DIY White Boards

Hi and welcome back! Today we're making white boards. Let's go:
You will need:

• Any photo frame
• Scrapbook or any kind of paper
• Scissors
• Strong magnets
• Glue gun

The first thing to do is take the stand off the frame.

Then cut the paper to fin inside the frame.

Lastly, add the magnets to the back of the frame with hot glue.

And that's it! This is how it looks:

I really liked how this DIY turned out. It was really simple, easy and fun to make. I hope you try this one out! 

Until next week, 

-Vasti

DIY Mini Clipboards

Hi! Today we're going to make mini clipboards.
You will need:

• Cardboard (I used a shoebox)
• Glue (I ended up using hot glue)
• Binder clip
• Post-it notes
• Optional: washi tape
• Scissors
• Pencil
• Pen

The first thing to do is cut your cardboard to the size of your post-it notes. With your pencil, trace the post-it note onto the cardboard. Leave a centimeter on all sides, and cut it out.

Then, you can choose to leave your cardboard as it is, but I went ahead and covered it in washi tape. Other options are to cover it in fabric, paper, or to paint it. 

I didn't take a picture of this last step, but attach the binder clip to the cardboard. To do this, first clip the binder clip to the cardboard and trace one side with a pen. Then remove the binder clip, take your glue gun, and glue along the lines that you just traced. All that's left to do is add the post-it notes, and that's it! This is how mine turned out:

I really like how this DIY turned out. It's really simple to make, and can be very useful. I hope you try this out!

Until next week,

-Vasti

DIY Silly Bandz Art

Hello! Today we're going to make art out of Silly Bandz. This is similar to string art, but much easier. I don't know about you, but when I was younger, Silly Bands were very popular. When they went out of style, I didn't know what to do with them, until I came across this really cool DIY. You will need:

• A piece of wood
• Silly Bandz
• Nails
• Hammer

The first thing to do is to nail down all of your nails into the wood. I went outside, so I didn't damage my table when hammering. 

As you can see, my nails don't look perfect, as they are crooked and the wood has some holes, so be careful and take your time during this process. The last step is to take out your Silly Bandz and go all out! Be creative. This is how mine looks:

And that's it! This DIY was easy and fun, but also a bit dangerous. When I was hammering the nails down, I accidentally hammered my own finger several times, so I suggest taking your time and being very careful. I really liked how it turned out, and I also liked how different you can make the design. I hope you try this out!

Until next week,

-Vasti

DIY Cat Planter

Hi! Today we're going to make an easy cat planter out of a plastic bottle. Let's start.

You will need:

• Plastic bottle 
• Scissors
• Black permanent marker
• Pink permanent marker
• White paint
• Paint brush

The first thing to do is trace the shape of your planter. I did a cat shape. Then cut it out.

The next thing to do is paint the inside of the bottle with white paint and let it dry.

Draw on the face with permanent markers, and put a plant in it.

That's it! This DIY was so easy to make, and it's really cool how you can upcycle something so simple into something so cute. I hope you try this out!

Until next week,

-Vasti

 

DIY Tumblr Notebooks

Hello! Today I am going to show you how to make your own notebooks. My school doesn't start for a month, but I like to make school supplies earlier. This is not just putting paper on already made notebooks; this is a full on DIY! Let's get into it:

You will need:

• White cardstock
• Photo paper
• Spray glue
• White glue
• Binder clips
• Lined paper
• Duct tape
• Paper bag
• Scissors

The first thing to do is to make your collage for the cover. I googled 'tumblr pictures' on Google, and used PicMonkey to make a collage. Then print the collage on glossy photo paper.

Next, lay a paper bag on the floor to prevent a mess. Then take a piece of cardstock and use spray glue to adhere it onto the back of the collage. This is now your front cover. To make the back cover, just use another piece of cardstock.

To make the inside of the notebook, take some lined, graph, or plain paper. Place binder clips on 3 of the edges to make sure the paper doesn't move around.

Then, put some white glue on the edge that isn't binder-clipped. Wait until it dries, and add as many layers as needed, until the paper won't separate. 

Unfortunately, I totally forgot to take pictures of this, but I hope you can get the gist by my directions. Remove the binder clips, and align the front and back covers to the glued edge. After that, add more binder clips to assure the front cover, paper, and back cover don't move. Then add your duct tape on the side, to make it look like a spine. I used black gorilla tape for durability. This is how it looks like when done:

I really liked how this turned out. I think this is my most favorite DIY I have done so far. It took some time to make, but it was so worth it! It wasn't very hard, and I like that you can change the whole look of the notebook by changing the cover or the kind of tape. I really hope you try this out!

Until next week, 

-Vasti

DIY Shrinky Dinks

Hi! Today I'm going to show you how to make your own shrinky dinks. Let's get into it:

You will need:

• Permanent markers 
• #6 plastic (in every plastic container there is a little triangle in the corner or bottom. In the triangle there is a number. in this post you have to use a container that has the number 6 in it.)
• Scissors

The first thing to do is to cut out your plastic. I cut the box in a square shape. Then with your permanent markers, draw anything you want on your plastic.

Then cut out the shapes.

After that, preheat your oven or toaster oven to 350° F. Put your plastic pieces on wax or parchment paper, and stick them in the oven.

Then, just keep a close eye on them. Mine took about 5 seconds to shrink, but it depends on the oven. Also, you don't want to burn them! If yours curl up, don't worry. The plastic will flatten out. You know when they're done when they curl up and flatten out. After shrinking, this is how mine turned out:

This DIY was so fun to make, and was so much easier than I expected! I never thought that I could make my own shrink film at home, so it was really cool! I loved how the plastic shrunk so much and made the designs really cute. I hope you try this out!
Until next week,
-Vasti

DIY Fruit Popsicles

Hi! Today we are going to make fruit popsicles! Let's get started. You will need:

• Popsicle mold: if you don't have a mold, you can just use a small cup and a popsicle stick.
• Any type of fruit: I had frozen blueberries, apples, and plums.
• Any type of liquid: I used lemonade, grapefruit soda, grape tea, and blackberry juice.

The first thing to do is add the fruit. 

Then, add the liquid of your choice.

After that, insert the top part of the mold, and put it in the freezer.

And that's it! Here is how one of them turned out:

This DIY was so easy to make. It took 5 minutes to make, and is so fun to do outside! I hope you do this DIY!

Until next week,

-Vasti

DIY Rolled Paper Pencil Holder

Hello, today we are going to make a pencil holder out or rolled paper. You will need:

• Magazine or newspaper
• Skewer
• Glue stick
• Tin can or container
• Glue gun
• Scissors

First, you want to make the rolled paper. I used a magazine, so I cut in in half. Essentially, you want to make 4-inch pieces.

Then, this is going to sound confusing, but hopefully the picture below makes sense. Take the skewer, and put it at the edge of the paper. then, roll the paper up, making sure the paper doesn't get too loose.

When it is rolled and you have make several rolls, they should look like this:

After you make a lot of rolls, you get the hang of it and it becomes easy. The next thing to do is to get your hot glue gun out. Once it is hot, get your container or tin can out and start gluing. 

Once you have glued the paper to the can, cut the excess paper off with scissors. This is a bad picture, but this is how it looks when I was done:

This DIY was really fun, and rolling the paper was really addictive! It took a lot of glue and made my hands really gross and sticky, but it was cool. This makes a really good pencil holder, or a container for anything else. If you have any questions, comment below. I hope you enjoyed this post!

Until next week,

-Vasti

DIY Glasses

I hope you had a great 4th of July! Today I will show you how to make your own glasses from bottles! Let's get started:

You will need:

• Bottle
• Alcohol or Nail Polish Remover
• String or Yarn
• Fire source (I used my stove)
• Bowl with ice cold water
• Sandpaper

The first thing I did was gather all of my materials. Then I wrapped the yarn around the bottle 4-5 times where I wanted the bottle cut, and cut the yarn with the scissors. After that, I tied it in a knot.

Then, I took the yarn off the bottle and soaked it in some nail polish remover.

Then I put the yarn back on.

After that, I set a bowl of ice cold water out.

Then I turned on the heat source, which in my case was my stove.

I set the ice cold water next to me, just in case there was more fire than necessary. Here comes the dangerous step: I recommend parents to do this, or at least parent supervision. I used the stove for the string to catch on fire. When it was on fire, I turned the bottle around and around, and didn't stop until the fire went out so the string could burn evenly. When the fire was out, I quickly plunged it in the ice cold water, and to my surprise, broke cleanly! 

As you might see, the glass wasn't even. Nothing a little sandpaper can't fix! So, for the last step, I took the glass outside and used sandpaper to make it even and smooth.

And that's it! This DIY was a bit more dangerous than the rest, but really fun and worth it to see the bottle break in the water. I hope you try it out, and be careful! Here I am posing for a terrible selfie with my new glass:

Until next time,

-Vasti

DIY Marbled Paper

Hi again! Today we are making marbled paper. Let's get started:

You will need:

• Paper
• Shaving cream
• Acrylic paint or food coloring
• Squeegee
• Pan to put shaving cream in
• Toothpick or pencil

The first thing I did was put the shaving cream in the pan. Then I used the squeegee to flatten it out.

After that, I added the acrylic paint and food coloring.

Then I used my pencil and swirled the paint until I got the pattern that I wanted. 

Then I gently pushed the paper down into the shaving cream.

After that, I took the paper out and set it aside to dry for 3-5 minutes.

Then, I used my squeegee to wipe off the shaving cream. Here is what it looks like after the shaving cream is off:

And that's it! If you want, you can also make more patterns if you get the shaving cream off. This DIY was super fun and very easy, and doing it with another person makes it much better! It is a bit messy, but worth it. I really hope you try this out sometime!

Until next time,

-Vasti