Upcycling DIY home decor, woodworking and Crafts
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Dollar store crafts are some of my favorite things to make. I love browsing the aisles and trying to imagine what I can create from the $1 products. Today I am sharing over 50 of my favorite dollar store holiday projects from decor to gifts and more. Enjoy!
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Today’s project is a rustic, reclaimed wood Christmas tree advent calendar that you can make for little to no cost! Building from salvaged wood and paper crafting all in one project! I created the blocks using Eileen Hull’s (soon to be released) Scoreboards Block dies. The die makes blocks in three sizes, for tons of creative potential. Think about artist trading cards, but 3-D! Last Christmas I showed you how to make an advent calendar from wooden blocks, and that is the first thing I thought of when I saw this die. Read on to see how I used stencils from Stencil Girl, spray ink, number stickers and washi tape to decorate my mat board cubes. Watch the video to make your own tree, or display your blocks freestanding. These would make great Christmas gifts and decor for your holiday get togethers.
For the Blocks
Mat Board
Heidi Swapp Spray ink Gold, Green, Red
Stickles in red, green, gold
Washi Tape in Christmas Patterns
Stencils (I used Stencil Girl)
Mod Podge Antique
For the Tree
Scrap wood
Mitre Saw
Nailer or hammer and nails
Wood Glue
E6000
5 gallon paint stirrers
ADVENT BLOCKS
You may want to decorate your cubes before assembling them into the 3D shape. First I will show you assembly, then how I decorated my cubes.
I chose the smallest of the three cubes for my calendar. This is what the mat board looks like after it is cut with Eileen’s awesome new die!
Fold cubes along score lines. Two of the scored rectangles are needed for each cube. Place them together to form the cube. You can glue the tabs in place if you would like, but I didn’t find it necessary with the mat board. I haven’t tried other paper.
Place stencils over blocks and spray.
Clean up excess ink that’s on the stencils for a reverse image on the blocks, and you waste less ink!
I used red, gold and green sprays, allowing about 10 minutes dry time between each color.
Once that dried, I adhered washi tape to some blocks, the black sticker numbers and coated with the front surface with Mod Podge Antique for an aged look. I thought it needed some sparkle, so I added stickles in red, green and gold.
RECLAIMED WOOD CHRISTMAS TREE
I made the tree like I showed you in this DIY wood pallet Christmas Tree post, and in the video at the end of this post. The only difference is I used chippy, weathered 2×4 scrap wood I found at a demolition site. I determined the dimensions of my tree based on the 1.5 inch advent cubes. The base is 19 inches, and the height is 20 inches without the frame.
I made the five shelves from paint stirrers, cutting them with the mitre saw to lengths that allowed 2 inches for each block. So the first one is 2 inches, then 6 inches and so on, 10 inches, 14 inches and finally 18 inches for the bottom shelf. I laid the tree flat and added a thin line of E6000 to the back of the paint stirrer and placed them on the tree where I wanted the shelves.
I decided to use scrap wood strips to frame the tree, just cutting to length with my mitre saw and using my Ryobi nailer to attach.
I hope you enjoyed the project and the blocks as much as I did! Visit Artists on the Block for more news, updates and projects as artist trading blocks take over the mixed media community!
Be sure and visit other projects using the blocks in the Stencil Girl and Sizzix Artist Trading Blocks Hop
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Head over here (this post has been moved from Taste Every Season to Saved By Love Creations) and check out the 60+ Christmas Cookie Recipes we rounded up for you! These make great neighbor gifts and treats for your holiday parties and potlucks. We are making some as we write this. Enjoy!
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This Dollar Store Christmas Decor DIY is super fast, cheap and pretty awesome looking. If you are looking for a quick way to create a festive Christmas feel for your holiday get together, this is your project!
The sparkly, glittery reindeer come in 2 a pack for $1
Grab as many 5×7 frames as you will need
Foam Mount Stickers
Scissors
Christmas Patterned Paper
Cut out the paper to fit the frames and stick inside just like you would a photo.
Tape the reindeer to the outside of the glass with foam mount stickers, which you can get at any craft store and most department stores. You are ready to display! See, I told you it was fast and easy.
Holidays bring time with the kiddos as school breaks ensue. Make it special and memorable with this week’s 50+ Kids Christmas Crafts to make! What better way to keep hands busy and imagination sparked!
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This is your first peak into my new studio, unless of course, you follow Saved By Love Creations on Instagram. It is finally coming together in an awesome creative space after a couple of months of building and repurposing. Today I am sharing with you a vintage steamer trunk I scored and converted into storage for my supplies, as well as a scrap wood + curtain rod washi tape organizer I threw together with my Kreg Jig.
The vintage steamer trunk organizer is self explanatory. I just opened it up and stored my stuff in there. It is so cool looking that I didn’t have to do much.
Washi Tape Organizer DIY
My friend gave me these random thingies. He knew I would use them eventually.
I attached scrap wood planks between them using my Kreg Jig, like I showed you in this DIY Pallet Sign Tutorial.
I removed the “legs” and distress painted the piece like I showed you in this DIY Distress Painting With Vasoline Tutorial.
Next I attached curtain rods to the front that I got for $2 each at Wal Mart, screwed wire onto the back and hung on a hook to the wall.
Pretty simple project, and I cost next to nothing.
While we are on the topic, you may want to check out last year’s budget friendly craft storage ideas we brought you:
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I am a member of the Make It: Fun® Team. This DIY Starburst Christmas Wreath is sponsored FloraCraft® Make It: Fun® Foam. All opinions are honest and mine, like always.
Incorporate the chalkboard craze into a fun starburst Christmas wreath made with dollar store Christmas patterned pencils and a FloraCraft® Make It: Fun® Foam wreath form! This project is easy, quick and cheap. Use it for gift lists, holiday greetings or a letter for santa!
FloraCraft® Make It: Fun® Foam wreath form
Dollar Tree Christmas Pencils
Hot Glue Gun and Sticks
Cardboard cut in a circle the size you want your chalkboard
Burlap Wire Ribbon
Black chalkboard paint
one inch foam or paint brush
Put a dab of hot glue on the end of the pencils and shove them into wreath at varying depths. It doesn’t matter if the eraser comes through to the center of the wreath because you are covering the hole with your chalkboard later.
Continue all the way around the wreath.
Paint your cardboard with chalkboard paint and let dry. I did 2 coats, sanding lightly between.
Tie your burlap ribbon in place, then hot glue your chalkboard circle. Hang and enjoy!
For more inspiration on creating with FloraCraft® Make It: Fun® Foam, please also check out Crafts n’ Coffee or follow the hashtag #MakeitFunCrafts.
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Head over to Taste Every Season for our roundup of 50+ things to do with your Thanksgiving Leftovers. You will find great ideas for leftover turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and more. Yum.
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What Thanksgiving couldn’t use a mouth watering lemon meringue pie? Check out our new fledgling food blog, Taste Every Season, and make your own version of grandma’s best lemon meringue.
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These hand painted rustic signs are a little addictive, and pretty easy to make. Pam from Little Red Porch came over and showed us her technique in this DIY Rustic Wood Sign . I made a video showing you how to use Photoshop to print your text in sections so you can tape them together for transferring large art to wood in this Americana Chalky Finish Paint Sign Tutorial. Today I am sharing this Merry and Bright sign, as well as the text file for you to print off to create your own like I showed you in the links above mentioned.
To download the printable, right click the thumbnail and the full resolution file will pop up for you to print.
