DIY Life

Plastic bags may not be friendly to the environment, but when recycled, they can be the earth's best friend. Even better? Plastic bags can add a touch of chic glamour to every home they grace. Don't believe your grocery bag and "chic" belong in the same sentence? Think again:

1. The Plastic Bag Chandelier
I always hear that you can make a lamp out of absolutely anything, but I have to admit -- I never believed it. Until now.
See the first chandelier here, and the second right here.

2. The Plastic Bag Chair
Sit on it and spin... literally. The plastic bag chair from Ryan Frank may not be the most functional, but it's certainly the most beautiful.

3. The Plastic Bag Cushions
Cushions that are both lovely and earth-friendly! See them right here.

4. The Plastic Bag Shoes
Don't even think about leaving out your tootsies. Plastic bag shoes? You betcha!

5. The Plastic Bag Containers
Crochet your way to recycled containers right here. Amazing!

Good shoes are so expensive! Great fit and great price ... but the looks don't thrill you? Buy 'em. Maybe you can give them a DIY makeover. Same goes for comfy but boring shoes you already own. Vintage earrings, stencil cutouts, spray painting, crochet and collage. Get some inspiration and get to work.

Blogger Vera Sunshyne's inspired and adorable Mary Janes were made from a $6 pair of garden clogs purchased from Big Lots. A little clever stenciling and cutting, superglue and embellishments of choice (rhinestones or beads look great) and look at the result. I would need a generous dose of patience to do this craft right, though.

Shoe fanatics have started a Flickr photo pool dedicated to shoe makeovers. Shoe Refashion: Refresh Your Step is a Flickr group that anyone can view, although you must be a member to add photos. These people know how to have fun with shoes. Take a peek.

These could possibly be the cutest shoes I've never owned. But don't worry --- I'm fixing that. Earth and Living attempted a tutorial for these cuties last year, and I thought the pair would be perfect for fall weather. Naturally, the year got ahead of me and here I am, craving the pair yet again. It's time I get down to business, don't you think?

I love that Earth and Living attempted to re-create the look with no prior knowledge of how the shoe was made or a pattern to work from. What a braveheart! The result is gorgeous and soooo beautifully crafted. Here's what you need:

• Good piece of leather between 2.5 - 3 mm thick.
• Ruler
• Pencil and pen
  
• Xacto knife
• Leather hole puncher
• String or hemp

That's it! Follow the pattern provided (along with a separate tutorial for the heel) and add a bit of creativity where you'd like. After all, they're your shoes for the wearing!

Enjoy!

I'm simply giddy that sandal season is upon us. If you've made your feet pretty with our home spa pedicure, then you are ready to try your hand at making your own sandals.

If Anna's recycled tire sandals aren't your thing, you might like to order this Make Your Own Sandals Kit. They are customizable and very stylish. The assembly instructions are clear and easy to follow, and you can purchase fun add-ons like charms and other embellishments.

The drawback? At 39.95 for a basic sandal kit, you could just go out and buy a pair of already-made sandals. But if you are a die-hard DIYer, this is an easy way to say, "I made these shoes."

I am wondering if you could use an old pair of shoe soles, buy new leather strapping, and fashion yourself a similar pair of sandals for less -- recycling old shoes, to boot. It would be better for the planet and your wallet!

I am a shoe fanatic. Every time I go to my local thrift store, I always manage to come home with one or ten pairs of shoes. I stopped counting the pairs of shoes that have somehow managed to migrate to the back of my closet.

I was just not sure what to do with all my shoes, especially the ones that I no longer want to wear because they are scuffed, or are no longer in style, so I was really thrilled when M.E. Williams pointed me to a post written by lindsycarranza over on Craftster. Lindsycarranza had received a free bag of shoes from Craig's List. The shoes weren't in great condition, so she decided to paint them.

To prevent the shoes from cracking, she says to apply fabric glue first. Then paint the shoes with a mix of acrylic paint and textile medium. Finally, to get a high gloss, use an acrylic varnish to seal the shoes.

Her shoes are awesome, and I must admit I am kicking myself because I never thought to paint high heel shoes, mostly because of the way the tops of the shoes can crack. If the shoes do happen to crack though, that is just incentive to paint them again.

If you are after a way to paint shoes other than high heels, check out this post on how to paint a mural on your boring shoes.

Shoe polish is relatively cheap. Besides making our shoes shine, shoe polish can extend the life of shoes. In the event you run out of shoe polish and happen to have a banana laying around, why not use the banana skin to polish your shoes?

Bananas contain potassium, which is also a key ingredient in shoe polish. To polish your shoes, all you need to do is eat the banana, rub the banana peeling on your shoes, buff with a soft cloth, and then sit back and admire your shoe polishing job.

The next time I run out of shoe polish, I need not worry anymore. Who knew bananas had such a great effect on your shoes. Make sure you get all the banana off though, since you don't want the German Shepherd down the street trying to eat your feet!

St. Nicholas's Day is supposedly the saint's birthday, but in many parts of Europe, it is also, to some extent or another, a gift-giving holiday for kids. Although the celebration is best-known in its Dutch form, Sinterklaas, the simpler German form is probably more likely to be celebrated in North America.

I celebrated St. Nicholas's Day, December 6th, as a child, and continue to celebrate it as an adult. To me, it was always a wonderful opportunity for a few early stocking-stuffer-like gifts, which can be really helpful in assuaging a kid's Christmas-related impatience (or, you know, that of a blogger).

How did we celebrate? I would leave out a pair of shoes, and in the morning, St. Nicholas would have left me a small present or two -- an ornament, a pair of socks, some candy, a tiny stuffed animal.

Tonight is St. Nicholas's Eve. Pick up some baking materials and small gifts after work, polish your shoes, and join me after the break for some ideas!

Got milk? Ha, sorry, I couldn't resist. At over $4 a gallon, milk is a very expensive commodity these days. It is very important to have on hand, especially as it helps us grow up big and strong. Of course, if you are lactose intolerant, then you can use milk for other things, and as I have, learn to love soy!

Are you curious to know what else you can do with milk beside make excellent mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner? Gomestic has a list of 20 extraordinary uses for milk that is, well, extraordinary.

The author mentions everything from using powdered milk and water as a facial mask, using milk as a shaving cream, and using milk to make yourself a foam bath. Check out the list to see if there is anything that you can use milk for:

I love shoes. I have more shoes than is really necessary for any one person to have, but since I am a woman, I have the ultimate need for shoes. I also can't throw any shoes away, so when I get bored with them, they sit in the back of my closet, lonely and neglected.

If you happen to be as bored as I am with shoes that are no longer in style, you can bring them back to life by giving them a coat of paint. Howard Rheingold is an exceptional artist who has mastered the art of painting shoes. He has wonderful pictures of shoes that he has painted. He walks (pun intended) you through the steps of painting your shoes.

From sanding the shoes, to drawing the design, Howard gives you steps to ensure that you make the ultimate fashion statement with your new pair of shoes. If you need inspiration check out the gallery of painted shoes. No one, including you, should be able to tell how old your shoes truly are, and at this point it doesn't matter anyway. Painted shoes won't go out of style, unless you have painted something really ugly on them, in which case, you just might want to hide them again in the back of your closet.

My son has a pair of light-up sandals. Everywhere you go, there are kids sporting these shoes with light flickering on every step. How often have you wished they made such cool things for adults? Why wait until they come around? Hack together your own pair of light up shoes.

What you'll need

1. Craft knife
2. Heavy-duty scissors
   
3. Pliers
   
4. Soldering iron
5. Electric drill
6. Glue
7. Old kid's shoes with lights (can get cheap worn out ones at the thrift store)
8. Your shoes of choice - Are you going to spice up your work shoes or add some light power to your favorite clubbing shoes?

DIY adult light shoes are a great way to add a little originality to your step and stand out in the dark. The full instructions and pictures along the way will walk you through the whole transplant process. I wonder if your kids will still think these shoes are cool when Mom and Dad are sporting the same ones?

If you've ever looked at people's runners and wondered how on earth they tied them the way they did, then this is going to be a pretty fun resource for you. The whole page is dedicated to various styles of tying shoes. With 15 in all, you'll find the riding bow, checker board and ladder, along with some you've never even heard of. I imagine this would be really popular among teenagers, especially the boys, who love to show off their sneakers. The hidden knot is particularly popular for basketball players.

My favorite is the zipper (pictured here). Achieving this look is pretty simple. Here's how:

1. Run the lace straight across the bottom and bring it out through both bottom eyelets
2. Loop the ends back under the lace and feed them under the shoe
3. Cross the ends over each other, then under. Bring them out through the next set of eyelets
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until both ends reach the top.

While I admit that I would've never though of compiling different ways to lace sneakers, it is an impressive list. I'll probably wear my shoes the way they came, but I'd definitely try these out on my children's shoes. I think we could have a lot of fun with it.

MSNBC brought us this article titled How to stop a headache before it starts. The tips take a little planning and some discipline, but are relatively easy to implement right away. You'll wonder why you didn't spare yourself the headache sooner.

Starting with first thing in the morning, and encouraging you not to snooze longer than an hour, they list how to avoid a headache in eight drug-free steps. The full article offers explanations behind each suggestion. It makes a lot of sense and can go a long way toward managing a pain free day. Here are the eight steps:

We are constantly looking for more storage. Trying to hack together anything we can to hide the overflow of shoes at the door, old winter jackets busting out of the hall closet, or extra bedding that doesn't fit in the linen closet. We are not alone in needing more storage. I never would have considered using the steps of my stairs as drawers, but it's a great idea. All that unused space so brilliantly discovered.

Based on Kaiden-Tansu, an old Japanese step chest used for storage and to hide from tax collectors, Unicraft joinery, an Australian based company brought us these stair drawers. Each stair transforms into a drawer, hugely increasing your storage space.

If you're building a staircase, consider adding in drawers for extra storage. I love projects that find another use for what would otherwise be wasted. In this case, it's space, and we could all use more space. Now your problem won't be where to cram all your shoes, but where to buy all the new shoes you'll need to fill the drawers.

While your new fall wardrobe may never see an old wire hanger, you probably still have some hiding in the back of your closet. Most of my clothes are hung (when they are hung!) on wooden or plastic hangers. The back of my closet, and admittedly, the floor, still overflow with old wire ones. It's time to put them to use.

1. Shoe hanger
   Bend up each end of the hanger and it will nicely hold a pair of shoes. This is particularly useful for some of your nicer shoes that you don't want scuffed around on that hall closet floor. You'll need to allot them some closet space but it will keep them clean and organized.
   
2. Go fishing
   I'm not suggesting you use an old wire hanger as a fish hook! You can use it to make a net. Bend the hanger into a circle and stretch old pantyhose around it. The children can take this to look for little fish in a stream, or sift out seashells at the beach.
   
3. Unlock car doors
   While this is most successful on TV, it will still work on some older model cars. Stretch the hanger as long and straight as you can with a hook on the end. Reach down between the window and door until you feel the latch. Pull it up and you'll unlock the door.
   
   If you've locked the keys in the car with the window slightly open you can use the hanger to fish them off the seat and bring them through the window.
   
4. Unclog drains
   Wire hangers are great for unclogging drains, both toilet and sink. You can go fishing around in the drain and try to remove the obstruction.
   
5. Radio and TV antenna
   I'm sure many college students are tinkering with their old TV, trying to get reception where it doesn't seem possible. Wire clothes hangers are great, and unlike regular antennas they can be manipulated in just the right way to optimize reception. Adding tinfoil will go a long way here too.
   
6. Mobile
   This could be a really fun project for an older sibling to make for the new baby. Use the hanger as your base and attach string and decorations. Colorful ribbons, or bells and seashells would work well. You might also like to hang pictures of family and friends from the mobile. I know you don't need me to say it, but I just can't help myself: Make sure you secure everything really well so baby doesn't choke.
   
7. Bubble wand
   This is another fun one for children. With your help the hanger can be bent into any shape and used as a bubble wand. Pour bubble soap into an old ice cream lid or other large shallow dish, dip the wand in and have fun.
   
8. Hang your clothes
   While it sounds like wire hangers are a thing of the past, there really isn't any harm in using them on most of your clothes. It may distort the shape of a delicate sweater, but if you're like me, there are far more T-shirts than pretty sweaters in the closet, and wire hangers will do just fine for those.

Those are just a few of the uses for wire hangers. I spared you the slingshot and modern art, but I have to leave something for the comments. Let me know what uses you've found for the old hangers kicking around your house.