DIY Notebook (Stitching and Tie Dye Frame)

The Final Product...

The Inspirations...

This is kind of where the quote on the front idea came from

And the stitching idea...

And this is where the color came from...

These are all notebooks from Target... but I took the picture myself from the store.

So this DIY is basically two diys in one. One is a painted notebook and one is a stitched notebook.

Here is what you need: 

(for the tie dye one)

any notebook

paint, I recommend acrylic

a paint brush, I used a sponge one

(for the stitching)

a notebook with a cardboard cover, one with a plastic cover will not allow you to stitch

a strong needle

thread, I used gray and split apart some embroidery floss

So for the tie dye part (I had to make it pretty before I detailed it)

This is the notebook I started with...

 It was an old notebook from school, but a new one will work

And this was the base color for my notebook...

 I did one thin coat...

 And another...

 And then I realized that the best way to coat the cover was to dab on the paint not to do brush strokes

 After a couple more dabbing coats and touch ups I was left with a fully plain covered cover.

 And now for the decoration, it's not technically tie dye but it's pretty close.

Using my sponge and some dark blue paint I painted around the border with a dabbing "stroke".

 And then I did a dark turquoise with the same technique blending the colors together...

 To blend the colors more I added some new turquoise to the center (that was the color that I covered the whole notebook in).

 And that is the finished painting...

Now for the stitching part...

You could basically do anything but I did this quote by Henley...

 You are going to want to print or draw whatever it is you want to be on the front of your notebook (not draw on your notebook but on a separate piece of paper). I had to rip the edges to place my template on my notebook. The point of the stencil is that you know where you are sewing...

 And then you stitch along the lines making sure that you go back over your stitches so that there are not stitching gaps. If you follow one path doing the letter go back over it the opposite way, this will make one solid line.

 This is what the back of mine looks like, don't worry if it is messy.

When you are all done you are going to want to peel off the paper...

 And you might be left with some little pieces, you can use the point of your needle to poke these out

And don't worry about those strings that have been pulled out you can go on the back and pull in the thread from the back which will fix the problem on the front. You can secure these ends, and you can also cut off some of the excess thread in the back, and secure these with clear tape afterwards...

And you are done to rock your totally new and customizable notebook.

Make sure to make it your own, use your own colors, and your own design, also feel free to one or the other or both together.

Morse Code Bracelet

The Finished Project...

The Inspiration...

Found here via Pinterest

This DIY is very simple but a very creative concept.

The basic idea is a bracelet which says something through morse code. The one I found on Pinterest says sister and the one I made says love. I personally think this would be an amazing friendship bracelet. Both could say best friends or one could say best and the others say friends. It's also very customizable with the type of beads and string you use. I think this would also make a good necklace.

What You'll Need:

String, I used thread but embroidery floss hemp cord or any kind of chain works 

Scissors

Beads, a round one and a longer one. The round ones are the short morse code beep and the longer ones are the short morse code beeps (if that wasn't apparent already).

The first thing to do is to cut your string. I would recommend twice around your wrist so you have extra room (if you're doing a bracelet).

 Make sure to tie a knot on one end so that your beads don't fall off. I had to tie mine lots of times so that my beads wouldn't fall off.

 Then put your beads on. Here is a morse code translator. You type in what you want your bracelet (or necklace) to say and it will show you what it is in morse code. I'm sure there are other ones to but I personally like the one above.

And you're done. if you want your beads to stay in the middle I would recommend tying knots on either side of the bracelet ( or necklace).

I think this is an adorable idea Although I don't think using thread was the right choice for me. I might try again with embroidery floss but I do enjoy the delicateness of the one I made.

If you try feel free to send it to me on Pinterest. I would love to see it. Make sure to make it your own.

P.S. If you're having trouble threading your beads on your string supposedly putting glue on the end of you string and then letting it dry will help. (I haven't personally done this but my crafting friend loves it.)

Flower Gradient

The Final Product...

The Inspiration...

My mind

This is really fun, really simple and really easy.

What you'll need:

Colored Pencils or Crayons

Eraser

Markers

This art page consists of two parts...

The background and the flower and the clouds (if you can see them)

So for the gradient...

Take your colored pencil or crayon and do some shading going from one corner to the next. You don't have to go corner to corner... I like to though. You don't have to cover the hold page, I would actually recommend not shading the whole page. My first color was blue.

 And then you can take your next color, and starting a little from the corner (or wherever you started) and continue shading going a little past where you ended the first color. My second color was purple.

 And then a third color... (mine was red)

 And then a fourth, mine was orange...

 And then a fifth color, mine was yellow...

 And then more colors... however many want. Remembering to start a little away from where you started the last color and going farther down the page then you did with the last color. This creates the gradient effect.

 And now for the decoration of the gradient (a.k.a. the flower)

To achieve this you are going to want to  take your eraser and erase you design.

 And then if you would like you could color in your design (I did with some markers).

 But I erased some clouds and didn't color those in.

That is the final product. I hope this helped. Make sure to make it your own with your own colors and designs.

Yummy Blueberry Drink

This DIY is a little different then my normal crafting ones but it is still a DIY and it is super yummy.

The Final Product...

I know this might look a little weird but it is delicious so...

The Inspiration...

Flavored water and creative drinks are becoming really popular this summer so I thought I would try out my own version. This particular drink is a fruit flavored drink. It just something to spice up the  vast amount of liquid you need to drink in the summer.

What you'll need:

A cup (I only used a mason jar because it is clear)

Fruit, frozen or fresh

A fork 

A drink ( For example water but I recommend a clear soda like Sprite, however Seltzer Water would work well too)

The first thing you are going to want to do is prepare the fruit for the drink.

If you are using frozen fruit you are going to want to let the fruit thaw in the cup for a while.

 And then comes the time to mash the fruit which is really the only complicated thing about this drink. In order to not use a blender I like to take a fork and pierce the berries to get some of the juice out. You can just do this in the cup. Of course you could blend the fruit but then you would have to wash the blender...

 And when they are mashed to your satisfaction...

 You can just add your liquid.

This time I used water but I would recommend a soda or Seltzer Water. First of all I think it tastes better and because of the carbonation the berries rise to the top which makes drinking the liquid and the berries together easier. If that makes any sense at all. 

But after you add your liquid... you are done. Trust me this is tasty and you should really try it.

Butterfly Art

The Finished Project...

The Inspiration...

I have no idea where this came from... probably somewhere on Pinterest. But I attempted this same idea a while ago, and it didn't turn out too well so I tried it again...

And I found this post of the same thing although I found it after I attempted my first one..

Found here via Pinterest

What you'll need:

Some kind of paper

Mod podge or glue

A sponge brush

Scissors

As for the background of the butterfly I attempted to use a salt and water color trick I found on Deviant art but it didn't turn out to well. If you are curious you basically water color and the shake salt and it's supposed to push away the pigment of the watercolor.

Now on to the butterfly.

You are going to want to start out with your piece of paper. I used a magazine for all my paper sheets

 And then you're going to want to fold it in half. This assures both sides of the butterfly are the same.

 You are then going to want to cut out your butterfly. You can use a stencil but I did mine by hand.

 And because part of the issue I think I had with the other attempt was the wings were not stiff enough I cut out 2 more for a total of 3.

 Then I glued them together to make a stiffer wing.

 And then I cut out 3 more for another layer of the wings.

 And glued those together...

 Then 3 more for a third layer of wings...

 And glued those together yet again...

 You can make however many wing layers you want and you can make them however thick you want to. However you won't want them too thin for they won't stay up

Now comes the gluing together...

You are going to want to put a thin strip of glue on the fold between the butterfly wings.

Then stick another one on top.

Then another strip of glue in the same place.

And put the last wing on place.

 You can leave it alone or glue the back wing set onto a piece of paper like I did.

One thing I forgot was the antennas. You could draw them on or you could use some string or twine. 

That's pretty much it. I hope this inspired you but make sure to make it your own.