Playdough can be a messy thing. In addition to making a mess while playing, you also have to deal with the question of where to store it. Plastic bags rip and tear, plastic containers crack. Glass baby food jars are a good size but oh-so-boring. Boring, that is, until Kristi from Lolly Jane got her hands on some and transformed them into adorable color-coded kid storage. …

I’m always at a loss as to what to get teachers for teacher appreciation day. I want to give them something useful but not something that they already have a bajillion of (mugs, anyone?). This dry erase board I wrote about on Creative Green Living is useful and multi-functional. You can even make it with magnets so they can take it home and use it on their fridge …

Why do I love washi tape?  Because it makes virtually everything cuter.  You can add a little bit of it to just about anything and it instantly has personality and flair.  Even the most mundane items, like office supplies, can benefit from a little bit of the colorful, sticky stuff – and since it peels away easily without leaving a glue-y residue, you can seriously …

Bottle caps have such neat little architectural details they practically cry out to be saved. But if you’re like me, you’ve got a sizable collection and no idea what you’re going to do with it! Luckily, Heather wrote a great post over at Home Made Simple with 10 great bottle cap craft ideas including the adorable coasters pictured above. [how to make bottle cap coasters …

While cruising at my local Dollar Tree, I saw some magnetic vent covers. They are basically a large sheet of blank magnet. They were just crying out to be crafted. I decided to pair them with some patterned tissue from the gift wrap aisle and my trusty Mod Podge to make these cute fridge magnets that look like strips of washi tape!
Project estimate:

Magnet vent cover, …

When I saw these pretty push pins at Ballard Designs, I immediately thought, “I can make those!” So I did. I used pages from an old thesaurus, mod podge, and thumb tacks from Dollar Tree to make them.

Project estimate:

Book pages, on hand
Mod Podge, on hand
Thumb Tacks or Push pins, on hand or $1
Rhinestones, on hand or $1

Total: Free and up

To make your own paper flower …

Do you have a collection of buttons crying out to be used? Don’t let them cry any longer! This cute button calendar from Home Made Simple is the perfect way to show off your favorite buttons and see them every day. If your collection is especially large, this would make a great gift for a friend, too! [how to make a button calendar]
Project estimate:

Metal Cookie …

My son is crazy about Phineas and Ferb. We were doing our what seems like daily trip to the Dollar Store and he almost jumped out of the cart when he saw this little Phineas and Ferb journal. Like all 4-year-olds it was used up with in a day, and the tears started flowing when I told him it was all used up …

When it came time to think of Easter crafts this year, I knew I wanted to do something with my stash of craft foam. When I found a pile of composition notebooks I bought for cheap back in the fall, I decided that an Easter-egg-inspired notebook was in order. I’m giving it to my friend’s son as a gift, so I added his name to …

Apothecary jars are a stylish way to show off everything from cotton balls in your bathroom to candy on a buffet line. Clutter instantly looks classy when corralled into these elevated lidded jars. Heather walks us through how to make these great jars over on Home Made Simple.