DIY Life

Let's face it, that whole "resolutions" thing is tough. Remember that time you resolved to work out every morning, and all you ended up with was a dusty elliptical trainer? Well, here are a few projects that might help you achieve your resolutions, but even if they don't, they're fun, and don't leave big dusty relics behind.

Here are a few projects that might help get you started on those resolutions:

Be more organized:
Get your family on the same page by painting this chalkboard wall calendar, designed by the folks over at marthastewart.com. If you give up on the whole thing, the paint treatment still looks pretty interesting on its own. Or you or your kids/friends/cat-sitters can draw little pictures in the squares, making it a rotating chalkboard art gallery. (via ApartmentTherapy)

Clear out the clutter:
Corral all those toys, takeout menus, magazines and whatever else in this handy dandy hanging organizer from Burdastyle. If it doesn't help you get more organized, at least you can use it for shoes. Ditto for this car-seat organizer from MayFly. (via Craft)

Be more environmentally friendly:
Yes, you really want to avoid using plastic bags, but those canvas bags take up precious real estate in your purse, am I right? The solution? The folks over at WhipUp have a great pattern for a fabric tote bag that can be folded down to wallet -size. Now you have no excuse.

Be a better correspondent
If you go through the trouble to make these pretty little notecards from StillDottie, you'll just HAVE to use them to drop a line to your friends and family, right? Yes, that's what I tell myself too. But at the very least, if you embellish them with fabric only and use no lettering, they can be backup cards for when you forgot to buy a card for your co-worker's birthday.

Didn't have a chance to make the Thanksgiving turkey hat for your infant/ niece/ nephew/ grandchild? Well, you've got just under 2 weeks to make up for it by knitting her or him this adorable Santa hat.

Debbie at The Shrinking Knitter, has created an easy-to-follow pattern to for a hat that fits a 6 month-old. Again, if you know your way around a knitting pattern, it'll be no problem at all to size it up or down to fit the wee one in your life.

The pattern calls for red worsted weight yarn and white fun fur. This is one of the very rare instances where fun fur can be used in a way that's not totally frightening. Jump on it people, this opportunity might never come your way again.

Nothing on our first list of DIY ornament projects catch your eye? Well, here are 10 more presents to rev up your creative juices (most via Craft):

1. Denim Christmas Tree Ornaments from One Crafty Mumma. While you're there check out her other holiday projects in her 25 days of Christmas series.

2. Flying Spaghetti Monster Ornament from Civil Bitch. I love it when people make ornaments modeled after things you wouldn't expect.

3. Speaking of unusual ornaments, check out this Plastic Bag Wreath at Two Peas in a Bucket. Cute and environmentally friendly.



4. Great project for the kids: Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments from Kaboose.

5. These might be my favorites (and probably also would be a good project for the kids): super cool Foam Ornaments from How About Orange.

By now, you've probably pulled all your winter sweaters out of storage. Are some of them in slightly worse shape than you remember? A hole here, some pilling there? Well, here are some ideas for what to do with your sweaters when they're beyond repair.

1. Follow Craft Addiction's simple instructions for using sweater sleeves to make extra long gloves (via Craft)

2. Use Write Mama Write's tutorial for fabric mittens to sew knit or felted mittens

3. Or use this tutorial from Whip Up, or these instructions from Canadian Living to make a felted bag

4. Craftster user maize has a tutorial for a recycled sweater coin purse

5. Last winter, Knitty gave us directions for turning an old sweater into a scarf

6. Sew Green has a tutorial for house slippers that could be made from a felted sweater. (via Craft Leftovers)

7. Use this free pattern from Totally Stitchin' to sew a knit purse (via Craft Gossip)

8. Another one from Craftster: a tutorial for turning an old sweater into a hat from user tickleagangster

9. Betz White has a pattern for turning old sweaters into adorable stuffed bunnies

10. Last, but by no means least, Digs Magazine has instructions for making pillow covers from old sweaters

Are you more of a "Bah, humbug!" person than a "Ho, ho, ho!" person? Well that doesn't mean you have to avoid all your friends until January. Round up your most curmudgeonly pals for a Festivus party.

For the uninitiated, Festivus is a holiday created by Seinfeld character Frank Costanza (father of George). After a Jingle All The Way-type altercation in a toy store, Frank decides he's fed up with the commercialization of the holiday season and creates his own holiday. Celebrated on December 23rd, Frank's Festivus celebration involved the following:

1. An aluminum pole (Frank finds tinsel distracting)
2. Feats of strength (Frank's preferred feat is wrestling with George)
3. Airing of grievances (This is my favorite part; imagine a holiday where you get to tell your family members just how crazy they make you.)

Since Festivus made its debut on network TV, parties celebrating the holiday have become more common (though by no means widespread).

Intrigued? Here are some tips for throwing your own Festivus party:

• Research: At the very least you should watch the Seinfeld episode that started it all (Season 9, Episode 166, a.k.a The Strike). You might also want to check out the book Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of Us for even more humorous details. For what I suspect are more traumatic details, try The Real Festivus by Daniel O'Keefe, a former Seinfeld writer whose own real father created Festivus in the 1960s (no, I'm not kidding).

We had a pair of taupe tab-top curtains in out office/craft room that were bland to say the least. To jazz them up a little, I figured I'd take a little inspiration from the current wall decal trend. Less than 2 hours later, we had some pretty hip curtains without a hefty price tag. Here's how you can create your own:

Materials:
- Boring curtains
- About 1/2 yard of contrasting fabric
- Paper-backed fusible web of your choice (I've used Pellon Wonder Under, Heat 'n' Bond, and Steam-A-Seam and Steam-A Seam is by far my favorite. Make no mistake though, once you iron that stuff down, it's not coming off)
- Printable cardstock (and printer)
- Silhouette of your choice (I got mine from the extensive collection at Stencilry)
- Scissors
- Pen or Pencil
- Iron

Instructions:
1. Print your silhouette in multiple sizes (unless you want them all the same size) onto cardstock and cut out.

2. Determine the number of each size you need and trace them onto fusible web backing. When tracing, remember that the silhouette will be the mirror image of what you trace. I wrote "up" on one side of all my silhouettes so I wouldn't mistakenly trace any backwards.

Yes, there are a TON of holiday themed crafting projects out there, but here a few of the newer, better ones that have caught my eye.

Flower Wreath made from recycled sweaters from Betz White. (via Craft)
It's probably meant for hanging, but I kind of want to cuddle with it.

Christmas banner from the Richmond Craft Mafia.
Banners seem to be making a comeback with the crafters, why should Christmas decorations not be part of the fun?

Polymer Clay Gingerbread Houses from Polymer Clay Express. (via Craft Gossip)
I can't decide if these are cute or vaguely creepy. Either way, me likey.

A roundup of tutorials for advent calendars from WhipUp and another from CraftyDaisies. (via Curbly)
Who knew advent was so popular? I don't even remember what it's about and I went to catholic school! I think this one (pictured below) from Split Coast Stampers is my favorite.


Elf Clogs from AllSorts.
I'm not even sure what you'd use these for (or how they could possibly be warm enough for those elves at the North Pole) but they're adorable.

Pine Tree Sachets from the Purl Bee.
I think these would look better done entirely in green yarn but they're still cute, yet understated. Just how I like my holiday decor.

Sure you could download images, type a greeting, and print a card faster than you can say DIY, but where's the fun in that? If you really want to use your hands to create DIY cards with a more personal touch, check out these options:

CraftyPod has a podcast with ideas for making greeting cards from fabric, yarn, and other miscellaneous materials.

Craft Apple has a tutorial for patchwork cards. All you need is a handful of fabric scraps and some sewing supplies.

While you're at it, check out this tutorial for sewing on paper from Julie at the adventures of bluegirlxo. Lots of great ides for embellishing mixed media cards too.

The DIY Network has directions for making 3-dimensional window cards. These are really neat accordion style cards that people will actually want to put on their mantels.

Just last week, our own Brian White pointed us to instructions for making eco-Christmas cards from shredded junk mail.

Last, but by no means least, Curbly user erinloechner has a new tutorial for a Christmas Tree Pop-Up Card that is nothing short of awesome.

Here's to putting the "hand" back into "handmade"!

Sure, Thanksgiving's only a few days away, but a few hours is all you need to whip up this adorable turkey hat for the littlest ones at the table. Created by Sara of GoingCrafty, the Jive Turkey baby hat is just the sort of whimsical accessory that only the very young (or very young at heart) can get away with.

The pattern calls for worsted weight yarn in brown and white and fits a 12 month old. If you know your way around a knitting pattern, it should be fairly easy to customize for slightly older or younger kids. Just the project you need to distract yourself from brining turkeys and making pies and figuring out how to stave off world war three when your family gets together for dinner.

(Via Shelterrific)

After years of rummaging around in jewelry boxes for matching earrings I gave up and started storing my jewelry in a plastic art bin with lots of little compartments. Practical, but by no means pretty.

Which is why I was so excited to discover Joyful Abode's jewelry storage tutorial. She uses frames, cork, fabric, and ribbon to create a jewelry storage system that is both useful and practical.

I love everything about it. Each piece of jewelry is in plain view so you can easily get at what you want. Plus, each piece has a place, so you know where to put everything back when you take it off. It's pretty enough that there's no need to hide it in a closet or dresser. In fact, because it's in a frame, you can hang it on the wall, freeing up precious surface space. And, you can customize it to coordinate with your bedroom, bathroom or wherever you store your jewelry.

Seriously. Brilliant.

DIY lighting seems to be all over the blogosphere these days. Today, Apartment Therapy features a tutorial for making a socket chandelier. Their tutorial is inspired by David Allen's Atomic Chandelier, which retails for $200. For far less money, you can create your own version using socket extenders (also known as "y" or twin socket adapters), low wattage bulbs and electrical cord (if you don't already have a chandelier fixture). The result is both fun and modern.

Don't have a chandelier setup and don't want to deal with electrical cord? Never fear, you can create your own fixture by screwing right into your ceiling or wall socket - you just can't do the ball shape the AT writers did.

If you can, check out the September/October issue of Blueprint magazine. They did a feature on the home and studio of designer Lotta Anderson (better known as Lotta Jansdotter). The spread included a full-page shot of her in her studio (scroll down a little) with a "coral-like" chandelier, made of socket extenders, and almost definitely screwed into her ceiling.

Design*Sponge is usually a great source for eye candy and DIY inspiration. Recently, they've been adding a weekly DIY feature with tutorials and the like. This week, we got a twofer as they've posted a fabulous project submitted by one of their readers.

Inspired by a corkboard (scroll to the very bottom to see it) created by a featured designer on the blog, the reader created her own tutorial for a baroque-style corkboard. The tutorial provides both directions and a template for creating this on your own. All you need is cork and a cutting tool.

This is a clever alternative to typical rectangular corkboards and is a great way to add visual interest by using different silhouettes in your space.

Before you know it, Christmas/ Hanukkah/ Kwanzaa/ Solstice will be here. Actually, if some of the department store windows are to be believed, Christmas got here about 3 weeks ago.

In any case, what better way to take a step back from the holiday shopping madness than to make some festive holiday ornaments at home with your loved ones. Here are 10 great ideas to get you started.

1. Amy Butler fabric ornament and tree topper featured in Blueprint. If you get the chance, check out the latest issue of Blueprint - there's a picture tour of Amy Butler's House.

2. Button Wreath Ornament from marthastewart.com. I really like this one because after the holiday you can simply re-purpose the buttons.

3. Ribbon pine cone ornament from WhipUp. More traditional but very clever.

4. Polymer clay ornament from craftster. Classy.

5. Mitten ornament from the Feathered Nest. Made with felt, ribbon and glitter - infinite possibilities for customization.

Dan over at Instructables has a nifty tutorial for making your own custom lighting fixture from - among other things - plastic milk jugs. He provides a template that looks sort of like a parallelogram with notches in each corner. You use the template to create as many identical pieces as you like - he even offers suggestions for different methods of cutting.

The pieces are then joined together by the notches - no glue or screws needed. Last thing you need is a basic lamp fixture and a bulb that won't melt whatever material you choose for your fixture. Sheer genius.

The holiday season is here, people, and you know what that means: an endless stream of dinner parties, get-togethers, and soirees. And since it's the season for giving, you don't want to show up empty-handed. Then there's all those little gifts for people you just don't tip... like your child's preschool teacher or the receptionist at work.

Here are a few quick and easy ideas for handmade holiday gifts for your party host or anyone else you want to give a little something.

If you sew:

The Purl Bee has a great tutorial for handmade napkins. Who couldn't use a few extra napkins? Add some embroidery or applique in a corner and they're good to go. They use Halloween quilting fabric, but I think a loosely woven cotton or cotton/linen blend would work better for napkins. And please, it might be the holidays but skip the holiday fabric. Who really wants napkins they can only use for 6 weeks out of the year?

Jenny from Allsorts has a tutorial for these nifty Criss-Cross Coasters (pictured above). So adorable, and a great way to use up scrap fabric.

If you knit:

Whip-up this adorable felted tea cosy from Knitty. Their samples are red and green, but seriously people, again, ixnay on the holiday colors.

If your recipient prefers a different type of beverage, hand them a bottle of wine in this knitted wine cozy; again from Knitty. (No, I don't know why tea cosy has an "s" and wine cozy has a "z"; I'm just writing what I see here people)

If you crochet:

Teresa Franco has a tutorial for cute flower-shaped crocheted coasters. Quick, easy, and fun. (Via Craft)

Try this pattern for a crocheted snowflake from marthastewart.com. Use it to make ornaments or embellish napkins, or other small gifts for your host.