Headband Storage from Shipping Material

Since my oldest daughter has recently become pretty OBSESSED with headbands I really needed a storage solution for her ever growing collection.  There are lots of DIY options out there, but here is one that is super easy and repurposes something that would otherwise end up in the landfills.

 

For this project you'll need:

large cardboard tube (mine is from ordering a rug online)

fabric

batting

ribbon

hot glue gun

 

 

 

First you'll need to cut your tube to the size you want.  Mine is about a foot long, but it really doesn't matter.

Next, cover the tube in one layer of batting using your glue gun.
 

 

Then cover the tube in one layer of fabric using your glue gun.
 

 

Fold the edges of the fabric into the tube and glue down (I found that using a spoon to press the fabric into the hot glue was a good way to avoid burns!)
 

 

 

You could be done right here, but I didn't like the way you could see the inside of the tube and the edges of the fabric...so I cut a pice of white cardstock to fit inside the tube and glued it into place.  I used cardstock instead of fabric so it would be stiff and have a crisp edge.
 

 

 

Now cut your length of ribbon and tie it into a loop through the tube. 

 

 

That's it!  An easy project (and gift idea) that repurposes a potential trash item into beautiful and functional storage.  I will be making a bunch more of these for all the little girls on my Christmas list!

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DIY Jewelry Holder

I know there are a TON of tutorials out there on how to make your own jewelry holders, but I have something new to add to the mix that I thought I'd share with the world.  

Here is a quick tutorial on how to make a jewelry holder that allows you to hold way more earrings and necklaces than any other holder I've seen.

Supplies you'll need:

picture frame (mine is 8 x 10)

1 sheet of plastic canvas

thin dowel (I used one that was 1/8")

wooden beads that will fit on your dowel

hot glue gun

hand held drill

First you'll need to cut your plastic canvas to fit in the back of your frame.  This is super easy since the grid pattern guarantees you'll have a perfectly straight cut. 

Using the plastic canvas is my way of creating a jewelry holder that allows you to hold way more earrings than the holders with the horizontal wires.  Plus, you can arrange your earrings in any possible pattern to fit the various sizes and shapes of earrings you have.  Perfect!

Once the canvas is cut, use the hot glue to secure it in the back of the frame.  I glued mine in multiple times to make sure the hold was secure enough to support a lot of earrings.

You can stop here with your jewelry holder if you only want to store earrings, but keep going for my solutions to storing necklaces and/or bracelets.

Next, you'll need to mark out the placement of the necklace holders on the bottom on the front of the frame.  The number of holes will depend on the size of your frame and how close together you want them to be based on your jewelry.  (For example, if you are going to store bangles you might want the hangers spaced a little further apart)

Once the spots are marked you'll want to slowly drill into the frame on each mark, but do not drill all the way through.

 

Next, cut your dowel into 1 1/2" pieces to go into each hole.  Use the glue gun to securely attach one piece of the dowel in each hole. 

Attach the wooden beads to the end of each dowel using the hot glue.

Finally, paint your necklace pegs to match your frame, or in another fun contrasting color to finish the project.

That's all there is to it!  A large capacity jewelry holder made from supplies you probably already have in your craft stash!

I hope you can find the time to make one! 

I will linking up to these great Link Parties:
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Baseball String Bracelet

I've got a great idea to share with all of you for a super easy and cute way to make a bracelet out of the strings of a baseball.  My college girl friends and I all made these to wear when we went to games...and I still wear mine to the Diamondback's games every chance I get. 

It's a great way to show your love for baseball!

Supplies you'll need:

Baseball (you can get 2 bracelets from each baseball)

Xacto knife

First you will need to cut out the stitches all the way around the baseball.  It's hard to see in the picture below, but there is a tiny line tracing the stitches from where I cut the leather.  Try to get your cuts as close to the stitches as possible without cutting them.  But don't worry, you can always trim off any uneven parts when you're all done.  You will have to apply a fair amount of pressure, and maybe even got over each line twice to cut all the way through the leather.

Once you have cut all the way around the stitches you'll need to remove the leather pieces.  The leather is stuck onto the ball inside with some adhesive, so it could take a little elbow grease to get it off.

Once you take both leather pieces off you'll need to remove the strings.  They will still be in once piece and should be easy to pull off.

Here's is what your baseball should look like at this point:

You won't need the ball or leather any more for this project.  Locate the point on the seam where the stitching begins/ends, this is where you should cut the remaining leather.  Be careful not to cut off the excess string, you'll need every inch!  What you should have now is one long seam with two ends that look like this:

Find the middle of the seam and cut it in half.  Each piece should be around 8 inches long.  Begin unraveling the stitching at each end of the bracelet until you have about 4 inches of string unwound.  This should leave about 1 to 1 1/2 inches of leather sticking out.

Cut off the excess leather without cutting the strings.  You should now have two ends that look like this about about 5 inches of seam in the middle.

The best closure I found for this bracelet is simply tying the two ends into a knot each time I wear it.  To do this you will need to braid each of the loose strings and secure with a knot.  The strings will be gummy in the beginning from the adhesive used to attach the leather to the ball, but this will go away after you wear the bracelet a few times.  You might prefer to make a loop and bead closure, or come up with something else unique.

If you notice that the leather is twisted from it's shape on the ball, don't worry.  You can stretch the bracelet and gradually force it to hold a straighter shape.  And as the adhesive wears off it should loosen up a bit.

You can also trim the leather at this point if they are uneven from your cuts with the Xacto knife. 

And that's all there is to it!  In only a few minutes you have two authentic baseball string bracelets!  I love wearing mine and I hope you can find the time to make one!