Washi tape notebooks

Here I will show you how to transform an old notebook in a matter of minutes. All you need is a notebook to decorate, washi tape and a pair of scissors. 

Step 1: choose which tapes you would like to decorate with and in what order.

Step 2: put the tape on the notebook and cut each piece with just a few cms to spare. You can experiment with horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines to see which you like best.

Step 3: fold the excess tape over the edge so it gives a nice, crisp finish.

Washi tape photo frames

I have only just discovered washi tapes but they are amazing!! You can get so many gorgeous designs and they transform everday things like frames and notebooks into something beautiful! 

For the photo frames I used these decorative tapes from the Kirsty Allsop range available from sainsburys.

All you need for this project is a plain photo frame, decorative tape and scissors.

Step 1: remove the glass and paper from the plain frame.

Step 2: stick the tape to the edges of the frame, press down and then cut off the excess.

Step 3: place a photo and the glass back in and you have a pretty photo frame.

Rolled magazine photo frame

This is quite quick and easy but makes the perfect gift for a friend or family member's birthday. You can make the frame suit their room by choosing magazine papers that fit their colour scheme.

Step 1: select some magazine pages which are colourful/ patterned and don't have too much text. Cut off any uneven edges.

Step 2: roll the page around a pencil, starting from a corner.

Step 3: apply glue using a glue stick to the last 5 cms at the top.

Step 4: slide the pencil out.

Step 5: make several of the rolls and cut them to different lengths.

Step 6: cut some cardboard into a rectangle and cut a smaller rectangle from the middle of your rectangle.

Step 7: arrange the rolls in a pattern and glue in place, you may need to trim some of them further.

Step 8: attach a photo to the middle and show it off!

Collage pencil pot

This would be a lovely Mother's Day gift as mums love neat stationary. You can make it in her favourite colours or to suit her office/workspace.

Step 1: get some magazines or pretty papers.

Step 2: rip out some colours/patterns you want to use.

Step 3: cut a Pringles tube to about 12cm

Step 4: glue your pretty papers onto the Pringles tube with PVA glue and cover the whole way round.

Step 5: cover the whole pencil pot with PVA glue to seal it all in and give a shine.

Quick and simple birthday card

This is really pretty and can be adapted to suit different people for example you could use blues and greens and dangle aeroplanes instead of hearts!

Get a pretty piece of card. Cut a patterned piece of paper to go on the top 5cm. Stick it on.

Glue a piece of black ribbon to the join

Cut out two hearts from patterned card. Glue some silver ribbon from the black ribbon to part way down the card. Use sticky dots to attach the two hearts. Stick a happy birthday sticker in the bottom right corner.

Attach buttons to the centre of the heart using a sticky dot. Attach tiny gems to the join where the silver ribbon meets the black ribbon.

Beaded friendship bracelet

These look really effective and are quite simple to make, the hardest bit is finding pretty beads that will fit on your embroidery silk.

Step 1: measure 30cm of embroidery silk and cut it. Measure 120cm of the same colour and cut it.

Step 2: fold the long piece in half and tie a knot capturing the short piece also and leaving a loop.

Step 3: do two square knots.

Step 4: slide a bead onto the middle piece of silk.

Step 5 continue steps 3-4 until the bracelet is the desired length.

Step 6: tie a knot and cut off the excess making sure you leave enough to tie it on your wrist.

Decoupage box

You can use a variety of things for decoupage, decoupage paper works well but is quite expensive. Magazines and comic books work well and are much more affordable. You can even use napkins as you can get them in a huge variety of colours and patterns.

Step 1: rip up the paper you are using

Step 2: mix half PVA glue with half water

Step 3: cover the box in the glue mixture

Step 4: cover the box with your paper

Step 5: wait for it to dry

Step 6: cover it in PVA glue to add a seal and a shiny finish

Learn to finger knit in 5 mins

Step 1: get some wool

Step 2: place the end at the back of your hand and hold it with your thumb.

Step 3: weave the wool over your index finger, under your middle finger, over your ring finger and around your little finger, under your ring finger, over your middle finger and around your index finger, under your middle finger, over your ring finger and around your little finger, under your ring finger, over your middle finger and under your index finger.

Step 4: take the bottom loop on your little finger off your finger over the top loop.

Step 5: repeat for your other fingers.

Step 6: continue steps 3-5 until the wool is the desired length. It should look something like this from the back.

Step 7: transfer the loop on your little finger to your ring finger, then take the bottom loop on your ring finger off your finger over the loop you just put on.

Step 8: transfer the loop on your ring finger to the middle finger and repeat.

Step 9: transfer the loop on your middle finger to your index finger and repeat.

Step 10: slide the last loop off your finger and cut the wool you were weaving with so there is just a couple of centimeters.

Step 11: feed the tiny end of wool through the loop and pull.

Step 12: pull the other end of wool too.

Stretchy bracelet tutorial

These are easy to make and very wearable. You can buy all sorts of pretty beads in a range of colours and styles so you can make a bracelet that suits your look.

What you'll need:

Needle 

Clear elastic

Pretty 8mm beads

Silver spacer 3mm beads 

Step 1: thread your needle with the clear elastic.

Step 2: with the elastic doubled measure the way around your wrist and add 10cm.

Step 3: tie a double knot at the end of the elastic.

Step 4: alternate a big bead with a spacer bead.

Step 5: continue until it is the desired length (approx 18 big beads)

Step 6: cut the needle off and tie a double knot.

Step 7: tie both the ends together in a triple knot.

Step 8: cut the excess elastic off.

Lots of knots friendship bracelet

These bracelets are really quick to make and make great presents for friends! 

1. Measure 2 arm lengths of wool and cut it 

2. Use the piece of wool to cut another two pieces of wool in different colours.

3. Put all the pieces of wool together fold them all in half and tie a knot so there is just a small loop at the top.

         

4. Attach a safety pin through the loop and pint he safety pin to your trousers, duvet or similar. You could also use a clipboard.

5. Do a forwards knot with the string on the left (make the shape of a 4 over the other strings and pull it through.)

6. Pull the knot right to the top and repeat 9 more times.

7. Take the next colour to the left and do 10 forward knots

8. Switch to the last colour and do 10 forward knots.

9. Repeat until the bracelet is the desired length and then tie a knot right at the end of your knots and cut off the excess, leaving about 5cm to tie the bracelet around your wrist.

Salt dough heart decoration

You may have done these when you were little and think this is just a little kids craft but it can be done at any age and you make far better quality items when you're older!

You need:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup water

Cutters

Paints/pens

Step 1: make your salt dough by mixing the flour and salt with the water until it forms a dough

Step 2: dust your surface in flour and roll your dough out using a rolling pin

Step 3: use your cutters to cut out shapes from your dough and use a needle to make a hole (big enough to thread ribbon through) in each shape 

Step 4: put the shapes on a baking tray

Step 5: bake for 20mins at 200 degrees

Step 6: take them out and wait for them to cool

Step 7: decorate them using felt pens or paints

Step 8: wait for your design to dry and then thread a ribbon through the hole

Fimo cookie necklace tutorial

This necklace is quirky and goes with lots of styles. This tutorial is for a choc chip cookie but you could use red for cherries or blue for blueberries.

Step 1: soften a small lump of dark brown and pale brown polymer clay.

Step 2: roll the pale brown fimo into a ball.

Step 3: squash the ball until it looks a good cookie size.

Step 4: roll the dark brown fimo into a thin sausage.

Step 5: cut small chocolate chips from the dark brown.

Step 6: gently press the dark brown chips into the pale brown cookie base.

Step 7: carefully put a head pin through the cookie and put in the oven at 110 degrees for 30 mins.

Step 8: once cool brush the cookie in polymer clay varnish to make it shiny.

Step 9: use pliers to turn the end if the headpin into a loop.

Step 10: thread a piece of black cord about 30cm through the loop in the headpin.

Step 11: attach a cord end to both ends of the cord.

Step 12: attach a jumpring to both ends and attach a lobster clasp to one jumpring.

Heart paper clips

A cute way of keeping those little notes together. This is so quick, all you need is a few seconds and a paper clip.

Step 1: get a coloured paper clip.

Step 2: bend it until it forms the shape below.

Step 3: slide onto your papers to keep them together.

Flower heart shrink art necklace

This is really easy to do but looks quite intricate. You need some templates to get your pattern from, mine were in my klutz shrink art set but you could print some off the Internet.

Step 1: draw using a pencil a heart shape onto the rough side of the shrink plastic.

Step 2: draw using a normal pencil around the flower design on the template.

Step 3: use colouring pencils to shade in the flowers and leaves.

Step 4: use a hole punch to punch a hole near the edge of the heart.

Step 5: place the heart on a piece of cardboard on a baking tray so the rough side is up.

Step 6: preheat the oven to 160 degrees.

Step 7: once the oven is up to temp put your heart in for 3-4 mins.

Step 8: take it out of the oven and place something heavy on top of it like a glass place mat to stop it curling up. (The penny is just to give you an idea of the size.)

Step 9: thread a jumpring through the hole in the heart and close it.

Step 10: thread a piece of black cord about 30cm through the jumpring.

Step 11: attach a cord end to both ends of the cord.

Step 12: attach a jumpring to both ends and attach a lobster clasp to one jumpring.

Collage photo frame

This is pretty much free to make and recycles old magazines. 

Step 1: cut out some pretty patterns from magazines, you could use background, clothing, whatevever takes your fancy.

Step 2: get some cardboard and cut it into a square (mine was about 18cm by 18cm) 

Step 3: Measure 3cm from the edge the entire way around the cardboard.

Step 4: cut the middle bit out.

Step 5: use PVA glue to stick your magazine pieces around the cardboard.

Step 6: coat in a thick layer of PVA glue to seal it all together.

Step 7: find a pretty picture and Sellotape it to the back.

Phone case tutorial

These are really easy to make and can be made to fit any size of phone.

Step 1: cut a piece of felt that covers all the way around your phone and add 2cm for seam allowance. I have a nokia lumia 720 and mine was about 18cm by 15 cm.

Step 2: on the top edge (the long one) fold 1cm over and pin it.

Step 3: sew using straight stitch just above the fold, remember to remove the pins as you go.

Step 4: fold in half and sew the up the seam.

Step 5: sew along the bottom.

Step 6: turn inside out.

Step 7: decorate it, I used fabric paints to do a spot design but you could use more felt and sew a heart or something. Just remember not to sew through both bits of fabric or you won't be able to put your phone in!

Drawstring bag tutorial

This is really cheap, quick and easy to make. It has many uses, storing children's toys, jewellery, phones, chargers etc. You can make it look super pretty by choosing a patterned fabric or decorating it with appliqué shapes.

Step 1: cut a rectangular piece of fabric to the size you want, I did about 40cm by 25cm.

Step 2: fold the top 3cm over and pin or tack it.

Step 3: sew a straight line of straight stich close to your pins, make sure you don't run over your pins and take them out as you go along.

Step 4: when it's still wrong side up sew along the bottom edge and the open side.

Step 5: turn the right way round.

Step 6: thread some ribbon, cord or yard through the top channel, you may want to use a blunt needle  to make it easier. Tie a knot or a bow at the end.