DIY Book Look (a how to for a kindle 4 or Kobo Touch cover that looks like a book)

I recently have decided that if I am going to be reading on my ereader (Kobo Touch) then I want it to still look like a book. Plus there is the added convenience of a cover being handy for transporting and protecting. Thus, I was inspired to try my had at another project. As most of my projects start, I decided to scan Pinterest for ideas. Most people were taking old books and using the cover to create a cover for their device. I thought this was cool but lacking any old books I wish to destroy and wanting to do this without spending money I turned to what I have on hand. My ever present paper stash comes in handy here. Picking the papers was fun. I have many that would work but my small stacks had some pretty papers that actually look like book covers. I chose these from the 'Once Upon a Time' mat stack by DCWV.

I started by cutting a cardboard backing piece to size. I cut two with a small piece for the middle.

Using my washi tape, (gotta love this stuff!) I made my binding and taped all around the edges of the cardboard.

I then took my handy dandy mod podge and glued down my papers; all except the one for the back of where the ereader will sit on the inside of the cover. This last paper I left the corners up.

Taking an old bra, I cut it up for the elastic material. I thought to use the straps at first but I decided the material of the bra itself was stretchy like swimsuit material and would suit my needs. I cut pieces to size and glued them down where the ereader will sit. The hardest part was waiting for this side to dry before gluing the other side.

Once that side was dry I glued the straps across and held them down with clothespins. Drying was aided by sitting it all in front of the heating vent.

Here is the finished product. It was not a solid fit however so I have other ideas.

And check out the detailing with gold pen!

I decided to change this to a notebook so to speak. Since the ereader was not super solid (based on the materials I used I think, you may have better results) I slipped in a pad of paper. The cardboard back to the paper fits over the two straps across and holds pretty well. There is even room for a pen and the strap to hold it all together still works.

Check out the next post, Book Look 2 for how to do this cover for the ereader which is much more solid and actually looks like a real book!

Tip of the day!

We all seem to have headphones for our iPods, iPads, MP3 players, etc. they always get tangled up. My favorite tip is to use a small mint tin to store them. Altoids Smalls, and other mints are sold in small tins and rather than throw them away I like to find ways to reuse them. Headphone storage is one of the best. And my tin was super cute as it was so I didn't decorate the outside (mod podge and paper and stickers and anything else you can think of just in case you want to!) Roll up your headphones and stick em inside! They fit great and the tin can fit in your pocket, your purse, or anywhere out of the way. Your headphones will stay untangled and be ready for you to use next time! Have a great day!

DIY Canvas Verse

So, Pinterest inspired, of course. But, here it is and it couldn't be more simple:
You need:
Paint/Paintbrushes
Canvas
Hands
Feet

Paint the background for your canvas.
Paint the little hands and feet you will use to stamp these images.
Paint a heart.
Paint the words.

It was so fun to do this with the kids. An easy project that means a lot, a verse that sets a good example and we'll be able to look back on this later and smile at how tiny the kids hands and feet used to be!

Your turn! Enjoy!

DIY Letter rack

Remember those lovely painters screens I found for 40 cents each? Well, I have an idea! I need a rack of some sort to hold mail by the front door. Our mailbox is a good deal down the drive here and I can't run back and forth to the mail box all the time. To save time I thought, why not make a letter rack or mail sorter to hold mail until I make the walk to the mailbox?

Scouring Pinterest usually yields several ideas to jump start the creativity and thus my own was sparked here. I started with the rack flipped over so the hooks that are used for holding it onto the bucket are at the bottom and pointed up and out. This will allow the screen to lie flat against the wall.

After searching through my paper for a coordinating one that wasn't too busy for the background or the wrong color for the room, I found the perfect paper. These sunflowers are cheerful and I have always liked them. I also found my paper cutter and prepared to cut.

Measuring the paper to fit the back side of the frame, I made several cuts working from larger to smaller. When I found the right size for back of the frame....

I taped it on. Seriously. Who would have thought? So easy and I can change it out later if I should choose!

Now I had tested the lay of long envelopes and short ones. The long ones fit fine across but the short ones would need to sit vertically. I considered using fabric to stretch between the two hooks to allow for more of a scoop but couldn't find any way to permanently attach it that would stay well and would not look cheesy. Thus I came up with magnets. Make sure these are really strong because they will be going through several layers of paper and they will have to bond to the metal well.

I had these adorable buttons from Studio G collections at Walmart. I love these! For $1 each I can stock up on a lot of awesome craft supplies and the collections change out every 2-3 months. (These particular ones were designed for Studio G by Hot Fudge Studio but a lot of their collections recently have been from Pink Light Design which I have just fallen in love with! But that's another story.)

These are so deceptively simple. Peel...

And Stick! That's it! Behold adorable magnets!

Here is the finished product on the wall..

With the long envelope... (Please excuse the junk mail used as an example)

And with the short envelope being held in place with a magnet.

This was so fun and simple. I was thrilled to find a use for the painters screen! I can't wait to make another one for a gift. I wonder who I'll give it to? Hmmmm....

DIY Frame

I had this frame that the glass broke in the move and I bought the little clothespins recently. Behold another idea.

I spray painted a layer of off-white and a layer of brown.

I then allowed it to mostly dry and took my sandpaper to it.

Be sure to get an even coverage so to speak. It should look distressed but you don't want to remove too much of the paint.

I was given this large set of twine in my stocking for Christmas. It made me so happy to get crafty things for Christmas.

I then took and flipped it over. All those little tabs that used to hold the back in are perfect for stringing some twine.

And once I put the little clothespins on with some pictures it looked so cute. Perhaps this will inspire you to try your hand.

Update: my Postal Pix (a great app for printing your instagrams!) came in the mail and I immediately filled up my two frames with my more recent photos. Love these! Maybe I overloaded them a bit but I just couldn't decide! It's all up to you how you do yours!

Fun Finds

Look what I found yesterday! I made a trip to Walmart and to Lowes (for more spray paint). I picked up paint samples at both stores. We've all seen the cool things that can be done with paint samples right? And the best part is they are free! (I have a whole pin board marked paint samples!)

I also picked up more acrylic paint and paintbrushes. (I don't know where my collection ended up in this move.) More screw hooks and tiny clothespins were a must. I have potential ideas for both of these.

At Lowes I found my spray paint, tiles (16 cents each), and clearance paint screens (40 cents each!). I had so much fun finding these supplies. I can hardly wait to get started with my next project. (For tiles look at my pin board titled 'coasters')

All this is to say that crafty ideas and their supplies do not need to be high priced. I challenge you to make a trip through the clearance section of your local store and look at it all with an eye towards repurposing. You never know what you'll find!

Totally Worth it.

I posted a while ago about 'Homeschool Humdrum'. It's hard not to feel like you are sort of drifting along just letting the kids figure it all out. I am not super organized and I am not a self starter. The only reason this blog has as many posts as it does is most of them are about my passion: crafty things. That is not to say that I don't enjoy teaching. I love being home with the kids. We have so many blessings in this. But I have this feeling that eventually, no matter how hard I try to keep them out of it, I'll eventually have to send them to school.

Because I am not organized I am not good at explaining things to the kids. I feel like there should be more of a step by step to all this. I know how to read, but I am not very good at teaching and explaining to my inquisitive child why 'ow' and 'ou' both have different sounds and similar sounds. It can all get very confusing.

But then we have days where things go so smooth. And I have to think, that even though we may have 4 hard days to every good one, it's totally worth it. Especially when we get this as a result: