Crafting on a Budget

 

 This week on my Facebook live giveaway, I did a tutorial on how to create a Peek A Boo shirt.   The next giveaway will be for a kit to make your own Peek A Boo shirt.  Winners will be able to choose from the sublimation designs you can find here.  Giveaway is open to everyone.

The sublimation kit will include the fabric inset with the design of the winners choice and the Heat Bond tape to secure the inset onto a shirt that you already have.  

This is the perfect way to upcycle something and give it some new life.

So be sure to visit Crafting On A Budget facebook page and comment and share for 2 chances to win.  Then tune in for the live giveaway to be announced.

 Where do you find your inspiration for projects?  Are you a Pinner?  Do you scroll through Facebook for ideas?  Do you like to thumb through magazines?  

I belong to a couple of crafty groups on Facebook and I follow a few people on YouTube.  I need lots of visual inspiration.  I personally have a hard time pairing colors and just being creative on my own.  I can have a vivid idea in my head, but when it comes time to make it a reality, I'm often disappointed.  That's why I like to find budget friendly ways to create.  That way, if I totally fail at the project, the loss is mostly my time.  Example, I had found some child size red and blue ball caps at the Dollar Tree, that I thought would make cute July 4th hats for the grandkids.  I printed out my DTF design and went to heat apply them to the hats.  Unfortunately, I did a poor job measuring the area that could take a design and made my design too big.  But I still tried that design on each hat.  The design split and the hats were ruined.  But instead of $20 or $30 down the toilet, I only lost $6 in material and my time.  

Practicing on budget friendly finds is a great way to improve your skills and gain confidence in what you're doing.  I like to walk thru the Dollar Tree and look for items to create with.  They have a great crafting section that carries felt, canvases, paints, brushes, sometimes fabric square, yarn and so much more.  Be sure to check there when you have a project in mind.  You might be suprised at the selection of crafty items to keep you on a budget!

 

Six months ago, sublimation was all the craze.  Once people found out you could convert an Epson ecotank printer into a sublimation printer, you couldn't get your hands on one.  I know, I was part of the craze!  But what about sublimation now?  How do I feel about it?  I'm not going to lie, it isn't one of my favorite things.  Why?  Limitations.  The only sure way to get an excellent result is if you are sublimating on white 100% polyester.  Hey, guess what?  Not everyone is a fan of polyester.  And finding white polyester shirts has become as difficult as finding an Epson printer.  But you can sublimate on other things.  Mugs, tumblers, glitter vinyl and special heat transfer papers made for sublimation.  But buyer beware, there have been many reports of people getting mugs and tumblers on Amazon, that were not for sublimation.  To sublimate on any surface, there needs to be a poly coat applied to it first.  So the mugs you can buy at the hobby stores, next to the mug press by a company in Utah, have been specially treated to accept the sublimation ink, when heated to the correct temperature, under the correct pressure.  

Of course there are many companies that have blank substrates, like keychains, koozies, shot glasses, yard flags and even graduation stoles.  You can also buy phone cases and lighters to sublimate.  But that might not be an affordable option if you're trying to sell.  Shipping or minimum orders might make the price tag too high.  So what else can a person sublimate on?  A YouTube search will pull up quite a variety of things that people have sublimated and places to find cheap blanks.  One of my favorite stores for all things crafty is the Dollar Tree.  And I happen to be lucky enough to have 6 stores within a very close distance.  

One hack, that I have not tried yet, is to adhere a laminate sheet to a painters canvas, then sublimate on that to create a vibrant portrait or wall art.  This is something I plan on doing in the near future, to test.  I'll be sure to share the results here.  

Over the course of the next few weeks, I'll be looking for more ways to utilize my sublimation printer and to find more crafty ways to create.  Be sure to check back for updates!

                Congratulations to our first giveaway winners!  

On June 28, 2024 I did a Facebook Live and drew 3 names for the above prizes.  These are 3D printed, ready to decorate mouse ears!  It was fun doing my first live and I plan on doing more.

There is another giveaway going on right now at https://www.facebook.com/ictcheapcrafts.  Don't miss out!

These lovely birdhouses are just a couple of the many 3d svg designs you'll find at Dreaming Tree.  With a few fun touches, like little birds and moss from the Dollar Tree and even a few of the silk flowers they have, you can have a beautiful gift for a friend or neighbor, or put a touch of sping in your home decor.


 

 

Although I've been quiet on here, I have been pretty busy with a few projects.  They range from birthday t-shirts, to Halloween wreaths!  I thought I would take a few minutes to share them with you.


 I spent a day running around to several Dollar Tree stores in my area looking for the sparkle tulle, and the metal wreath rings to make these.  After watching a YouTube tutorial and seeing how easy it was, I wanted to make one for myself.  It's the top picture.  I then made one for my daughter and a son.  I was able to make these for a cost of about $10 each.  And they all have led lights.  It was fun, but very messy.  I have glitter everywhere.  The video is from 2016, and I didn't find the Halloween mesh, so I used the tulle.  I still love the way it turned out.

I have also been designing and making t-shirts for birthdays.  I made one for my grandson's #2, (not pictured) and one for the son of a friend.  The "Cinderella" themed shirt is for my granddaughter.  I will also be making the svgcuts pumpkin carriage for a center piece.  I have made additional shirts for the grand kids, but I don't always think to take a picture before they are "worn away"!

In the mean time my massive paper collection is sitting idle wondering when I will start using it again, while my heat transfer vinyl collection is growing.  But I have my papers picked for the coach and I'll be cutting and gluing it this weekend. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Can you believe it?   It's already May!   Are you scrambling for a last minute teacher appreciation gift?  I got the Oracal 651 out and sat down with ecal 2 and made this design for some of the teachers in our life.  I admit,  I had some trouble and had to remove,  re-cut and then reapply my design on a couple of these,  but FINALLY I got the look I was shooting for.
I finished them with some paper and foil shred.  If you make some using the Dollar Tree tumblers, be sure to include a note to handwash only.   Have fun creating!

I've been very busy with little people this last year and a half.  But now that they are getting older and can entertain themselves for little bits of time, I find more crafting time.  I completed bunnies for Easter that I cut out last year but didn't have time to put together.  I was even able to cut a couple more for new babies.

Someone may be wondering where I disappeared to, so I thought I would take a minute and update by blog.  In September,  a new grandson was born.  Then in October, and new granddaughter was born.  I watch the grandson and his sister (who turns three in a few days) Monday through Friday and I watch the new granddaughter about 2 Saturdays each month.  That doesn't leave much time or energy for crafting these days.  I do manage to sneak in an item or two here and there.  I did make a free file from Dreaming Tree for preschool teachers.

Today's post are projects I actually made last night in anticipation of not having time to craft today.

I used my Sizzix eclips2 to cut vinyl for these two tumblers that are bithday gifts later this week.  Both vinyls are oracal 651 that I purchased off ebay two years ago.  I was afraid to use it until now!  After watching a few youtube videos on how to apply it I have been less hesitant.  I'm very pleased with the outcome of these tumblers.  I bought a case of double wall tumblers from Dollar Tree.  This case had the summer colors.  It has the red and blue you see and a really nice green and orange.  I found the images on the internet under free svg searches and then did a trace into ecal2.  I love the wrapper feature!  It curves the words and design so your cup looks more professional.

Christmas is getting closer!  Radio stations are playing Christmas music and the stores have been full of Christmas decorations for weeks!  My mind has been filled with Christmas projects as well!  But not every project is planned entirely of paper.  I know!  That's not what my name would suggest!  I do like to stray off the paper path every once in a while, just for something different to do.  This Christmas I have plans to add vinyl to the very popular plastic tumblers that everyone seems to carry around.

Hello Everyone.

I went to my local Dollar Tree today to stock up on essentials (face tissue, paper towels, baggies, bread).  I always cruise the other isles, because you just never know.  Today I made some fabulous finds, both for crafting and for gift giving!  Here they are!

This was a fun project to make.  It takes a lot of  paper, but it's super cute and fun to have out for Halloween.   But a project like this can really exhaust your crafting resources. and put a crimp in your craft budget.  I'm going to share a couple of tricks I used to help keep this beauty below budget.

1.  Use tissue paper instead of Velum.  Velum can cost over a dollar per sheet.  I can get an entire package of tissue paper at the Dollar Tree, for just a dollar!  I can't cut it on my machine, but it's not hard to hand cut the pieces.

2.  If your decorative panels are of a heavy, sturdy card stock, use lighter cheaper paper for the base.  It won't have the sturdiness you would get from a project made of all AC card stock, but no ones going to be living in it.  However,  if the decorative panels are of a cute paper, and not card stock, don't scrimp.  (On the roof I used a sturdy purple card stock and some cute Halloween paper I bought a couple of years ago at Michaels.)

3.  Skip additional embellishments.  This house has so much fabulous detail, it doesn't need any embellishment.  On the trim pieces I just inked and embossed.

4.  Mary at SVG Cuts, put a lot of thought into this project and included lining for the interior to finish if off nicely.  That's a wonderful touch, but I saved myself four pieces of paper by leaving them off.

5.  Don't go cheap on glue.  It is what holds your project together.  I like the quick drying glue from 3M.  Even though they changed the bottle and perhaps the formula, I still haven't found any I like better.  It doesn't make the paper wet like some glue does. It doesn't require much to get the job done. And once it's set, it is set!  (I buy it at Micheal's with a 40% off coupon)

6.  I buy most of my "holiday" papers after the holiday, when it's being cleared out.  So, yes, a lot of the projects I make are with last season's paper, or even several years ago.  But who really knows or cares.  I can get more bang for my buck by shopping clearance sales!

I realize that my tips will not change the course of crafting, but perhaps it will help a few of my fellow crafters enjoy more affordable crafting.  If you have a money saving tip, why not share?

Thanks for reading and craft happy!

Paper projects are fun to make, but paper can be expensive.  I have found some ways to make my paper pads go a little farther so I make sure to get my money's worth.  It helps me afford the svg kits I love to buy from SVG Cuts.  I would like to share some of my tips with you, so that you too can enjoy more crafting on a budget.

Today I'm sharing my love for The Dollar Tree!

I have found so many things at the Dollar Tree that I can use in my crafting.  And for $1 it is usually a savings over the craft stores or even Wal-Mart.  I did some shopping there this week for the first day of school teacher gifts I'm sending with the boys.  I bought some little note pads, pens and sticky notes.  With these few items, I'll fill up a desk set and it will be adorable, useful and cheap!  And each purchase will make more than one gift.