at garage sales....

Are you into coloring books? My kids and I are! We listen to a lot of audiobooks, podcasts, and read-alouds, and coloring is a great way to pass the time. This means, however, that we have LOTS of lovely completed coloring book pages. I don’t really have a problem with re-using and recycling paper, but often the pages are so thoughtfully and lovingly filled in that they just seem too pretty to toss....

I’m so excited for fall that I’m already coming up with fall craft projects. My first mission this week was to make a fall wreath for our front door! What You Will Need: Recycled paper. As usual, I used sheet music. I used the same sheet music I used in my Sheet Music Tree tutorial and Music Wall Art tutorial. You could also use book pages, magazines, or junk mail!...

I made some moon sand for my son to try, and it was so much fun! Here’s how to make moon sand at home with only two ingredients. There are lots of recipes for how to make moon sand floating around online, and I loved this simple one from Love and Laundry. My only problem with her recipe is that it calls for baby oil, which is a petroleum product. It’s also not intended for eating, and my son still likes to taste things that he’s playing with....

Store-bought mouthwash often contains nasty chemical ingredients, and natural brands of mouthwash can be on the pricy side. Here’s how to make mouthwash with ingredients that you probably have in your house already. Andrea at our sister site Green Living Ideas is a dynamo when it comes to creating recipes for DIY personal care products that really work. This woman knows her ingredients, and she only shares her most tried and true recipes....

So when I wanted to put a J.R.R. Tolkien quote on our wall of travel souvenirs, I didn’t turn to perfectly-formed vinyl or contact paper letter cut-outs. Instead, I relied on pencil, paper, a Sharpie, and my favorite slate-grey color of paint. I’m really pleased with how it turned out, and it’s definitely a project that’s easy to do even if you’re not a confident artist. If you can scribble, and you can color (reasonably well) within the lines, then you can paint a quote on a wall!...

I mean honestly, have you ever looked at the picture on the front of a puzzle and thought, “Huh. I could do better than that!” Well, you absolutely can! It’s surprisingly easy and doesn’t take a ton of artistic talent to remake a puzzle into one that’s brand-new-to-you. This is a great craft for kids or a great way to make an educational toy for a kid. Here, for instance, I’ve remade a very odd puzzle (I’ll show you in a minute, but trust me–it’s ODD!...

One of the GREAT things about sewing is the way that it gives you the ability to modify off-the-rack clothing to actually, you know, fit correctly. Take my younger child. She’s a string bean, a 9-year-old for whom size 10-12 pants would fit just right in length, if only they didn’t fall down around her ankles in a puddle. We’ll discuss how I alter pants for my older child, who has a booty that clothing manufacturers simply do not make clothing for, in another post, but for now, let’s alter some pants so that my younger kid can actually wear them....