Bring on Summer! Creative DIY Fun in the Sun

Memorial Day weekend is just a couple of days away!  Can you say long weekend!!!  Gloray!!!!   Here are some Crafty Kreations DIY Creative Fun in the Sun Projects to get you ready to kick off summer!

DIY WRAP SANDALS

I grabbed some flip flops and 2 scarves from Dollar Store to make some easy wrap sandals in less than 5 minutes.  The great thing about this craft is you can interchange the scarves for a variety of looks, wear the scarves and flip flops separately; and even better, it will only cost you $3 tops for a comfortable and fashionable pair of sandals.  I decided to be festive and use red, white and blue to celebrate Memorial Day. 

2 Scarves and Flip Flops from the Dollar Store

Wrap the scarf around the top of the flip flop.  

Twist the scarf around both sides the flip flop by just wrapping it around.

Twist tight enough for your toes to be able to comfortably slip through.  

 Voila!  Put your flip flops - turned strappy sandals on and wrap the scarf around your ankles and tie.  

CRAFTY CANVAS SHOES

Carrying on with our theme of steppin in style this summer, I DIY'd some canvas shoes, taking them from boring and bleak, to sparkly and chic.  

 Purchased some basic canvas shoes from Dollar General for $6 and fabric markers from the Dollar Store for $1.

Using the pink fabric marker, I simply colored over the original stitching on the shoes.  

I have a mild obsession with gold glitter, so I painted the tip of the shoe with mod podge and covered it with gold glitter.  

 

I followed the same steps for the back of the shoes as well.  As the glitter was drying, I used the black fabric marker and stripped the shoelaces for an additional pop of creativity.  Another idea is to color the entire shoelace or dye them.  

PERSONALIZED WATER BOTTLE

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Not just T-shirts!  Kharismatic Kreations also prints customized water bottles.  During the summer months it is important to stay hydrated.  Why not make it a personal goal with a personalized water bottle?  I took a plain mason jar style water bottle and made it my own with permanent adhesive vinyl.  Added my own polka dots too!  

Naturally Crafty Mothers - DIY Gifts for the Woman Who Created You

DIY Mother’s Day Gifts hold a sentimental value for years to come, even after your little ones grow into adults with children of their own.  Just ask my mother, who enjoys rummaging through her treasure chest of memories as a simple reminder that at one period in time I was just her little girl.  Here are a few quick, affordable, and easy DIY gifts so simple a 5 year old can do them. 

Buttons

                        

 

Kids can make custom buttons for mom, Grandma or Godmommy to wear on Mother’s Day for as low as $2.50.  I purchased Creatology Buttons from Michael’s Craft Stores for $1.99 a bag.   They come in a variety of sizes and depending on the size you can get up to 4 buttons per bag.  The largest size is 3 ½ inch buttons which come 3 per bag.  http://www.button-designer.com/ allows you to design and print your buttons free of charge.  There are size options to choose from and you are able to save your designs to use at a later time.  The Designer allows you to upload a photo to display on the button, or you can print out the circular shape and have your little one write a note or hand drawn picture.

Decorated Flower Pot or Vase Mother’s Day and Flowers go hand in hand.  Why not give her a sentimental flower pot that will last longer than the flowers.  And, you can continue to buy her flowers throughout the year to keep it filled.  I scored these flower pots from the $1 Spot at Target and had a little creative fun with my little one.  There are countless ways in which you can decorate the flower pots:  apply fabric, glitter, glue, adhesive vinyl, washi tape, paint, etc…

So easy a 5 year old can do it...and she did!  

Custom T-Shirt or Apron

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention custom shirts and apparel as a great gift for Mom for Mother’s Day.  Using a professional heat press you can apply photos to a shirt and any text.   Click here to learn more about professional heat press printing.  To try this at home, you could simply purchase over the counter heat transfer paper from Walmart, Target, Home Depot or Staples, print your image using your home printer, and iron it directly on the shirt or apron.  However, the shirt may or may not be as durable as using a professional heat press. 

Have a Happy Mother's Day!  

Pressed for Flowers

Using my bouquet of flowers from Valentine's Day, I preserved their beauty by pressing them and creating lovely wall art.  

To Press Flowers

There are a couple of way to press flowers, including using a flower press.  I used old college text books (at least I'm putting them to use and getting my moneys worth years later).  Cut the stem, and gently wipe any dirt or dust off of the petals.  Let dry.  Place the flowers in between the pages of the book.  I used a piece of white tissue paper to protect the petals from ink.  Shut the book and place additional books on top of it to serve as a weight.  Keep the flowers in between the weighted book for 10-14 days.  

                         

 

Wall Art

After a few weeks I opened the books to see my newly pressed flowers. In my opinion, I think this craft would work best with brightly colored, vibrant flowers.  The colors that I began with were soft and delicate, and as they were pressed, the color did not pop.

                     

 

I assembled the pressed flowers onto a canvas board and secured them using my glue gun.  Using a black paint marker, I penned an inspirational message.

#DIYFly: Cut Off...You Still Cute Though!

After a frigid winter, I am so anxious for spring and summer – longer, warmer days, fairs and festivals, and all types of carefree fun.  But you don’t have to wait until summer to start donning your cutoff shorts.  In my excitement for warmer weather, I got #DIYFly using a pair of heavy-weight tweed trousers to make some cutoff shorts and a matching clutch ("cause you gotta coordinate"…in my John Witherspoon voice). 

Cutoff shorts are classic and easy to make.  Since it’s not quite spring-like weather, I opted to cut mine slightly above the knee.  I used painters tape to mark where I would cut and liquid stitch to secure my cuff. 

Easy DIY Clutch
I made a simple, 5-minute, matching clutch using the cut off legs from my trousers.   I applied liquid stitch to close the bottom of the leg.  To add some foundation to the clutch, I cut an old cardboard box and covered it with fabric from the other pant leg and glued it to the inside of the clutch.  Finally, I just folded the top of the pant leg down.  I hot glued magnets from my fridge to keep the clutch closed and applied a broach for a cute sparkly effect.  

Click here to see how I made the sunglasses featured in this photo. 

Throwing Crafty Shade

I love designer shades like the next girl, but I can never keep up with my sunglasses and that's hundreds of dollars out of the window.  Since I'm all about being frugal and fabulous, I'm throwing shade at designer frames by upgrading Dollar Store sunglasses - taking them from cheap to crafty chic in approximately 10 minutes.

Items used:  pearls, patterned duck tape, glitter, scissors, & glue gun

For the first pair I used my hot glue gun and applied pearls, outlining the top of the shades.  This literally took only 7 minutes!

I stepped it up a notch and got a little fancier with the next pair.  I love glitter and leopard print, so why not add them both?!  

                         

 

Using patterned duck tape, I wrapped it around the ears of the glasses.  I did this strip by strip, and wrapped it around twice.  I was going for a crafty nerd look, so I wrapped duck tape around the bridge of the glasses Revenge of the Nerds style.  Next, I painted Mod Podge around the eyes and sprinkled with glitter.  I let it dry for a few minutes and then used a small paint brush to brush away access glitter.