Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Craft Stick Bracelets

A great kids craft idea from molly moo, craft stick bracelets! I saw this on pinterest, and tried
it myself. Note: you need the larger craft sticks..which are wider and a little longer than
regular popsicle sticks.

Take the craft sticks and put some in a bowl. Pour boiling hot water over them, and
let them stand in the water at least 10 minutes. Take one craft stick out of the water,
and gently bend it, starting at the end. Keep bending the stick until it forms an arch.
Place inside a glass or can to dry. Repeat this step for each soaked craft stick.
Once you have all the sticks placed in the glass or container, allow to dry overnight.

Paint the bracelets in geometric patterns, cover with printed duct tape,
or wrap with embroidery thread. You may poke tiny holes in the ends
of each bracelet, and run an embroidery thread through it, tie of the end, add
beads, for a decorative tie.

For photos of the finished bracelets, go to mollymoo.ie or
http://www.jewelrymaking247.com/craft-stick-bracelets/ or
my favorite place Pinterest, and type in "craft stick bracelets" for a series of photo ideas.

For everyday craft inspiration, try Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104
Fuego Phoenix. Buy it here: http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Crafts-Budget-Kids-Volume/dp/0615640826

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Rustic Furniture Repair

I have an armoire that I upcycled a few years ago. I spent 300 plus hours, creating handmade leather
and fabric trims to enhance this solid wood item and change it to a Moroccan style show piece.

My cat liked the trims for sharpening his claws. He destroyed one side of the front. I decided to repair the damage, and to take preventative measures.

Cat destroyed trim.

Luckily, I had fabric remnants used for the original handmade trims. I cut out two pieces of matching fabric strips, and ironed the edges under. I ripped out the old staples, and cardboard tacking strip which had held them in place. I slipped the new fabric under the old, matching the designs,
then stapled in place.

I bought 3/8 inch plywood at Home Depot and had it cut into two pieces that would fit over
the sides of the armoire, to make "cat scratchers" for the sides. I bought jute twine to wrap around the plywood.

I spread glue on one side and let it dry.

Next, I nailed the plywood pieces to the sides of the armoire, so each one extends about

an inch on the front. Now the cat has a scratcher, and the trims are safe from being destroyed!


Panel added to side of armoire. Copyright c. 2013 Fuego Phoenix. 'All Rights Reserved.

I also made a smaller 4 x 18 inch cat scratcher with plywood and jute twine for my cat to play with. You know what's funny? My cat is no longer interested in scratching the armoire!
I like the rustic look of the jute side panels.

For family craft projects check out: Easy Crafts on A Budget for Kids 4 to 104

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Handmade Leather Cell Phone Case

I saw a photo online, of a leather cover for a cell phone. I have lots of leather scraps
left over from upholstery jobs, so I thought I'd try making a few. My first patterns
didn't fit together properly, so I made a few adjustments, until the envelope fitted the
phone. The second, third and fourth tries worked perfectly. The original pattern
used an awl to punch holes in the leather, then hand sew, so that the envelope looks
like it was stitched. I have an upholstery sewing machine, so I stitched the sides
by machine. I also added a liner for the inside of the envelope.

It's still a work in progress as far as the pattern goes. Try it!

What you need:
piece of paper for pattern
a piece of leather about 6 inches wide by 15 inches long.
leather glue (I used Instant Vinyl but you can also get E6000)
scissors
heat n' bond thermal fusion 6 x 15 inches
a piece of fabric for the inside 6 x 15 inches
iron
masking tape

How to make it:
1. Draw your pattern on news print, or a large piece of white paper & cut out.
2. Stitch the edges of the leather all the way around, about 1/4 of an inch in.
    If you don't have a heavy duty sewing machine, you can either punch out
    holes with an awl or ice pick, and hand stitch.
3.Trace around the pattern, onto the backside of a piece of leather & cut out.
4. Press Heat n Bond onto the wrong side of your fabric
5. Trace the envelope pattern onto the front side of your fabric, and cut out.
6. Trim the edges of the fabric about 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch.
7. Place the fabric next to the back side of the leather envelope. Trim where needed,
    then peel the paper backing off, and press onto the wrong side of the leather.
8. Let cool.
9. Fold the bottom flap up, then fold the two sides in, and glue the edges
    of the two sides, onto the bottom flap. Hold in place with your fingers,
    and/or wrap with masking tape for 30 minutes to hold in place while glue dries.

Not only is this an easy craft. It makes a great gift!


Pattern is traced onto wrong side of leather. Copyright c. 2013 Fuego Phoenix.


Stitching added around edges. Copyright c. 2013 Fuego Phoenix.


Fabric is pressed to wrong side of leather. Copyright c. 2013 Fuego Phoenix.


Taped while glue dries. Copyright c. 2013. Fuego Phoenix

For fun craft project ideas check out Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104

Monday, July 15, 2013

More Cardboard Picture Frames

We added a couple more cardboard frames for our summer pictures. The "tiled" look is actually
painted to look like old painted wood pieced inside a frame. To create this look, figure out the size of
your frame, cut out the opening for your picture, then figure out what width and depth your tiles will
be. We used 1 inch widths, by 2 inches. After painting your colors, paint brown in between the "tiles" with a fine point paint brush. When the paint has dried, dip a fan paint brush in brown paint, wipe off
any excess and lightly go over certain areas, to create an aged look.

If you prefer a more formal look, you may purchase white picture frames with glass,
with a small one half inch frame border first, so that you can place your cardboard frames
inside.

This is a great project for kids of all ages.


Copyright c. 2013. Fuego Phoenix. All Rights Reserved.		F

For everyday craft projects, check out Easy Crafts on a Budget For Kids 4 to 104 here

Monday, July 8, 2013

Beach Theme Cardboard Picture Frames

Bring the beach home, with ocean colored picture frames made from cardboard.

I saved the picture (immediately below) of painted wooden frames, found in a magazine a while ago. The colors of the frames are colors you see when you go to the beach.

I wondered if these could be duplicated, by painting cardboard to look like painted wood.
In other words, authentic looking, but cheap!

This is a fun project for kids of all ages. The best part is these are cheap to make!

My 7 year old grandson and I made two of these frames today, out of cardboard. Luckily, I had the acrylic paints and the cardboard.

The trick to making the frames look like the ones in the photo, is leaving a minimum of 3 1/2 inches
around the space where you'll place your picture, and lighten all of the colors with the parchment
acrylic paint, so the colors are more subtle. When the painted stripes have dried, mix raw umber with each stripe color, and lightly paint over the stripe, to give it an aged look.

What's great about this is even younger ones, can do this. If they
paint outside the lines, it's no worry. They're laid-back beach frames.

What you need:    cardboard
   a ruler
   a knife
                             pencils, colored pencils
                             paint acrylic or poster paint
                             paint brushes
   acrylic paints in these colors:

turquoise
buttercup field
green meadow
unbleached titanium or parchment
fluor blue
raw umber

Cut out your frame. Draw stripes 1 inch wide, down the length of the cardboard (for the larger picture frame). Paint the stripes. Allow the paint to dry. For the smaller frame, draw stripes that are different widths, and then paint.


Copyright c. 2013. Fuego Phoenix. All Rights Reserved

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

3 Paper Craft Projects for Kids

Today I'm reposting kids paper craft ideas found on pinterest.

For Project # 1, you'll need q tips, paint and paper. Put paint on a plate, and have the kids
dip the ends of a q tip into the colors they want to use. Have them "dot" the paper with the
q tip. The dots create a unique look. You can create geometric designs or a landscape as shown
in the photo below. This idea is shared by Jamie Dorobek.

For Project # 2, you'll need a paper plates, glue sticks or elmers glue, scissors, black and orange felt tip pens (or black and orange paint) and eyes (or you make your own eyes). This idea is shared by Bonnee Queen.

Cut out the round edges of one paper plate and paint them black
Glue the black "wings" to the sides of one paper plate
Cut out a circle, smaller than the paper plate for the head
Paint the top part of the head as shown in the photo below
Cut out a beak and feet out of another paper plate, and paint orange.
Glue the beak on the smaller circle, add eyes, then glue the head to the paper plate body
Glue the feet to the backside of the paper plate and you've got a penguin.

For Project #3, you'll need blue construction paper, paper plates, glue sticks and scissors, and
crayolas.

Use the photo below for ideas for cutting out the shark. Cut the teeth, from the edges of a paper plate.
Glue in place. Add a fish in the mouth. Add eyes. This ideas is shared by

Ashley Riley via Kayleigh Johnson.

Achieve beautiful crafts without all the fuss.

New Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104. Buy it here:

http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Crafts-Budget-Kids-Volume/dp/0615640826

Monday, June 24, 2013

Cat Scratcher Toy

We were at a pet store the other day, looking at the cats, and checking out
products, when I was inspired by this idea. I don't know that this falls under
the "crafts" category, but I'm sharing it anyway.

I am trying to encourage my cat to play with his toys, rather than
scratch my furniture.

This project is easy, fast and uses a recycled plastic pop bottle and
twine.

You need: 1 plastic bottle about 20 ounce size
Jute twine
Masking tape and Glue

Tape an end of twine to the lower part of your plastic bottle. Start wrapping
the container tightly with twine. As you wrap, push the twine down, so that
it is wound with no gaps. It may get a little tricky on the curves. I had
to tape over the twine with masking tape, to hold it in place, as I reached
the upper part of the container.

Add glue as you go. When you've wrapped the entire container, add
glue; cut the end of twine and press down on the glue. Tape over
the twine end, to hold in place while the glue dries. VOILA!
You've made a fun cat scratcher for your cat.

Hint: Before cutting the twine, when you've finished wrapping your bottle, you
may form a long loop, to hang the "scracher" over a door knob, so that it
will easily be reached by your cat. Just tape in place and glue the ends down,
and wrap more twine over the ends, to hold the loop in place.

It took a couple of days, before my cat would play with it. Now he
grabs it and rolls it around and chases it!

This is fun. I can grab it with my claws.

"It's mine. You can't have it"


"I told you it's mine."

Buy Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104, a great book for parents here:

http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Crafts-Budget-Kids-Volume/dp/0615640826