Make a Cement Patio Look like Bricks

We always replace things around our homes, like throw pillows, paint, rugs and d?cor items, because we often get bored with things and want to change it up a little. Other things stay the same for years, like the furnishings. Some things are much easier to redo or change whereas other things are more costly. One thing most people rarely give a make-over is a concrete or cement patio. It stays the same for as long as you own your home. Some people, however, do like to paint the patio, from time to time, just to give it a fresher look. Paint is the best make-over you can give to a patio but you can always take painting to a new level. Use a simple and fun painting technique to give that ordinary patio the look of bricks.

A slab of cement can have a completely different appearance just by painting it. Select a color of patio paint thats very neutral, like light gray, off-white or even a light tan. This will give your new brick patio its background. Follow the instructions on the can as for drying time, outside temperatures, etc.

When the patio paint has dried you can move on to the next step. Mix a few drops of raw umber acrylic paint into the patio paint then take a natural sea sponge and apply the paint to the cement. Lightly sponge on the new color, all over the first color, and allow to dry. Make brick stamps by using household sponges. Cut a sponge to be seven and a half inches by two and a quarter inches. A serrated knife makes it easy to cut the sponge into the brick shapes. Glue the sponge to a piece of wood to finish the stamp. Choose the brick color that you want to use, paint it onto the brick stamp with a roller, and youre ready to stamp. The roller helps you dispense the paint easily without over saturating the sponge. Mark out a grid on the cement with a chalk line tool. The contraption is just a box with colored chalk inside and a piece of string. When you hold the string taut, then pull it up and release it, a colored line is snapped onto the surface to use as a guide. Stamp the brick shapes inside the grid pattern on the cement. Each time you stamp a brick, align the sponge, then press down on it with the wood. Youll get a perfect brick shape and look every time. The finished brick-stamp patio is convincing until a person actually walks on it. Its fun, though, to create the fake brick look which changes the appearance of the patio as well as its surroundings. See fake, painted-on brick here.

Embroidery Hoop Turkey

Embroidery is beautiful but is really becoming a lost art. When some people think of embroidery they think of their grandmas needlework on hankies. In fact, your lovable grandma might have even left you some embroidery supplies, like thread and hoops. The thread probably isnt much good after all these years but those hoops sure can be useful. There are lots of things you can make from embroidery hoops and, if you already have them, thats a real plus. If you have none, theyre not expensive, and you can find them at craft stores and some discount department stores.When you use two different-size embroidery hoops you can make a cute Thanksgiving turkey, which youll want to display, year after year. An embroidery hoop is actually two hoops. One is slightly smaller than the other. You remove the larger one, lay your fabric on the smaller one, then reposition the large hoop over the small one. Theres a tiny screw on the top of the large hoop and, when you twist it, you tighten the two hoops to form one - with the fabric trapped between the two. So, take apart your two hoops and youll quickly make that Thanksgiving turkey to hang on the wall.Choose a fabric to represent the color of the turkey. The fabric shouldnt be too thick. Good colors include tan, brown, yellow, or orange. Cut a piece for each embroidery hoop. Lay the fabric on the appropriate hoop and tighten the ring around it. Do this to both hoops.Glue one of the embroidery hoops to the other to create the body and head of the turkey. Just position the small hoop on top of the large one so that two-thirds of the small hoop is on the large one. Glue in place with hot glue or another suitable adhesive.Cut two circles of black felt and glue them onto the small hoop to create the eyes for the turkey. Cut a yellow triangle for a beak. Cut a waddle from red or orange felt. The waddle can have the shape of a flat, wooden ice cream spoon, or even the shape of a deflated balloon. Glue it beside the beak.Cut colors of felt into simplistic feather shapes, and glue them to the underside of the large hoop, so that the feathers stick up above the hoop. Cut tiny feet shapes for the bird, from black felt, and glue them to the backside of the large hoop, so that they hang down below the hoop.The finished turkey is just adorable and can hang on a wall anywhere in the house. Its such an easy project - and cheap, too - but you end up with a cute Thanksgiving decoration that youll display for many years.Embroidery Hoop Turkey

Ship-in-a-Bottle-Type Wine Bottle Arrangement

It takes a lot of patience, and steady nerves, if you want to make a ship in a bottle. Youll invest hours of time, and lots of money, but the finished piece is magnificent. You can do something similar to create an interesting arrangement inside of a wine bottle. But you wont have to spend all that time and money; its a very simple process to "build" many different things inside the bottle. When youre finished, use the bottle as a table centerpiece, a mantle accent, or even as a gift.After the chosen bottle is clean and dry, you can begin creating the scene inside. Instead of putting things right at the bottom, you can make a pedestal for the scene. To do this, use a cylinder of Styrofoam or even wood. Youll find these at a craft store; choose one with a diameter the same size, or smaller, than the opening of the wine bottle. You can paint the pedestal or use it as-is.To insert a Styrofoam cylinder, first push a wooden skewer through one end. Apply some hot glue to the opposite end and carefully push the cylinder through the opening. Press the glued end against the bottom of the bottle and hold it until it sets. Remove the skewer.To insert a wooden cylinder, place a tiny dot of hot glue on one end. Stick a small-diameter, wooden dowel to it. Use this as the handle to put the cylinder in place. Apply hot glue to the opposite end, push the cylinder through the opening, and wait for the glue to set. Hold the cylinder down with a skewer as you pull the wooden dowel off of the cylinder.After you have a base in place you can add any number of details. Attach tiny, silk flowers, add shells, or even make foam shapes. When you cut a foam shape, like a boat, you can easily insert it into the bottle. After cutting the shape, and adding any details you want, loosely roll boat, and lower it onto the cylinder. With a bit of glue applied to the cylinder, you can easily attach the boat. If needed, use a skewer to unroll the foam shape.Craft stores have all sorts of miniatures that you could put inside the wine bottle. Lower miniature people, a flag on a pole, a rubber pet, or another choice, and glue it to the pedestal. You can also litter things on the inside bottom of the bottle itself, like tiny rose petals, bitty shells, beans, rhinestones, glitter, tiny stones, or other embellishments.When youre finished creating the scene you want, just cork the bottle, and set it anywhere in the house. It makes a lovely accent for a bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, or other area of the home.

Preschool Valentines Day Crafts

Little kids love holidays maybe moreso than the average person. They enjoy doing crafts, too, but their little hands often have trouble creating. When Valentines Day rolls around preschool kids want to get in on the fun. You can help them have a great time and get creative by purchasing a few inexpensive craft supplies. With these, they can make Valentines Day decorations, gifts and more.

Kids can draw around their hands to make special cards or small gifts. After drawing around one hand cut it out for the child or let him use safety scissors to cut it himself. The child can write "Happy Valentines Day" or "I Love You" on the hand, with your help. Cut out an image of both hands and the child can make a small gift. Use a glue stick to apply adhesive around the edges of a product lid, such as one from a spice jar. Wrap the wrist area of the hands around the lid to make a look of two hands facing each other. Now the child can set a small tube of lotion, candy bar or other object between the hands.

If you purchase cardstock hearts kids can make all sorts of cool things. The hearts are avaible in various sizes and colors at a craft store. A child can glue a pin backing hardware piece to the backside of the heart to make a Valentines Day pin. Or, tape a bunch of hearts to a string and hang it in the house as a heart-theme garland. Make something completely different with the cardstock hearts when you use several of one size then one larger heart. Glue the tip of one heart to the top part of another heart, on the backside, and continue adding more and more hearts in this manner. End with one larger heart on top of a vertical row of smaller hearts. Glue on wiggly eyes, pipe cleaner pieces and other embellishments, to the large heart, to make a Valentines Day caterpillar that hangs on a wall. Purchase two red, white or pink plates used for birthday parties. Cut one plate in half and use it with a whole plate to make a valentine holder. Put the half-plate on the whole plate and glue the edges together. They can decorate the plates with stickers, buttons or other embellishments. Poke a hole at the top of the large plate. Kids can put their valentines in this adorable hanger. Preschool kids miss out on all the fun that happens in school on Valentines Day. But, with a little help from you, they can still make decorations, cards and gifts for that special day. All of these projects are quite inexpensive and perfect for little kids with little hands.

Heart-Shaped Wedding Favors

People used to just get married, decorating around the chapel and reception room with flowers and bows, but nowadays its much more exciting. A bride now creates a theme for the wedding and sets about producing a look that will match that theme. The cake, decorations and even the party favors are then made or bought to go along with the chosen theme. One popular theme for any wedding - beach, chapel or otherwise - is a heart theme. Its not at all hard to find or make heart-shaped decorations and accents for the wedding and reception.Your guests will have many delicious foods to sample at the wedding reception, and going along with the heart theme, a delicious favor as well. Make heart-shaped pop-tarts and youll create party favors which are as beautiful as they are scrumptious. Even if your wedding doesnt necessarily have a heart theme the pop-tarts will fit right in.Use frozen pie crust or dough to make the heart desserts for the wedding. Start by allowing it to thaw then rolling the dough out just a bit. Dont make it too thin; just roll it out so that youll have a bit large dough piece with which to work. Alternatively, you can make your own dough.Use a large, heart-shaped cookie cutter to make hearts or just use a paring knife to cut out heart shapes. Youll need two heart shapes for each pop-tart you make. Set one shape from each pair onto a baking sheet.Spread a teaspoon of the chosen food on top of each heart shape thats on the baking sheet. This can be jam, preserves, peanut butter, chocolate or another choice. Spread the food nearly to the edges of the heart shape but not all the way to the edges.Use a small paintbrush, dip the brush in milk, then apply it around the edges of each heart. Lay the second heart on top of the first one, and do this to all of the pop-tarts. Use a fork to press down on the edges to crimp them shut. If you want, sprinkle on red baking sugar. If not, you can later make the pop-tarts whatever color you want. Bake the hearts until they just start to brown.After cooling the wedding desserts, and if you didnt use colored sugar, frost them with icing. Youll give them a much more elegant appearance; frost them in colors of white, pink and/or red.Freeze the cookies for a few hours so the frosting will harden. Place each cookie in a clear cellophane bag and tie it shut with a colorful twist-tie or a piece of curled ribbon. They favors are scrumptious, beautiful and fit right in with nearly any wedding theme.See heart pop-tarts here.

Three Clothes Hanger Gifts for a Bride

Everyone needs hangers so they would make a nice gift to give a new bride. Ordinary hangers arent fancy enough to give as a gift but, when you give a make-over to regular hangers, you can craft a gift unlike any other that the bride will receive. Since there are many different ways to make-over hangers, you can give the bride the perfect set for her. Whether its a set of wooden hangers, or wire hangers, you can turn them into designer versions.

Make a set of wooden hangers to give to the bride - and the bridesmaids - before the wedding. Anyone would love a hanger that spells out a name or other word. The hanger later becomes a treasured memory from the occasion. Use bendable wire and spell out "Bride", "Bridesmaid", a persons name, the word "Love", or another word. No matter what word you write, start and end with the wire up. The upwards-facing wire is necessary to attach the wire word to the coat hanger.

It can be helpful to print out the word you want to make with the wire and then use it as a pattern to bend the wire. Lay the wire on the word and bend and curve it to match the printed word. Drill, or have two holes drilled, on the bottom of the wooden hanger. Dispense hot glue into the holes and put each end of the wire into one of the holes. With the hook of the wire facing left, the word should read from left to right. Wrapped hangers also make a nice gift for a bride. Plastic hangers look much more impressive after being wrapped with ribbon, yarn, cord, beads, or fabric. Begin at the area where the triangular piece of the hanger turns into the hook. Use hot glue to secure the end, wrap the material all the way around the triangular part of the hanger, and then wrap upwards around the hook. Use hot glue to secure, here and there, as you wrap the hanger. Make a slightly different version by wrapping the hanger with foam first. Wire hangers look like designer versions when you wrap two of them together. It can help to put a piece of clear tape around the two hangers, at a place on the hook, and at a couple of places on the triangular area, to hold them together as you wrap them. Wrap with ribbon, yarn, or another material, as described with the plastic hangers. A wrapped hanger looks so elegant when you attach a silk flower to the front of it. After the hanger is wrapped you can simply glue the flower, a bow, or other embellishment on, right where the hook meets the rest of the hanger. The new bride is going to adore them!

Closet Nursery

Are you stressing over the fact that you live in a small place and youre expecting a baby? Are you worried because there is no extra bedroom to turn into a nursery? Sure, its a nice idea that the baby would have his or her own room, decorated and set up like nurseries are, but whats more important is that the baby is loved and taken care of. A crib can be set in the living room, your room, or even in your own hallway. Stop crying over there being no nursery; create one! Look around your home to see if you can find a makeshift nursery - like a closet, or a recessed area. Its a little disturbing to think of your baby in a closet, but when you get the nursery all fixed up, you wont feel that way at all.

A closet might not sound like the best place to put your baby but thats because you havent tweaked it yet. It just needs a crib, and some other baby-theme elements, and it will be a nursery - even if its a small nursery. Roll the crib on in there and you can do other things to make the room look more appropriate for a baby.

If the closet has a bar for hanging clothing, you could use that for holding the babys clothes, or you can remove the bar. Thats particularly appropriate if the bar will have clothing hanging directly over the crib. If there is a shelf above the bar, fold the babys clothing, and store them on the shelf. Under the crib, theres lots of room for the babys needs. Seasonal or too-large clothing can be stored in small bins under the crib. Put the lids on the bins and youll have an area for setting powder, oil, booties, and similar things. There should also be plenty of room for storing diapers; stack them under half of the crib and put bins under the other half. On the walls around the crib you have room to hang baby pictures, put up small shelves, and otherwise decorate. The wall area is important because, otherwise, you just have a crib in a closet. Frame baby-theme fabric to create nursery art, or just cut felt letters, and stick them to the wall with double-sided tape. If you still need room for hanging certain clothing, consider a freestanding coat rack. You can leave it tall, or cut and remove a section, to shorten it. Or, you can build your own with spindles from a home improvement store. Set it just outside of the closet nursery and use small hangers to hang the childs coat, sweaters, and similar things, on the coat rack. The nursery might be small, but its suitable, and made with love.

Baby Shower Gift Cube

At the upcoming baby shower, the new mom and the guests will think youve put out lovely decorations, but in reality, theyll actually be gifts! You can make the most adorable gift boxes that look like baby building blocks that can hold small surprises for a new boy or girl. Make as many or as few as you want then set them around as baby shower d?cor. When its time to open the gifts just present them to the mom.

Cube-shaped boxes are necessary to make the gift cubes. The boxes must have a lid thats hinged by a fold. Close the lid and glue the flap in place so the lid can no longer open. If the box is white you can use it as-is. Otherwise, paint the box the color of your choice and allow to dry.

On four sides of the box glue on a piece of scrapbook paper, gift wrap or fabric. Make each side look different by the supplies you choose. Set the cube on a table. Forget the top and bottom of the cube, and for now, decorate only the four sides. Do so by first gluing the chosen paper to each side. These papers should be just a fraction smaller than the side of the cube, all the way around so that you can see the paint. On these four sides glue a letter to spell out "BABY" - one letter on each side. This can be done by cutting the letters out of other paper or by using stickers. After the lettes are in place you can then decorate the other sides any way you want. Cut around the paper on one side of the cube that features a "B". Cut up one side, across the top of the paper, then down the other side, but dont cut across the bottom. This creates a small door by which the gift can be viewed. Now youll make a small closure for the door. One way to make it is to simply attach two pieces of ribbon. Glue one ribbon to the decorative paper and the other ribbon to the box itself. Tie these together to close. Another way to make the closure is to glue a tiny square of cardboard inside, at the top, just behind the cut area of the box. With the door open, glue the piece so that the edge of it is along the edge of the cut area of the box. The cardboard piece should hang down slightly, so that when you open the box you can see it. Attach a small Velcro dot to this cardboard piece and the opposing dot to the door. Inside the cube you can place a small stuffed animal, booties, a rolled-up garment, socks, hair accessories, gift cards or other small objects. As the beautiful cubes sit around the room no one knows theyre actually gifts. The new mom will love them!

Beach Wind Screen

Ah, the beach; what a wonderful slice of heaven! The scent of the warm air, the waves gently rolling in, the beautiful scenery - theres no better place on earth! Its nice to play in the water, lie out in the sun, play with others on the sand - or just sit quietly and read a book. Well, thats not happening, is it? The nice breeze that others love is not the most favored part of the beach experience for a reader. You simply cant keep your place while your pages keep flipping and turning, and in the meanwhile, your hair is blowing in your face or the sand is kicking up and stinging you. Not a fun time! You wont have to deal with any of those issues anymore after you make yourself a quick and easy wind screen. The portable wind blocker is easily rolled out to block the wind or rolled back up to take home. It can be used by someone who just wants to read or even by a mom who wants to protect her young baby.

For this project were going to use a really long piece of canvas, however, you can use another choice of thick fabric and adjust the measurements to make a much longer, much shorter or even a taller version. Use a piece, for this project, which is 6 yards long by 54" wide.

Along the two longest sides of the material, fold under a half-inch, then sew along to hem each side. Where the hem begins and ends, sew these small areas shut, and this will ensure no sand gets trapped inside the hem. Start at one short end and fold it over three inches. Sew along the raw edge to form a pocket for a dowel rod. Do the same to the opposite end. These two end pockets will hold the dowels for the ends of the wind screen but youll need extra pockets between these two. Measure and space evenly between the two end pockets to form two to three more rod pockets. With each of these, fold the canvas to make the three-inch pocket, then sew straight down to secure. Use two-inch wooden dowels to prop up your wind screen while at the beach. Simply push one dowel into a pocket, and into the sand, stretch the fabric out, then push in the next dowel. Do this until the screen is where you want it. Make it a wall to block the wind thats coming from one direction, or make a screen - with four dowels - and make it into a square that surrounds a baby. No matter what your particular situation youll never be bothered by the wind again! See the wind screen here: http://www.marthastewart.com/268280/portable-windscreen?backto=true&backtourl=/photogallery/sixty-beach-ideas

Copper Pipe Garden Trellis

There was a time when copper pipe was in every home. It was a plumbers nightmare. It seemed as though each time you fixed a water leak on a copper pipe, and you turned the water back on, youd spring another leak. Thankfully, theyve invented newer and better plumbing supplies for our homes these days. You can still purchase copper pipes and fittings at large home improvement retail stores or you might actually have some old pipe lying around in the garage or basement. Use it out in your garden or yard and you can create a trellis youll love.

A copper pipe trellis is unique and rustic. Dont think that it will be difficult to build because its really not. If you can cut the pipe yourself, using a pipe cutter, and you already have the pipe and fittings, you can build a trellis without ever leaving your home or spending a dime. If you purchase copper pipes at a home improvement store theyll generally cut it to the sizes you specify, free of charge.

Draw a ladder shape on a piece of paper. The top of your ladder, though, should have a bar that runs across it. Decide how tall and how wide you want the ladder to be. Each rung is one copper pipe, and each side piece of each rung is another pipe. So, for each section of the ladder youll need one rung piece and two side pieces. Use figures on the paper to see how wide to cut the rung pieces and how long to cut the side pieces. Each rung should be the exact same size as the others; each side piece should be the same as the other side pieces. Use copper pipe elbows and "t" fittings to adjoin the ladder pieces. Start by laying the top rung on a flat surface. Connect an elbow joint at each end of it. Lay the second rung at an area below the first one, add "t" fittings at each end, then connect the two rungs with a pipe on each side of the ladder. Continue doing this until you add all the side pieces and all the rungs. Its helpful to use glue made for pipes to hold the elbow and "t" fittings in place. At the bottom of the ladder youll leave off a rung that would go at the very end. This leaves two pipe ends pointing downward so that you can push the trellis into the dirt. The copper pipe trellis is unusual yet beautiful. Simply plant vine-type flowers or plants along the base of the trellis and let them climb. The weathering on the pipe ladder, after its been outside awhile, turns the color of the pipe and makes it even more beautiful than it originally was. See a copper pipe ladder here.

Chicken Wire Wedding Seating Cards

So many people feature expensive seating cards at their weddings but the cards dont have to be that intricate. If they look pretty, they guide the guests to their seats, and you have a place to display them, thats all you really need. Youll have all of that, as well as a cute, rustic accent for the wedding, when you use chicken wire. Who knew chicken wire could look so beautiful! When you use it as a background for the escort or seating cards you have a lovely arrangement for a country wedding, or an appropriate accent for a wedding with any theme.

Chicken wire is very inexpensive and, although its not usually described as "pretty", it can be. The wire - found at a home improvement or gardening store - is sold by the roll. Since you wont need a whole roll of it for the seating cards you might consider using the remainder of it for another project. For the escort card arrangement youll need to cut a rectangle of wire to be the size you need for the amount of guests youll have. The wire is easy to cut with wire cutters. When youre finished cutting it out, frame it, and the seating card holder will be finished.

You might find it easiest to cut the chicken wire if you first decide on a picture frame for it. Choose a large frame; you can often find an old one - holding a hideous print - at a thrift store. Paint the frame to give it a new look, whitewash it for a faded look, or leave it as it is for a rustic appearance. Remove everything including the glass. Use the cardboard, which comes with the frame, to draw the shape that you need onto the chicken wire. After cutting the wire, its up to you if you want to paint it. Put the chicken wire in the frame and then slide on the backing. Or, just tack the wire to a wall, and trim around the edges with anything from feather boas to flowers. Make the escort cards from ordinary card stock or scrapbook paper. When theyre finished you can simply clip each one onto the chicken wire, using a clothespin. Nowadays, you can find clothespins in miniature versions - perfect for use with the chicken wire - and in assorted colors. Its easy to blend the clothespins in with the color scheme of the wedding. Chicken wire can be painted gold for an elegant wedding, neon for a colorful wedding, or left as-is for a rustic or country affair. Its unusual but perfect, cheap but beautiful. Youll love it for your seating card arrangement and you can use the excess wire as a place to hold flowers on a wall.

Burner Cover Accessories for a Girls Room

Who would think that an ordinary burner cover could have so many uses? Originally meant for covering unsightly eyes on a stove, top the burner covers go way beyond usefulness in the kitchen. They can become organizers for a girls room, d?cor for the same room and more! Burner covers usually come in sets of four: one large and three small ones. Youll need one of either size to create a magnetic photo board. If the burner cover already has a suitable scene on it the girl can simply hang it on the wall and use it to hold pictures. Use a piece of magnetic sheeting, found at a craft store, to stick the photos to the burner cover. Simply peel away the adhesive backing and place the picture on the magnet. If you want to cover the image on the burner cover use contact paper, scrapbook paper, fabric or a similar material. Place pictures all over the burner cover or feature just one picture in the center.

Use button magnets to create a different arrangement on the wall. Cut lengths of ribbon or narrow lace and position them on the burner cover. Secure one end of the ribbon to the outside of the cover with a magnet. Stretch the end to the opposite side and use another magnet to secure the opposite end. Space the magnets evenly, all the way around the burner cover, on the outside. Under each magnet position the end of one of the ribbon pieces. This cris-cross effect of ribbons can hold photos, notes, phone numbers and more. Simply slide the items under one of the ribbon pieces.

Use a leftover vinyl floor tile to turn a burner cover into a dry-erase board. Peel and stick the tile to the burner cover then trim away the excess tile. Tie a string around a dry-erase marker - found at places that sell other markers - and glue or tape the end to the top of the burner cover. Make a jewelry organizer for necklaces and bracelets by hanging the burner cover on the wall. Arrange button magnets all over the cover and youre done! Just hang chains and similar jewelry on the individual magnets to organize them. Make a message board by using a burner cover and old Scrabble tiles. Just cut a small square of magnetic sheeting and stick it to the back of a tile. Girls can use the letter tiles to spell out messages of peace, make a "Keep Out" sign or write an inspirational phrase. If youve got burner covers that arent being used hand them over to a girl. She can make a whole set of coordinating organizers and other fun things that give her room an instant make-over!

Fake Belly Button Ring

So, all your friends are getting their navels pierced and, although you want to have a belly button ring yourself, you might not actually want to go through the piercing. Its expensive to have the piercing done, but even worse, is the pain. Its agonizing to have a navel piercing but you dont really have to do it. Just fake it! You can quickly have navel accents of jewels or other things, without having the actual belly button piercing. No one will ever know!Have you ever heard someone refer to a belly button as an "outie" or an "innie"? The type of belly button you have makes all the difference. A fake belly button ring works if you have an "innie". That is, your belly button doesnt protrude out from your stomach. An "innie" allows you to seemingly have a navel piercing without the pain and cost.Double-sided tape is just the trick for keeping a jewel or other accent placed in the belly button. You can find the tape at many different stores; purchase a quality tape to make sure your navel rings stay put. The stickier the tape, the better the jewel or ring will stay. Cut a piece of the tape, which produces a square, and round the corners to make a circle, which is a little smaller than a dime. Stick the tape in the belly button, making sure the entire sticky surface is facing outwards.Once you have the tape in place your only problem will be trying to figure out what to wear as the ring. A craft store is just one place where you can find something to use as a navel earring. One beautiful choice is a rhinestone. Available in many colors, shapes, and sizes, a rhinestone sparkles and easily sticks to the double-sided tape, particularly if its a peel-n-stick jewel.A button is another good choice for a belly button ring. The perfect button is a shank button - one that has no holes on top. The shank slides easily and comfortably into the navel, and adheres well to the double-sided tape.Look in a craft store department where miniatures are sold and youll find many more choices for a belly button ring. You can buy a tiny wooden shape, paint it with metallic paint, and make it look like a metal earring. Or, choose a small trinket from the jewelry-making aisle.The dollhouse department offers a wealth of choices for the navel ring. Choose a tiny drawer pull, or something even sillier, like a dollhouse clock face. Have fun with the belly button accent pieces but know something ahead of time: everyone will be asking you where youre getting your unusual belly button rings!

Christmas Candy Necklaces for Little Girls

If you have a little girl, or one will be coming to visit on Christmas, consider making her an adorable candy necklace unlike those youve seen before. Other candy necklaces are gross! The candies on those necklaces arent wrapped. Kids pull them on over their heads, wear them next to their skin, and bite the candies off of a stretchy cord. Most people pass on purchasing those for kids nowadays but children dont have to go their lives without a candy necklace! Make a different candy necklace for the special little girl in your life and put it down in her stocking as a Christmas surprise. Or, let her make the necklaces herself. She can make one to wear and one to give out to friends.

Hard-tack candies, which are individually wrapped, are perfect for creating holiday necklaces. Many of them feature wrappers and/or candies inside the wrappers which have colors and images that look great for Christmas. These particular candies have a cellophane or other wrapper which is twisted on each end to keep the candy inside. Those excess pieces of cellophane which stick out beyond the twist makes it easy to create a Christmas necklace.

Start by placing one candy beside another and overlapping their wrappers. Position the cellophane from one candy over the cellophane from the second one. Staple or tape the two wrappers together. Add another candy, staple or tape it, and so on. Continue doing this until the necklace is as long as you want it to be. Make sure it will fit easily over your head before adding the last piece. Create different necklaces according to the types of candies you staple or tape together. Individually wrapped Tootsie Rolls as a necklace will look much different than wrapped cinnamon candies. Look for unique shapes, candy colors and wrapper designs to create assorted necklaces. Make the necklaces with all the same candies or alternate different varieties. Make a matching bracelet or even matching earrings with candy! Of course, when the candy is gone the necklace or other jewelry is gone, too. Since earring backings are really cheap (although you have to buy them in packs of several) the candy earrings are a unique stocking stuffer that doesnt cost much to throw away when the candy is gone. Of course, a child can wear the wrapped candy jewelry for awhile before giving into temptation and gobbling them! Make the necklaces for Christmas and other holidays; make them for birthday parties and other occasions. Little girls will love them!

How to Make a Pipe Cleaner Wreath

If you have some cardboard lying around your house you might want to make use of it by turning it into new Christmas ornaments. Although cardboard might not seem like a fancy material to use for ornaments it doesnt matter. When you use it to make assorted wreaths youll have all kinds of nice directions. Make a Christmas wreath for your door, smaller ones to use as Christmas ornaments and even more wreaths to tie onto gifts. Youll want to make many Christmas wreaths when you see how easy and beautiful they can be. Use pipe cleaners to turn the cardboard into Christmas decorations and youll be surprised at how fuzzy and cute they are! Cut a circle of cardboard as large or small as you want the wreath to be. A bowl or similar object can serve as a pattern. Cut a hole out of the center to create the wreath shape. When you make a cardboard wreath it has a flat appearance. If youd like it to be a little puffier simply cut a piece of foam to glue to the front of the cardboard. Or, roll paper towels and tape them in place around the front of the circle.

Decide what color you want the wreath to be. Pipe cleaners come in a huge assortment of colors. Choose furry white, furry green or even metallic gold or silver. For a small wreath it wont take that many pipe cleaners but larger wreaths will take many.

Glue the end of one pipe cleaner to the backside of the wreath. Wrap it around the outer edge of the cardboard, across the front, around the inside edge, then back around to the backside. Continue wrapping pipe cleaners in this manner until youve completely covered the cardboard. As a pipe cleaner comes to its end, glue that end in place, then glue the end of the next pipe cleaner next to it, end-to-end. A dot of hot glue at the ends of the pipe cleaners is all thats needed to hold it in place. After youve covered the cardboard you can then add a bow and other decorations. Ornaments can simply be hot-glued to the pipe cleaner wreath. Create a bow or purchase one. Thread the end of one more pipe cleaner through the back of the bow and use it to tie the bow onto the top area or bottom area of the wreath. Or, just apply hot glue to the back of the bow and glue it in place on the wreath. Pipe cleaner wreaths are cheap and simplistic but they turn out really fuzzy and adorable. Its the perfect wreath project for a child if an adult assists or supervises with the hot glue. The finished wreaths can be displayed throughout the house this Christmas!

How to Change Your Bra Without Removing Your Shirt or Dress

Should we even bother discussing the reasons why a woman might need to change her bra in a place where she simply wont be able to remove any clothing to do so? The bra strap has broken, the darn thing is just too tight - youve been breast-feeding and have had an accidental leak. No matter what the reason - and there are many - you may, one day, have to remove the bra youre wearing and switch to another, without total privacy.

Whether youre in your car and cant take off your shirt or dress, or another scenario is happening, you can easily swap bras in a minute. If people can see you from where you are, they can detect movement, but they wont see you take off your shirt! Removing the bra without removing clothing is easy to do. If youre wearing a bra that fastens in the back, reach under your shirt or dress, and unhook it. Reach up through the sleeve to get a hold of one of the bra straps. Pull it down to your hand, take your hand out of the strap, then do the same on the other side. Now all you need to do is reach under the front of your shirt or dress and pull the bra out.

If youre wearing a bra that hooks in the front, reach under your garment, and unhook it. Reach up through the sleeve of the shirt or dress and pull the strap down to the wrist. Take the hand out of the wrist, do the same to the other side, then reach behind you, under your garment, and pull the bra out. To put a bra on without removing your garment sit down first. Lay the bra in your lap so that the inside of the bra is facing upwards. Position the straps near your knees and position the band that goes around the bottom of the bra towards your stomach. Remove one arm from its sleeve, slide it out at the hemline, then slide it through the strap of the bra. Slide your arm back into the sleeve and position the bra strap on the shoulder. Do the same to the other side. Reach in the front of your garment and position the bra how you want it in the front, then reach around back, and fasten it. Any adjustments can be made by reaching in through the neckline or the sleeve. There are lots of reasons why a woman might need to change her bra without the luxury of total privacy. However, with this guide shell know what to do in the future if such a scenario is really happening. Keep in mind that certain conditions might prevent you from being able to change your bra as mentioned. If your garment sleeves are fitted and slender, for example, the trick might not work so well!

Assorted Heart Wreaths

Hands-down, Valentines Day is the most romantic holiday we celebrate. Love poems, heart-shaped candy boxes, beautiful roses, and d?cor in shades of pink and red are traditional ways to celebrate Valentines Day. Right off the bat, lets hang a gorgeous wreath that features the colors of the holiday as well as the heart shape that symbolizes the love we feel on this special day. The wreath for the front door is easy to make when you use Styrofoam.

A Styrofoam heart shape can be found in the section of a craft store where they sell floral pieces. The green heart is exactly what you need to create the Valentines Day wreath you want. The hearts are available in several different sizes so you can easily make a large wreath for the front door and a smaller one for a bedroom door.

Use floral pieces with wire stems to make one type of wreath. Arrange leaves, flowers and stems, and similar things, to cover the heart shape completely. Tie a bow from wide, wired ribbon and attach it to the top of the heart. Or, thread a length of ribbon through the hole of the wreath and use this to hang it. You can make a much different Valentine wreath by using pink, white or red lace or cloth. Cut a really long strip - or several strips which have been sewn together - and use it to wrap the heart shape. Just hot glue the end of the ribbon to the heart and take the cloth around and around the shape until youve covered it completely. Create a matching or coordinating bow and hanger for the finished wreath. You can create a really glitzy look in no time by spraying the heart shape with adhesive then sprinkling on red glitter. When the adhesive has dried you can help preserve the look by spraying the entire wreath with clear lacquer. That will help keep the glitter from falling off over years of usage. A florist-type Styrofoam heart is much different than a white Styrofoam shape. The florist type works well with wired floral pieces - and so does the white - but the green doesnt work well when using hot glue to attach embellishments. Use the white Styrofoam heart to make a design that will use hot glue but either the green or the white for a wreath that will hold wired plants and flowers. A heart-shaped wreath, covered in flowers, lace or other materials, doesnt have to serve as a wreath. Lay one on a table and set a candle in the middle to create a Valentines Day centerpiece. Or, stand a small heart wreath on a plate stand on the mantle. Youll love the look!

Flower Wedding Straws

Isnt it funny how the most simplistic thing can be absolutely gorgeous? When it comes to choosing the particulars for your wedding youll often find that a simple vase of flowers or an understated place setting is actually very elegant and perfect for the occasion. Its not so much about the amount of money you spend. Its about the tiny details which come together to create a wedding of perfection.

Speaking of tiny details, the drinks you serve at the wedding reception will surely be delicious, but they can also be pretty. When you make drinking straw flowers youll serve drinks that are refreshing and beautiful at the same time. Youll be amazed at how the flowers will brighten up the drink and the party.

Baking cups, used for making cupcakes, are perfect for making straw flowers. Theyre available in zillions of designs and colors, from neon shades, to metallic types and more. Use them to make parts of the flower. In addition to the baking cups purchase a much smaller version. These tiny cups, often called candy or nut cups, will help make the rest of the flower. In addition to the cups youll also need some pretty green paper. Check the scrapbook section of a craft store; youll often find paper with a leaf motif. The perfect straws for making the flower embellishments are the ones which bend. That way, the flowers you add to the straw wont be coming in contact with the face. To start, cut leaf shapes and poke a hole at one end. Dont make large holes in the leaves; they should slide snugly over the straw. Slide one or two onto the straw. Flatten a baking cup and use it as the outer petals. Poke a hole in the center and slide it onto the straw, positioning it on top of the leaves. Poke a hole in the center of a candy cup and slide it onto the straw to finish the flower. You can make all sorts of different flowers by cutting some of the baking cups to have large or small, scalloped edges, pointed petals or even heart shapes. Make additional petals by flattening the candy cups, cutting either of the cup types down to smaller sizes, or combining plain cups with metallic ones. Its really easy to make assorted flowers in different colors by using various colors of baking and candy cups. Combining different colors and types, plus cutting the edges to have various shapes, you can literally make hundreds of different straw flowers without making the same one twice. Theyll add just another delicate touch to an already stunning wedding.

Feather Epaulet

I love crafts that help you make one outfit look like many. It doesnt matter to me whether that craft has a simple name or a fancy one. When you make an epaulet you create a gorgeous clip for a dress, blouse, or even a jacket. An epaulet might sound fancy but its easy to make and looks snazzy on many different types of outfits. The dress clip is especially lovely if you make it with feathers. You can find a small assortment of feathers at a craft store but youll have many more choices if you order online.

Cut two ovals of felt which will blend in with the particular feathers you want to use. For example, white felt for white feathers or black felt for dark feathers. When using feathers of more than one color choose the prominent color of the feathers and select felt that closely matches it. Cut the felt pieces to be about three inches wide and four inches long.

To prepare for attaching the feathers onto the oval pieces, separate them into categories, of long, medium, short, and those that are tiny and delicate. Set one oval in front of you so that one of the short sides faces you. Use hot glue and begin attaching feathers onto the felt. Just place a dab of hot glue on the quill and stick it to the top, rounded area of the felt. Work your way down, adding rows of feathers, using only the largest ones for now. Place some of the feathers so that they go straight down and others so that they point out to the sides. After the first layer is complete, do another layer, using the medium feathers. Then, add another layer of small feathers and a final layer of wispy ones. Make the other oval in the same manner. Purchase a snap-type barrette and use one for each oval. Apply hot glue to the top of the barrette, turn it upside-down, and stick it to the backside of the felt oval. Position it so that it is at one of the rounded ends - the end that the quills are facing. Also, the barrette should be glued so that it goes, vertically, down the center of the oval. There are lots of things you can do with the epaulet. Make one of feathers or one that features rhinestones. Wear only one, by clipping it to the shoulder, or wear one on each side. Or, just clip one at the middle, front of your dress or blouse for a unique look. You can also gather the side of a knee-length or higher dress and clip the barrette for an interesting hem accent. Wear them for Halloween or wear them to dress up an office outfit after hours. Theyre fabulous. Feather Epaulet

Raw Fabric Headboard

How much is a piece of fabric? A few bucks? Even if you purchase more costly cloth, what is that, twenty bucks? For the price of a couple yards of fabric you can make one gorgeous headboard thats unusual, cheap and stunning. Thats because, when you shop at a large fabric store, you can find fabric with cartoon themes for a childs room, elegant fabric, like satin, for a womans bedroom, or even bold stripes, polka dots and other designs for a modern look. With hundreds and hundreds of fabric types to choose from youll easily be able to make a unique headboard that states your style while accentuating your bed.Although there are many different fabrics which work well to make the headboard try to choose something thats not too heavy, not too thin, and a fabric which wont easily unravel. Decide on the design for the headboard before shopping for the fabric. An alternative to regular fabric is to use a flat sheet as the cloth. trim off any hems starting the headboard project.Measure the width of the bed to decide on the length of the fabric. The headboard should go down the wall to the bottom of the mattress but can reach as high up the wall as you want. Decide on the height then purchase fabric to accommodate it. Some fabric designs will allow you to hang them vertically as well as horizontally but fabric with certain designs can only be hung vertically. Make sure youre aware of this before purchasing fabric.It literally takes under an hour to make most any headboard from fabric. You can simply cut it to the size you need and hang it on the wall or you can give the material decorative edges. Cut around it with special scissors or make a scalloped edge with regular scissors. You can even cut the fabric into a giant heart, diamond or semi-circle or other shape.Buy liquid starch or mix powdered starch up according to package directions. Mix it in a bucket or even in the sink. Soak the chosen fabric in it until its completely saturated. Remove it from the liquid, squeeze out the excess, then stick it to the wall. Smooth out the wrinkles with something like a credit card or ruler. Its a good idea to put towels down on the floor to catch any drips.When the fabric is dry your new headboard will look gorgeous. If you want to embellish it, glue roping around the edges, attach wooden letters from a craft store to make a monogram or even outline around the cloth with a wide-tip paint marker. The fabric headboard is one of a kind and as beautiful as it is inexpensive.