Paint sample bookmarks

Hi guys!

Urrgg! School is nearly upon us. Unfortunately that means more work and lessons, but it also means that you can make some cute things for school. This DIY is good for school, so you can mark pages in any books you are ready in class, however it does't take too long to make, so it doesn't matter if you lose them. This DIY is also quite cute, as you can personalise them for a gift.

You will need:

-paint swatches, you can get these for free at a hardware store

-thin ribbon

-a hole puncher

-any things you want for decoration, e.g. Pens, stickers, tape, stamps

-a laminator if you want to laminate your book marks

Steps:

1) Collect your supplies.

2) If you are going to laminate your bookmark, do so now. Then, hole punch the top of the paper, and decorate it however you want. I put quotes about books on mine. You could also write your initial on it, put a recipe on them, put stickers on it, or doodle on it. Basically whatever you feel like doing.

3) Fold a piece of ribbon in half, the thread through the hole. Put one end of the ribbon through the other and pull. 

By Annie

Giant Pom Poms!

Hi Guys!

My friend thinks that pompom is a very amazing word, and I must say, I agree. Just listen to the sound of it on your tongue. Pompom. The word itself even conjures up images of joviality. So why don't you keep some of that special-ness in your room, by making some giant ones? They are really quick to make, and you can hang them anywhere. Mine are in my window, or you could put them on your door, or make lots to turn into a garland.

You will need:

-Tissue paper

-String or thread

-Ribbon

-Scissors

Steps:

1) Cut all your papers to size. Mine where about 16cm, but that is pretty small.

2) Layer your papers on top of each other, then fold them in a concertina shape, like a fan.

3) Fold in the middle, and tie some thread around it to keep it in place. At this stage if you want, you can cut the end to make different shapes.

4) Get a longish strip of ribbon to be the loop. Poke one end under the thread, then tie both ends together.

5) Take the first layer of paper and bend it up, away from the other pieces. Do the same to the other half of the same piece. Then, flip and do this on the other side of the pompom. Continue doing this until you have bent all the layers up.

6) Your your pompom may look a bit funny, so just tease and poof the layers until it is looking full. Then you have finished, so go and hang it up somewhere.

By Annie

Shoebox desk organiser

Hi guys!

We were in France the past two weeks, which was lovely and sunny. However, now we are back in rainy ol' england, where I have an unfortunate incident to describe to you. Two days ago my little brother broke apart my lego desk organiser as he declared his need of bricks for his latest lego star wars project. And I thought, 'Thanks a lot for that, now I have to procure another desk organiser.' And I did. Except this one was much bigger and better.

For this project you will need:

- a shoebox lid

- card, quite strong

- jars, bottles and cartons from around the house (I had two juice bottles, a mini jam jar, and one of the mini cereal boxes you get at a hotel)

- paper with nice patterns, such as wrapping paper

- washi tape (if wanted)

- clear tape

- scissors

- glue

Steps:

1) Collect the things from around the house. Take the labels off any bottles and cartons that you can.

2) Decorate the shoebox lid. I cut some paper doilies to size and stuck them on the bottom, then put washi tape around the top, but you can do any colours or designs you like.

3) Now you will make the dividers. Cut a piece of card as high as the box, and any length you want. This could be as long as the box, or just a smaller piece. Stick it using clear tape to the wall of the box, and to the other wall if it touches. Cut more pieces like this to make squares out of the dividers, sticking each new strip with tape to the box wall or the other pieces or card. You can customise the size and shape of the boxes depending on what you are putting in the organiser. If the card strips are wobbly, stick them to the bottom of the box as well.

4) Decorate your jars and cartons. I put tape around the bottles and jars, and I covered the carton with paper.

5) Put these jars and cartons into the main box. Stick them down with clear tape if they are unstable. Then fill with all your stationary. I put pens and pencils in the bottle, paperclips in the small jar, my scissors, glue, and ink cartridges in the smaller carton, and other staionary in the small boxes.

By Annie

Tape crafts

 Hi Guys!

I hope your summers have all been good so far. I was at paperchase yesterday and I saw this big roll of tape covered in watermelons, and watermelons are my favourite fruit, and it was just so summery that I had to buy it. So today I had the idea to base my post around tape. Here are two DIYs which you can make using any big tape you have at home, be it washi or duct.

For both DIYs you will need:

-card (the stronger the better)

-tape

How to make a coin purse:

1- get a big piece of card, the thicker it is the stronger your purse will be.

2- cut the card to the right width, and with a length two and a half times the right length. The half will befor the flap.

3- measure down half the right length, then fold the rest of the card in half up to there, so you form the shape of the purse.

4- cover the whole thing in tape, cutting extra strips and folding them over the seams to seal it. If you want to make your purse extra secure, add some velcro onto the top of the purse and the flap.

How to make a corner bookmark:

1- cut out two squares of card, each one 6.5cm by 6.5cm.

2- cut one of these in half diagonally

3- cover the other square with tape completely

4-cut a piece of tape 6.5cm long, and put it over one of the triangles, but don't fold over the edges. Discard the other triangle.

5- place the square over the triangle, then fold up the excess tape onto the square, so they are now stuck together.

By Annie

Lego desk organiser

Hi guys!

Issy and I are finally on summer holidays! Yay! Hopefully we'll be posting more as we'll have more time. Comment below if you have any ideas that you want us to do posts on.

 You probably have a lot of lego lying around at home from when you had it as a kid. This DIY is a good way to use some of it up, and it helps to organise your desk, so it's a win-win situation. It is also really simple, so anybody can do it.

You will need:

-Lego (I got mine from my little brother)

-hands

Steps:

1- get all the regular shaped lego you can find, as well as one big-ish base. Make a small wall, one brick high on three sides of the base.

2- get some more flat lego, and lay it out so it covers most of the base. This will be used to make the bottom of the draw. Then stick these all together with long thin flat bits of lego.

3- star to build up a wall on all four sides of the drawer. Add in a small flat brick, so you can pull out the drawer easily. Slot the drawer into the rest of the box to check it fits okay.

4- while the drawer is in the box, build up the box's wall around the drawer. I would recommend three bricks high. Just make sure it is higher than the drawer.

5- make the roof of the box by sticking flat bricks over the top of the wall.

6- if you want to, you can make dividers on the roof by putting the one-block-wide blocks on to make the size squares you need. Then just put in all your stationary!

By Annie

How to put side panels in a top

Hi guys!

Do you ever find that you have a top that is nice, but, well, a bit meh. Why don't you put some side panels in! These make the top look more individual and bright, as well as it being much cuter, especially if you use a contrasting colour or fabric.  Another good thing is that they are really easy to put in. So let's get started.

You will need:

- one t-shirt in need of brightening

- some other fabric

- a ruler

- pins

- scissors

- a sewing machine or needle and thread

1) Cut out a strip of the T- shirt on the side that you want to remove. Cut all the way from top to bottom. Then cut out a strip of fabric the same width and length as the strip of the T-shirt. Pin the two front sides together. Do this for the other side as well.

2) Sew the fabric and top together, taking out pins as you go. Hem the top and the bottom of the fabric strip. Then sew the top and fabric together along all three other seams.

Now you have finished putting the side panels in your top, so go out, wear it and be happy. ; )

By Annie

Chevron stripe friendship bracelet

Hi guys!

Sorry we haven't posted is aggeess but it has been exams so we have been studying and super busy. Fortunately exams are over now, so summer can really begin, amirite? Anyway, to kickstart our summer theme I'm teaching you how to make a chevron stripe friendship bracelet. You proably made a load of similar ones in year four or something, but freindship bracelets are really in style now, so why don't you exchange a few with your best mates?

You will need:

Two colours of string

A clipboard

 

1) cut two pieces of string from each colour. Make these pretty long as they will be folded in half. Fold them, then tie a knot near the top. Put the string in a clipboard for easy knotting, or fasten using a safety pin to your trousers. Arrange so the colours are alternating.

2) We will be using the same knot as in my earlier friendship bracelet tutorial (see below). Get the left most strand and cross it over the strand next to it, then bring it under that strand, and pull tight to the top. Repeat this another time on that strand. Continue doing two knots using the same knotting thread for each strand of thread working left to right until you get to the middle.

3) Then grab the rightmost strand, and do the same knot as above twice. Work from right to left until you get to the middle also. Knot the two middle strands together. They should be the same colour.

4) repeat steps 2-3, each time using the outermost thread. It should alternate colours. This will make the chevron pattern.

5) when finished, knot the threads, then tie the end through the beginning loop aroung your wrist.

When you have mastered this pattern, try this tutorial. It's a little more difficult:

http://honestlywtf.com/diy/diy-heart-friendship-bracelet/

By Annie