handmade days - colorful wrapped twigs

these are the perfect addition to a bookshelf, credenza or dresser top. love love the wrapped twigs tutorial from how now design.

handmade days - knot this

knotted rope can make some pretty sick jewelry. get your tie on here - lots of great video tutorials.

image via refinery 29.

handmade days - luxe metallic bunnies

this project from ps i made this has me craving some gold spray paint and a trip to the collectibles section at value village. genius.

handmade days - geometric tee

another way to bump up a plain tee from spin off stuff. this photo tutorial is super easy to follow - break out the fabric paint!

handmade days - pencil eraser stamps

creature comforts does it again. this pencil eraser stamp tutorial (with free printable) is perfect for a handmade touch to gifts, cards or labels.

handmade days - bottle painting & bathroom art

such sweet projects for your upcoming spring weekend.


what a great way to reuse kitchen glass - juice containers, pb and olive jars. thanks to poppy talk for the link.


more reuse - tp rolls make a killer wall hanging on apartment therapy.

handmade days - pendant lamps

see these? they are my weekend project, alongside an ikea trip & dining chair hunting. craftynest has a wonderful tutorial & i'm super pumped to give this (seemingly messy, but easy) tutorial a shot.

handmade days - stenciled leggings

yeah, there's a bit of a leggings debate. they aren't pants - i'm aware of that & argued it to my death a year ago. my question now, is how i'm supposed to ignore a trend that allows women to be fashionable in something so close to sweatpants. hell, there were sweatpants on the runway in ny.

until i realize what a silly phase this was, i will embrace it & even adorn the leggings with sweet little stencils.

thanks to transient expression for the idea & tutorial.

handmade days - playing with paper - essimar

essimar's blog has me convinced that the only way for me to spend the next two days is with brightly colored paper & scissors. her pieces are perfect for valentine's day, maybe b needs an envelope full of paper hearts to know i love him this year. check out her etsy shop & flickr here.

other sweet valentine's project from design*sponge, 100 layer cake, & rachel leonard.

still dottie diy tutorials

see below for the ultimate collection of still dottie patterns & tutorials!


braided chain necklace



jeweled t-shirt 


paper napkin rings


hidden message felt hearts



holiday garland

 
flower cluster - a broach, belt & hair piece


feather & flower headband



makeup brush carrier

 
felt birch wall hanging 



wine cork trivet & board



high-waisted, button-front skirt


fabric stitched notecards



teapot cozie



ipod cozie



smock apron




embroidered pillows

handmade days - scrunch scarf tutorial

i love this scrunch scarf idea from lomurella. wouldn't this look super cute over a plain t-shirt?!

lomurella hosts a ton of well designed, beautifully illustrated tutorials - i'd love to make everything. although, there is one catch - it's in spanish. google will translate her blog for you, but you'll find the illustrations found on her flickr site a little trickier.

handmade days - friendship pins

i'm feeling nostalgic for elementary school crafts & wise craft has just the answer - friendship pins. i think it sounds like a fun, kitschy gift idea for those special people in your life; i want one with strawberry on it. in case you decide to make your own, here is a quick tutorial for creating your own patterns.

another one with love for old school, friendship craft is for me, for you writer kate. she does sporadic batches of fresh necklaces inspired by our old favorite - floss friendship bracelets. check her blog for shop updates.

handmade days - envelopes

i have a huge stack on magazines that have got to go & i'm pretty sure i found the best way to do it. envelopes! i was inspired by these beauties from jessprkle, so gorgeous. she has a great eye for color and texture. well, the next thing is a tutorial right? how about this one - it seems pretty simple & the sizing can be adjusted depending on your card or note size.

handmade days - big ol' beads

this is such a fun & easy project! these wooden bead necklaces kind of remind me of the ones in this post a while back, just a little more boho.

i think this would be a perfect girls' night project. ohhhhh ideas.

handmade days - top 100 tutorials of 2009

thanks to the long thread for this killer round up.

via craft:

handmade days - 3d felt ornaments

thanks to jessica at how about orange for this fantastic tutorial! i'm partial to the felt though - perfect for gift toppers, ornaments or year-round decoration.

handmade days - inspired by

i might try to make a dress like this beautiful silk church and state piece. what about that lace! it seems simple enough (right), but i may look for a pattern anyway.



what about this lovely thing from net-a-porter? i could swing that without a pattern. yummmm.

via lake jane.

anyone have suggestions tips for either?

handmade days - clothespin craft

i think that many of us have fond childhood memories of glittering, painting, glueing & drawing all over clothespins. sometimes those clothespins even had magnets on the back or where simply used to group together your important 12-year-old documents. well, that time is back & i'm all over it.

martha suggests using holiday wrap & gluestick for a greeting card garland. whisker graphics suggests using japanese masking tape & magnetic backs. susyjack - well - they just have some super cute ones. i'm dying for a reason to get some of the japanese masking tape, but there are so many choices, i wouldn't know where to begin.

btw - diy tonight at faire gallery & cafe, 7:30-10:00pm.

handmade days - diy night

UPDATE: the event will take place on thursday, dec. 3!

calling all seattle diy enthusiasts!along with some of my favorite people at faire gallery & cafe, i'll be hosting a diy night on thursday, dec. 3 from 7:30-10:00pm. pack up your latest project & work on it in the company of good people.

although moving to the east side of the hill means i'm there a lot less than i'd like - faire remains one of my favorite places in seattle. the space is warm, good music fills the aire, the art is fun & unexpected, & of course the food & drink are tops. no rsvp necessary, but if you want to invite friends or get it on your calendar, i've got a little something up on facebook.

i'm super excited to annouce that i'll be crossing another item of my 2009 to do list - bring in the new year! click here to download, embed or link the image to your site.

handmade days - braided chain tutorial

while flipping through lucky a couple months back, i stumbled upon this this necklace from guess for $35. it seemed like a reasonable price, but i tore it out anyway - seeing if i could make it happen for myself or find it even cheaper.



then a couple of weeks ago i was looking through etsy and found these fun enamel chains, it seemed that they would make a fun braided necklace like the one i saw in lucky. i still really like the silver & am hoping to make a second or third version out of vintage chains & a more polished one from bulk chain at my local bead shop.

this turned out to be a super simple, 30 minute necklace; one totally worth making. the chains ran me $16 & i had to pick up some beading supplies for the closure (could be done as cheap as $5). with that said, here's how to do it.







what you need
wire cutters
needle nose pliers
7 paper clips
necklace closure
beading wire
15 feet of chain (3 5-feet links, silver, gold, enamel)

instructions

1. double each 5 foot chain and mark each with a paper clip. make sure that each chain is of varying length.
2. combine all 3 paper clips with the fourth paper clip.
3. pair off chains & braid tightly for 7 inches.
4. straighten a paper clip and run through all 6 chains.
5. lay the full necklace out on a flat surface, match up each end up the chains. form the chains into an oval, draping into the ideal shape.
6. keeping the draped section in tact, straighten a paper clip and run through the 6 chains where you'd like to start the second braid.
7. pair off chains and braid loosely until the end of the chains. i left a chain or two hang, skipping some braids.
8. finish off the necklace by threading the chains with a final paper clip.
9. to add a closure i followed directions from an associate at my local bead store, so these might be a little rough.
10. first i cut about 5 inches of 20 gauge wire. using a pencil i shaped a loop in the center of the 5 inches, pulled the loop open & turned on end into a 90 degree angle. i then threaded the end of the chains, and closed the loop. then using needle nose pliers i wrapped the side bent to a 90 degree angle around the other side 3 times.
11. forming another hoop, i then threaded in the clasp.
    
12. wrap back down once or twice, clip each wire tight. use the needle nose fliers to tighten the wrapped wire.
13. repeat 10-12 for the other end of the necklace. i added a medium sized glass bead between the loop for added interest.

clearer instructions for finishing the necklace (steps 10-13): witty living, ehow with kathleen wright, and about.com.

click here for process photos. please feel free to email me or leave comments with any questions or suggestions you might have on this tutorial, i always love to hear from you.